Assessment of Vapor Formation Rate and Phase Shift between Pressure Gradient and Liquid Velocity in Flat Mini Heat Pipes as a Function of Internal Structure

Flat mini heat pipes (FMHPs) are often used in cooling systems for various power electronic components, as they rapidly dissipate high heat flux densities. The main objective of the present work is to experimentally investigate whether differences in the rate of vapor formation occur on an internal structure containing trapezoidal microchannels and porous sintered copper powder material. Several parameters, such as hydraulic diameter and fluid velocity through the material, as a function of the internal structure porosity, were determined by calculation for a steady state regime. Reynolds number was determined as a function of porosity, according to Darcy’s law, and the Nusselt number was calculated. Since the flow is Darcy-type through the porous medium inside the FMHP, the Darcy friction factor was calculated using five methods: Colebrook, Darcy–Weisbach, Swamee–Jain, Blasius, and Haaland. After experimental tests, it was found that when the porous and trapezoidal microchannel layers are wetted at the same time, the vaporization progresses at a faster rate in the porous material, and the duration of the process is shorter. This recommends the use of such an internal structure in FMHPs since the manufacturing technology is simpler, the materials are cheaper, and the heat flux transport capacity is higher.