Impact Factor (2025): 6.9
DOI Prefix: 10.47001/IRJIET
In this
study, different heat sink geometries used for electronic cooling are studied
and compared to each other to determine the most efficient. The goal is to
optimize heat transfer of the heat sinks studied in a range of configuration
based on fin geometry. Heat sinks are thermal conductive material devices
designed to absorb and disperse heat from high-temperature objects (e.g.
Computer CPU). Common materials used in the manufacturing of heat sinks are
aluminum and copper due to their relatively high thermal conductivity and
lightweight. Aluminum is used as the material for the heat sinks studied in
this research project. To, experimental results from a wind tunnel test
conducted were compared to numerical results generated to establish a
validation case. Best practices in running numerical simulations on heat sinks
along with suitable models for simulating real-world conditions were determined
and analyzed. The two main thermal performance-evaluating parameters used in
this project are pressure drop (ΔP) and thermal resistance (R). Thirteen
numerical CFD simulations were run on different heat sink fin extrusion
geometries including the traditional rectangular plate, arc plate, radial
plate, cross pin, draft pin, hexagonal pin, mixed shape pin fin, pin and plate,
separated plate, airfoil plate, airfoil pin, rectangular pin, and square
zig-zag plate heat sinks. It was observed that different fin geometries and
dimensions affect the performance of heat sinks to varying extents. The square
zig-zag plate heat sink from results obtained had the lowest thermal resistance
of 0.25 K/W with the separated plate having the lowest pressure drop of 11.94
Pa. This information is relevant in the selection of fan type, size, and model
of heat sink for electronics cooling. Also, another important conclusion drawn
from this project is the existence of no definite correlation between the
thermal resistance (R) and pressure drop (ΔP) parameters when evaluating heat
sink performance.
Country : India
IRJIET, Volume 5, Issue 12, December 2021 pp. 7-10