Improving the Thermal Performance of a Forced Convection Air Cooled Solution: Part 1 — Modification of Heat Sink Assembly

Author(s):  
Saeed Ghalambor ◽  
John Edward Fernandes ◽  
Dereje Agonafer ◽  
Veerendra Mulay

Forced convection air cooling using heat sinks is one of the most prevalent methods in thermal management of microelectronic devices. Improving the performance of such a solution may involve minimizing the external thermal resistance (Rext) of the package. For a given heat sink design, this can be achieved by reducing the thermal interface material (TIM) thickness through promotion of a uniform interfacial pressure distribution between the device and heat sink. In this study, a dual-CPU rackmount server is considered and modifications to the heat sink assembly such as backplate thickness and bolting configuration are investigated to achieve the aforementioned improvements. A full-scale, simplified model of the motherboard is deployed in ANSYS Mechanical, with emphasis on non-linear contact analysis and torque analysis of spring screws, to determine the optimal design of the heat sink assembly. It is observed that improved interfacial contact and pressure distribution is achieved by increasing the number of screws (loading points) and positioning them as close to the contact area as possible. The numerical model is validated by comparison with experimental measurements within reasonable accuracy. Based on the results of numerical analysis, the heat sink assembly is modified and improvement over the base configuration is experimentally quantified through interfacial pressure measurement. The effect of improved interfacial contact on thermal performance of the solution is discussed.

1994 ◽  
Vol 116 (3) ◽  
pp. 206-211 ◽  
Author(s):  
R. A. Wirtz ◽  
Weiming Chen ◽  
Ronghua Zhou

Heat transfer experiments are reported on the thermal performance of longitudinal fin heat sinks attached to an electronic package which is part of a regular array of packages undergoing forced convection air cooling. The effect of coolant bypass on the performance of the heat sink is assessed and performance correlations for reduced heat transfer due to this effect are developed. These correlations are used to develop design guidelines for optimal performance.


1990 ◽  
Vol 112 (3) ◽  
pp. 234-240 ◽  
Author(s):  
G. L. Lehmann ◽  
S. J. Kosteva

An experimental study of forced convection heat transfer is reported. Direct air cooling of an electronics packaging system is modeled by a channel flow, with an array of uniformly sized and spaced elements attached to one channel wall. The presence of a single or complete row of longitudinally finned heat sinks creates a modified flow pattern. Convective heat transfer rates at downstream positions are measured and compared to that of a plain array (no heat sinks). Heat transfer rates are described in terms of adiabatic heat transfer coefficients and thermal wake functions. Empirical correlations are presented for both variations in Reynolds number (5000 < Re < 20,000) and heat sink geometry. It is found that the presence of a heat sink can both enhance and degrade the heat transfer coefficient at downstream locations, depending on the relative position.


1991 ◽  
Vol 113 (1) ◽  
pp. 27-32 ◽  
Author(s):  
G. L. Lehmann ◽  
J. Pembroke

Forced convection air cooling of an array of low profile, card-mounted components has been investigated. A simulated array is attached to one wall of a low aspect ratio duct. This is the second half of a two-part study. In this second part the presence of a longitudinally finned heat sink is considered. The heat sink is a thermally passive “flow disturbance”. Laboratory measurements of the heat transfer rates downstream of the heat sink are reported and compared with the measured values which occur when no heat sinks are present. Data are presented for three heat sink geometries subject to variations in channel spacing and flow rate. In the flow range considered laminar, transitional and turbulent heat transfer behavior has been observed. The presence of a heat sink appears to “trip” the start of transition at lower Reynolds numbers than when no heat sinks are present. A Reynolds number based on component length provides a good correlation of the heat transfer behavior due to variations in flow rate and channel spacing. Heat transfer is most strongly effected by flow rate and position relative to the heat sink. Depending on the flow regime (laminar or turbulent) both relative enhancement and reductions in the component Nusselt number have been observed. The impact of introducing a heat sink is greatest for flow rates corresponding to transitional behavior.


2006 ◽  
Vol 128 (2) ◽  
pp. 172-176 ◽  
Author(s):  
Suzana Prstic ◽  
Avram Bar-Cohen

The inherent advantages of forced air cooling have led to the widespread use of fully and partially shrouded heat sinks for the thermal management of high power microprocessors. The superior thermal performance that is achievable in the fully shrouded configuration is accompanied by a significant pressure drop penalty. The concept introduced in the current study, employs a thin sheet-metal “heat shield,” placed around a partially shrouded heat sink, to channel the flow directly into the heat sink. A combined numerical and experimental study has shown that the use of this “heat shield” can substantially enhance heat sink thermal performance, in a channel geometry and air flow range typical of commercial chip packages; making it comparable to that of a fully shrouded heat sink, with a substantially lower pressure drop (∼50%). In addition, this thermal enhancement device can be easily retrofitted into existing systems; improving performance without major channel and/or fan modifications.


Author(s):  
M. C. Wu ◽  
C. H. Peng ◽  
C. Y. Lee ◽  
C. J. Fang ◽  
Y. H. Hung

The demand for high execution speed and memory capacity for modern computers results in an increasing circuit density per unit chip and high power dissipation per unit volume. Consequently, traditional air cooling technology such as air-cooled heat sink is reaching the limits for electronic applications. Thermoelectric coolers are regarded as potential solutions for enhancing the performance of air-cooled heat sinks. In the present study, a semi-empirical method for exploring the thermal performance of a heat sink integrated with or without TEC has been successfully established. A concept of design of experiments (DOE) is applied, and a statistical method for sensitivity analysis of the influencing parameters is performed to determine the key factors that are critical to the design. By the statistical sensitivity analysis of ANOVA F-test for the temperature reduction (ΔTC−B) and COP of the TEC, the factor contributions of QP, Rext and I are 31.66%, 33.73%, 34.61% as well as 14.9%, 0%, 85.1%, respectively. By employing the gradient-based numerical optimization technique, a series of constrained optimal designs have been performed. Under the given constraints of COP≧2, the optimal value of ΔTC−B (3.3°C) is obtained with the corresponding Qp (31.99W) and Qte (16W). Comparisons between the results by the present optimal design and those obtained by the semi-empirical results have been made with a satisfactory agreement. The present optimal design shows that a heat sink integrated with TEC can extend the upper limits of thermal management for traditional air-cooled heat sinks.


2009 ◽  
Vol 419-420 ◽  
pp. 345-348
Author(s):  
Rong Yuan Jou

For applications of high-power LED illumination and advanced CPU electronic cooling, since the traditional plate heat sinks by aluminum extrusion are simple geometry only and with limited thermal performance, a new design and new fabrication process of heat sink for high-density heat flux applications is inevitable. In this study, a heat sink fabricated by vacuum die-casting is analyzed. To evaluate the thermal performance of this heat sink, two experiments, free convection measurements in an enclosure and forced convection measurements in a wind tunnel, are conducted by two experimental methods of thermocouples and IR thermograph. As to free convection experiments, compared to the free convection over a plate, temperature decrement by the attached casting of pin-fin heat sink is 46.2% for the input power of 10W. In the case of 15W heating power, temperature distribution along center pin shows uniformly distributed temperature along length direction, but there is a temperature difference of 9.5°C,varied from 86.9°C to 77.4°C, at outer pin. As to the case of 10W heating power, there is a temperature difference of 6.5°C, varied from 69.2.9°C to 62.6°C, at the outer pin. Furthermore, forced convection experiments show that resistances of heat-sink casting are decreased when Reynolds numbers are increased, and a linear relationship between pressure drop and Reynolds number is noticed. Base on the measurement results, this heat sink casting can be a feasible thermal solution of LED and high-power chip products.


Author(s):  
John Daly

With the ever increasing heat flux from next-generation chips forced convection cooling is beginning to reach its limits within current standard heat sink capabilities. Methods of extending the air cooling capabilities prior to a transition to liquid or refrigerant-based cooling which is seen as costly and complex, have become more critical. This paper investigates the enhanced heat transfer by the addition of active components upstream of a longitudinally finned heat sink. This paper addresses piezoelectric fans for natural and forced convection environments. Experimental measurements are taken for a low powered DC fan operating at a frequency of 114Hz. For the forced convection experiments a fully ducted flow was used. The main thrust of the paper is to determine the effects of piezoelectrics in augmenting forced convection systems at hot component locations. The effects on pressure drop, thermal resistance and pumping power with the addition of the technology are presented. The paper concludes by reporting on the performance enhancement and limitations of the piezoelectric fans compared to the conventional longitudinally finned heat sink geometry.


Materials ◽  
2021 ◽  
Vol 14 (8) ◽  
pp. 2041
Author(s):  
Eva C. Silva ◽  
Álvaro M. Sampaio ◽  
António J. Pontes

This study shows the performance of heat sinks (HS) with different designs under forced convection, varying geometric and boundary parameters, via computational fluid dynamics simulations. Initially, a complete and detailed analysis of the thermal performance of various conventional HS designs was taken. Afterwards, HS designs were modified following some additive manufacturing approaches. The HS performance was compared by measuring their temperatures and pressure drop after 15 s. Smaller diameters/thicknesses and larger fins/pins spacing provided better results. For fins HS, the use of radial fins, with an inverted trapezoidal shape and with larger holes was advantageous. Regarding pins HS, the best option contemplated circular pins in combination with frontal holes in their structure. Additionally, lattice HS, only possible to be produced by additive manufacturing, was also studied. Lower temperatures were obtained with a hexagon unit cell. Lastly, a comparison between the best HS in each category showed a lower thermal resistance for lattice HS. Despite the increase of at least 38% in pressure drop, a consequence of its frontal area, the temperature was 26% and 56% lower when compared to conventional pins and fins HS, respectively, and 9% and 28% lower when compared to the best pins and best fins of this study.


2020 ◽  
Vol 319 ◽  
pp. 02004
Author(s):  
Muhammad Akif Rahman ◽  
Md Badrath Tamam ◽  
Md Sadman Faruque ◽  
A.K.M. Monjur Morshed

In this paper a numerical analysis of three-dimensional laminar flow through rectangular channel heat sinks of different geometric configuration is presented and a comparison of thermal performance among the heat sinks is discussed. Liquid water was used as coolant in the aluminum made heat sink with a glass cover above it. The aspect ratio (section height to width) of rectangular channels of the mini-channel heat sink was 0.33. A heat flux of 20 W/cm2 was continuously applied at the bottom of the channel with different inlet velocity for Reynold’s number ranging from 150 to 1044. Interconnectors and obstacles at different positions and numbers inside the channel were introduced in order to enhance the thermal performance. These modifications cause secondary flow between the parallel channels and the obstacles disrupt the boundary layer formation of the flow inside the channel which leads to the increase in heat transfer rate. Finally, Nusselt number, overall thermal resistance and maximum temperature of the heat sink were calculated to compare the performances of the modified heat sinks with the conventional mini channel heat sink and it was observed that the heat sink with both interconnectors and obstacles enhanced the thermal performance more significantly than other configurations. A maximum of 36% increase in Nusselt number was observed (for Re =1044).


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