Taiho Yeom

Enhancing Heat Transfer of Air-Cooled Heat Sinks Using Piezoelectrically-Driven Agitators and Synthetic Jets

Air-cooled heat sinks prevail in microelectronics cooling due to their high reliability, low cost, and simplicity. But, their heat transfer performance must be enhanced if they are to compete for high-flux applications with liquid or phase-change cooling. Piezoelectrically-driven agitators and synthetic jets have been reported as good options in enhancing heat transfer of surfaces close to them. This study proposes that agitators and synthetic jets be integrated within air-cooled heat sinks to significantly raise heat transfer performance. A proposed integrated heat sink has been investigated experimentally and with CFD simulations in a single channel heat sink geometry with an agitator and two arrays of synthetic jets. The single channel unit is a precursor to a full scale, multichannel array. The agitator and the jet arrays are separately driven by three piezoelectric stacks at their individual resonant frequencies. The experiments show that the combination of the agitator and synthetic jets raises the heat transfer coefficient of the heat sink by 80%, compared with channel flow only. The 3D computations show similar enhancement and agree well with the experiments. The numerical simulations attribute the heat transfer enhancement to the additional air movement generated by the oscillatory motion of the agitator and the pulsating flow from the synthetic jets. The component studies reveal that the heat transfer enhancement by the agitator is significant on the fin side and base surfaces and the synthetic jets are most effective on the fin tips.Copyright

An Active Heat Sink System With Piezoelectric Translational Agitators and Micro Pin Fin Arrays

Conventional heat sink systems with blowers or fans are approaching maximum thermal management capability due to dramatically increased heat dissipation from the chips of high power electronics. In order to increase thermal performance of air-cooled heat sink systems, more active or passive cooling components are continually being considered. One technique is to agitate of the flow in the heat sinks to replace or aid conventional blowers. In the present study, an active heat sink system that is coupled with a piezoelectric translational agitator and micro pin fin arrays on the heat sink surfaces is considered. The piezoelectric translational agitator generates high frequency and large displacement motion to a blade. It is driven by an oval loop shell that amplifies the small displacement of the piezo stack actuator to the several-millimeter range. The blade, made of carbon fiber composite, is easily extended to a multiple-blade system without adding much mass. The micro pin fin arrays were created with the LIGA photolithography technique. The cooling performance of the heat sink system was demonstrated in single-channel and multiple-channel test facilities. The singlechannel test results show that the active heat sink with the agitator operating at a frequency of 686 Hz and peak-to-peak displacement of 1.4 mm achieved a low thermal resistance of 0.053 C/W in a channel with a 7.9 m/sec flow velocity. Different configurations of the translational agitator with multiple blades were fabricated and tested in a 26-channel, full-size heat sink. Vibrational characteristics are also provided.© 2012 ASME

Convective Heat Transfer Enhancement With Micro Pin-Fin Surfaces Cooled by a Piezoelectrically-Driven Translational Agitator

Air cooling of electronic equipment continues to hold many advantages over liquid cooling in terms of simplicity, reliability, cost, etc. Many active and passive air cooling techniques have been developed to meet the thermal challenges of modern, high-power electronics. Active cooling includes such features as piezoelectric flapping fans and synthetic jets that could directly break down and thin the thermal boundary layers on heated surfaces. A microchannel bank of fins, micro pin-fin surfaces, etc. are passive methods for increasing heat transfer area. In the current study, both active and passive methods, piezoelectric translational agitators and micro pin fin arrays, are employed to dramatically enhance convective heat transfer rates. A piezoelectric stack actuator coupled with an oval loop shell displacement amplifier was utilized to generate high-frequency and large-displacement translational agitation over the micro pin fin surface. Two different micro pin-fin surfaces were fabricated using copper and the LIGA process. Heat transfer experiments were performed in a single channel that houses a one-sided, heated surface with attached micro pin fins. The piezoelectric translational agitator oscillates at a high frequency of 596 Hz with a large displacement of up to 1.8 mm. The heat transfer coefficients on the micro pin-fin surface cooled by the agitator and various channel through-flows were compared with those of plain surfaces under the same channel flow rates. A maximum improvement of 222% in the heat transfer rate was achieved when the agitator was operated, the micro pin-fin surface was in place and the channel flow velocity was 11.6 m/sec, compared to that of a non-agitated plain surface case with the same flow rate.Copyright

Fluid damping and power consumption of active devices used in cooling electronics

Active devices, such as synthetic jets and oscillating plate agitators were found to be effective in cooling of high-heat-flux electronics. These devices generate unsteady flows, thinning the thermal boundary layer and enhancing turbulent transport. However, the active devices cause extra power consumption due to flow friction and separation. It is important to understand the factors influencing power consumption in these devices if they are to be applied in cooling system designs. The present study analyzes fluid damping and power consumption in high-frequency (about 1000 Hz) synthetic jets and oscillating plate agitators driven by piezoelectric stacks. This analysis is done numerically, since it is difficult to measure fluid damping. In the simulations, the moving part of the active device is modeled with the moving wall boundary condition. The mesh is updated and the flow is calculated every time the moving part changes its position. The coherent vortex structures generated by theses active devices, like vortices in the synthetic jet cavity or in the oscillating plate tip gap region, are found to cause fluid damping and power consumption. Fluidic power consumption levels with different geometries and different operating frequencies and amplitudes are studied. A correlation is developed to predict fluidic power consumption at different operating conditions.Copyright

Micro tactile sensors with a suspended and oriented single walled carbon nanotube beam embeded in PDMS elastomer

A tactile sensor utilizing a patterned and suspended SWNT film as a sensing element is reported in this paper. Dense and oriented SWNT films were self-assembled using dielectrophoresis through the monitoring of the dc resistance of the film. The SWNT film was patterned by lithography and oxygen plasma etching to form a suspended SWNT beam. PDMS primer was spin-coated on the SWNT structure, and cured to realize a robust tactile sensor. In nanoindentation test, a piezoresistive sensitivity of 5%/mN and a detection limitation of 2 µN were demonstrated. This simple and low temperature fabrication technology is believed to be very promising for flexible tactile sensors and sensor arrays in applications to smart robots, implantable clinic tools, or embedded pressure sensors in microfluidic systems.

The Effects of Agitator Blade Geometry and Configuration for Augmenting Heat Transfer by Agitation in Channel Flows

Translationally oscillating blades, called agitators, can be used to thoroughly mix the flow inside heat exchanger channels such as those in an electronics module heat sink. Generally, throughflow is provided with an induction fan. Agitation is implemented inside the channel by using either multiple agitator blades, agitator blades with notched edges, full-length long-blade agitators or short-blade agitators. The power needed to drive the agitator blades is dependent on the agitation velocity, geometry and mass. The performance features of a 50mm long agitator blade operating at an oscillation frequency of 500Hz, a 15mm short agitator blade operating at a frequency of 1000Hz, and two blades of length 15mm operating at a frequency of 500 Hz have been compared. Also, runs with other geometric changes, like those with added notches at the tip of the agitator, are made to explore their benefits. The intent is that the notches generate additional vorticity at the channel inlet, which is convected downstream enhancing heat transfer as it passes. Thus, this study numerically finds directions toward optimal agitator configurations and geometries that would give heat transfer augmentation without excessive power input. It was found that a multiple agitator blade configuration containing two short blade agitators operating at frequency 500Hz gives the best performance in terms of heat transfer augmentation when power consumption is considered. Heat flux plots on the channel wall and turbulence kinetic energy plots within the channel have been used to explain the mechanisms of heat transfer augmentation for the various cases.Copyright

Heat Transfer Enhancement of a Heat Sink by Inclined Synthetic Jets for Electronics Cooling

Rising thermal dissipation from modern electronics has increased the challenge of cooling using conventional heat sinks. In addition to fans and blowers, focus is turning to active cooling devices for augmenting performance. A piezoelectrically-actuated synthetic jet array is one under consideration. Synthetic jets are zero-net–mass-flow jets realized by a cavity with an oscillating diaphragm on one side and an orifice or multiple orifices on the other side. They generate highly unsteady jetting flows that can impinge upon heated surfaces and enhance cooling. However, the synthetic jet actuation components might interfere with other components of the electronics module, such as the fan, requiring a displacement of the cavity center from the jet array center. Herein, heat transfer enhancement by an inclined piezoelectrically-actuated synthetic jet arrangement in a heat sink for electronics cooling has been experimentally and numerically studied. A wedge-shaped platform is designed to introduce the jets with an inclined configuration into the finned channels of the heat sink. The unit is inclined to avoid interference with other components of the module. The penalty is described in terms of velocities of jets emerging from this wedge-shaped platform, compared to those from an aligned cavity-orifice design. Effects on heat transfer performance for the heat sink are documented. The jets are arranged as wall jets passing over heat sink fins. The experimental study is complemented with a numerical analysis of flow within the synthetic jet cavity. Optimization is done on the number of jets against the penalty on jet velocity for obtaining maximum cooling performance. The jets are driven by piezoelectric actuators operating at resonance frequencies of 700–800 Hz resulting in peak jet velocities of approximately 35m/s from 92, 0.9 mm × 0.9 mm orifices. The results give guidance to those who face a similar interference problem and are considering displacement of the synthetic jet assembly.Copyright

Noise Measurements and Reduction for High-Frequency Vibrating Devices in the Application of Cooling Electronics

Traditional heat sinks for electronics cooling have become ever more difficult to design to meet the high dissipation rate of modern high-heat-flux electronics. Active devices, especially devices operating at a high frequency, show promise toward enhancing heat transfer performance. However, active devices generate noise that may not be acceptable to personnel. The present work studies acoustic characteristics of piezoelectrically-driven synthetic jets and oscillating plate agitators operating at high frequency (around 1000 Hz) employed in an electronics cooling module for heat transfer enhancement purposes. The A-weighted noise level from such actuators is measured and found to increase with increases of driving voltage and operational frequency. The measured sound pressure level of the active devices used in our present enhanced heat transfer module can be as high as 100 dB. Through a power spectrum analysis, we find that most acoustic energy is in a narrow frequency band close to the operating frequency of the active device. To decrease the noise level, a muffler, which also allows cooling air to recirculate through the equipment cabinet, has been designed and tested. An analytical model is employed to select the geometry of the muffler for optimal performance based on acoustic characteristics of the active devices and the through-flow pressure drop. The muffler having this optimal design is fabricated and tested and found to be able to decrease the noise level generated by two actuators from 83 dB to 64 dB.Copyright

Development of Synthetic Jet Arrays for Heat Transfer Enhancement in Air-Cooled Heat Sinks for Electronics Cooling

Synthetic jet arrays driven by a piston-diaphragm structure with a translational motion were fabricated. A piezo-bow actuator generating large translational displacements at a high working frequency was used to drive the jets. Vibration analysis with a laser vibrometer shows the peak-to-peak displacement of the piston inside the jet cavity of about 0.5 mm at the second resonant vibrational frequency of 1,240 Hz. In this driving condition, the peak velocity of a 20-orifice jet array reaches 45 m/s for each orifice with a total power consumption of 1.6 W. Heat transfer performance of the jet array was tested on a 100-mm-long single channel of a 26-channel heat sink. The synthetic jet flow impinges on the tips of the fins. A cross flow through the channel enters from the two ends of the channel, and exits from the middle. Results show that the activation of jets generates a unit-average heat transfer enhancement of 9.3% when operating with a channel flow velocity of 14.7 m/s, and 23.1% when operating with a channel flow velocity of 8 m/s. The effects of various choices for orifice configuration and different dimensionless distances from the fin tips, z/d, on jet performance were evaluated. By decreasing the length of the fin channel from 100 mm to 89 mm and reducing the orifice number of the jet array from 20 to 18, jet peak velocities of about 54 m/s can be obtained with the same power consumption, and a heat transfer enhancement of 31.0% from the jets can be achieved on the 89-mm-long heat sink channel with a flow velocity of 8 m/s.Copyright