An experimental study was performed to investigate the pool boiling critical heat flux (CHF) in one-dimensional inclined rectangular channels by changing the orientation of a copper test heater assembly. In a pool of saturated water under the atmospheric pressure, the test parameters included the gap sizes of 1, 2, 5, and 10 mm, and the surface orientation angles from the downward-facing position (180) to the vertical position (90). Tests were conducted on the basis of the visualization of boiling phenomena in the narrowly confined channel and open periphery utilizing a high-speed digital camera. To prevent the heat loss from the water pool and copper test heater, a state-of-the-art vacuum pumping technique was introduced. It was observed that the CHF generally decreased as the surface inclination angle increased and as the gap size decreased. In the downward-facing position (180), however, the vapor movement was enhanced by the gap structure, which produced the opposing result; that is, the CHF increased as the gap size decreased. Phenomenological characteristics regarding the interfacial instability of vapor layer were addressed in terms of visualization approaching the CHF. It was found that there exists a transition angle, around which the CHF changes with a rapid slope. (c) 2005 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.