A PCM-based thermal management system combining three-dimensional pulsating heat pipe with forced-air cooling

The current trend of miniaturisation and design flexibility results in significant challenges to existing thermal management systems. Phase change materials (PCMs) have been widely investigated as thermal management solutions because of their ability to delay temperature rise and absorb large amounts of heat. This study focused on PCM-based thermal management system with a secondary heat dissipation system of forced-air convection which was combined with a three-dimensional pulsating heat pipe (3D-PHP). The performance of the hybrid system was investigated. The results indicated that the hybrid system using 3D-PHP charged with methanol at a filling ratio of 34% exhibited the highest cooling efficiency. The synergetic effect of PCM and 3D-PHP was studied through temperature measurements, infrared thermal imagery, and visualisation experiments. Three operation periods with different flow regimes and heat transfer processes were defined with the help of process analysis. Moreover, 3D-PHPs should be operated for a steady period to achieve the highest heat transport capacity. By using the proposed strategy, a 63.1% cooling efficiency could be achieved, which was superior to that of a conventional heat pipe cooling system.