STRATEGIES FOR DEVELOPING SURFACES TO ENHANCE DROPWISE CONDENSATION: EXPLORING CONTACT ANGLES, DROPLET SIZES, AND PATTERNING SURFACES

While research efforts are invested in promoting and sustaining dropwise condensation, various physical challenges continue to present themselves as hurdles. Microelectromechanical systems-based fabrication techniques have allowed us to develop superhydrophobic surfaces that demonstrate the lotus leaf effect, with the objective of promoting the condensation and coalescence of smaller diameter droplets. This paper highlights the latest investigations and trends that arise in demonstrating enhanced condensation, as well as major factors that need to be considered while enhancing condensation heat transfer. Some of these factors are the utility of contact angle measurements in assessing a surface's condensation mode, the diminishing heat transfer for very small droplet diameters, the added thermal resistance effects of the textured surfaces, and the pinning of the drops' contact line during growth and coalescence.