Conference paper
Power electronics cooling by flow boiling of R134a in parallel copper microchannels
Power electronics represent a core component of many energy-management technologies, such as power drives used in wind turbine or electric vehicles. This type of circuitry has increased its cooling needs over the years and currently new and more efficient cooling solutions are researched to accommodate the next generation of power devices.
Flow boiling of refrigerants in very narrow channels is recognized as a technical solution with a high potential for very efficient and uniform cooling. The current work presents the description of an experimental setup to test the flow boiling of refrigerants in various micro-geometries. A set of 25 parallel channels with a nominal width of 300 μm and a nominal height of 1200 μm was tested.
Boiling curves for R134a are shown for nominal mass fluxes of 180 kg s-1m-2 and 880 kg s-1m-2, evaporating temperature of 30°C at the outlet and inlet flow sub-cooling of 6°C. The maximum footprint heat flux dissipated amounts to 600 W cm-2 for the highest mass flow rate tested. The measurements are supported by high-speed visualization of the flow inside the channels.
Language: | English |
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Year: | 2020 |
Proceedings: | 33rd International Conference on Efficiency, Cost, Optimization, Simulation and Environmental Impact of Energy SystemsInternational Conference on Efficiency, Cost, Optimization, Simulation and Environmental Impact of Energy Systems |
Types: | Conference paper |
ORCIDs: | Kærn, Martin R. and Markussen, Wiebke B. |