Abstract
Stretchable electronics and robotics are developing fields that will require significant thermal management strategies. Flexible thermal materials and devices have already been developed by several research groups. Previous studies show flexible heat pipes are a practical solution to cool systems with unique geometries. Therapeutic hypothermia (TH) is an immediate application for stretchable heat pipes, given that precise heat deposition or extraction has been shown to save lives. Hypoxic Ischemic Encephalopathy (HIE), where an infant’s brain experiences a decrease in blood flow, is an example of a condition that is treated with TH. This research aims to use Finite Element Analysis (FEA) and experimental studies, to analyze stress-strain deformation of Polydimethylsiloxane (PDMS), a stretchable material. A prototype was created; this prototype was used to collect data on grove geometry and strain. ANSYS results show variations of wicking structures were oriented either parallel or perpendicular which resulted the parallel model having a maximum shear elastic strain of 0.69884 m/m and the perpendicular model maximum shear elastic strain of 1.1097 m/m. Due to the high strain tolerance and reasonable capillary pumping pressure of 293 Pa in 500 μm wide grooves, Initial PDMS models and experiments show promising effectiveness for stretchable heat pipes. Beyond TH, stretchable heat pipes have potential applications in military and athletic wearable systems, as well as the growing field of wearable electronics.
