Fabrication of Micro-Patterned Surface for Pool-boiling Enhancement by Using Powder Injection Molding Process

Area of Science:

• Materials Science
• Heat Transfer Engineering
• Surface Engineering

Background:

• Advanced thermal management solutions are crucial for high-performance electronic devices and energy systems.
• Micro-structured surfaces offer potential for enhanced heat transfer characteristics.
• Powder Injection Molding (PIM) is a viable technique for fabricating complex micro-scale features.

Purpose of the Study:

• To investigate the pool-boiling performance of copper micro-patterned surfaces fabricated by PIM.
• To compare the critical heat flux (CHF) and heat transfer coefficient (HTC) of PIM surfaces with a plain copper surface.
• To evaluate the effect of micro-pattern height on boiling performance.

Main Methods:

• Fabrication of copper micro-patterned surfaces with 100 μm pattern size, 50 μm gap, and two different heights (100 μm and 380 μm) using PIM.
• Pool-boiling tests conducted on fabricated surfaces and a reference plain copper surface.
• Measurement of CHF and HTC under varying heat flux conditions.

Main Results:

• PIM micro-patterned surfaces exhibited higher CHF than the plain surface (1434-1444 kW/m² vs. 1191 kW/m²).
• Heat transfer coefficients were similar up to 1000 kW/m², after which PIM surfaces showed superior performance.
• The short micro-pattern (100 μm height) achieved a maximum HTC of 68 kW/m²K at CHF, outperforming the tall micro-pattern (58 kW/m²K) and plain surface (57 kW/m²K).

Conclusions:

• PIM is an effective method for creating micro-patterned surfaces that enhance pool-boiling performance.
• Micro-pattern height plays a significant role in HTC at high heat fluxes, with shorter patterns showing better results.
• The developed micro-patterned surfaces demonstrate potential for improving thermal management in demanding applications.