Reduction in the surface tension of water due to physical water treatment for fouling control in heat exchangers

Abstract

The purpose of the present study was to investigate whether or not a physical water treatment (PWT) reduced the surface tension of hard water. Two different PWT devices were used: a permanent magnet - Drexel University (PMDU) and a solenoid coil electronic device (SCED). The effects of the treatment number of the PWT on the surface tension were studied. Two separate experiments were conducted: one was the measurement of surface tension, and the other was a flow-visualization of dye behavior in water samples. As the number of treatments of the PWT increased, the surface tension of the sample water decreased, a phenomenon that was consistent with the results in the dye flow-visualization experiment. © 2004 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.