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Experimental analysis of a heat pipe-assisted flexible heat transfer device

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Abstract

The present study elucidates the experimental investigations on a novel flexible heat transfer device that can be used in a wide range of modern electronic device cooling applications which demand flexibility. The objective of the present is to address the challenges encountered by current flexible heat transfer devices, including concerns related to out-gassing and the permeation of non-condensable gases. These issues ultimately contribute to the deterioration of the long-term dependability of such devices. The present study provides an analysis of the steady-state performance of the flexible heat transfer device under various heat loads and orientations (0°, 45°, and 90° angles). Using COMSOL Multiphysics 6.1, numerical simulations are performed to explain the dynamics of heat transfer of the flexible heat transfer device developed. The performance is evaluated in terms of thermal resistance, equivalent thermal conductivity, and average temperature difference across the evaporator and condenser. Under steady-state operation, it has been determined that the flexible heat transfer device exhibits a minimum thermal resistance of 2.3 °C/W. Additionally, a maximum effective thermal conductivity of 2407 W/mK has been reported for a bending angle of 45°, which is six times more than relevant flexible heat transfer devices, such as copper thermal straps.

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Data availability

No datasets were generated or analysed during the current study.

Abbreviations

ETP:

Electrolytic tough pitch

FHP:

Flexible heat pipe

FLFHP:

Full length flexible heat pipe

FHTD:

Flexible heat transfer device

PARADISO:

Parallel Direct Sparse Solver

PU:

Poly urethane tube

g :

Acceleration due to gravity, m/s2

\({A_s}\) :

Area of cross-section, m2

TFS1:

Average temperature at flexible section 1, °C

TFS2:

Average temperature at flexible section 2, °C

TFS3:

Average temperature at flexible section 3, °C

\(\theta\) :

Bending angle, °

\(\beta\) :

Coefficient of Thermal Expansion, K−1

D :

Diameter, m

\(\nu\) :

Dynamic Viscosity, m2/s

\(k_{e}\) :

Effective thermal conductivity of wick structure, W/m2K

TE1:

Evaporator average temperature, °C

Q :

Heat input, W

q :

Heat flux (Q/A), W/m\(^2\)

\(r_{i}\) :

Inner diameter of heat pipe

\(L_{e}\) :

Length of evaporator, m

\(L_{c}\) :

Length of condenser, m

\(\text {Nu}_L\) :

Nusselt number

\(r_{o}\) :

Outer diameter of heat pipe

T :

Temperature, °C

\(R_{a_L}\) :

Rayleigh number

A :

Surface area, m\(^2\)

\(k_{p}\) :

Thermal conductivity of heat pipe wall, W/m2K

R :

Thermal resistance, °C/W

\(R_{HP1}\) :

Thermal resistance of heat pipe 1, °C/W

\(R_{HP2}\) :

Thermal resistance of heat pipe 2, °C/W

\(R_{FS}\) :

Thermal resistance of flexible section, °C/W

\(R_{t}\) :

Total thermal resistance, °C/W

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The authors declare that no funds, grants, or other support were received during the preparation of this manuscript.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Department of Energy and Environment, National Institute of Technology, Tanjore Main Road, National Highway 67, Tiruchirappalli, 620015, Tamilnadu, India

    Kannan Pandi & V. M. Jaganathan

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  1. Kannan Pandi
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  2. V. M. Jaganathan
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Contributions

Kannan Pandi - Conceptualization, Methodology, Investigation, Writing - Original Draft V M Jaganathan - Conceptualization, Review & Editing, Project administration, Supervision

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Correspondence to V. M. Jaganathan.

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Pandi, K., Jaganathan, V.M. Experimental analysis of a heat pipe-assisted flexible heat transfer device. Heat Mass Transfer (2024). https://doi.org/10.1007/s00231-024-03475-y

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