Thermal performances of a multi-scale fluidic network

This paper presents an original study on the heat transfer characteristics of a multi-scale structured fluidic network consisting of a number of minichannels in parallel. Two sets of application are tested, including a single plate heat sink being heated on its base surface and a two-stream plate-type heat exchanger when several such plates are stacked one above another. Computational Fluid Dynamics (CFD) simulations were performed to characterize local temperature profiles and thermal performances in such a complex geometry. In parallel, a prototype made of Aluminum was fabricated and tested, providing experimental results for comparison and validation of the obtained numerical results. Results indicate that when used as a heat sink for cooling purpose, the overall thermal resistances of the multi-scale structuration concept are remarkably smaller than some micro- or mini-channels heat sinks tested in the literature. When used as a novel two-fluid plate-type heat exchanger, the volumetric heat transfer power could reach about 25 MW m−3. This novel concept of multi-scale structured plate heat exchanger showcases how to design and develop globally macro-sized, locally micro (milli)-structured process equipment while keeping high performances, aiming at large-scale industrial applications.