Experimental investigation of drying by pore networks: influence of pore size distribution and temperature

Abstract

Isothermal and non-isothermal drying of pore structures has been experimentally investigated using 2D square network models of interconnected etched channels with different (Gaussian) distributions of the channel width. In experiments with imposed temperature gradients, the temperatures either increase from the open side of the network with increasing network depth (referred to as the positive temperature gradient) or the temperatures decrease with increasing distance from the network opening (i.e. a negative temperature gradient). Experiments reveal that the observed phase patterns, or the distributions of liquid and gas, during drying are significantly depending on the direction of the temperature gradient; but also the presence of macro channels can have a strong effect on the phase patterns as well as on drying time.