Terrestrial and Microgravity Experimental Study of Microscale Heat-Transport Device Driven by Electrohydrodynamic Conduction Pumping

Research on heat transport in microscale has been generating much interest in the recent years due to the development of state-of-the-art high-powered electronics used in aerospace and terrestrial applications and the large amount of heat produced during their operation. Microscale two-phase-flow heat-transport devices are seen as one solution to this problem of high heat-flux removal. Microscale devices have extremely high heat fluxes due to the small heat-transfer surface area. In addition, the need for robust, nonmechanical, lightweight, low-noise, and low-vibration devices in specialized aerospace applications has led researchers to investigate electrically driven flow devices rather than their mechanical counterparts. This paper, for the first time, presents the results of an experimental study of a unique microscale heat-transport device that is driven by electrohydrodynamic (EHD) conduction pumping. Results from ground-based single-phase experiments with a microscale EHD pump are compared with experiments conducted on board a variable-gravity parabolic flight. Data show that the EHD pump functions well in both environments and can be potentially used in heat-transport devices in the absence of gravity. This is the first step in broader-scale future experimental work that will involve heat transfer, including phase change.