RT Journal Article
T1 The “Effect of Marangoni Convection on Heat Transfer in Phase Change Materials” experiment
A1 García Fernández, Loreto
A1 Porter, J.
A1 Laverón-Simavilla, A.
A1 Bou-Ali, M.M.
A1 Ruiz, X.
A1 Gavalda, F.
A1 Ezquerro, J.M.
A1 Salgado Sánchez, P.
A1 Martínez, U.
A1 Gligor, D.
AB Present as well as future challenges of space exploration point to the need for improved thermal control systems. The “Effect of Marangoni Convection on Heat Transfer in Phase Change Materials” experiment, which is approved by ESA for execution on board the International Space Station, aims to contribute directly to current knowledge and basic understanding of heat and mass transport in phase change materials (PCMs) that incorporate a free surface in reduced gravity. The experiment will apply fixed temperatures to opposite ends of PCM samples held in cuboidal and cylindrical containers in order to drive controlled melting and solidification cycles that will be observed by means of optical cameras. The recorded images will be complemented by thermal measurements at key positions along the samples, which will allow different thermocapillary flow regimes to be distinguished according to their temporal dynamics. It is anticipated that thermal Marangoni (thermocapillary) convection will increase the heat transfer rate in these PCM devices by a significant factor (on the order of two or more) compared to melting governed by thermal diffusion (conduction). If the PCM designs prove robust, the experiment results can be expected to lead to substantial improvements in future designs for passive PCM applications in space missions.
SN 0094-5765
YR 2023
FD 2023-09
LK https://hdl.handle.net/20.500.14352/129983
UL https://hdl.handle.net/20.500.14352/129983
LA eng
NO Porter, J., Laverón-Simavilla, A., Bou-Ali, M. M., Ruiz, X., Gavalda, F., Ezquerro, J. M., ... & García-Fernández, L. (2023). The “effect of Marangoni convection on heat transfer in phase change materials” experiment. Acta Astronautica, 210, 212-223.
NO Firman 21 autores
NO Ministerio de Ciencia, Innovación y Universidades (España)
NO Spanish User Support and Operations Centre (España)
NO Center for Computational Simulation (España)
NO Gobierno Vasco (España)
NO Universitat Rovira i Virgili (España)
DS Docta Complutense
RD 20 ene 2026