Liquid cooling module using FC-72 for electronics cooling

A liquid cooling module as a cooling means for electronic devices using boiling and condensation heat transfer was designed and its performance was investigated. The liquid cooling module was comprised of a boiling plate, spacer, and condenser plate and used FC-72 as the working fluid. The size of the module was 101 mm times 108 mm times 18 mm and the chip size (heat source) used was 10 mm times 10 mm. To enhance boiling performance, pin fins combined with the microporous coating technique were used on the boiling plate surface. Heat rejection from the module was achieved using two different methods; a water-cooled cold plate and an air-cooled heat sink/fan assembly. In addition to experimental testing, an empirically based performance prediction method was also developed. Using the water-cooled cold plate and a chip temperature constraint of 100 degC, the cooling module was capable of dissipating heat fluxes of 1850 and 2100 kW/m² for cold plate water inlet temperatures of 35 and 20 degC, respectively. In addition, the total thermal resistance for the 35 degC inlet case was calculated to be 0.355 K/W. Use of the microporous coating on the boiling section improved heat transfer by about 31%. Using the air-cooled heat sink/fan assembly and the same chip temperature constraint of 100 degC, the cooling module was capable of dissipating a heat flux of 2200 kW/m² and exhibited a total thermal resistance of 0.349 K/W with an ambient air temperature of 22 degC