Experimental Thermal Performance of Different Capillary Structures for Heat Pipes

The temperature control in electronic packaging is the key in numerous applications,to avoid overheating and hardware failure.Due to high capability of heat transfer,good temperature uniformity,and no power consumption,heat pipes can be widely used for heat dissipation of electronic components.This paper reports an experimental thermal analysis of different capillary structures for heat pipes.The wicks considered are metal screens,axial microgrooves,and sintered metal powder.The heat pipes are made of copper,a 200 mm length tube and a 9.45 mm external diameter.Working fluid used was distilled water.The devices are investigated in three positions:0,90,and 270°to the horizontal under powers of 5 up to 45 W.The results show that in horizontal(0°)and with the evaporator under the condenser(270°),the heat pipes showed similar results.Nevertheless,in the reverse condition(the position against the gravity with the evaporator above the condenser,90°),the heat pipe with sintered wick presented the best thermal performance,as it has the lowest thermal resistance and supported a higher power.Besides that,the sintered powder capillary structure demonstrates the most homogeneous thermal behavior for every position,making the most suitable for applications susceptible to diverse inclinations.

Numerical investigation on the startup performance of high-temperature heat pipes for heat pipe cooled reactor application

A suitable model for high-temperature heat pipe startup is a prerequisite to realizing the numerical simula-tion for the heat pipe cooled reactor startup from the cold state.It is required that this model not only describes the transient behavior during the startup period,but also reduces the computing resources of the heat pipe cooled reactor simulation in the simplest way.In this study,a simplified model that integrates the two-zone and network models is proposed.In this model,vapor flow in the vapor space,evaporation,and condensation in the vapor–liquid interface are decoupled with heat conduction to achieve a fast calculation of the transient characteristics of the heat pipe.An experimental system for a high-temperature heat pipe was developed to validate the proposed model.A potassium heat pipe was utilized as the experimental material.Startup experiments were performed with differ-ent heating powers.Compared with the experimental results,the accuracy of the proposed model was verified.Moreover,the proposed model can predict the vapor flow,pressure drop,and temperature drop in the vapor space.As indicated by the analysis results,the essential requirements for successful startup are also determined.The heat pipe cannot achieve a successful startup until the heating power satisfies these requirements.All the discussions indicate the capability of the proposed model for the simulation of a high-temperature heat pipe startup from the frozen state;hence,can act as a basic tool for the heat pipe cooled reactor simulation.

A Numerical Investigation of the Thermal Performances of an Array of Heat Pipes for Battery Thermal Management

A comparative numerical study has been conducted on the thermal performance of a heat pipe cooling system considering several influential factors such as the coolant flow rate,the coolant inlet temperature,and the input power.A comparison between numerical data and results available in the literature has demonstrated that our numerical procedure could successfully predict the heat transfer performance of the considered heat pipe cooling system for a battery.Specific indicators such as temperature,heat flux,and pressure loss were extracted to describe the characteristics of such a system.On the basis of the distributions of the temperature ratio of the battery surface,together with the heat flux and the streamlines around the heat pipe condenser,we conclude that the low disturbance of the coolant is the cause of the temperature gradient along the fluid flow direction.

Experimental and Simulation Studies on Cold Welding Sealing Process of Heat Pipes

Sealing quality strongly affects heat pipe performance, but few studies focus on the process of heat pipe sealing. Cold welding sealing technology based on a stamping process is applied for heat pipe sealing. The bonding mechanism of the cold welding sealing process （CWSP） is investigated and compared with the experimental results obtained from the bonding interface analysis. An orthogonal experiment is conducted to observe the effects of various parameters, including the sealing gap, sealing length, sealing diameter, and sealing velocity on bonding strength. A method with the utilization of saturated vapor pressure inside a copper tube is proposed to evaluate bonding strength. A corresponding finite element model is developed to investigate the effects of sealing gap and sealing velocity on plastic deformation during the cold welding process. Effects of various parameters on the bonding strength are determined and it is found that the sealing gap is the most critical factor and that the sealing velocity contributes the least effect. The best parameter combination （AIB3CID3, with a 0.5 mm sealing gap, 6 mm sealing length, 3.8 mm sealing diameter, and 50 mm/s sealing velocity） is derived within the experimental parameters. Plastic deformation results derived from the finite element model are consistent with those from the experiment. The instruction for the CWSP of heat pipes and the design of sealing dies of heat pipes are provided.

A Comprehensive Review of Thermal Performance Improvement of High-Temperature Heat Pipes

Energy efficiency issues are being focused on the growing concern of global warming and environmental pollution.The high-temperature heat pipe(HTHP) is an effective and environmental-friendly heat transfer device employed in many industries,including solar power generation,high-temperature flue gas waste heat recovery,industrial furnaces,nuclear industries,and aviation.As a critical factor in HTHPs,thermal performance is mainly introduced in the entire paper.To date,most reviews have been published concerning one or several application scenarios.However,to the best of authors' knowledge,it is hard to find a review discussing how to improve the thermal performance of HTHPs comprehensively.First,the impact on the performance of three main components of HTHPs over the past 30 years is introduced:the working fluid,the HTHP structure,and the wick structure.Herein,it is a considerable review of the optimal operating conditions for each direction,and we expect this paper contribute to improving the thermal performance of HTHPs.Then,current numerical simulations and theoretical research on the heat transfer limit of HTHPs are recommended.The significant hypotheses used in numerical simulations and the present theoretical studies are compiled here.Finally,some potential future directions and tentative suggestions for HTHP research are put forward.

The thermal analysis of the heat dissipation system of the charging module integrated with ultra-thin heat pipes

Electric vehicles(EV)played an important role fighting greenhouse gas emissions that contributed to global warming.The construction of the charging pile,which was called as the"gas station"of EV,developed rapidly.The charging speed of the charging piles was shorted rapidly,which was a challenge for the heat dissipation system of the charging pile.In order to reduce the operation temperature of the charging pile,this paper proposed a fin and ultra-thin heat pipes(UTHPs)hybrid heat dissipation system for the direct-current(DC)charging pile.The L-shaped ultra-thin flattened heat pipe with ultra-high thermal conductivity was adopted to reduce the spreading thermal resistance.ICEPAK software was used to simulate the temperature and flow profiles of the new design.And various factors that affected the heat dissipation performance of the system were explored.Simulation results showed that the system had excellent heat dissipation capacity and achieved good temperature uniformity.Rather than solely relied on the fans,this new design efficiently dissipated heat with a lower fan load and less energy consumption.

Heat Transfer Performance of Microgroove Back Plate Heat Pipes with Working Fluid and Heating Power

Micro heat pipes(MHP) cooling is one of the most efficient solutions to radiate heat for high heat flux electronic components in data centers. It is necessary to improve heat transfer performance of microgroove back plate heat pipes. This paper discusses about influence on thermal resistance through experiments and numerical simulation with different working fluids, filling ratio and heat power. Thermal resistance of the CO2 filled heat pipe is 14.8% lower than the acetone filled heat pipe. In the meantime, at the best filling ratio of 40%, the CO2 filled heat pipe has the optimal heat transfer behavior with the smallest thermal resistance of 0.123 K/W. The thermal resistance continues to decline but the magnitude of decreases is going to be minor. In addition, this paper illustrates methods about how to enhance heat pipe performance from working fluids, filling ratio and heat power, which provides a theoretical basis for practical applications.

Challenges and recent progress in thermal management with heat pipes for lithium-ion power batteries in electric vehicles

Electric vehicles(EVs)are globally undergoing rapid developments,and have great potentials to replace the traditional vehicles based on fossil fuels.Power-type lithium-ion batteries(LIBs)have been widely used for EVs,owing to high power densities,good charge/discharge stability,and long cycle life.The driving ranges and acceleration performances are gaining increasing concerns from customers,which depend highly on the power level of LIBs.With the increase in power outputs,rising heat generation significantly affects the battery performances,and in particular operation safety.Meanwhile,the cold-start performance is still an intractable problem under extreme conditions.These challenges put forward higher requirements for a dedicated battery thermal management system(BTMS).Compared to traditional BTMSs in EVs,the heat pipe-based BTMS has great application prospects owing to its compact structure,flexibility,low cost,and especially high thermal conductivity.Encompassing this topic,this review first introduces heat generation phenomena and temperature characteristics of LIBs.Multiple abuse conditions and thermal runaway issues are described afterward.Typical cooling and preheating methods for designing a BTMS are also discussed.More emphasis on this review is put on the use of various heat pipes for BTMSs to enhance the thermal performances of LIBs.For lack of wide application in actual EVs,more efforts should be made to extend the use of heat pipes for constructing an energy-efficient,cost-effective,and reliable BTMS to improve the performances and safety of EVs.

A review of recent experimental investigations and theoretical analyses for pulsating heat pipes

Pulsating heat pipe （PHP）, or oscillating heat pipe （OHP）, a novel type of highly efficient heat transfer component, has been widely applied in many fields, such as in space-borne two-phase thermal control systems, in the cooling of electronic devices and in energy-saving technology, etc. In the present paper, the characteristics and working principles of the PHPs are introduced and the current researches in the field are described from the viewpoint of experimental tests, theoretical analyses as well as practical applications. Besides, it is found that the state-of-the-art experimental investigations on the PHPs are mainly focused on the flow visualization and the applications of nanofluids and other functional fluids, aiming at enhancing the heat transfer performance of the PHPs. In addition, it is also pointed out that the present theoretical analyses of the PHP are restricted by further development of two-phase flow theories, and are concentrated in the non-linear analyses. Numerical simulations are expected to be another research focus, in particular of the combination of the nanofluids and functional fluids.

Experimental Investigation on Thermal Characteristics of Long Distance Loop Heat Pipes

Loop heat pipes(LHPs)are attractive two-phase thermal control devices for satellites,electronics and many other applications.They are capable of transporting heat efficiently for long distances up to several meters at any orientation.This paper investigated the heat transfer characteristics of loop heat pipes with long distances and small diameter transport lines.Small stainless steel tubes of 2 mm and 3 mm in inner diameters were chosen as liquid lines and vapor lines of the LHPs.The local thermal resistances in the evaporator of the 6 m-LHP were researched and analyzed,which indicated that the thermal resistance between the aluminum block and the vapor in the vapor channel accounted for a major proportion of the total thermal resistance.The effect of heat sink temperatures on the performance of the 6 m-LHP were compared with 10°C,15°C,20°C and 25°C cooling water temperatures.Moreover,the thermal characteristics of LHPs with transport distances of 2 m and 16 m were also experimentally investigated.The 16 m-LHP could achieve a heat transfer capacity of 100 W and the 2 m-LHP could reach more than 339 W,on the premise of the evaporator temperature below 100°C.The thermal resistance of the 2 m-LHP could achieve 0.125°C/W.

Experimental Research on Thermal Performance of Ultra-Thin Flattened Heat Pipes

Ultra-thin flattened heat pipe(UTHP) is an effective solution to solve the problem of high-power density heat dissipation in narrow space. The key factors that determine its thermal performance include: the shapes and sizes of the UTHP, the wick structure, the type of working fluid and its filling ratio. The change in the filling ratio means not only a change in the amount of the working fluid, but also a change in the space distribution of the gas and liquid phases inside the heat pipe. Therefore, it is important to explore the effect of liquid filling ratio on the thermal performance of UTHP. It can provide effective guidance for the production of UTHP. In this work, experiments were conducted on four groups of UTHPs with different mesh wicks under a series of liquid filling ratios. The results demonstrate that the volume of the filling working fluid should account for 22%-37% of the total internal volume of the UTHP to avoid deterioration of heat transfer during the operation of the UTHP. In addition, a prediction model of the evaporator temperature has been established to provide guidance for the application of UTHPs.

Improvements on permanent magnet synchronous motor by integrating heat pipes into windings for solar unmanned aerial vehicle

The successful market uptake of all-electric propulsion systems is closely related to the performance metrics of the electrical motor used within.In light of this,various road-maps have been set for the next two decades by aerospace and automotive bodies targeting ambitious future targets of the motor's power densities and efficiencies.In achieving motors with such step-improvement performance metrics,often the thermal management is a key challenge.In this paper,a cooling structure for a propulsion motor of solar unmanned aircraft is proposed which combines the stator windings with heat pipes,and which is shown to simultaneously improve the heat dissipation as well as the efficiency.This paper firstly determines the heat transfer characteristic of the heat pipe experimentally which is then used in the development of a bespoke thermal network model of the motor.The effects of the cooling structure on the motor's temperature rise,copper losses,torque,and efficiency are studied in detail.Finally,a prototype is developed and a test platform is built.The experimental results are consistent with the analytical result,verifying the correctness of the thermal network model and the benefits of the proposed mechanism.Compared to the motor without heat pipes,the temperature rise of the motor is reduced by 35%,while its efficiency is improved by a significant 1.5%.

Decoupled thermal–hydraulic analysis of an air-cooled separated heat pipe for spent fuel pools under natural convection

An investigation of the decoupled thermal–hydraulic analysis of a separated heat pipe spent fuel pool passive cooling system(SFS)is essential for practical engineering applications.Based on the principles of thermal and mass balance,this study decoupled the heat transfer processes in the SFS.In accordance with the decoupling conditions,we modeled the spent fuel pool of the CAP1400 pressurized water reactor in Weihai and used computational fluid dynamics to explore the heat dissipation capacity of the SFS under different air temperatures and wind speeds.The results show that the air-cooled separated heat pipe radiator achieved optimal performance at an air temperature of 10℃ or wind speed of 8 m/s.Fitted equations for the equivalent thermal conductivity of the separated heat pipes with the wind speed and air temperature we obtained according to the thermal resistance network model.This study is instructive for the actual operation of an SFS.

Effect of the Arrangement of a New-Type of Turbulator Inserts on Heat Pipe Exchanger Performances

This research tests the effect of introducing turbulators of a new type into a circular tube heat exchanger under a constant and uniform longitudinal heatflux condition.A 45 mm diameter copper tube with a length of 1,350 mm is utilized with a solid disk being inserted inside the tube,which consists of three sections,each one containing two slots.The slot is cut at a 45 degree angle toward the inner tube surface,which results in diverging theflow toward the inner hot tube surface in order to enhance the heat transfer process.Air is considered as the workingfluid with Prandtl number 0.71.The Reynolds number spans the interval from 6,000–13,500,which indicates that the consideredflow is turbulent.The heat exchanger performance is studied and analyzed in terms of average Nusselt number.The experimental results show that the Nusselt number value is directly proportional to the increase of the Reynolds number,and the number of turbulators inserts.With the use of three novel turbulators,the heat transfer was about 3.15 times higher than that in the smooth tube and the friction factor was about 1.11.

Localized Theoretical Analysis of Thermal Performance of Individually Finned Heat Pipe Heat Exchanger for Air Conditioning with Freon R404A as Working Fluid

This work contributes to the improvement of energy-saving in air conditioning systems. The objective is to apply the thermal efficiency of heat exchangers for localized determination of the thermal performance of heat exchangers with individually finned heat pipes. The fundamental parameters used for performance analysis were the number of fins per heat pipe, the number of heat pipes, the inlet temperatures, and the flow rates of hot and cold fluids. The heat exchanger under analysis uses Freon 404A as a working fluid in an air conditioning system for cooling in the Evaporator and energy recovery in the Condenser. The theoretical model is localized and applied individually to the Evaporator, Condenser, and heat exchanger regions. The results obtained through the simulation are compared with experimental results that use a global approach for the heat exchanger. The thermal quantities obtained through the theoretical model in the mentioned regions are air velocity, Nusselt number, thermal effectiveness, heat transfer rate, and outlet temperature. The comparisons made with global experimental results are in excellent agreement, demonstrating that the localized theoretical approach developed is consistent and can be used as a comprehensive analysis tool for heat exchangers using heat pipes.

Localized Theoretical Analysis of Thermal Performance of Individually Finned Heat Pipe Heat Exchanger for Air Conditioning with Freon R404A as Working Fluid

This work contributes to the improvement of energy-saving in air conditioning systems. The objective is to apply the thermal efficiency of heat exchangers for localized determination of the thermal performance of heat exchangers with individually finned heat pipes. The fundamental parameters used for performance analysis were the number of fins per heat pipe, the number of heat pipes, the inlet temperatures, and the flow rates of hot and cold fluids. The heat exchanger under analysis uses Freon 404A as a working fluid in an air conditioning system for cooling in the Evaporator and energy recovery in the Condenser. The theoretical model is localized and applied individually to the Evaporator, Condenser, and heat exchanger regions. The results obtained through the simulation are compared with experimental results that use a global approach for the heat exchanger. The thermal quantities obtained through the theoretical model in the mentioned regions are air velocity, Nusselt number, thermal effectiveness, heat transfer rate, and outlet temperature. The comparisons made with global experimental results are in excellent agreement, demonstrating that the localized theoretical approach developed is consistent and can be used as a comprehensive analysis tool for heat exchangers using heat pipes.

Thermal Design and Optimization of Heat Pipe Radiator for Satellites

Satellite＇s thermal control subsystem （TCS） has to maintain components and structure within their specified temperature limits during satellite service life. TCS designers have to face the challenge of reducing both the weight of the system and required heater power while keeping components temperature within their design range. For a space based heat pipe radiator system, several researchers have published different approaches to reach such goal. This paper presents a thermal design and optimization of a heat pipe radiator applied to a practical engineering design application. For this study, a prospective communication satellite payload panel with applied passive thermal control techniques was considered. The thermal passive techniques used in this design mainly include multilayer insulation （MLI） blankets, optical solar reflectors （OSR）, selected thermal coatings, interface fillers and constant conductance heat pipes. The heat pipe network is comprised of some heat pipes embedded in the panel and some mounted on inner surface of the panel. Embedded heat pipes are placed under high heat dissipation equipments and their size is fixed; minimum weight of the radiator is achieved by a minimum weight of the mounted heat pipes. Hence, size of the mounted heat pipes is optimized. A thermal model was built and parameterized for transient thermal analysis and optimization. Temperature requirements of components in both worst case conditions （Hot case and cold case） were satisfied under optimal sizing of mounted heat pipes.

Experimental Investigation on Cooling/Heating Characteristics of Ultra-Thin Micro Heat Pipe for Electric Vehicle Battery Thermal Management

Due to the heat pipes’ transient conduction,phase change and fluid dynamics during cooling/heating with high frequency charging/discharging of batteries,it is crucial to investigate in depth the experimental dynamic thermal characteristics in such complex heat transfer processes for more accurate thermal analysis and design of a BTMS. In this paper,the use of ultra?thin micro heat pipe(UMHP) for thermal management of a lithium?ion battery pack in EVs is explored by experiments to reveal the cooling/heating characteristics of the UMHP pack. The cooling performance is evaluated under di erent constant discharging and transient heat inputs conditions. And the heating e ciency is assessed under several sub?zero temperatures through heating films with/without UMHPs. Results show that the pro?posed UMHP BTMS with forced convection can keep the maximum temperature of the pack below 40 °C under 1 ~ 3 C discharging,and e ectively reduced the instant temperature increases and minimize the temperature fluctuation of the pack during transient federal urban driving schedule(FUDS) road conditions. Experimental data also indicate that heating films stuck on the fins of UMHPs brought about adequate high heating e ciency comparing with that stuck on the surface of cells under the same heating power,but has more convenient maintenance and less cost for the BTMS. The experimental dynamic temperature characteristics of UMHP which is found to be a high?e cient and low?energy consumption cooling/heating method for BTMSs,can be performed to guide thermal analysis and optimiza?tion of heat pipe BTMSs.

Analysis of Collapse in Flattening a Micro-grooved Heat Pipe by Lateral Compression

The collapse of thin-walled micro-grooved heat pipes is a common phenomenon in the tube flattening process, which seriously influences the heat transfer performance and appearance of heat pipe. At present, there is no other better method to solve this problem. A new method by heating the heat pipe is proposed to eliminate the collapse during the flattening process. The effectiveness of the proposed method is investigated through a theoretical model, a finite element（FE） analysis, and experimental method. Firstly, A theoretical model based on a deformation model of six plastic hinges and the Antoine equation of the working fluid is established to analyze the collapse of thin walls at different temperatures. Then, the FE simulation and experiments of flattening process at different temperatures are carried out and compared with theoretical model. Finally, the FE model is followed to study the loads of the plates at different temperatures and heights of flattened heat pipes. The results of the theoretical model conform to those of the FE simulation and experiments in the flattened zone. The collapse occurs at room temperature. As the temperature increases, the collapse decreases and finally disappears at approximately 130 ℃ for various heights of flattened heat pipes. The loads of the moving plate increase as the temperature increases. Thus, the reasonable temperature for eliminating the collapse and reducing the load is approximately 130℃. The advantage of the proposed method is that the collapse is reduced or eliminated by means of the thermal deformation characteristic of heat pipe itself instead of by external support. As a result, the heat transfer efficiency of heat pipe is raised.

Numerical Simulation and Optimization of a Mid-Temperature Heat Pipe Exchanger

In this paper,we take the mid-temperature gravity heat pipe exchanger as the research object,simulate the fluid flow field,temperature field and the working state of heat pipe in the heat exchanger by Fluent software.The effects of different operating parameters and fin parameters on the heat transfer performance of heat exchangers are studied.The results show that the heat transfer performance of the mid-temperature gravity heat pipe exchanger is the best when the fin spacing is between 5 mm and 6 mm,the height of the heat pipe is between 12 mm and 13 mm,and the inlet velocity of the fluid is between 2.5 m/s to 3 m/s.