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Numerical study for heat transfer enhancement using CuO water nanofluids through mini-channel heat sinks for microprocessor cooling

Anwar Muhammad (Institute of Space Technology, Department of Mechanical Engineering, Islamabad, Pakistan + University of Nottingham, Faculty of Science, Nottingham NG RD, United Kingdom)
Tariq Hussain Ahmed (Institute of Space Technology, Department of Mechanical Engineering, Islamabad, Pakistan)
Shoukat Ahmad Adnan (Institute of Space Technology, Department of Mechanical Engineering, Islamabad, Pakistan + Sungkyunkwan University, Department of Mechanical Engineering, Multiphysics Nano Fluidics Laboratory, Republic of Korea)
Ali Hafiz Muhammad (University of Engineering and Technology, Department of Mechanical Engineering, Taxila, Pakistan)
Ali Hassan (University of Engineering and Technology, Faculty of Mechanical Engineering, Lahore, Pakistan)

Water cooled heat sinks are becoming popular due to increased heat generation inside the microprocessor. Timely heat removal from microprocessor is the key factor for better performance and long life. Heat transfer enhancement is reached either by increasing the surface area density and/or by altering the base fluid properties. Nanoparticles emerge as a strong candidate to increase the thermal conductivity of base fluids. In this research, the thermal performance of mini-channel heat sinks for different fin spacing (0.2 mm, 0.5 mm, 1 mm, and 1.5 mm) was investigated numerically using CuO-water nanofluids with volumetric concentration of 1.5%. The numerical values computed were than compared with the literature and a close agreement is achieved. We recorded the minimum base temperature of chip to be 36.8°C for 0.2 mm fin spacing heat sink. A reduction of 9.1% in base temperature was noticed using CuO-water nanofluids for 0.2 mm fin spacing as compared to previously experimental estimated value using water [1]. The drop percentage difference in pressure between water and CuO-water nanofluids was 2.2-13.1% for various fin spacing heat sinks. The percentage difference in thermal resistance between water and CuO-water nanofluids was computed 12.1% at maximum flow rate. We also observed uniform temperature distribution for all heat sinks.

Keywords: Thermal management, heat transfer enhancement, nanofluids