Numerical Investigation of Fluid Flow and Heat Transfer in High-Temperature Wavy Microchannels with Different Shaped Fins Cooled by Liquid Metal

The microchannel heat sink has been recognized as an excellent solution in high-density heat flux devices for its high efficiency in heat removal with limited spaces; however, the most effective structure of microchannels for heat dissipation is still unknown. In this study, the fluid flow and heat transfer in high-temperature wavy microchannels with various shaped fins, including the bare wavy channel, and the wavy channel with circular, square, and diamond-shaped fins, are numerically investigated. The liquid metal-cooled characteristics of the proposed microchannels are compared with that of the smooth straight channel, with respect to the pressure drop, average Nusselt number, and overall performance factor. The results indicate that the wavy structure and fin shape have a significant effect on the heat sink performance. Heat transfer augmentation is observed in the wavy channels, especially coupled with different shaped fins; however, a large penalty of pressure drops is also found in these channels. The diamond-shaped fins yield the best heat transfer augmentation but the worst pumping performance, followed by the square-, and circular-shaped fins. When the Re number increases from 117 to 410, the Nu number increases by 61.7% for the diamond fins, while the ∆p increases as much as 7.5 times.