HEAT PIPE

Presented by:Subrat Kumar Dash

Roll no:11/ME-113
Regd no:1221225088

Contents

What is a Heat Pipe?

A heat pipe heat exchanger is a simple device which is

made use of to transfer heat from one location to another,

using an evaporation-condensation cycle.
Heat pipes are referred to as the "superconductors" of heat
due to their fast transfer capability with low heat loss.

Working Principle

The heat input region of the heat pipe is called evaporator, the
cooling region is called condenser.
In between the evaporator and condenser regions, there may be
an adiabatic region

Components of Heat Pipe

Container
Working fluid
Wick or Capillary structure

1.Container
The function of the container is to isolate the working fluid
from the outside environment.
Selection of the container material depends on many
factors. These are as follows:
Compatibility (both with working fluid and external

environment)
Strength to weight ratio
Thermal conductivity
Ease of fabrication, including welding, machineability and
ductility
Porosity
Wettability

Container materials
Of the many materials available for the container, three are

by far the most common in usename copper, aluminum,

and stainless steel.
Copper is eminently satisfactory for heat pipes operating
between 0200c in applications such as electronics cooling.
While commercially pure copper tube is suitable, the oxygenfree high conductivity type is preferable.
Like aluminum and stainless steel, the material is readily
available and can be obtained in a wide variety of diameters
and wall thicknesses in its tubular form.

2.Working Fluid
The prime requirements are:
1. Compatibility with wick and wall material
2. Good thermal stability
3. Wettability of wick and wall materials
4. Vapor pressure not too high or low over the operating
temperature range
5. High latent heat
6. High thermal conductivity
7. Low liquid and vapor viscosities
8. High surface tension
9. Acceptable freezing or pour point

Examples of Working Fluid

Melting Point
Medium
(C)

Boiling Point at

Useful Range

Atm. Pressure

(C)

(C)

Helium
Nitrogen
Ammonia
Acetone
Methanol
Flutec PP2
Ethanol
Water

-271
-210
-78
-95
-98
-50
-112
0

-261
-196
-33
57
64
76
78
100

-271 to -269
-203 to -160
-60 to 100
0 to 120
10 to 130
10 to 160
0 to 130
30 to 200

3.Wick Structure
1. It is a porous structure made of materials like

steel,alumunium, nickel or copper in various ranges of pore

sizes.
2. The prime purpose of the wick is to generate capillary
pressure to transport the working fluid from the condenser to
the evaporator.
3. It must also be able to distribute the liquid around the
evaporator section to any area where heat is likely to be
received by the heat pipe.

4. Wicks are fabricated using metal foams, and more

5.
6.
7.

8.

particularly felts, the latter being more frequently used. By

varying the pressure on the felt during assembly, various
pore sizes can be produce.
The maximum capillary head generated by a wick increases
with decrease in pore size.
The wick permeability increases with increasing pore size.
Another feature of the wick, which must be optimized, is its
thickness. The heat transport capability of the heat pipe is
raised by increasing the wick thickness.
Other necessary properties of the wick are compatibility with
the working fluid and wettability.

Wick working phenomenon

Wick Design
Two main types of wicks: homogeneous and

composite.
1. Homogeneous- made from one type of material
or machining technique. Tend to have either high
capillary pressure and low permeability or the
other way around. Simple to design,
manufacture, and install .
2. Composite- made of a combination of several
types or porosities of materials and/or
configurations. Capillary pumping and axial
fluid transport are handled independently . Tend
to have a higher capillary limit than
homogeneous wicks but cost more.

htp://www.electronicscooling.com/Resources/EC_Articles/SEP96/sep96_02.htm

Three properties effect wick design

1. High pumping pressure - a small capillary pore
radius (channels through which the liquid travels in
the wick) results in a large pumping (capillary)
pressure.
2. Permeability - large pore radius results in low liquid
pressure drops and low flow resistance. Design
choice should be made that balances large capillary
pressure with low liquid pressure drop. Composite
wicks tend to find a compromise between the two.
3. Thermal conductivity - a large value will result in a
small temperature difference for high heat fluxes.

Fig: The actual test results of heat pipe with different wick structure at
horizontal and vertical (gravity assist) orientations.

Types of Heat Pipes

Thermosyphon
Leading edge
Rotating and revolving
Cryogenic pumped loop heat pipe
Flat PlateMicro heat pipes
Variable conductance
Capillary pumped loop heat pipe

Advantages Of Heat Pipes

May reduce or eliminate the need fir reheat,
Allow cost effective manner to accommodate

new ventilation standards,

Requires no mechanical or electrical input,
Are virtually maintenance free,
Provide lower operating costs,
Last a very long time,
Readily adaptable to new installations and
retrofiting existing A/C units and
Are environmentally safe.

Ideal Thermodynamic Cycle

Heat Pipe Applications

Electronics cooling- small high performance

components cause high heat fluxes and high heat

dissipation demands. Used to cool transistors and
high density semiconductors.
Aerospace- cool satellite solar array, as well as
shuttle leading edge during reentry.
Heat exchangers- power industries use heat pipe
heat exchangers as air heaters on boilers.
Other applications- production tools, medicine
and human body temperature control, engines and
automotive industry.

Conclusion


REFERENCES
Andrews, J; Akbarzadeh, A; Sauciue, I.: Heat

Pipe Technology, Pergammon, 1997.

Dunn, P.D.; Reay, D.A.: Heat Pipes,
Pergammon, 1994.
www.heatpipe.com.
www.cheresources.com.
www.indek.com
www.wikipedia.org

THANK YOU