Thermal performance of finned aluminum heat sink filled with ERG aluminum foam: Experimental and numerical approach

The rapid improvements in electronic devices have led to a high demand for effective cooling techniques. The purpose of this study was to investigate the heat transfer characteristics and performance of different aluminum heat sinks filled with aluminum foam for an Intel core i7 processor. The aluminum foam heat sinks were subjected to water flow covering the non-Darcy flow regime (300-600 Reynolds numbers). The bottom side of the heat sinks was heated with a heat flux between 8.5 and 13.8 W/cm². Three different heat sinks were examined in this study. Models A, B, and C contained two, three and four channels, respectively. Each channel gap was filled with ERG aluminum foam. The distributions of the local surface temperature and the local Nusselt number were measured for each heat sink design. The experimental data were compared with the numerical results. The average Nusselt number was obtained for the range of Reynolds numbers, and an empirical correlation of the average Nusselt number as a function of the Reynolds number was derived for each heat sink. The pressure drop across the characteristics of each heat sink design was measured. The thermal performance of each aluminum foam heat sink was evaluated based on the average Nusselt number and the required pumping power. The experimental results revealed that model B achieved the highest average Nusselt number compared with models A and C. However, model C had the highest surface to volume ratio; the thermal boundary layers, which are formed on adjacent fin surfaces inside the aluminum foam, interface with each other causing a reduction in the overall heat transfer. The numerical results were in good agreement with experimental data of local Nusselt number and local temperature with maximum relative errors of 2% and 1%, respectively.     

Characterization of sodium flow over hexagonal fuel subassemblies

Steady flow of liquid sodium over a bundle of heat generating hexagonal subassemblies has been investigated. The cross flow pressure drop and heat transfer are characterized using the general purpose CFD code STAR-CD. Analysis has been carried out for both laminar and turbulent regimes of interest to liquid metal fast reactors. Turbulence has been modeled using low Reynolds number (Re) k-ε model. The estimated pressure drop and heat transfer coefficients are compared against that of a straight parallel plate channel. It is seen that in the low Reynolds number range, the pressure drop for the hexagonal path is nearly equal to that of the parallel plate channel for the same length. However, in the high Reynolds number range, the pressure drop of the hexagonal path is much higher than that in the parallel plate channel, the ratio being 2 at Re = 2000 while it is 3.6 at Re = 20,000. Two competing factors, viz., (i) jet impingement/flow development effect and (ii) flow separation effect are found to influence the average Nusselt number (Nu). In the laminar regime, the latter effect dominates leading to a decrease of the Nusselt number with an increase in the Reynolds number. However, in the turbulent regime, the former effect dominates leading to an increase in the Nusselt number with Reynolds number. The Nusselt number in the hexagonal path is about twice that of the parallel plate channel due to under development of velocity/temperature profiles and the recirculation associated with the hexagonal path due to the changes in flow direction. Detailed correlations for both the pressure drop and the average Nusselt number have been proposed.     

Experimental investigation of forced and mixed convection heat transfer in a foam-filled horizontal rectangular channel

An experimental study was performed to investigate the heat transfer characteristics of the mixed convection flow through a horizontal rectangular channel where open-cell metal foams of different pore densities (10, 20 and 30 PPI) were situated. A uniform heat flux was applied at all of the bounding walls of the channel. For each of three values of the uniform heat flux, temperatures were measured on the entire surfaces of the walls. Results for the average and local Nusselt numbers are presented as functions of the Reynolds and Richardson numbers. The Reynolds number based on the channel height of the rectangular channel was varied from 600 to 33000, while the Richardson number ranged from 0.02 to 103, extending over forced, mixed and natural convection. Second important parameter that influences the heat transfer is the aspect ratio of the foams. Three different aspect ratios (AR) as 0.25, 0.5 and 1 are tested. Based on the experimental data, new empirical correlations have been constructed to link the Nusselt number. The results of all cases were compared to that of the empty channel and the literature. We found that our results were in agreement with those that are mentioned in the literature.     

Natural convection heat transfer of water in a horizontal gap with downward-facing circular heated surface

An experimental study of natural convection heat transfer from a downward-facing horizontal circular heated surface in a water gap has been carried out. The results were correlated in different forms of Nusselt number vs Rayleigh number according to different independent variables. The effects of different characteristic length and temperature were discussed and the gap size is the preferred characteristic length, the average fluid temperature between bulk temperature and the saturated temperature is the preferred film temperature. For the estimation of the natural convection heat transfer under the present conditions, empirical correlations in which Nusselt number is expressed as a function of Rayleigh number, or Rayleigh and Prandtl numbers both, may be used. However, the best accuracy is provided by an empirical correlation which expresses the Nusselt number as a function of the Rayleigh and Prandtl numbers, as well as the gap width-to-heated surface diameter ratio, the dimensionless temperature. Artificial neural networks have been trained successfully for analyzing the influences of the gap width-to-heated surface diameter ratio and the wall temperature difference between the temperature of wall and ambient fluid on natural convection heat transfer based on the experimental data in the present study. The results show that the Nusselt number will increase by increasing the gap ratio and decrease by increasing the wall temperature difference.     

MIXED-CONVECTIVE COOLING OF AN ISOTHERMAL HOT SURFACE BY CONFINED SLOT JET IMPINGEMENT

The flow and heat transfer characteristics in the cooling of a heated surface by impinging slot jets have been investigated numerically. Computations are done for vertically downward-directed two-dimensional slot jets impinging on a hot isothermal surface at the bottom and confined by a parallel adiabatic surface on top. Some computations are also performed where the jet is vertically upward, with an impingement plate at the top. The principal objective of this study is to investigate the associated heat transfer process in the mixed-convective regime. The computed flow patterns and isotherms for various domain aspect ratios (4–10) and for a range of jet exit Reynolds numbers (100–500) and Richardson numbers (0–10) are analyzed to understand the mixed-convection heat transfer phenomena. The local and average Nusselt numbers and skin friction coefficients at the hot surface for various conditions are presented. It is observed that for a given domain aspect ratio and Richardson number, the average Nusselt number at the hot surface increases with increasing jet exit Reynolds number. On the other hand, for a given aspect ratio and Reynolds number, the average Nusselt number does not change significantly with Richardson number, indicating that the buoyancy effects are not very significant in the overall heat transfer process for the range of jet Reynolds number considered in this study. Also, for the same problem configuration, the average Nusselt number does not change significantly when the jet is moving upward or downward.     

Experimental Investigations on Natural Convection Heat Transfer Around Horizontal Triangular Ducts

Experimental investigations have been reported on steady-state natural convection from the outer surfaces of horizontal ducts with triangular cross sections in air. Two different horizontal positions are considered; in the first position, the vertex of the triangle faces up, while in the other position, the vertex faces down. Five equilateral triangular cross-section ducts have been used with cross-section side length of 0.044, 0.06, 0.08, 0.10, and 0.13 m. The ducts are heated using internal constant-heat-flux heating elements. The temperatures along the surface and peripheral directions of the duct wall are measured. Longitudinal (perimeter-averaged) heat transfer coefficients along the side of each duct are obtained for natural convection heat transfer. Total overall averaged heat transfer coefficients are also obtained. Longitudinal (perimeter-averaged) Nusselt numbers and the modified Rayleigh numbers are evaluated and correlated using different characteristic lengths. Furthermore, total overall averaged Nusselt numbers are correlated with the modified Rayleigh numbers. Moreover, a dimensionless temperature group was developed and correlated with the modified Rayleigh number. For the upward-facing case, laminar and transition regimes are obtained and characterized. However, for the downward-facing vertex case, only the transition regime is observed. The local (perimeter-averaged) or the overall total Nusselt numbers increase as the modified Rayleigh numbers increase in the transition regime. However, Nusselt numbers decrease as the modified Rayleigh numbers increase in the laminar regime.     

Experimental study on convective boiling heat transfer in vertical narrow-gap annular tube

IntroductionConvechve boiling or highly subcooled single-Phaseforced convention in micro-channels is an effeCtivecooling meChedsm with a wide ~ge of aPPlications.Among these are the COOling of such diverse system as. accelerator abets, high power resistive magnets,compact fission ~ cores, fusion ~ blankets,advanced space thermal management systems,manufachang and materials Processing OPerations, andhigh-density multi~chip modules in supe~ andOther modular eleCtronics. These devices involv…     

Internal-flow Nusselt numbers for the low-Reynolds-number end of the laminar-to-turbulent transition regime

For heat exchange devices that operate in the low-Reynolds-number end of the laminar-to-turbulent transition regime, logical design is thwarted by the absence of reliable Nusselt number information. The currently accepted Nusselt number correlation for the transition regime, due to Gnielinski, is restricted to the high-Reynolds-number end of that regime. This limitation results from the need for a valid friction factor—Reynolds correlation for input to the Gnielinski equation. Heretofore, such correlations have been unavailable for the low-Reynolds-number end. By the application of a new fluid flow model which is valid for all flow regimes and smoothly and automatically bridges between regimes, the needed correlations have been determined. On this basis, fully developed Nusselt number results are provided for (a) a round pipe of axially uniform cross section, (b) the downstream end of a round pipe fitted with a conical enlargement (diverging nozzle) at its upstream end, and (c) a parallel-plate channel. All results are for a fluid with Prandtl number equal to 0.7.     

Experimental and CFD study of wall effects on orderly stacked cylindrical particles heat transfer in a tube channel

In this study, the flow and heat transfer characteristics of regularly arranged cylindrical particles in a bed with bed-to-particle diameter ratio of 2.65 (The particle and bed diameter are 25 and 66 mm respectively and the bed height is 200 mm) have been studied in two different arrangements of particles. The first layout is coaxial particles which embrace 8 layers and 3 equilateral cylindrical particles in each layer); the second arrangement is similar to the first one but the intermittent layers have been rotated 60^o. Three dimensional CFD simulation of air flow through these arrangements of particles in bed have been carried out by the standard κ-ε turbulence model with using of FEMLAB (Multiphysics in MATLAB) software version 2.3. For two configurations, comparisons between CFD results and experimental data have been drawn. Our results have been compared with prediction of empirical correlations for pressure drop of flow through the bed. The heat transfer CFD results were validated by naphthalene sublimation mass transfer experiments. The particle Nusselt number was obtained by using analogy between mass and heat transfer. A good quantitative and qualitative agreement between hydrodynamic of CFD simulation and experimental results was gained for both arrangements. The model predicts pressure drop of channel with two arrangements, coaxial and non-coaxial particles with an average error of 10% and 15%, respectively. Moreover, the CFD simulation has predicted the average particle Nusselt numbers of these two arrangements with an average quantitative error of 7% and 14%. Furthermore, the influence of wider range of Reynolds number (2500–6800) on particle Nusselt number has been investigated.     

Thermally developing flow and heat transfer in rectangular microchannels of different aspect ratios

Laminar convective heat transfer in the entrance region of microchannels of rectangular cross-section is investigated under circumferentially uniform wall temperature and axially uniform wall heat flux thermal boundary conditions. Three-dimensional numerical simulations were performed for laminar thermally developing flow in microchannels of different aspect ratios. Based on the temperature and heat flux distributions obtained, both the local and average Nusselt numbers are presented graphically as a function of the dimensionless axial distance and channel aspect ratio. Generalized correlations, useful for the design and optimization of microchannel heat sinks and other microfluidic devices, are proposed for predicting Nusselt numbers. The proposed correlations are compared with other conventional correlations and with available experimental data, and show very good agreement.     

Wall coupling effect in channel forced convection with streamwise periodic boundary heat flux variation

The present paper deals with the laminar forced convection in a parallel-plane channel, and is aimed to investigate the effect of conducting walls. On the external boundaries of the duct walls a thermal boundary condition is prescribed, such that the wall heat flux longitudinally varies with sinusoidal law. The local energy balance equation is written separately for the fluid and the solid regions, with reference to the fully developed regime, and then solved both analytically and numerically. Moreover, the local and average Nusselt numbers in a longitudinal period are evaluated. The average Nusselt number, if regarded as a function of the dimensionless pulsation, displays an interesting feature. In fact, for all the considered cases, it has a minimum, so that there exists a value of the dimensionless pulsation such that the heat exchange between the fluid and the solid wall is considerably inhibited.     

Thermo-Solutal Buoyancy Induced Mixed Convection in a Backward Facing Step Channel using Velocity-Vorticity Formulation

Double diffusive mixed convection in a horizontal channel with backward facing step is analyzed using velocity-vorticity formulation with a focus on the effect of recirculatory flow pattern on convective heat and mass transfer. The governing equations consist of vorticity transport equation with thermal and solutal buoyancy force terms, velocity Poisson equations, energy equation, and solutal concentration equation. Galerkin's weighted residual finite-element method has been employed to solve the equations for vorticity, velocity, temperature, and concentration fields in the computational domain. Test results are obtained to study the effect of thermal Grashof number (Gr _T ), solutal Grashof number (Gr _S ), and expansion ratio on the average Nusselt and Sherwood numbers. Results indicate that the convective heat transfer increased with increase in Gr _T only when the Gr _S number is in the aiding mode. The maximum local Nusselt number is always observed to be located adjacent to the downstream of the fluid reattachment point. Using the matched method of asymptotic expansions, correlations have also been developed for average Nusselt and Sherwood numbers for both cases of aiding and opposing buoyancy forces.     

Thermal performance of a single-row fin-and-tube heat exchanger

Experiments were carried out to study the heat transfer characteristics of a single-row aluminum fin-and-tube crossflow heat exchanger with an emphasis in the regime of low flow rate of the in-tube fluid. The Chilton-Colburn analogy, in conjunction with the least-squares power-law technique, was used to correlate experimental data. Both air- and water-side heat transfer correlations were developed in the form of the Nusselt numbers as a function of Reynolds and Prandtl numbers. The experimental observations are quantitatively compared to the predictions of correlations available in the published literature. Different transfer mechanisms were found to be operative in the ranges of water-side Reynolds numbers based on the hydraulic diameter. In a range of Reynolds number from 1,200 to 6,000, the water-side thermal resistance accounts for less than ten percent of the overall thermal resistance. The dominant thermal resistance is always on the air-side. On the other hand, the thermal resistance of water-side is nearly equal to that of air-side in a Reynolds number range from 500 to 1,200.     

Numerical study of turbulent heat transfer in 3D pin-fin channels: Validation of a quick procedure to estimate mean values in quasi-periodic flows

Pin-fin heat exchangers are widely used and there is an increasing interest in the design of compact units. This work investigated the prediction of the heat transfer rate in pin-fin channel flows using numerical simulation, considering pins of cylindrical geometry in aligned and staggered arrangements. The simulations were performed using the Reynolds-averaged Navier–Stokes equations together with the shear stress transport turbulence model. The main purpose of this work was to develop and validate a quick numerical procedure to evaluate the heat transfer rate in pin-fin channel flows using their quasi-steady behavior. The procedure was validated by comparing the mean Nusselt number results with time-averaged Nusselt numbers obtained from transient simulations. It was also shown that these values are in good agreement with available experimental data. This procedure could determine the overall mean Nusselt number up to 25 times faster. The importance of the quasi-steady flow behavior on the heat transfer was also quantified.     

Flow and Heat Transfer Phenomena Across Two Confined Tandem Heated Triangular Bluff Bodies

Confined flow and heat transfer phenomena across two long triangular bars in tandem arrangement in a horizontal channel have been studied for the range of Reynolds number (Re) = 1–40, Prandtl number (Pr) = 0.71–50 and gap ratio (S/B) = 1–4 for a fixed blockage ratio of 25%. The average Nusselt number of the first triangular cylinder is found to be larger than the corresponding value for the second triangular cylinder in the tandem configuration. Heat transfer correlations in terms of the Colburn j_h factor have been established in the steady regime.     

A boundary layer analysis for entrance region heat transfer in vertical microchannels within the slip flow regime

A boundary layer integral analysis has been executed to investigate the heat transfer characteristics of natural convection gas flows in symmetrically heated vertical microchannels, under the conditions of large channel aspect ratios, in the slip flow regime. It has been revealed that for low values of Rayleigh number, the entrance region length is only a small fraction of the total channel extent. For higher values of Rayleigh number, however, effects of the developing region are non-trivial, and two counteracting heat transfer mechanisms need to be aptly taken into consideration for interpreting the Nusselt number values. In the present study, the proportionate enhancement in the average Nusselt number with wall-slip effects has been observed to become more prominent for higher values of Knudsen number. However, the relative augmentation in the rate of heat transfer tends to get somewhat arrested for higher values of Rayleigh number, as attributable to the counteracting influences of augmented rates of advective transport and reduced wall-adjacent temperature gradients. For all cases, the boundary layer theory based predictions have been found to agree excellently with the corresponding results obtained from full-scale numerical predictions.     

Experimental Study on Fluid Flow and Heat Transfer from a Rectangular Prism Approaching the Wall of a Wind Tunnel

Experimental investigations in fluid flow and heat transfer have been carried out to study the effect of wall proximity due to flow separation around rectangular prisms. Experiments have been carried out for the Reynolds number 2.6 × 10⁴, blockage ratios are 0.1, 0.2, 0.3, and 0.4, aspect ratios (d/c) are 1.5, 1.33, 0.667, and 0.333, with different height‐ratios and various angles of attack. The static pressure distribution has been measured on all faces of the rectangular prisms. The results have been presented in the form of pressure coefficient, drag coefficient for various height‐ratios and blockage ratios. The pressure distribution shows positive values on the front face whereas on the rear face negative values of the pressure coefficient have been observed. The drag coefficient decreases with the increase in angle of attack as the height‐ratio decreases. The heat transfer experiments have been carried out under constant heat flux conditions. Heat transfer coefficients are determined from the measured wall temperature and ambient temperature and presented in the form of a Nusselt number. Both local and average Nusselt numbers have been presented for various height‐ratios. The variation of the local Nusselt number has been shown with nondimensional distance for different angles of attack and blockage ratios. The variation of the average Nusselt number has also been shown with different angles of attack for blockage ratios. The local as well as average Nusselt number decreases as the height‐ratio decreases for all nondimensional distances and angles of attack, respectively, for rectangular prisms. Empirical correlations for the average Nusselt number have been presented for a rectangular prism as a function of the Reynolds number, Prandtl number and relevant nondimensional parameters.     

Wall temperature experimental investigation in a thermally driven channel

Direct local wall temperature has been measured, in a steady state, along a vertical air channel asymmetrically heated with uniform fluxes. In the range of high Grashof numbers that was investigated, the flow regime probably remained laminar. A radiative part has been analysed with two extreme values of internal surface emissivity corresponding to unpainted metal and black painted wall. A correlation has been proposed for the calculation of a characteristic channel outlet value of the Nusselt number referred to air spacing. A local Nusselt number over the height has been developed in a power law scheme.     

HEAT AND FLUID FLOW ACROSS A SQUARE CYLINDER IN THE TWO-DIMENSIONAL LAMINAR FLOW REGIME

The flow structure and heat transfer characteristics of an isolated square cylinder in cross flow are investigated numerically for both steady and unsteady periodic laminar flow in the two-dimensional regime, for Reynolds numbers of 1 to 160 and a Prandtl number of 0.7. The effect of vortex shedding on the isotherm patterns and heat transfer from the cylinder is discussed. Heat transfer correlations between Nusselt number and Reynolds number are presented for uniform heat flux and constant cylinder temperature boundary conditions.     

Natural convection heat transfer of water in a horizontal circular gap

An experimental study on the natural convection heat transfer on a horizontal downward facing heated surface in a water gap was carried out under atmospheric pressure conditions. A total of 700 experimental data points were correlated using Rayleigh versus Nusselt number in various forms, based on different independent variables. The effects of different characteristic lengths and film temperatures were discussed. The results show that the buoyancy force acts as a resistance force for natural convection heat transfer on a downward facing horizontal heated surface in a confined space. For the estimation of the natural convection heat transfer under the present conditions, empirical correlations in which Nusselt number is expressed as a function of the Rayleigh number, or both Rayleigh and Prandtl numbers, may be used. When it is accurately predicted, the Nusselt number is expressed as a function of the Rayleigh and Prandtl numbers, as well as the gap width-to-heated surface diameter ratio; and uses the temperature difference between the heated surface and the ambient fluid in the definition of Rayleigh number. The characteristic length is the gap size and the film temperature is the average fluid temperature.