Research Projects

Two-phase heat transfer is a promising thermal management solution in the electronic industry, with high heat transfer coefficients making it popular for chip cooling applications. However, these heat spreaders often fail to deliver satisfactory heat transfer performance in microgravity and antigravity conditions. The current proposal aims to develop a high-performance electro assisted wickless heat spreader suitable for both microgravity and antigravity conditions. To enhance the performance of the heat spreader, active and passive boiling enhancement techniques are incorporated, such as porous coatings on the surface, addition of ionic liquids to working fluids, and incorporation of an external electric field. Coolant flow inside the spreader can effectively nullify pressure fluctuations, and ionic salt addition can improve bubble dynamics during immersion quenching, particularly in anti-gravity conditions. Laser sintered porous three-dimensional metallic coatings on the metal surface can increase effective boiling surface area and enhance liquid flow into nucleation sites through capillarity. The proposed device integrates all passive and active techniques into a single device. The first phase of research investigates the effects of surface modifications, fluid additive techniques, and electric field effect using a pool boiling setup. The second phase aims to design and develop a heat spreader prototype using optimized parameters, with performance analysis conducted in a flow loop under sub atmospheric and atmospheric pressure conditions.

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