Thermo-Fluid Characteristics of Microchannel Heat Sink With Multi-Configuration NACA 2412 Hydrofoil Ribs

In the present study, hydrofoil ribs made from NACA 2412 profile were mounted in a novel way at all walls of microchannel heat sink with various configurations to improve its thermo-hydraulic characteristics. The various configurations include comparison between staggered and aligned arrangements, and the variation of rib spacing between two consecutive hydrofoils (Sr = 0.2-0.6 mm) at a constant cord length (Cr = 0.4 mm). The study was performed with the help of commercially available computational fluid dynamics tool, ANSYS Fluent. The performance of various configurations were compared with each other and with smooth channel using parameters like friction factor (f), Nusselt number (Nu), and overall performance is determined by thermal enhancement factor (eta). The results of this study showed that the best performance is achieved by the configuration where rib spacing becomes equal to cord length (Sr = 0.4 mm). Moreover, it has been observed in this study that staggered configuration performed better than aligned configuration.

Automated summary

In this study, hydrofoil ribs made from NACA 2412 profile were mounted in a novel way at all walls of microchannel heat sink to improve its thermo-hydraulic characteristics. Different configurations were tested, and it was found that the best performance is achieved when rib spacing becomes equal to cord length. The study also showed that staggered configuration outperformed aligned configuration.