  This study seeks to understand the origins of intermittency in quantities of
interest in pool boiling, such as bubble departure diameter and departure time.
The intermittency of nucleation site activity due to nonuniform and unsteady
near-wall temperatures is well-established; however, few mechanistic models
have been developed that predict such intermittency. Here we assume a
fluctuating pressure field at a nucleation site due to adjacent bubble
activity, which acts in combination with convective effects to alter bubble
growth depending on the phase of the pressure oscillation with respect to the
instant of bubble nucleation. The results suggest that even when a single
departure frequency is assumed for nearby bubbles, its effect on the nucleation
site being considered is to cause aperiodicity and intermittency in bubble
departure quantities. The effects of pressure field phase angle, degree of
superheat, and choice of force balance model on the bubble departure quantities
are examined. The phase angle of the pressure fluctuation at the instant of
bubble nucleation is shown to play a major role in determining bubble departure
diameter and growth time. Departure diameter is observed to have a broad
distribution over long times of observation, belying the assumption of a unique
value. Period doubling of the ebullition cycle is observed for some conditions,
a phenomenon documented by other investigators. The effects of dynamic contact
angle.
