Electro-structural regulation of vapour-limited energy extraction in safety-critical quenching systems
File(s)
Accepted version
Author(s)
Inbaoli, A
Sujith Kumar, CS
Chougule, Sandesh S
Markides, Christos N
Type
Journal Article
Abstract
Managing extreme thermal loads in safety-critical quenching and emergency cooling systems remains a critical bottleneck for energy-intensive industrial processes, where vapour-mediated interfacial resistance suppresses energy extraction and constrains operational stability. Existing passive and active strategies are constrained by their inherent latency in enabling effective thermal energy transport pathways during critical transient cooling periods. To address this bottleneck, a hybrid strategy is developed that couples an additive manufactured point-contact cellular surface architecture with electrohydrodynamic (EHD) interfacial actuation. The synergistic effects of architected interfacial pathways and EHD actuation are evaluated on stainless steel (SS316L) substrates using high-speed visualization and transient heat flux analysis. The hybrid approach effectively suppresses vapour-mediated insulation, increasing the minimum film boiling temperature (Tmin) from 281 °C to 436 °C. By expanding the operational window of efficient cooling to higher temperatures, the system achieves 2.7 times increase in cumulative energy extraction, reaching 1.8 MJ/m2 during the critical initial period of quenching. Furthermore, the active control modulates the energy release profile, converting stochastic thermal shock into a rate-controlled dissipation trajectory. These results establish a scalable design principle for safety-critical systems, in which energy extraction rate, operational stability, and auxiliary energy cost are simultaneously constrained.
Date Issued
2026-08-15
Date Acceptance
2026-05-07
Citation
Energy, 2026, 357
ISSN
0360-5442
Publisher
Elsevier BV
Start Page
141308
End Page
141308
Journal / Book Title
Energy
Volume
357
Copyright Statement
Copyright © 2026 Elsevier Ltd. This is the author’s accepted manuscript made available under a CC-BY licence in accordance with Imperial’s Research Publications Open Access policy (www.imperial.ac.uk/oa-policy)
License URL
Publication Status
Published
Article Number
141308
Date Publish Online
2026-05-08