Effects of Nonuniform Base Heating on Single Stack and Multi-Stack MicroChannel Heat Sinks Used for Electronics Cooling

摘要

Numerical investigations with regard to the thermal characteristics of water cooled single stack and multistack microchannel heat sinks subjected to nonuniform base heating are conducted. Nonuniformities in base heating are accomplished by applying gradually increasing and gradually decreasing base heat fluxes with respect to coolant flow direction in the heat sink. The effects of heat concentration upstream, downstream, and in the center half of the microchannel heat sinks (similar to a hotspot) are also studied. Both parallel flow and counter coolant flow conditions in the heat sink are considered and the results are compared. The results are presented in the form of base temperature distribution and heat sink thermal resistance. The finite element method is used for the analysis.