We present detailed data on the performance of microstructured geometries for use in the evaporator section of a vapor chamber heat pipe. The central innovation of the geometries is their hierarchical structure, involving the use of large microchannels in order to reduce liquid flow drag while fabricating microscale pin fin arrays whose small pores increase capillary suction. The overall conductance in such a geometry is dependent on the extent of thin liquid film (thickness ∼few microns), which is manipulated by increasing the surface area-to-volume ratio through the use of microstructuring. Experiments were conducted for a heater area of 1cm2, with the wick in a vertical orientation. Results are presented for fixed microchannel widths of 30–60 microns, with pin fin diameters ranging from 4 to 32 microns, and pin fin array widths of 150 to 300 microns. The competing effects of increase in surface area due to microstructuring, and the suppression of evaporation due to reduction in pore scale are explored. In the evaporative regime, conductances of the order of 6 W/cm2-K are attained at heat fluxes of up to 140 W/cm2, until the capillary limit is reached and the wick dries out.
Skip Nav Destination
2010 14th International Heat Transfer Conference
August 8–13, 2010
Washington, DC, USA
Conference Sponsors:
- Heat Transfer Division
ISBN:
978-0-7918-4940-8
PROCEEDINGS PAPER
Thermal Conductance of Biporous Evaporator Wicks in Thin Film Evaporation and Boiling Regimes Available to Purchase
Vinod Srinivasan,
Vinod Srinivasan
University of California at Berkeley, Berkeley, CA
Search for other works by this author on:
Ming-Chang Lu,
Ming-Chang Lu
University of California at Berkeley, Berkeley, CA
Search for other works by this author on:
Dusan Coso,
Dusan Coso
University of California at Berkeley, Berkeley, CA
Search for other works by this author on:
Arun Majumdar
Arun Majumdar
U.S. Department of Energy, Washington DC
Search for other works by this author on:
Vinod Srinivasan
University of California at Berkeley, Berkeley, CA
Ming-Chang Lu
University of California at Berkeley, Berkeley, CA
Dusan Coso
University of California at Berkeley, Berkeley, CA
Arun Majumdar
U.S. Department of Energy, Washington DC
Paper No:
IHTC14-22730, pp. 401-409; 9 pages
Published Online:
March 1, 2011
Citation
Srinivasan, V, Lu, M, Coso, D, & Majumdar, A. "Thermal Conductance of Biporous Evaporator Wicks in Thin Film Evaporation and Boiling Regimes." Proceedings of the 2010 14th International Heat Transfer Conference. 2010 14th International Heat Transfer Conference, Volume 5. Washington, DC, USA. August 8–13, 2010. pp. 401-409. ASME. https://doi.org/10.1115/IHTC14-22730
Download citation file:
33
Views
Related Proceedings Papers
Related Articles
Enhanced Heat Transfer in Biporous Wicks in the Thin Liquid Film Evaporation and Boiling Regimes
J. Heat Transfer (October,2012)
Numerical Simulation of Evaporating Two-Phase Flow in a High-Aspect-Ratio Microchannel with Bends
J. Heat Transfer (August,2017)
A Semi-Analytical Model to Predict the Capillary Limit of Heated Inclined Triangular Capillary Grooves
J. Heat Transfer (February,2002)
Related Chapters
Experiment Investigation of Flow Boiling Process Including Cavitation in Micro-Channel
Inaugural US-EU-China Thermophysics Conference-Renewable Energy 2009 (UECTC 2009 Proceedings)
The Special Characteristics of Closed-Cycle Gas Turbines
Closed-Cycle Gas Turbines: Operating Experience and Future Potential
Insulating Properties of W-Doped Ga2O3 Films Grown on Si Substrate for Low-K Applications
International Conference on Advanced Computer Theory and Engineering, 4th (ICACTE 2011)