Experimental Thermal and Fluid Science 34 (2010) 463473

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Experimental Thermal and Fluid Science

journal homepage: www.elsevier.com/locate/etfs

Film thickness measurement techniques applied to micro-scale two-phase

ow systems
Cristiano Bigonha Tibiri, Francisco Jlio do Nascimento, Gherhardt Ribatski *
Department of Mechanical Engineering, Escola de Engenharia de So Carlos (EESC), University of So Paulo (USP), So Carlos, Brazil

a r t i c l e i n f o a b s t r a c t

Article history: Recently semi-empirical models to estimate ow boiling heat transfer coefcient, saturated CHF and
Received 10 November 2008 pressure drop in micro-scale channels have been proposed. Most of the models were developed based
Received in revised form 28 March 2009 on elongated bubbles and annular ows in the view of the fact that these ow patterns are predominant
Accepted 30 March 2009
in smaller channels. In these models, the liquid lm thickness plays an important role and such a fact
emphasizes that the accurate measurement of the liquid lm thickness is a key point to validate them.
On the other hand, several techniques have been successfully applied to measure liquid lm thicknesses
Keywords:
during condensation and evaporation under macro-scale conditions. However, although this subject has
Film thickness measurements
Microchannel
been targeted by several leading laboratories around the world, it seems that there is no conclusive result
Two-phase ow describing a successful technique capable of measuring dynamic liquid lm thickness during evaporation
Annular ow inside micro-scale round channels. This work presents a comprehensive literature review of the methods
Convective boiling used to measure liquid lm thickness in macro- and micro-scale systems. The methods are described and
the main difculties related to their use in micro-scale systems are identied. Based on this discussion,
the most promising methods to measure dynamic liquid lm thickness in micro-scale channels are
identied.
2009 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

1. Introduction was achieved by using a heat exchanger based on micro-scale

Over the last decade, heat transfer and uid ow mechanisms in
micro-scale channels have attracted the interest of a broad number
of researchers not only from academy, but also from industry. The
possibility of obtaining huge advantages in a vast number of appli-
cations by using this technology has highlighted this subject in the
eld of thermal-sciences. Thus, a large number of papers concern-
ing this topic has showed up.
In general, micro-scale channel technology has been developed
focusing on the following aspects: (i) dissipation of high heat ux
densities based on reduced volumes; (ii) thermal control and
mechanical actuation of MEMS (Micro-Electro-Mechanical Sys-
tems); (iii) chemical reactions under strictly controlled conditions;
(iv) and applications involving high operational pressures (up to
600 bar [1]) and temperatures (1000 C [2]). Consequently, the
use of micro-scale channels has not only made new technologies
feasible, but also reduced operational and manufacturing costs,
having a direct impact on environmental issues since it minimizes
the amount of material used in their manufacture as well as the
refrigerant inventory used in the system.
On Pagerungan Island in Indonesia, in an off-shore natural gas
processing system, a reduction of 80% in the heat exchanger weight
* Corresponding author. Tel.: +55 1633739415.
E-mail addresses: bigonha@sc.usp.br (C.B. Tibiri), francisco.nascimento@usp.br
(F.J. do Nascimento), ribatski@sc.usp.br (G. Ribatski).
channels instead of a shell-and-tube heat exchanger [1]. In phar-
maceutical and chemical industries, by integrating heat exchang-
ers, mixers and reactors as a block of micro-components, it is
possible to achieve a signicant decrease in the system size. Addi-
tionally, reactors having reduced dimensions may accelerate the
reaction signicantly when compared against traditional ones,
reducing the residence time and the amount of catalysers. More-
over, they permit a more accurate control of the parameters in-
volved in the process, such as the temperature. In automotive
fuel cells, the heat dissipation system should be compact and con-
tain a minimum number of components. Once operational, the
heat exchanger device should t a certain pressure drop, present
a minimum response time, and maintain an exact uid inventory
for the satisfactory operation of the fuel cell. Such characteristics
are associated with heat exchangers based on micro-scale
channels.
Research programs focusing on the development of nuclear
reactors are in progress. In this context, reactors based on gas
(VHTR Very High Temperature Gas Cooled Reactors) and liquid
metal cooling (LFR Liquid Metal Fast Reactors) have been given
renewed interest [2,3]. The systems under development consider
highly effective during hydrogen production and electrical power
generation via a Brayton cycle. To achieve high efciencies,
operational temperatures up to 1000 C and high effective heat
exchangers are under consideration. Dewson and Li [2]
demonstrated that the features and characteristics of micro-scale

0894-1777/$ - see front matter 2009 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.
doi:10.1016/j.expthermusci.2009.03.009
464 C.B. Tibiri et al. / Experimental Thermal and Fluid Science 34 (2010) 463473
Nomenclature
D diameter, (m)
m mass ow rate, (kg/s)
q heat ux, (W/m2)
Greek symbols
d liquid lm thickness (lm)
h refraction angle (rad)
channels based heat exchangers are ideally suited to this challeng-
ing duty.
Heat exchangers based on micro-scale channels are actually
found in heat pumps and automotive air conditioning systems, as
well as in thermal management devices of microprocessors and
high power laser systems. They are also potential candidates to
be applied to radiator panels of spacecrafts, thermal control of sat-
ellites, and residential air conditioning systems. The development
of MEMS technologies is intrinsically related to a better knowledge
of the heat transfer phenomena occurring in micro-scale channels
since in these devices the dissipation of high amount of heat is ob-
served, reaching values of about 50% of the consumed power.
From a point of view of heat transfer applications, ow boiling
in micro-scale channels possesses clear advantages over a single-
phase solution due to higher heat transfer coefcients and much
lower temperature gradients along the heat exchanger. However,
until now, most of the development in this area has been made
in a heuristic way. Recently some mechanistic models have been
proposed in order to achieve a better understanding of the physical
mechanisms responsible for determining the heat transfer, pres-
sure drop and CHF during ow boiling in micro-scale channels.
Micro-scale ow boiling heat transfer models like the 3-zone
model by Thome and coworkers [4,5], for elongated bubbles, Qu
and Mudawar [6] for annular ow and Saitoh et al. [7], for post-
dryout regime, consider conduction through a liquid lm as the
main heat transfer mechanism.
A representation of the model by Thome et al. [4] is shown in
Fig. 1. This model provides the time average heat transfer coef-
cient during the cyclic passage of a liquid slug, an evaporating
elongated bubble and a vapor slug when present. It has ve empir-
ical constants (see Dupont et al. [5]) of which two are directly re-
lated to the lm thickness during the elongated bubble passage.
Qu and Mudawar [6] proposed a heat transfer model based on
the liquid lm progressive evaporation during annular ow. The
model comprises four differential equations and provides the local
lm thickness as a result. The heat transfer coefcient is obtained
by the ratio between the thermal conductivity and liquid lm
thickness. Effects on the liquid lm thickness related to liquid
droplets detachment and deposition were also included.
Fig. 1. Diagram illustrating a triplet comprised of a liquid slug, an elongated bubble
and a vapor slug in the 3-zone heat transfer model [4].
Subscripts
0 initial
c critical angle
min minimum
Recently, Revellin and Thome [8] developed a theoretical model
for the prediction of the critical heat ux under saturated stable
conditions in uniformly heated, round micro-scale channels. The
model consists in predicting the local dryout of the liquid lm in
annular ow occurring when the lm thickness becomes equal to
the interfacial wave height during evaporation. It is based on the
conservation of mass, momentum and energy, LaplaceYoung
equation and a semi-empirical expression for the height of the
interfacial waves. The validation was carried out by comparing
the model, composed of a numerical solution of a non-linear sys-
tem of ve differential equations, with a database including three
different refrigerants (R134a, R245fa and R113) from two different
laboratories. This model worked relatively well when compared
against independent CHF data and was also capable of predicting
diabatic pressure drops. However, the model failed when its esti-
mated lm thickness was used to calculate the local heat transfer
coefcient as the ratio between the liquid thermal conductivity
and the liquid lm thickness according to Tibiri and Ribatski [9].
To highlight the importance of determining the lm thickness,
it should be also mentioned that once the local liquid lm thick-
ness is known, it becomes easier to estimate the supercial void
fraction, hence the liquid and gas velocities as well as the acceler-
ational pressure drop and the uid inventory along the channels.
Despite its importance, according to the open literature, only
few authors have addressed the issue of measuring liquid lm
thickness in micro-scale two-phase ow systems [10]. In part, this
is due to the fact that ow boiling in micro-scale channels is an
emerging and recent technology. However, the main reason is re-
lated to the small dimensions involved and the inherent difculties
in developing non-intrusive transducers at these scales. Moreover,
the small lm thickness requires a non-invasive measuring method
to avoid disturbance of the ow. In this work, a comprehensive lit-
erature review of the methods used to measure liquid lm thick-
ness in macro- and micro-scale systems is presented. The
methods are described and the main difculties related to their
use in micro-scale systems are pointed out. Based on this discus-
sion, the most promising methods to measure dynamic liquid lm
thickness in micro-scale channels are identied.
2. Liquid lm thickness measurement techniques
The development of techniques to measure liquid lm thickness
has been an important topic in the area of two-phase ow for a
long time. New methods based on different physical phenomena
and considering distinct liquid characteristics have been con-
stantly proposed. As a rule, methods are developed having in mind
specic experimental conditions and are not suitable as general
methods, i.e., intrusive methods are used for thicker lms. The
measurement methods can be classied and segregated according
to groups based on the physical principles involved, the annular-
ow characteristics and the uid type for which they were de-
signed. A review of the optical instrumentation applied to the char-
acterization of two-phase ow was presented by Hewitt and
 C.B. Tibiri et al. / Experimental Thermal and Fluid Science 34 (2010) 463473
Whalley [11] in the year of 1980. They focused on macro-scale sys-
tems and described (i) laser instrumentation to determine droplet
size, local temperature and local concentration, and (ii) axial view
photography methods for annular ows. They proposed a classi-
cation of the methods based on the light modulation process
(absorption, scattering, interference, refraction, and excitation)
and the recording method (electronic and photographic). Compre-
hensive reviews of measurement techniques for two-phase ows
were also presented by Jones and Delhaye [12] and Snoek [13] in
the years of 1976 and 1990, respectively, and are suggested here
as references for previous work.
This paper proposes a new classication taking into consider-
ation the nature of the signal and the measurement principle in or-
der to group the methods that have a similar base and describe
them in an organized manner. The methods were grouped as fol-
lows: (i) acoustic, (ii) electrical, and in the case of those based on
radiation, the following groups were assumed: (iii) optical, which
involve visible light wavelengths and methods involving (iv) the
absorption by the uid of a radiation of a certain wavelength differ-
ent than visible light wavelengths. Based on this segregation, indi-
vidual descriptions of the literature concerning each measurement
method are presented in the following items.
2.1. Acoustic methods
Acoustic methods are based on ultrasonic waves and have been
a powerful tool to characterize ow patterns and to measure liquid
lm thickness in two-phase macro-scale systems. The ultrasonic
technique is based on the fact that ultrasound waves are attenu-
ated and reected when crossing discontinuities of a medium as
a liquidgas interface. Therefore, reection can be used to measure
the lm thickness based on the transit time. High-frequency ultra-
sonic waves are preferred as they provide better signal-to-noise ra-
tio (SNR) and increasing resolution.
Lu et al. [14] measured liquid lm thicknesses of R113 and
FC-72 condensing inside a horizontal rectangular channel of
40  25 mm2. Ultrasonic transducers were xed at ve different
locations along the tube bottom. The method was based on the de-
lay time between the pulse emission and its return after its reec-
tion on the liquidvapor interface. The lm thickness was
determined by the product between the delaying time and the
sound velocity in the liquid phase. Lu et al. [14] experiments were
performed using a wave frequency of 20 MHz and thickness mea-
surements down to 0.3 mm were obtained. Their method was not
suitable to wavy lms, since wavy interfaces caused severe dif-
culties in detecting the reected ultrasonic wave, as reported by
the authors. Pedersen et al. [15] developed an ultrasonic technique
and used it to measure liquid lm thickness during condensation
on a downward facing surface. Their method is restricted to near
planar lm interfaces and is based on standing waves introduced
in the thin layer as well as on the spectral analysis of the resonant
wave. They used frequencies of up to 10 MHz and measured liquid
lm thicknesses from 50 to 500 lm. Satisfactory results were ob-
tained by Carvalho et al. [16] when applying the ultrasonic tech-
nique to characterize vertical upward airwater bubbly ow.
Uncertainties associated with ultrasonic techniques are directly
related to the ultrasonic wavelength (much larger than the light
wavelength), which could limit the application of the method to ul-
tra thin lms.
2.2. Electrical methods
Conductance-based methods: This technique is simple and
broadly used in macro-scale systems. The method consists in
imposing an electrical potential difference between electrodes
and measuring the resulting current. The conductivity between
465
the wire probes is directly related to the amount of uid between
them. A thicker liquid lm increases the electrical conductivity
which can be measured in terms of either current or potential
(or voltage) through the probes. A problem related to this method
is the fact that the output from the electrodes is saturated if the
distance between the sensor electrodes is small in comparison
with the lm thickness [17]. Generally, the excitation signal of suf-
ciently high frequency is used to reduce the impedance to a
purely resistive contribution, therefore the contact impedance
resulting from electrochemical phenomena taking place near the
electrodes becomes negligible [18,19].
Electrodes based on metallic strips separated by an isolator
were designed by Coney [20] in order to measure lm thicknesses
up to 2.5 mm. He proposed the segmentation in three parts of one
of the strips to avoid end effects on the central segment. The fre-
quency chosen for the lm thickness measurements was 50 kHz.
Falling lm thicknesses in a vertical 31.8 mm I.D. tube for air
water ows were measured by Thwaites et al. [21] to investigate
the effects of the addition of polymeric drag reducing agents on
both the lm structure and its waviness. Electrical conductive
probes were used to measure the lm thickness, wavy frequency
and wave velocities. Film thicknesses down to 0.1 mm were mea-
sured. Laurinat et al. [22] measured lm height averaged around
the tube circumference for annular airwater ows in horizontal
25.4 and 50.8 mm I.D. tubes. According to the lm thickness range,
different probe congurations were used: two parallel wires for
thicker lms and ush mounted plates in the case of thinner lms.
Probes spaced at 45 intervals around the pipe were used.
Fukano [17] developed a technique to measure liquid lm thick-
ness and void fraction based on a DC power source and two pairs of
electrodes mounted ush with the surface of the channel. The rst
pair was used to supply electric power and the second was located
between the rst pair to provide the voltage drop between them.
The following congurations were proposed by the author: (i) in-
line electrodes distributed according to the channel axis; this con-
guration was used to measure average void fractions over the vol-
ume comprising the distance between the sensors and (ii)
concentric electrodes to obtain local measurements. The electrodes
are composed of two concentric rings and one circular rod at the
center of the two rings as shown in Fig. 2. A DC current is supplied
from the center rod (electrode A) and the outermost ring (electrode
C). The signal is detected from the center rod and the middle ring
(electrode B), which are the sensor electrodes. In these methods,
the liquid must be electro-conductive and the difference in the
electrical resistance between the gas and the liquid phases must
be large. The methods were applied to a rectangular test section
(10 mm of height and 40 mm of width) made of acrylic resin for
airwater ows. Seven distinct ow patterns were proposed based
on lm waviness including a non-wetting ow characterized by
the occurrence of the break-up of the lm. Peakvalley distances
down to 0.12 mm were clearly characterized by this method.
Fig. 2. Schematic view of the local lm thickness measurement probe, Fukano [17].
466 C.B. Tibiri et al. / Experimental Thermal and Fluid Science 34 (2010) 463473
By using an electrical conductance based-technique, Jong and
Gabriel [23] measured average lm thicknesses, minimum and
maximum wave heights, wave frequencies and velocities for verti-
cal upward annular airwater ows under micro- and normal grav-
ity inside a 9.5 mm I.D. tube. The used technique consisted of two
pairs of 40 lm stainless steel wires spaced by 2 mm and stretched
across the tube cross section. Then, the electrical conductance be-
tween the wires was measured. A micrometer needle probe was
used to calibrate the sensor. Film thicknesses values down to
0.2 mm were measured with an uncertainty of 0.045 mm.
Burns et al. [24] developed a device to measure the instanta-
neous liquid lm thickness of electrically conducting uids on a
spinning disc. Twelve circular concentric brass electrodes embed-
ded in the disc were used and their potentials and liquid resistance
were measured. A 6 V square wave at 850 Hz was supplied to the
circuit and 4 different liquids were used in their experiments. Maz-
za and Rosa [25] used pairs of wires to measure bubble average li-
quid lm thickness during the passage of gas pistons for airwater
ow in a 26 mm diameter tube.
Kumar et al. [26] measured liquid lm thickness and wave
velocity in rectangular channels (6.35 mm of height and 63.5 mm
of width) for upward vertical annular ows. They used two ush-
wire conductivity probes with wire diameters of 50 lm. The con-
ductivity was measured by the application of 100 kHz signal to
avoid ionic reaction at the electrodes and to allow for a fast time
response. The statistical calibration procedure was outlined and
validated by Kang and Kim [27] and is based on two procedures
for a xed ow rate. First they put the probe in contact mode
and scanned it until the probe had touched the liquid lm. Then
the probe was put in conductivity mode and inserted into the lm.
The generated conductivity histogram was used to calibrate the
system with the thickness measured by the contact mode. They
could measure the lm thickness in the range of 50350 lm. Typ-
ical uncertainties were around 5 lm plus 6% of the lm thickness.
Problems associated with this method are the following: the need
for inserting a probe in the ow affecting the reliability of the mea-
surement, aging of the probe and sediment deposition over the
probes, which can also affect the results.
Capacitance-based methods: Methods based on electrical capac-
itance have attracted the interest of several researchers since they
were proposed by sg et al. [28], as these methods are non-intru-
sive and can be used with dielectric uids. This technique is based
on the fact that when two metal plates submitted to an electric
current are faced against each other, a capacitance is created which
value will depend on the plate area, the distance of the plates, and
the dielectric constant of the medium between them. If the dielec-
tric medium is composed of liquid and gas, the capacitance will
vary according to the two-phase morphology. Then, the capaci-
tance can be measured and correlated with the lm thickness.
Either the calibration or a temperature correction scheme must
take into account temperature dependences since both the permit-
tivity of the liquid and the sensor material are temperature-depen-
dent. It is important to mention that a device developed to
measure lm thickness for conductive uids may also be used with
dielectric uids by measuring the capacitance signal between the
electrodes instead of current or voltage.
Klausner et al. [29] developed a temperature-independent lm
thickness measurement method based on capacitance measure-
ments. By using this method they measured lm thicknesses from
1 to 25 mm for R113 evaporating in a square cross-section
(25.4 mm of side). Later, Thorncroft and Klausner [30] used a par-
allel-plate capacitance sensor to measure liquid lm thickness for
horizontal, vertical upward and downward two-phase ows in a
12.7 mm side square cross-section. The capacitance was measured
with a commercial instrument presenting a resolution of 0.1 fF and
accurate to 0.1% of full scale. A simplied model was developed for
predicting capacitance output as a function of the lm thickness.
Temperature curves for liquid and vapor capacitances were ob-
tained. CCD photographs were used to validate the results. By
using the CCD photographs, estimated uncertainties of 0.25 mm
for downow and 0.53 mm for upward ow were obtained. The
standard deviation between the photographs and the capacitance
method for the upow was about 0.173 mm.
Liu et al. [31] evaluated the use of electrical capacitance tomog-
raphy to measure the thickness of thin liquid lms. They used a
sensor comprised of eight electrodes evenly spaced around a
15 mm O.D. tube with wall thickness of 1.5 mm. Different image
reconstruction algorithms were used. A pixel resolution of 85 lm
was attained and lm thicknesses down to 60 lm determined.
Measured values were compared against results from the Nusselt
theory and CFD simulated data. A reasonable agreement was ob-
tained between CFD simulations and measured data by using an
appropriate image reconstruction technique.
Recently, Ameur et al . [32] investigated the two-phase ow
structure and heat transfer of unsteady natural convective boiling
in a narrow vertical channel. In their investigation, diabatic void
fraction measurements were performed using the capacitance
method for n-pentane at a saturation pressure of 1 bar. The con-
nement space consisted of a heated copper block spaced
0.8 mm apart of an unheated surface placed parallel to the heated
surface. The measurements were performed at ve different posi-
tions along the test section. Void fraction measurements from 0.2
to 0.8 were performed.
2.3. Optical methods
Interface detection: These methods are based on the detection of
the liquidgas and liquidsolid interfaces. The light emitted by
each phase should present different characteristics (color or inten-
sity) in such a way that light gradients are generated at the inter-
faces. Photographs and high-speed video cameras are used to
register the two-phase ow image and, then, by a procedure
involving pixel counting, the lm thickness is determined. Differ-
ent techniques are applied to create the light gradient at the inter-
face, e.g., colored liquids, shadowgraph, seeding particle and
induced uorescent dye.
The interfaces can also be detected through methods based on
the external reection of light [33]. In these cases, the immovabil-
ity of the light sources, lens, mirrors and light sensors must be as-
sured. Thus, the measurement system cannot be submitted to any
kind of vibration source. Methods based on the external reection
of light are appropriate for conditions characterized by free sur-
faces as in-tube stratied ows and external falling lms.
Ursenbacher et al. [34] developed an optical method for accu-
rately detecting the instantaneous vaporliquid interface in strati-
ed two-phase ows in a horizontal 13.6 mm I.D. tube. To
highlight the vaporliquid interface, a monochromatic laser sheet
(wavelength of 532 nm) normal to the tube axis was used, and
RhodamineB was added to the working uids (R22 and R410A).
RhodamineB is a uorescent dye when excited by a laser light with
a wavelength of 532 nm. The distorted cross-sectional ow image
recorded externally by a high-speed video camera was recon-
structed through computerized image analysis in order to deter-
mine the cross-sectional dry angle and void fraction.
Falling lm thickness measurements on a horizontal tube of
19.05 mm O.D. were conducted by Gstoehl et al. [35]. In their work,
lm thicknesses of 80 lm1.4 mm were measured. RhodamineB
was added to the test uids (water, ethyleneglycol and water
glycol) and a monochromatic laser sheet was used to induce uo-
rescence in the lm and generate the contrast at the air/liquid
interface. A high speed camera with magnifying lenses captured
images of the lm to be compared to an image of the test section
 C.B. Tibiri et al. / Experimental Thermal and Fluid Science 34 (2010) 463473 467

without uid. By comparing these images through computerized

analysis, the height of the lm was determined. In their measure-
ment system, it was possible to observe an error of 20 lm related
to the interface recognition due to an unclear light contrast at this
region.
Stratied airwater lm thicknesses were measured by Stein-
brenner et al. [10] in hydrophilic channels by using an optical uo-
rescence imagining technique in a 45  500 lm2 rectangular
channel (H  V). A video camera and a 10 objective lens were
used to capture the ow images. 0.5 mmol concentration of uo-
resce in dye were added to the water and a metal halide lamp
was used to obtain uorescence excitation. A threshold uores-
cence intensity pixel was used to indicate the airwater interface.
Under high air supercial velocity and low water supercial veloc-
ity, probably due to an interfacial meniscus that blurs the appear-
ance of the interface, a higher uncertainty of 10 lm on the lm
thickness was observed according to the adopted threshold. Film
thicknesses down to 20 lm were measured.
Light attenuation: These methods are based on the capacity of a Fig. 3. Experimental apparatus, Utaka et al. [36].

translucent medium of absorbing visible light, consequently, the

light intensity is attenuated during its passage along the medium.
thickness of water owing down the inner wall of a vertical tube
Different uids absorb radiation at different wavelengths, then, not
(19.7 mm I.D.) with air owing counter-current in the tube core.
only is visible light considered when using this technique, but also
The measurement device was developed in order to minimize the
infrared and microwaves. Basically this technique involves a laser
leak of energy from the system, which could affect the measure-
beam source, lens and an appropriate sensor. A laser beam is
ments. For this purpose, a rectangular waveguide of 15 mm
launched into the two-phase ow in a transparent channel and
height  197 mm width  1.32 m long was used and lm averaged
its intensity is measured after crossing the channel. The thicker
thicknesses over a longitudinal length of 15 mm were obtained. A
the liquid lm is, the higher the light attenuation is. Nucleonic
1.22 GHz microwave frequency was used taking into account the
methods, although based on a similar principle, are described in
depth of penetration of the electromagnetic wave into water and
the next items due to their own peculiarities.
the maximum extent of water in the test section. The system
de Oliveira et al. [36] developed a lm thickness and velocity
was calibrated for water lm thicknesses down to 0.4 mm.
measurement technique using the laser intensity attenuation prin-
Total internal reection of light: When radiation passes from a
ciple. Flow photographs were used to validate the device. Fiber op-
transparent medium to another, a part of its intensity is reected
tics with 500 lm core diameter were used to launch two laser
by the interface and another part goes to the second medium,
beams separated by 3 mm to the lm and to drive the reected
according to a refracting angle measured from a line normal to
light onto the photodiodes. Large core ber optics allowed the
the interface given by the Snell-Descartes law. When radiation
measurement of thicker lms. A horizontal open channel was used.
(light) propagates from a medium to another having an index of
Airwater lms and articial waves were generated by a plate and
refraction lower than the rst one, the radiation is totally reected
the wave propagation velocity was calculated through the correla-
back into the incident medium for incident angles greater than or
tion coefcient of the resultant signals of both optical bers. The
equal to the critical angle. Such a phenomenon is illustrated in
laser reected signal reaches a maximum value only when the
Fig. 4. It is then possible to estimate the lm thickness based on
interface wave is parallel, corresponding to when a wave peak or
the tube wall thickness, the Snell-Descartes Law, the indices of
valley passes. This was used to measure the peak and valley lm
refraction of the tube wall, and liquid and gas phases and by deter-
thicknesses. Uncertainties of 0.22 mm were obtained and lm
mining the distance between the light emission point and the point
thicknesses measurements from 1.5 to 3 mm were performed.
in a shield at which the rst ray of light is reected.
Based on the irradiation attenuation method, Utaka et al. [37]
The phenomena of the total reection and partial internal
investigated the effect of the micro-channel gap size on the liquid
reection of light can be used to measure liquid lm thickness,
layer thickness formed between the heating surface and a conned
requiring only a transparent test section. Than et al. [40] and Yu
vapor bubble during its growing process. Experiments were per-
et al. [41] used an optical ber to drive the light to a transparent
formed for two-phase water ows and gap sizes of 0.5, 0.3 and
tube. The fraction of light reected on the liquidgas interface
0.15 mm. Hot air was used as the heating source. A schematic of
was collected by optical bers which were mounted ush with
the measurement system is illustrated in Fig. 3. Infrared radiation
the surface of the tube. Then, the captured signal was electronically
(wavelengths of 3.39 lm) was launched through the micro-chan-
nel measurement section and its attenuated signal was captured
by an infrared detector. Lamberts law was used to determine the
lm thickness based on the infrared ray intensity on the detector
captured under the following conditions: (i) micro-scale channel
lled with steam and (ii) with water and steam (two-phase ow).
Measurements were performed for liquid lm thicknesses from 2
to 30 lm. The use of infrared radiation at this wavelength is suit-
able for water, but not for halocarbon refrigerants, since halocar-
bon refrigerants uids are transparent to radiation comprising
wavelengths from visible light to infrared up to wavelengths of
approximately 10 lm.
Roy et al. [38] used a microwave-based measurement technique
to determine the instantaneous cross-section average liquid lm Fig. 4. Internal reection of light phenomenon, Shedd [39].
468 C.B. Tibiri et al. / Experimental Thermal and Fluid Science 34 (2010) 463473
processed. Yu et al. [41] assumed a two-dimension liquidgas
interface differently from Than et al. [40], who assumed a one-
dimensional interface. Reasonable measurements were obtained,
however these techniques were useful only in the case of thin lms
or narrow thickness ranges due to the fact that the optical bers
were xed and a high number of bers would be necessary in case
of thicker lms. Based on the total reection of light principle,
Hurlburt and Newell [42] developed a device to measure liquid
lm thicknesses considering the image of the light reected from
the interface on an opaque shield xed on the tube wall. The
images were captured by a CCD camera. The distance between
the light emission point and the point in the shield at which the
rst ray of light is reected was visually determined. Later, Shedd
[39] and Shedd and Newell [43] automated this method by devel-
oping an algorithm to process the reected image and calculate the
lm thickness increasing its accuracy. Shedd and Newell [44] mea-
sured liquid lm thicknesses with a standard error of 3 lm for air
water ows in circular horizontal channels of 25.4 mm I.D., square
channels of 15.8 mm side and triangular channels of 40 mm side. A
white punctiform light source was used in the studies performed
by Newell and coworkers [39,4244].
Pautsch and Shedd [45] performed diabatic and adiabatic liquid
thickness measurements during spray cooling with FC-72 for sin-
gle- and four-nozzle spray based on the principle of the total inter-
nal reection of light. Upward spray against a horizontal heated
surface was used in the experiments. The objective was to emulate
a chip cooling process. The heating effect was obtained by applying
an electrical current to a transparent coating layer of Indium Tin
Oxide, ITO. A monochromatic light source was used and, in the
non-heated face of the cooled section, a thin layer of paint was
used to diffuse the monochromatic light. By using such a tech-
nique, the authors were able to measured lm thicknesses down
to 18 lm with an uncertainty between 0.5 and 0.7 lm, according
to them.
Recently Nascimento et al. [46] developed a measurement de-
vice somewhat similar to the one by Shedd [39]. They were able
to measure lm thicknesses down to 0.2 mm with an error inferior
to 10%. In their paper, they highlighted the fact that this method is
simple to implement, self-calibrated, non-intrusive and non-
expensive, presenting a reasonable accuracy.
Based on the principle of total internal reection of light, Xishi
and Qiu [47] measured liquid lm thicknesses during the passage
of a plug-like bubble in a circular channel of 750 lm I.D. The lm
thickness was measured by projecting very ne collimated laser
fringes onto the liquid/gas interface according to a proper orienta-
tion angle, higher than the critical angle. The reected laser was
captured by a CCD camera. Then, the spatial frequency of the fringe
pattern was measured and its signal was processed in order to ob-
tain the liquid lm thickness which is geometrically related to the
spatial frequency variation of the reected fringes. They measured
lm thicknesses from 9 to 30 lm. Due to the fact that in circular
micro-scale channels the refraction and reection effects are inten-
sied, the test section was positioned in a transparent rectangular
tank lled with glycerol mixed with distilled water. A proper glyc-
erol concentration was used in order to match the index of refrac-
tion of the borosilicate glass which is the micro-tube material.
Beam laser shadow: Shadowgraphic methods involve a single
collimated source of light and are based on the fact that when light
which is not perpendicular to the interface reaches a second trans-
parent medium, part of the light is reected and part is refracted.
This distortion creates a spatial variation in the light intensity that
can be detected by both visual observation and an optical
transducer.
Falling liquid lm thickness were measured by Zhang et al. [48]
using a laser light sheet based on the shadow principle, as sche-
matically displayed in Fig. 5. The laser light is reected and re-
Fig. 5. Schematic diagram of the lm thickness measurement device [47].
fracted by the liquid lm, so that the laser light that encounters
the liquid lm is blocked generating a shadow region. The light
intensity captured by the photodiode decreases as the shadow area
increases with increasing the liquid lm thickness. A camera was
used to take static measurements of liquid lm and a photodiode
was employed for the dynamic measurements. Film thicknesses
from 0.4 to 0.9 mm were measured.
Beam laser scattering: This technique is based on the light scat-
tering promoted by particles much smaller than the wavelength of
the light dissolved in a base liquid solution.
Salazar and Marschall [49] employed a technique consisting in
measuring the light intensity scattered from a liquid lm to which
spherical latex particles (0.087 lm) were added. Particles with
densities similar to water were used. A laser beam (HeNe,
0.6328 lm) illuminated the water lm through a transparent Plex-
iglas plate. Photodiodes were used to measure the light scattered
from the particles. Focal length lenses were used to produce an im-
age of the scattered light on the photodiode face in a way that the
thicker the lm gets, the higher the light intensity on the photodi-
ode is. Film thicknesses in the range of 0.7 mm to 3 mm were ob-
tained and a linear relationship was found between the light
intensity reaching the photodiode and the lm thickness.
Fluorescence intensity methods: Methods based on uorescence
intensity are capable of providing precise information on the liquid
lm prole. Their principle is based on both the addition of dye to a
base liquid and the change of the dye from a colorless form to a col-
ored one when irradiated with a specic wavelength. The fact that
at a xed dye mass fraction the color intensity increases as the
number of dye molecules increases is used to measure the liquid
lm thickness. A mercuryvapor lamp combined with a monochro-
mator and laser beams were used as radiation sources. In this
method, at rst, the radiation intensity is theoretically determined
in terms of the number of uorescent molecules in the liquid; then
a calibration curve relating the lm thickness to the intensity of
uorescent luminosity is built. A short response time between
the emission and absorption of light from the uorescent dye en-
ables high speed measurements of transient two-phase ows (Fogg
et al. [50]).
Although this method is non-intrusive, the addition of dye can
affect the exactitude of the measurements due to its effects on
the uid transport properties. In the case of convective boiling
experiments, it should be also taken into account the fact that
the dye concentration increases with increasing the vapor quality
along the evaporator. This brings additional uncertainties to the
method. According to Fogg et al. [50], the intensity of the incident
 C.B. Tibiri et al. / Experimental Thermal and Fluid Science 34 (2010) 463473
light may also affect the accuracy of the measurement. Under high-
intensity illumination conditions, a permanent destruction of uo-
rophores may occur, thus reducing the emitted radiation.
Makarytchev et al. [51] measured thicknesses of thin liquid
lms owing up a rotating cone surface. Liquid lm thicknesses
from 0.05 to 1.5 mm were determined. Since their optical system
had a time constant of more than one second, average thickness re-
sults were obtained. The experiments were performed for an aque-
ous solution of a dye with uorescent concentration of 50 ppmv.
An ultraviolet light source was used to introduce uorescence.
The measuring system was calibrated through stationary liquid
layers of known thickness.
The uorescence method was successfully employed by Kim
and Kim [52] to measure liquid lm thicknesses from 10 to
60 lm. Silicone oil was used as a base uid and two commercial
SO (spironaphthoxazine) and SO-ANTH (spiroanthraoxazine) dyes
were evaluated. Static measurements were performed using a li-
quid droplet of known volume smashed between two glass wafers,
a nitrogen laser beam and a digital camera. After the imaging pro-
cess, a standard deviation over the full calibration range lower than
1.0% was obtained. Experiments revealed that the color intensity
of the two dyes changed linearly over the full range from 10 to
65 lm at 0.1% by mass fraction. It is important highlighting the fact
that solid lm thicknesses down to 10 nm were successfully mea-
sured by the use of uorescence methods (Jones et al. [53]).
An intrinsic problem related to uorescent methods is the exact
determination of the excitation light intensity. The intensity of the
uorescent emitted light is directly dependent on the intensity of
the excitation light. Therefore, temporal and spatial variations in
the excitation light will induce errors in the lm thickness mea-
surements. To minimize such errors, Hidrovo and Hardt [54] pro-
posed a method named Emission Reabsorption Laser Induced
Fluorescence (ERLIF). They showed that when two different dyes
are used together in a liquid lm, the ratio of their emissions is
independent of the excitation light intensity. It is also necessary
that one of the dyes posses the property of reabsorbing part of
the emission of the second dye in order to keep the lm thickness
information in the dye emission ratio (see Hidrovo and Hardt [54]
for further details). Based on this, they measured static liquid lm
thicknesses from 5 to 400 lm and obtained a very linear relation-
ship between the ratio of the intensity of the dyes emission and the
liquid lm thickness within an accuracy of 1%.
Laser focus displacement: Takamasa and Hazuku [55] adapted
the laser focus displacement technique in order to accurately mea-
sure dynamic lm thicknesses. In their study, measurements were
taken for a lm owing downwards on a vertical plate wall. A sche-
matic of the method is shown in Fig. 6. This technique involves a
conical laser beam passing by a half mirror and objective lens, con-
secutively. Then, the light reected by the target (solidliquid and
liquidgas interfaces) passes backward to the objective lens, is re-
Fig. 6. Laser focus displacement meter [53].
469
ected by the half mirror and after passing the pinhole reaches a
sensor. The objective lens is moved by a diapason with a xed fre-
quency (about 700 Hz) whose displacement is detected by a posi-
tion-sensitive detector. The sensor at the rear of the pinhole is on
only when the laser beam is focused on the target. Once the posi-
tions of the solidliquid and gasliquid interfaces have been deter-
mined, the lm thickness is given by the displacement difference.
In a parallel work, Takamasa and Kobayashi [56] applied the
same technique to measure the lm thickness of water owing
downwards the inner wall of a vertical tube. Their experiments
were conducted in an acrylic tube whose at walls outer surface
in the region is crossed by the laser beam. The method was evalu-
ated experimentally and worked satisfactorily for tube internal
diameters from 10 to 30 mm.
In both studies by Tanaka and co-workers, geometrically based
correlations were proposed to correct refraction effects of the laser
beam passing through the tube wall. Dynamic measurements of li-
quid lm thickness with sensitivity of 0.2 lm and 1 kHz were
achieved.
More recently, Han and Shikazono [57] applied the laser focus
displacement technique to measure the instantaneous liquid lm
thickness of slug ows in circular tubes of ve diameters (0.3,
0.5, 0.7, 1.0 and 1.3 mm). They used three different uids (ethanol,
water, FC-40) owing with air. According to them, the equipment
used has a resolution of 0.01 lm, with a laser spot diameter of
2 lm and response time of 640 ls. Errors are reported to be around
1%. They reported lm thickness measurements from 2 to 140 lm
in their experimental facility and developed a correlation able to
predict the slug liquid lm thickness as a function of dimensionless
ow parameters.
Chromatic confocal microscopy works based on a principle
somewhat similar to the laser focus displacement method by cor-
relating the focal distance and the position of the liquidvapor
interface. In this method, a polychromatic punctual light source
is used instead of a laser source. Due to chromatic aberration, the
lens splits the polychromatic light according to different wave-
lengths and different focal distances. Since different spectral com-
ponent of the light source is focused at different depth levels, the
depth scanning can be effectively realized by analyzing the spec-
trum of the light reected from the sample. The chromatic confocal
microscope is typically used in life sciences, semiconductors
inspection and ophthalmology for three-dimensional imaging. Re-
cently, Rullire et al. [58] measured meniscus curvature radius in a
two-phase heat spreader with micro-grooves (380 lm height and
400 lm width) using a chromatic confocal microscope. Meniscus
radius from 240 lm to 1.5 mm with an accuracy of 1 lm were
measured. Zhou et al. [59] using a chromatic confocal microscope
have measured water falling lm thicknesses on a vertical at
plate. Liquid lm thicknesses from 200 to 700 lm were measured.
Lel et al. [60] have also measured falling liquid lm thicknesses
from 200 lm to 2 mm using a chromatic confocal microscope.
Interferometry: Briey speaking, interferometry is based on opti-
cal interferences that correspond to the interaction of two or more
lightwaves yielding a resultant irradiance that deviates from the
sum of the component irradiances [61]. The interferences between
light waves allow extremely accurate measurements making pos-
sible to determine extremely thin lms. A comprehensive general
review on interferometry was provided earlier by Hariharan [62].
In his work, he describes the developments of the interferometry
techniques during the 1970s and 1980s and their respective appli-
cations. In this section, some recent studies on lm thickness mea-
surement techniques are briey described.
Hecht [61] divided the interferometry techniques into two
groups: (i) wavefront splitting, where primary wavefronts are used
as a source of secondary waves and then, these secondary waves
are brought together to interfere; (ii) amplitude splitting, where
470 C.B. Tibiri et al. / Experimental Thermal and Fluid Science 34 (2010) 463473

the primary wave is divided into two segments which travels along
different paths before ending together to interfere.
Ohyama et al. [63] developed an optical device that enables
measurements of instantaneous liquid thicknesses of the order of
10 lm to 1 mm. Their device includes basically a beam from a
HeNe laser, a mirror, a convex lens, a screen and a 35 mm camera
to record the images generated on the screen. The method is based
on the ray reected at the front and rear of the lm and interfer-
ence fringes generated by these rays on a screen. By counting the
number of fringes, it was possible to determine the lm thickness.
Nozhat [64] used a principle somewhat similar to the one by Oya-
ma et al. [63], based on interference fringes to obtain vertical in-
tube falling lm thickness measurements. Distilled water was used
as the working liquid owing downwards the inner surface of a
cylindrical Pyrex glass tube. In their experiments, lm thicknesses
lower than 0.04 mm were obtained. For low lm ow rates (Rey-
nold number lower than 20), they reported an accuracy of 4% in
their measurements.
Marklund and Gustafsson [65] evaluated the use of two-beam
interferometry in order to measure the oil-lm thickness in a run-
ning ball-and-disc apparatus. The measurement performance of
fringe counting and calibration-based methods were described
and discussed. They concluded that a pseudo-phase-stepping
method is a promising approach allowing measurements from 80
to 1300 nm.
2.4. Nucleonic techniques
Nucleonic techniques are based on radiation attenuation (neu-
tron, gamma- and X-ray) during its passage through the two-phase
ow structure. As the attenuation in liquids and solids is higher
than in gases, the degree of the loss of intensity in the radiation
after crossing the two-phase-ow is a means to detect the ow
structure crossed by the radiation beam. These techniques include
a shielded source of radiation having one opening equipped with a
collimator to form a radiation-beam. A converter behind the
test section is used to detect the resulting radiation intensity after
crossing the ow. This converter is a plate that emits ashes
of light when hit by the radiation. High-speed video cameras,
photograph cameras and photosensors are used in order to capture
the light distribution on the plate. Since in annular ow the radia-
tion crosses the liquid twice, the method enables the measurement
of line-averaged liquid fraction instead of local liquid lm thick-
nesses. These techniques are also capable of providing two-phase
ow radiography.
According to Stahl and Rohr [66], gamma-densitometry is supe-
rior to the other nucleonic-based techniques due to its lower cost
than neutron-densitometry and, contrarily to X-ray attenuation
techniques, offers mono-energetic rays without intensity uctua-
tions. Saito et al. [67] performed visualizations and measurements
of vertical two-phase ows of molten lead bismuth alloy and nitro-
gen in 24 mm I.D. tubes. They used high frame-rate neutron radi-
ography at a recording speed of 250 frames/s. Chordal void
fraction measurements were performed. Mishina and Hibiki [68]
evaluated quantitatively the limits of using the neutron attenua-
tion method to characterize two-phase ows. They concluded that
the resolution limits of static and dynamic neutron radiography
methods can achieve values in the order of microseconds and sec-
onds, respectively. An image processing method was developed to
measure void fraction. Limit values of chordal lm thickness that
can be measured by neutron radiography for different experimen-
tal conditions were indicated.
3. Measuring liquid lm thickness in micro-scale two-phase
ows
Based on the referred literature, Table 1 summarizes the main
characteristics of the liquid lm thickness measurement methods.
Characteristics as non-intrusiveness and the capacity of taking dy-
namic measurements are not rigorously dened since the degree of
non-intrusiveness may depend on the intensity of the signal used
for the measurements. Ultrasound may promote ow cavitations
and light beams may promote the evaporation of the liquid lm.
As previously mentioned, methods based on the addition of parti-
cles to a base uid may have their results questioned by the effects
of the additive on the uid properties. Some methods enabling dy-
namic measurements t such a characteristic only when coupled
with high-speed lming.

Table 1
Schematic comparison of the liquid lm thickness measurement methods.

Method [Reference numbers] Measurement principle Intrusive Dynamic Type of Smallest channel Thickness
measurements measurement usedb measured
rangeb
Ultrasound [1416] Speed of the sound in the liquid No Yes Local 40  25 mm2 50500 lm
Conductance [1727] Liquid conductivity Yes Yes Local 9.5 mm (I.D.) 50 lm
1.2 mm
Capacitance [2832] Dielectric constant of the liquid No Yes Cross-section 12.7  12.7 mm2 0.423 mm
averaged
Interface detection [3335] Color or light intensity gradient No/yesa Yes Local 45  500 lm2 20 lm
1.4 mm
Light attenuation [3638] Fluid absorptivity No Yes Chordal 0.15 mm (gap 2 lm3 mm
size)
Total internal light reection Critical reection angle No No Local 0.75 mm 9 lm2.6 mm
[3947]
Beam laser shadow [48] Refraction and reection of a collimated No Yes Local Open channel 0.40.9 mm
light
Beam laser scattering [49] Scattering of light by particles No/yesa Yes Local Open channel 0.73 mm
Fluorescence intensity [5054] Induced uorescence No/yesa Yes Local Open channel 5 lm1.5 mm
Laser focus displacement [5560] Position displacement No Yes Local 0.3 mm (I.D.) 2 lm2.8 mm
Interferometry [6165] Interference of light waves No Yes Local 9 mm (I.D.) 10 lm1 mm
Gamma rayc [66] Radiation attenuation No Yes Chordal
Neutronc [67] Radiation attenuation No Yes Chordal
X-rayc [68] Radiation attenuation No Yes Chordal
a
These methods may alter the uid properties due to the addition to the base liquid of dye or particles.
b
The information pointed out in these columns is based only on the literature referred in the present study.
c
Only void fraction measurement experiments have been identied.
 C.B. Tibiri et al. / Experimental Thermal and Fluid Science 34 (2010) 463473
Fig. 7. Comparison between the smallest lm thickness measured by different methods and some estimated lm thicknesses according to models from the literature. R134a,
diameter of 770 lm, mass velocity of 467 kg/m2s, heat ux of 10 kW/m2 and saturation temperature of 10 C.
Generally speaking, intrusive methods are not suitable for mi-
cro-scale measurements due to the effects of the probes on the
ow. Only methods based on light attenuation, interface detection,
total internal light reection and laser focus displacement have
been applied to micro-scale channels. Light attenuation provides
only chordal lm thicknesses and is inappropriate for halocarbon
refrigerants due to their complete transparency to visible light
radiation. Film thicknesses down to 2 lm were measured under
open and closed surface conditions. Additional problems, as circu-
larity effects need to be overcome for measuring lm thickness in
round micro-scale channels.
Problems inherent to the use of optical methods, as refraction
and reection effects, are intensied when the scale is reduced,
consequently, the measurement errors provided by these methods
are also amplied and correction algorithms should be considered
in the data regression procedure. In addition, optical methods gen-
erally provide punctual lm thickness measurements. Thus, in case
of non-axisymmetric lms, measurements at different positions
along the perimeter of the test section are necessary in order to
determine the cross-sectional lm thickness. This is the case of mi-
cro-scale square/rectangular channels for which the lm is
rounded in the corners what also implies additional measurement
difculties due to circularity effects. In circular micro-scale chan-
nels and horizontal ows, the degree of axisymmetry of the liquid
lm increases with decreasing the channel diameter. Optical meth-
ods are also sensible to temperature gradients in the liquid lm
since the temperature affects the refraction index and conse-
quently the light path. This can result on a progressive light deec-
tion know as mirage effect. As most of the optical methods are
implemented for non-heated transparent channels, assuming an
isothermal lm is a suitable premise and optical methods can be
considered appropriate if the local lm temperature and its rela-
tionship with the refraction index are know. Current methods en-
abling thin lm measurements in micro-scale channels need to be
engineered in order to t all spatial and temporal resolution
requirements.
Based on the studies aforementioned, Fig. 7 displays a compar-
ison of predicted liquid lm thicknesses and the measurement
ranges covered by each method.
Methods based on light attenuation and those used only for
macro-scale ows were not included. The former were not taken
into consideration since refrigerants are transparent to light wave-
471
lengths, therefore these methods are not suitable to those uids. In
this gure, unless explicitly indicated, the lm thickness was esti-
mated for R134a in a circular channel, with a diameter of 770 lm,
mass velocity of 467 kg/m2s, heat ux of 10 kW/m2 and saturation
temperature of 10 C. A macro-scale lm thickness predictive
method by Laurinat et al. [22] was also included. Fig. 7 also pre-
sents the vapor quality range for each ow pattern based on the
correlations by Revellin and Thome [69]. Care should be taken
when analysing this gure since the displayed lm thicknesses
are not measured values, but estimated values from semi-empiri-
cal models for which empirical constants were adjusted to t heat
transfer and pressure drop experimental data. Moreover, the mea-
sured ranges pointed out in Fig. 7 are not the limiting values of the
methods; they are only the range for which measurements were
performed.
According to Fig. 7, most of the estimated lm thicknesses can
be measured by the laser focus displacement method. The tech-
niques involving interferometry and uorescence intensity seem
to be able to measure the liquid lm thickness for annular ows.
The method based on the total internal reection of light is appro-
priate for macro-scale ows and, according to the lm thicknesses
provided by Qu and Mudawar [6] and Revellin and Thome [8] mod-
els, also for annular ows in micro-scale channels.
4. Summary and conclusions
A comprehensive review on the recent literature concerning the
methods used to measure two-phase liquid lm thicknesses in
macro- and micro-scale systems was presented. The methods were
described and the main difculties related to their use in micro-
scale systems were pointed out. It was found that methods based
on the total internal reection of light are appropriate solutions
for measuring time average lm thicknesses under annular ow
conditions since this technique is simple to implement, non-intru-
sive, non-expensive, self-calibrated, and presents a reasonable
accuracy. Laser focus displacement is also a non-intrusive method
that allows dynamic measurements of extremely thin lms, there-
fore its use should be considered for future studies. Florescence
intensity seems a promising approach despite of the facts that addi-
tion of dye particles may affect the uid properties and intrinsic dif-
culties of its use are present under evaporating conditions. Finally,
it is concluded that further engineering effort is still necessary to
472 C.B. Tibiri et al. / Experimental Thermal and Fluid Science 34 (2010) 463473
adapt the current methods capable of measuring thin lms for per-
forming measurements under micro-scale conditions.
Acknowledgements
The authors gratefully acknowledge the nancial support under
Contract Nos. 05/60031-0, 06/52089-1 and 07/53950-5 given by
FAPESP (The State of So Paulo Research Foundation, Brazil).
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