An Overview of the Coatings Used in Condenser Tubes

Condensation may occur during various industrial applications, including water collection, desalination, energy generation, and thermal management. This phenomenon affects heat transfer efficiency during energy generation and heat management processes. Film-wise and dropwise condensation were the two types of condensation based on their formation manner. Condenser tubes are one of the energy conversion systems in which the condensation phenomenon dramatically affects the system's efficiency. The high surface energy of the condenser tube results in water film formation on the tube surface, which hinders heat transfer. Therefore, the heat transfer efficiency of the condenser is reduced due to further energy loss. The film-wise condensation should be altered to dropwise ones by reducing the surface energy of the tube to eliminate this issue. Hence, different coatings are applied to increase the condenser tubes' hydrophobicity and heat transfer capacity. In this study, the importance of wettability and heat transfer mechanisms in condenser tubes was determined primarily. Afterward, different coatings used to create dropwise condensation were introduced. Eventually, the applications and attributes of the mentioned coatings based on their cost, strength, durability, and efficiency were introduced.