The Impact of Inlet and Outlet Flow Arrangement on the Thermal Efficiency of Cooling Systems

A numerical analysis was conducted to evaluate the hydrothermal performance of a mini-channel heat sink with pin fins (MCHS) across six different inlet/outlet flow arrangements based on the first law of thermodynamics. Results were presented in terms of several key parameters, including temperature (T), the Nusselt number (Nu), pressure drop (P), friction factor (f), and performance evaluation criteria (PEC). The findings indicated that configurations with dual inlets and outlets significantly improved performance compared to single inlet/outlet designs. Enhanced vortex intensification in the inlet/outlet header and around the pin fin structures was observed for configuration E, resulting in a maximum PEC of ۲ at Re = ۲۰۰۰. The PEC of configuration E was approximately ۵۲.۷% higher than that of configurations B and C, and the PEC of configuration E was around ۷.۲% higher than configuration D and ۲۴.۲% higher than configuration F. Using configuration D at Re = ۴۰۰ improved cooling by ۴۰.۶۴°C.

کلیدواژه ها:

Pin-fin heatsink ، Inlet and outlet flow arrangement ، Heat transfer ، Laminar flow ، Cooling