Investigation of thermo-fluid dynamics of two-phase capillary-pumped heat transfer devices

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Modern electronic equipment is producing more power and becoming more compact; therefore, there is an increasing demand for more effective and innovative cooling techniques. One of the most efficient cooling techniques currently in use is heat pipes. Heat pipes have been extensively used to transfer excess heat from a heat-producing component such as a microprocessor in a computer or an electronic instrument in a spacecraft, while maintaining the temperature within a specified range. The advantages of these devices over conventional cooling techniques include lack of moving parts, robustness, and the ability to transfer large amounts of heat. To meet the challenging thermal cooling requirements, new heat pipe designs have been emerging. This proposed research project focuses on two highly efficient heat pipe designs: arterial and loop heat pipes. Although important progress has been made in the recent past in designing these systems, some operational aspects are far from being understood. One of the major difficulties hindering more advanced development of these devices is the absence of realistic mathematical models. Heat pipe operation relies on the phase change of fluid in a porous structure. The evaporation of liquid from a porous structure is among the most challenging problems. Experimental work is also highly challenging because of the very small scales involved.