TY - JOUR
T1 - Frosting suppression via edge structure optimization
T2 - a comparative analysis of five geometric types
AU - Wu, Longping
AU - Zhang, Long
AU - Wang, Guoqing
AU - Xie, Teng
AU - Zhang, Xuan
AU - Song, Mengjie
N1 - Publisher Copyright:
© 2026 Elsevier Ltd.
PY - 2026/7
Y1 - 2026/7
N2 - Frost accumulation at surface edges presents a significant challenge to thermal management systems; however, the quantitative impact of edge geometry on condensation frosting remains poorly understood. This study experimentally investigates the condensation and frosting behaviors of five edge geometries: right-angled, acute-angled, obtuse-angled, chamfered, and rounded edges. An edge-effect coefficient (α) is firstly introduced to quantify the influence of geometry on droplet growth dynamics. The results demonstrate that chamfered and rounded edges suppress edge-enhanced condensation by spatially redistributing vapor flux, reducing frost layer thickness on horizontal surfaces by 15.80% and 14.41%, respectively, compared to conventional right-angled edges. The underlying mechanism involves the creation of customized edge regions that compete for water vapor, effectively mitigating the vapor concentration gradient caused by geometric discontinuities. These findings provide fundamental insights into edge-affected phase change phenomena and offer a geometric strategy for passive frost suppression in heat pumps and refrigeration systems.
AB - Frost accumulation at surface edges presents a significant challenge to thermal management systems; however, the quantitative impact of edge geometry on condensation frosting remains poorly understood. This study experimentally investigates the condensation and frosting behaviors of five edge geometries: right-angled, acute-angled, obtuse-angled, chamfered, and rounded edges. An edge-effect coefficient (α) is firstly introduced to quantify the influence of geometry on droplet growth dynamics. The results demonstrate that chamfered and rounded edges suppress edge-enhanced condensation by spatially redistributing vapor flux, reducing frost layer thickness on horizontal surfaces by 15.80% and 14.41%, respectively, compared to conventional right-angled edges. The underlying mechanism involves the creation of customized edge regions that compete for water vapor, effectively mitigating the vapor concentration gradient caused by geometric discontinuities. These findings provide fundamental insights into edge-affected phase change phenomena and offer a geometric strategy for passive frost suppression in heat pumps and refrigeration systems.
KW - Condensation frosting
KW - Edge effect
KW - Frost suppression
KW - Geometrical optimization
KW - Vapor competition
UR - https://www.scopus.com/pages/publications/105038727780
U2 - 10.1016/j.applthermaleng.2026.131490
DO - 10.1016/j.applthermaleng.2026.131490
M3 - Article
AN - SCOPUS:105038727780
SN - 1359-4311
VL - 300
JO - Applied Thermal Engineering
JF - Applied Thermal Engineering
M1 - 131490
ER -