Fluid-cooled heat sink for use in cooling various devices

Patent metadata

Field	Value
Publication number	US-9759493-B1
Application number	US-201514626964-A
Country	US
Kind code	B1
Filing date	Feb 20, 2015
Priority date	Feb 7, 2011
Publication date	Sep 12, 2017
Grant date	Sep 12, 2017

Abstract

The disclosure provides a fluid-cooled heat sink having a heat transfer base, a shroud, and a plurality of heat transfer fins in thermal communication with the heat transfer base and the shroud, where the heat transfer base, heat transfer fins, and the shroud form a central fluid channel through which a forced or free cooling fluid may flow. The heat transfer pins are arranged around the central fluid channel with a flow space provided between adjacent pins, allowing for some portion of the central fluid channel flow to divert through the flow space. The arrangement reduces the pressure drop of the flow through the fins, optimizes average heat transfer coefficients, reduces contact and fin-pin resistances, and reduces the physical footprint of the heat sink in an operating environment.

First claim

What is claimed is:

1. A fluid-cooled heat sink comprised of a central fluid channel having a longitudinal axis, where the fluid-cooled heat sink is comprised of:
a plurality of longitudinal sections perpendicular to and extending the length of the longitudinal axis, where each longitudinal section has a width w, where the width w is a displacement between a first geometric plane and a second geometric plane bounding the each longitudinal section, where the first geometric plane and the second geometric plane are perpendicular to the longitudinal axis, and where the displacement is determined in a direction parallel to the longitudinal axis, and where each longitudinal section is comprised of a bounded periphery which surrounds the longitudinal axis and encloses a portion of the central fluid channel, where the bounded periphery in the each longitudinal section is comprised of,
a base section, where the base section has a base width parallel to the longitudinal axis, where the base width is equivalent to the width w,
a shroud section, where the shroud section has a shroud width parallel to the longitudinal axis, where the shroud width is equivalent to the width w,
a first heat transfer fin, where the first heat transfer fin is substantially longitudinal and comprised of a first end of the first heat transfer fin and a second end of the first heat transfer fin, where the first end of the first heat transfer fin has a corresponding width parallel to the longitudinal axis, and where the first end of the first heat transfer fin has a first fin base conduction area where the corresponding width comprises a boundary of the first fin base conduction area, and where the second end of the first heat transfer fin has a reciprocal width parallel to the longitudinal axis, and where the second end of the first heat transfer fin has a first fin shroud conduction area where the reciprocal width comprises a boundary of the first fin shroud conduction area, where the first fin base conduction area is attached to the base section and the first fin shroud conduction area is attached to the shroud section,
a second heat transfer fin, where the second heat transfer fin is substantially longitudinal and comprised of a first end of the second heat transfer fin and a second end of the second heat transfer fin, where the first end of the second heat transfer fin has a correlative width parallel to the longitudinal axis, and where the first end of the second heat transfer fin has a second fin base conduction area where the correlative width comprises a boundary of the second fin base conduction area, and where the second end of the second heat transfer fin has a synonymous width parallel to the longitudinal axis, and where the second end of the second heat transfer fin has a second fin shroud conduction area where the synonymous width comprises a boundary of the second fin shroud conduction area, where the second fin base conduction area is attached to the base section and the second fin shroud conduction area is attached to the shroud section, and where the second fin base conduction area is attached to the base section and the second fin shroud conduction area is attached to the shroud section such that a first line extending from the first end of the first heat transfer fin to the second end of the first heat transfer fin does not intersect a second line extending from the first end of the second heat transfer fin to the second end of the second heat transfer fin, where the first line and the second line are co-planer; and

a plurality of flow spaces, where each flow space provides a flow path either between a first heat transfer fin in a primary longitudinal section and a first heat transfer fin in a secondary longitudinal section or between a second heat transfer fin in the primary longitudinal section and a second heat transfer fin in the secondary longitudinal section, where the primary longitudinal section is comprised of a primary bounded periphery surrounding a first portion of the central fluid channel and comprising a primary base section, a primary shroud section, the first heat transfer fin in the primary longitudinal section, and the second heat transfer fin in the primary longitudinal section, and where the secondary longitudinal section is comprised of a secondary bounded periphery surrounding a second portion of the central fluid channel and comprised of a secondary base section, a secondary shroud section, the first heat transfer fin in the secondary longitudinal section, and the second heat transfer fin in a secondary longitudinal section, and where the primary base section is in physical contact with the secondary base section and the primary shroud section is in physical contact with the secondary shroud section, and where the longitudinal axis extends through both the primary bounded periphery and the secondary bounded periphery, such that the first portion of the central fluid channel and the second portion of the central fluid channel form a contiguous portion of the central fluid channel.

2. The fluid-cooled heat sink of claim 1 where the first heat transfer fin in the primary longitudinal section has a primary first fin displacement from the longitudinal axis and the first heat transfer fin in the secondary longitudinal section has a secondary first fin displacement from the longitudinal axis, where the primary first fin displacement is not equal to the secondary first fin displacement, and where the second heat transfer fin in the primary longitudinal section has a primary second fin displacement from the longitudinal axis and the second heat transfer fin in the secondary longitudinal section has a secondary second fin displacement from the longitudinal axis, where the primary second fin displacement is not equal to the secondary second fin displacement, such that the each flow space in the plurality of flow spaces provides fluid communication between the central fluid channel comprising the fluid-cooled heat sink and an environment surrounding the fluid-cooled heat sink.

3. The fluid-cooled heat sink of claim 1 where the primary base section and the secondary base section are in physical contact at a geometric plane between the first longitudinal section and the second longitudinal section, where the geometric plane is perpendicular to the longitudinal axis, and where the primary base section and the secondary base section form a first boundary to the contiguous portion of the central fluid channel and additionally form a contiguous heat transfer area, where the contiguous heat transfer area is in fluid communication with the environment surrounding the fluid-cooled heat sink.

4. The fluid-cooled heat sink of claim 1 where the primary shroud section and the secondary shroud section are in physical contact at the geometric plane between the first longitudinal section and the second longitudinal section, and where the primary shroud section and the secondary shroud section form a second boundary to the contiguous portion of the central fluid channel.

5. The fluid-cooled heat sink of claim 1 where the central fluid channel has a flow inlet area at a first end of the longitudinal axis, where the flow inlet area is in fluid communication with the central fluid channel, such that an inlet flow entering the flow inlet area supplies a channel flow within the central fluid channel, and such that some portion of the channel flow flows through the each flow space.

6. The fluid-cooled heat sink of claim 1 where the first longitudinal section and the second longitudinal section are physically discrete and separable units, and where the fluid-cooled heat sink is comprised of a series of interleaved first longitudinal sections and second longitudinal sections.

7. A fluid-cooled heat sink comprised of a cen

Assignees

• Bharathan Desikan
• Bennion Kevin
• Kelly Kenneth
• Narumanchi Sreekant
• Us Dept Energy

Inventors

• Bharathan Desikan
• Bennion Kevin
• Kelly Kenneth
• Narumanchi Sreekant

Classifications

• H10W40/47

  by flowing liquids, e.g. forced water cooling · CPC title

• H10W40/43 Primary

  by flowing gases, e.g. forced air cooling · CPC title

• H10W40/40

  involving heat exchange by flowing fluids · CPC title

• F28D15/00 Primary

  Heat-exchange apparatus with the intermediate heat-transfer medium in closed tubes passing into or through the conduit walls {; Heat-exchange apparatus employing intermediate heat-transfer medium or bodies (F28D17/00, F28D19/00, F28D20/00 take precedence)} · CPC title

• F28D2021/0028

  for cooling heat generating elements, e.g. for cooling electronic components or electric devices · CPC title