Can multiple flow boiling regimes be reduced into a single one in microchannels?

We report that multiple and transitional flow boiling regimes in microchannels can be reduced into a single annular flow from the onset of nucleate boiling to the critical heat flux condition. Hydrophilic silicon nanowires directly grown on inner walls of microchannels were tailored to create boiling surfaces with optimal submicron pores surrounded by nanogaps through controlling the height and density of silicon nanowires using the nanocarpet effect. A single two-phase regime can be realized by controlling the flow structure in two aspects: reducing bubble size and transforming the dominant surface tension force from the cross-sectional plane to the inner-wall plane. (C) 2013 AIP Publishing LLC.