Location
Havener Center, St. Pat's Ballroom C
Presentation Date
April 21, 2023, 11:30am-12:30pm
Session
Session 1
Description
Heatsinks work by dissipating heat to the surrounding air through convection. A limit that they face is the trapping of heat in the layer of air nearest the surface, which greatly lowers performance. Previous studies have investigated various ways of mitigating this effect by disturbing the trapped layer, with one method being the use of passive devices that naturally flap in air flow. This study investigates methods of microfabrication to make arrays of small metal tabs that can be attached to the surface of a heatsink to enhance its thermal performance. Metal 3D printing, laser cutting, die cutting, and wet etching are considered for capabilities, cost, availability, and practicality for large scale manufacturing. Currently wet etching is being pursued and next steps are discussed.
Meeting Name
32nd Annual Spring Meeting of the NASA-Mo Space Grant Consortium
Document Type
Presentation
Document Version
Final Version
File Type
text
Language(s)
English
Rights
© 2023 The Authors, all rights reserved.
Microfabrication of Metal “Grass” for Enhanced Heatsink Performance
Havener Center, St. Pat's Ballroom C
Heatsinks work by dissipating heat to the surrounding air through convection. A limit that they face is the trapping of heat in the layer of air nearest the surface, which greatly lowers performance. Previous studies have investigated various ways of mitigating this effect by disturbing the trapped layer, with one method being the use of passive devices that naturally flap in air flow. This study investigates methods of microfabrication to make arrays of small metal tabs that can be attached to the surface of a heatsink to enhance its thermal performance. Metal 3D printing, laser cutting, die cutting, and wet etching are considered for capabilities, cost, availability, and practicality for large scale manufacturing. Currently wet etching is being pursued and next steps are discussed.
