Researchers at MIT have found that relatively simple, microscale roughening of a surface can dramatically enhance its transfer of heat by more than doubling the maximum heat dissipation.
To test the process, the researchers made a series of postage-stamp-sized silicon wafers with varying degrees of surface roughness. They found that systematically increasing roughness led to a proportional increase in heat-dissipation capability, regardless of the dimensions of the surface-roughening features. The team concluded that this was because surface roughness enhances capillary action, helping keep a line of vapor bubbles “pinned” to the heat transfer surface, delaying the formation of a vapor layer that greatly reduces cooling.
While the most immediate applications would likely be in high-performance electronic devices and perhaps in concentrated solar-power systems, the same principles could apply to larger systems such as powerplant boilers, desalination plants or nuclear reactors.
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Changes in Surface Texture Double Heat Dissipation
