Influence of the developing region of the thermal boundary layer on heat transfer during vapor condensation on horizontal tube bundles

The purpose of this publication is to describe a phenomenon that is fundamentally important and, at the same time, hardly elucidated in the literature. In the process of film condensation of vapor on the bundles of horizontal tubes, a developing region of the thermal boundary layer is formed on each tube of the bundle; the role of this region in heat transfer is important, and in some cases decisive. The paper presents experimental results on the influence of various contributions of the developing region on heat transfer during film vapor condensation on tube bundles. Based on the data obtained, an algorithm for calculating a condenser during condensation of a stationary vapor without non-condensable impurities is proposed.