Study of vaporization of a single droplet impinging on a heated ceramic surface.

The lifetime curves of a single droplet impinging on heated surfaces of ceramics and stainless steel were investigated. The experiments were carried out while concentrating mainly on the temperature region in which the time for vaporization could be shortened. We observed and examined thoroughly the behavior of the droplet, taking photographs with a 16 mm high-speed camera and recording on videotapes. For materials such as ceramics having low thermal conductivity and a characteristic surface, the vaporization modes were different from those on stainless steel or other metal surfaces. The significant difference between them was in the existence of the wide temperature range yielding minimum vaporization times and short lifetimes. The ceramic surface facilitates rapid vaporization of a droplet over a wide temperature range.