十字沟槽表面液态钠沸腾传热特性的分子动力学研究

Molecular Dynamics Study on Boiling Heat Transfer Characteristics of Liquid Sodium on Cross-groove Surfaces

  • 摘要: 为研究十字沟槽纳米结构对液态钠沸腾传热特性的影响,本文基于分子动力学方法构建了光滑表面(T0)及两种十字沟槽表面(T1、T2)模型,并采用LAMMPS软件对不同表面条件下液态钠由受热到沸腾发展的瞬态过程进行了数值模拟。通过分析气泡形核行为、沸腾形态演化、体系能量变化、热流率响应及原子势能分布特征,系统比较了不同表面结构对液态钠沸腾传热过程的影响规律。结果表明,与光滑表面相比,十字沟槽表面上液态钠的初始气泡形核时间明显提前;在沸腾发展阶段,十字沟槽表面上连续蒸汽膜的形成历程相对更长。T1沟槽结构在沸腾演化过程中表现出最高的平均热流率(3.78×10−7 W),其传热性能优于T0光滑表面(3.43×10−7 W)。不同表面结构条件下,固-液界面附近的原子势能分布存在明显差异,其中较深沟槽结构对应的沟槽内部区域以液相占优,有利于固-液界面附近能量交换过程的维持。研究结果从分子动力学尺度揭示了十字沟槽结构条件下液态钠沸腾传热行为的演化特征,可为高温液态金属换热界面的优化设计提供理论参考。

     

    Abstract: Liquid sodium is widely used as a high-temperature heat transfer medium because of its high thermal conductivity, low viscosity, and wide liquid temperature range. Boiling heat transfer of liquid sodium plays an important role in ensuring efficient heat removal and operational safety in advanced energy systems. However, experimental investigation of microscopic boiling behavior is extremely difficult due to the chemical reactivity of liquid sodium and the harsh operating environment. Molecular dynamics simulation provides an effective approach for exploring boiling phenomena at the atomic scale. In this study, molecular dynamics simulations were conducted to investigate the effects of cross-groove nanostructures on the boiling heat transfer behavior of liquid sodium. Three types of solid surfaces were considered, including a smooth surface (T0) and two cross-groove surfaces (T1 and T2) with identical solid-liquid contact areas but different groove geometries. The simulations were performed using the LAMMPS software package. A gold substrate was employed as the heating wall, and liquid sodium was initially equilibrated before being heated to induce boiling. Periodic boundary conditions were applied in the lateral directions, while a reflective boundary condition was imposed in the normal direction. The boiling process was analyzed in terms of bubble nucleation behavior, boiling morphology evolution, system energy variation, heat flow rate response, and atomic potential energy distribution near the solid-liquid interface. The results show that, compared with the smooth surface, cross-groove surfaces exhibit an earlier onset of bubble nucleation. During the subsequent boiling development stage, the formation process of a continuous vapor film on cross-groove surfaces is relatively prolonged, whereas the smooth surface transitions more rapidly into film boiling. Quantitative analysis indicates that the T1 cross-groove structure maintains the highest average heat flow rate during the boiling process, reaching 3.78×10−7 W, which is higher than that of the smooth surface T0 (3.43×10−7 W). The T2 surface also shows improved heat transfer performance compared with T0, although its enhancement effect is less pronounced than that of T1. Analysis of atomic potential energy distributions reveals distinct differences in interfacial phase characteristics under different surface structures. For deeper cross-groove structures, the groove interior regions are predominantly occupied by the liquid phase during boiling, which is beneficial for maintaining energy exchange near the solid-liquid interface. At the molecular dynamics scale, this study elucidates the evolution characteristics of liquid sodium boiling heat transfer influenced by cross-groove nanostructures and provides theoretical support for the structural optimization of high-temperature liquid-metal heat transfer interfaces.

     

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