'Boiling' in the water evaporating meniscus induced by Marangoni flow.

A counterintuitive phenomenon, 'boiling,' was directly observed near the contact line of the pure water meniscus formed in a ball and disk configuration, when the ball temperature was far lower than the saturation temperature of water. The number of the emerging bubbles due to 'boiling' increased with ball temperature rising; each bubble would expanse initially and then collapse. When two surfaces were heated to the same temperature, 'boiling' disappeared. It was proposed that the temperature gradient between the two surfaces initiated Marangoni flow, which hindered flow toward the film, resulting in the negative pressure and cavitation in the liquid film. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]