Microfluidic Refrigerant Compression and Pumping by Maxwell Pressure Generated at a Nanoporous Monolith

Author(s):  
Hsueh-Chia Chang

We introduce a new concept in miniature two-phase cooling with ammonia and other refrigerants. Despite its high heat removal rate density, two-phase cooling has not been attempted for miniature electronic cooling because of the high pressure needed to compress the vapor phase into liquid. We suggest in this short expository that Maxwell pressure generated by an intense DC or AC field across a solid nanoporous monolith can overcome this challenge. The fundamental mechanisms for such miniature pressure source are reviewed and the fabrication challenges discussed.

Author(s):  
Oyuna Angatkina ◽  
Andrew Alleyne

Two-phase cooling systems provide a viable technology for high–heat flux rejection in electronic systems. They provide high cooling capacity and uniform surface temperature. However, a major restriction of their application is the critical heat flux condition (CHF). This work presents model predictive control (MPC) design for CHF avoidance in two-phase pump driven cooling systems. The system under study includes multiple microchannel heat exchangers in series. The MPC controller performance is compared to the performance of a baseline PI controller. Simulation results show that while both controllers are able to maintain the two-phase cooling system below CHF, MPC has significant reduction in power consumption compared to the baseline controller.


Author(s):  
B. R. Alexander ◽  
E. N. Wang

Two-phase microchannels promise an efficient method to dissipate heat from high performance electronic systems by utilizing the latent heat of vaporization during the phase-change process. However, phase-change in microchannel heat sinks leads to challenges that are not present in macroscale systems due to the increasing importance of surface tension and viscous forces. In particular, flow instabilities often occur during the boiling process, which lead to liquid dry-out in the microchannels and severely limits the heat removal capabilities of the system. We propose a microscale breather device consisting of an array of hydrophobic breather ports which allow vapor bubbles to escape from the microchannels to improve flow stability. In this study, we use the combination of microfabricated structures and surface chemistry to separate vapor from the liquid flow. We designed test devices that allow for cross-sectional optical visualization to better understand the governing parameters of a breather design with high vapor removal efficiencies and minimal liquid leakage. We examined breather devices with average liquid velocities ranging from 0.5 cm/s to 4 cm/s and breather vacuum levels between 1 kPa and 9 kPa on the maximum gas removal rate through the breather. We demonstrated successful breather performance. In addition, a model was developed that offers design guidelines for future integrated breathers in microchannel heat sinks. The breathers also have significant promise for other microscale systems, such as micro-fuel cells, where liquid-vapor separation can significantly enhance system performance.


2019 ◽  
Vol 163 ◽  
pp. 114338 ◽  
Author(s):  
Fengze Hou ◽  
Wenbo Wang ◽  
Hengyun Zhang ◽  
Cheng Chen ◽  
Chuan Chen ◽  
...  

Nanomaterials ◽  
2020 ◽  
Vol 10 (4) ◽  
pp. 647 ◽  
Author(s):  
Ravindra Jilte ◽  
Mohammad H. Ahmadi ◽  
Ravinder Kumar ◽  
Vilas Kalamkar ◽  
Amirhosein Mosavi

Heat rejection from electronic devices such as processors necessitates a high heat removal rate. The present study focuses on liquid-cooled novel heat sink geometry made from four channels (width 4 mm and depth 3.5 mm) configured in a concentric shape with alternate flow passages (slot of 3 mm gap). In this study, the cooling performance of the heat sink was tested under simulated controlled conditions.The lower bottom surface of the heat sink was heated at a constant heat flux condition based on dissipated power of 50 W and 70 W. The computations were carried out for different volume fractions of nanoparticles, namely 0.5% to 5%, and water as base fluid at a flow rate of 30 to 180 mL/min. The results showed a higher rate of heat rejection from the nanofluid cooled heat sink compared with water. The enhancement in performance was analyzed with the help of a temperature difference of nanofluid outlet temperature and water outlet temperature under similar operating conditions. The enhancement was ~2% for 0.5% volume fraction nanofluids and ~17% for a 5% volume fraction.


Author(s):  
N. Le Brun ◽  
A. Charogiannis ◽  
G. F. Hewitt ◽  
C. N. Markides

In this study we describe an experimental system designed to simulate the conditions of transient freezing which can occur in abnormal behaviour of molten salt reactors (MSRs). Freezing of coolant is indeed one of the main technical challenges preventing the deployment of MSR. First a novel experimental technique is presented by which it is possible to accurately track the growth of the solidified layer of fluid near a cold surface in an internal flow of liquid. This scenario simulates the possible solidification of a molten salt coolant over a cold wall inside the piping system of the MSR. Specifically, we conducted measurements using water as a simulant for the molten salt, and liquid nitrogen to achieve high heat removal rate at the wall. Particle image velocimetry and planar induced fluorescence were used as diagnostic techniques to track the growth of the solid layer. In addition this study describes a thermo-hydraulic model which has been used to characterise transient freezing in internal flow and compares the said model with the experiments. The numerical simulations were shown to be able to capture qualitatively and quantitatively all the essential processes involved in internal flow transient freezing. Accurate numerical predictive tools such the one presented in this work are essential in simulating the behaviour of MSR under accident conditions.


2008 ◽  
Vol 31 (3) ◽  
pp. 691-701 ◽  
Author(s):  
B. Agostini ◽  
J.R. Thome ◽  
M. Fabbri ◽  
B. Michel

Author(s):  
Tetsuya Kizu ◽  
Yutaka Abe ◽  
Hideki Nariai ◽  
Keiko Chitose ◽  
Kazuya Koyama

In a core disruptive accident (CDA) of a fast breeder reactor, the post accident heat removal (PAHR) is crucial for the accident mitigation. The molten core material should be cooled by the inventory of the coolant in the lower plenum of the reactor vessel. It is still unknown whether two phase cooling can be expected during molten core material and coolant interaction. The purpose of the present study is to experimentally clarify the cooling capability of the coolant for the molten material including two phase boiling. In the experiment, simulated molten metal jet is injected into water to experimentally obtain the visualized information of the fragmentation and boiling phenomena during PAHR in CDA.


2021 ◽  
Vol 143 (3) ◽  
Author(s):  
Fabio Battaglia ◽  
Farah Singer ◽  
David C. Deisenroth ◽  
Michael M. Ohadi

Abstract In this paper, we present the results of an experimental study involving low thermal resistance cooling of high heat flux power electronics in a forced convection mode, as well as in a thermosiphon (buoyancy-driven) mode. The force-fed manifold microchannel cooling concept was utilized to substantially improve the cooling performance. In our design, the heat sink was integrated with the simulated heat source, through a single solder layer and substrate, thus reducing the total thermal resistance. The system was characterized and tested experimentally in two different configurations: the passive (buoyancy-driven) loop and the forced convection loop. Parametric studies were conducted to examine the role of different controlling parameters. It was demonstrated that the thermosiphon loop can handle heat fluxes in excess of 200 W/cm2 with a cooling thermal resistance of 0.225 (K cm2)/W for the novel cooling concept and moderate fluctuations in temperature. In the forced convection mode, a more uniform temperature distribution was achieved, while the heat removal performance was also substantially enhanced, with a corresponding heat flux capacity of up to 500 W/cm2 and a thermal resistance of 0.125 (K cm2)/W. A detailed characterization leading to these significant results, a comparison between the performance between the two configurations, and a flow visualization in both configurations are discussed in this paper.


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