AUTONOMA DE OCCIDENTE UNIVERSITY

ENGINEERING FACULTY
HEAT TRANSFER
PRACTICE: CASE STUDIES WITH ANSYS WORKBENCH

Problem description: Heat sinks are commonly used to enhanced heat dissipation from
electronic devices. In the case study, we conduct thermal analysis of a heat sink made of
W 𝑘𝑔
aluminum with thermal conductivity k = 170 density 𝜌 = 2800 , specific heat 𝑐 =
m∙K 𝑚3
J
870 (kg∙K)
. A fan forces air over all surfaces of the heat sink except for the base, where a
heat flux 𝑞 ′ is prescribed. The surrounding air is 28 °C with a heat transfer coefficient of
h=30 W/(m2*°C).
a) Study the steady state thermal response of the heat sink with an initial temperature of
𝑊
28 °C and a constant heat flux input of 𝑞 ′ = 1000 𝑚2
b) Suppose the heat flux is a square wave function with period of 90 seconds and
magnitudes transitioning between 0 and 1000 W/m2. Study the transient thermal
response of the heat sink in 180 seconds by using the steady-state solution as the
initial condition.
You are asked to do the following: Present in a document the simulation carried out in Ansys
Worbench for the cases of stable and transient state. State your analysis and conclusions.
You must make a video in English where you explain the simulations carried out and
the results obtained, it must not have an extension of six minutes.
Note: The document must be written in English.
REFERENCES

[1] CHEN, Xiaolin and Liu, Yijun. Finite element modeling and simulation with Ansys
Workbench. Second Edition. United States: CRC Press, Taylor and Francis Group, 2019,
p.457.