Heat pipe with micro-pore tube array and heat exchange system employing the heat pipe

• US 11,022,380 B2
• Filed: 11/03/2009
• Issued: 06/01/2021
• Est. Priority Date: 11/03/2008
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Guangweihetong Energy Technology (Beijing) Co., Ltd.
• Original Assignee: Guangweihetong Energy Technology (Beijing) Co., Ltd.
• Inventors: Zhao, Yaohua, Zhang, Kairong
• Primary Examiner(s): Atkisson, Jianying C
• Assistant Examiner(s): Class-Quinones, Jose O
• Application Number:
  US13/127,444
• Publication Number:
  US 20110203777A1
• Time in Patent Office: 4,228 Days
• Field of Search: 16510421, 16510426, 16510433, 165143, 165177, 29890032
• CPC Class Codes: B23P 15/26 heat exchangers or the like making heat exchangers by methods covered by other subclasses B21D53/02
• CPC Class Codes: B23P 2700/09 Heat pipes
• CPC Class Codes: F24S 10/95 having evaporator sections and condenser sections, e.g. heat pipes
• CPC Class Codes: F28D 15/0233 the conduits having a particular shape, e.g. non-circular cross-section, annular F28D15/0241, F28D15/0266 take precedence
• CPC Class Codes: F28D 15/0283 Means for filling or sealing heat pipes
• CPC Class Codes: F28D 15/046 characterised by the material or the construction of the capillary structure
• CPC Class Codes: F28F 1/022 with multiple channels
• CPC Class Codes: F28F 2260/02 having microchannels
• CPC Class Codes: H01L 23/427 Cooling by change of state, e.g. use of heat pipes by liquefied gas H01L23/445
• CPC Class Codes: H01L 2924/00 Indexing scheme for arrangements or methods for connecting or disconnecting semiconductor or solid-state bodies as covered by H01L24/00
• CPC Class Codes: H01L 2924/0002 Not covered by any one of groups H01L24/00, H01L24/00 and H01L2224/00
• CPC Class Codes: Y02E 10/40 Solar thermal energy, e.g. solar towers
• CPC Class Codes: Y02E 10/44 Heat exchange systems
• CPC Class Codes: Y10T 29/49353 Heat pipe device making

Abstract

A heat pipe with micro tubes (2), includes a solid heat conductor (1) provided therein with two or more parallel micro tubes (2), the micro tubes being filled therein with working medium which exchanges heat through phase change; and the two ends of the heat conductor (1) are sealed and at least one of them is provided with a sealing strip of gradually shrinking shape that is formed from cold welding.

Claims

1. A heat pipe with micro tube arrays, the heat pipe comprising:

a solid heat conductor having an integral structure including a first end and a second end opposite the first end, wherein the solid heat conductor forms an integral plane;

two or more parallel through micro tubes within the solid heat conductor, each of the micro tubes comprising;

a working medium that is operable to exchange heat through phase change;

a sealed end at the first end of the solid heat conductor, the sealed end closing each of the two or more parallel through micro tubes from communication with each other at the sealed end, the two or more parallel through micro tubes sealed from communication with each other in a half of the solid heat conductor that includes the first end; and

the first end of the solid heat conductor comprising upper walls and lower walls of the micro tubes, the first end including the sealed end of the two or more parallel through micro tubes;

two outer side walls of two micro tubes located at two sides of the solid heat conductor;

midwalls separating every two adjacent micro tubes, wherein neighboring micro tubes share a common midwall;

a homogenous sealing strip forming the sealed end of the two or more parallel through micro tubes and comprising homogenous material of the upper walls, lower walls and midwalls that is deformed from portions of the upper and lower walls, portions of the outer side walls, and portions of the midwalls;

wherein at least one solid strip is provided within the solid heat conductor and extends in a direction parallel to a length direction of the micro tubes, and has a same height as a height of the solid heat conductor; and

an acute tip line providing resistance to inner pressure, wherein the sealing strip has a thickness formed by two arcs that gradually and continuously decreases toward an acute tip point.

2. The heat pipe with micro tube arrays according to claim 1, wherein the deformation includes first and second concave surfaces that converge with each other to form the tip of the deformation, where the tip of the deformation is oriented transverse to a length of the solid heat conductor.

3. The heat pipe with micro tube arrays according to claim 1, wherein the solid heat conductor is provided with protective caps around the outer part of the end where the sealing strip is located.

4. The heat pipe with micro tube arrays according to claim 3, wherein the micro tubes are arranged in parallel in a layer along a surface of the solid heat conductor that contacts with a surface of a device to be cooled.

5. The heat pipe with micro tube arrays according to claim 3, wherein the solid heat conductor is a strip-shaped or plate-shape body, and the parallel micro tubes are parallel to a surface of the strip-shaped or plate-shape body that is wider in a cross direction.

6. The heat pipe with micro tube arrays according to claim 5, wherein a ratio of a length to a width of a cross-section of the passage of the micro tubes is between ⅔

and 1.5, and a ratio of a minimal wall thickness of the heat pipe and an equivalent diameter of the micro tubes is not less than 0.2.

7. The heat pipe with micro tube arrays according to claim 6, wherein the ratio of an extending length of the gradually shrinking sealing strip to a total thickness of the heat conductor ranges from 0.75 to 1.5 in the case that the total thickness of the heat conductor is less than 3 mm, the ratio ranges from 0.6 to 1.5 in the case that the total thickness of the heat conductor is 3 mm to 5 mm, and the ratio ranges from 0.5 to 1.5 in the case that the total thickness of the heat conductor is greater than 5 mm.

8. The heat pipe with micro tube arrays according to claim 7, wherein the equivalent diameter or a hydraulic diameter of one of the micro tubes is between 0.1 mm and 8 mm, and the distance between two adjacent micro tubes is between 0.1 mm and 1.0 mm.

9. The heat pipe with micro tube arrays according to claim 7, wherein the at least one solid strip comprises one or more solid strips and one of the solid strips is arranged in a central portion of the solid heat conductor is provided with mounting holes.

10. The heat pipe with micro tube arrays according to claim 7, wherein the cross-section of the micro tube is polygonal, circular or oval;

and in the case of polygonal cross-section, the vertexes of the polygon are rounded.

11. The heat pipe with micro tube arrays according to claim 7, wherein an inner wall of each micro tube is provided with micro-fins that enhance heat conduction or concave micro grooves that extend along the length direction of the micro tube;

the micro-fins are sized and configured to form, with the inner walls of the micro tubes, micro grooves extending along the length direction of the micro tubes;

angles formed between the micro-fins and the inner wall of the micro tube and angles formed between the micro grooves and the inner wall of the micro tube are smoothly rounded angles.

12. The heat pipe with micro tube arrays according to claim 1, wherein the micro tubes are arranged in two or more layers.

13. A heat-exchange system that employs the heat pipe with micro tube arrays according to claim 1.

14. The heat-exchange system according to claim 13, wherein an evaporation surface of the heat pipe contacts with a surface of devices to be cooled, and another portion of the heat pipe is a condensation surface.

15. The heat-exchange system according to claim 14, wherein the heat-exchange system functions as a heat collector for a solar water heater, wherein solar radiation energy is absorbed and the liquid working medium evaporates at one end of the micro tubes;

exothermic condensation occurs at the other end and heat is transferred to a heat-exchange device so as to generate hot water; and

the condensation surface of the heat pipe contacts with water in the heat-exchange device directly or alternatively contacts with an outside wall of a heat-conduction bladder of a hot water tank that functions as the heat collector.

16. The heat-exchange system according to claim 14, wherein the heat-exchange system functions as a heat sink for solar photovoltaic cells or functions as combined heat and power generation system wherein the evaporation surface of the heat pipe contacts with a back plate of the solar photovoltaic cells so as to absorb heat therefrom to evaporate the working medium, and the condensation surface of the heat pipe condenses the working medium in the heat-exchange system so as to generate hot water.

17. The heat-exchange system according to claim 13, wherein one end of the heat pipe is located in a heat source, and absorbs heat therefrom to evaporate the working medium;

the other end of the heat pipe is cooled through air or liquid from outside; and

exothermic condensation is carried out by steam within the heat pipe.

18. The heat pipe with micro tube arrays according to claim 1, wherein the homogenous sealing strip is formed without solder.

19. The heat pipe with micro tube arrays according to claim 1, wherein the heat pipe is formed from a homogenous material, and the homogenous sealing strip is a homogenous cold weld formed from the homogenous material of the heat pipe.

20. The heat pipe with micro tube arrays according to claim 1, wherein the second end of the solid heat conductor is sealed and the two or more parallel through micro tubes are in fluid communication with each other in a half of the solid heat conductor that includes the second end.