Numerical analysis on thermal hydraulic characteristics of mesh-type ultra-thin vapor chambers

Abstract

The mesh-type ultra-thin vapor chamber (UTVC) is a highly cost-effective device that spreads heat efficiently and maintains good temperature uniformity, meeting the present trend and demand for compact system heat dissipation. To analyze the thermal behavior of the mesh-type UTVC, a three-dimensional transient numerical model involving the non-isothermal flow and phase change processes of the working medium was developed to solve the hydraulic and heat transfer performance of the mesh-type UTVC. The model was validated by experimental results with a maximum relative error of 1.98 %. The effects of the mesh parameter including the support coarse mesh and the fine mesh wick on the heat transfer performance of the mesh-type UTVC are analyzed, and the thickness of the fine mesh wick is determined to be the influencing factor of the thermal response performance of the UTVC. With the design of limited space, the wick space ratio of the UTVC is reduced from 0.565 % to 0.085 %, and the thermal response time can be reduced by 22.7 %, while it is beneficial to improve the heat transfer performance of the mesh-type UTVC.