US20080006037A1 - Computer cooling apparatus - Google Patents
Computer cooling apparatus Download PDFInfo
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- US20080006037A1 US20080006037A1 US11/673,766 US67376607A US2008006037A1 US 20080006037 A1 US20080006037 A1 US 20080006037A1 US 67376607 A US67376607 A US 67376607A US 2008006037 A1 US2008006037 A1 US 2008006037A1
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- United States
- Prior art keywords
- heat
- chiller
- face
- heat exchanger
- thermoelectric cooler
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- Legal status (The legal status is an assumption and is not a legal conclusion. Google has not performed a legal analysis and makes no representation as to the accuracy of the status listed.)
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- H—ELECTRICITY
- H01—ELECTRIC ELEMENTS
- H01L—SEMICONDUCTOR DEVICES NOT COVERED BY CLASS H10
- H01L23/00—Details of semiconductor or other solid state devices
- H01L23/34—Arrangements for cooling, heating, ventilating or temperature compensation ; Temperature sensing arrangements
- H01L23/46—Arrangements for cooling, heating, ventilating or temperature compensation ; Temperature sensing arrangements involving the transfer of heat by flowing fluids
- H01L23/473—Arrangements for cooling, heating, ventilating or temperature compensation ; Temperature sensing arrangements involving the transfer of heat by flowing fluids by flowing liquids
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- G—PHYSICS
- G06—COMPUTING; CALCULATING OR COUNTING
- G06F—ELECTRIC DIGITAL DATA PROCESSING
- G06F1/00—Details not covered by groups G06F3/00 - G06F13/00 and G06F21/00
- G06F1/16—Constructional details or arrangements
- G06F1/20—Cooling means
-
- H—ELECTRICITY
- H01—ELECTRIC ELEMENTS
- H01L—SEMICONDUCTOR DEVICES NOT COVERED BY CLASS H10
- H01L2924/00—Indexing scheme for arrangements or methods for connecting or disconnecting semiconductor or solid-state bodies as covered by H01L24/00
- H01L2924/0001—Technical content checked by a classifier
- H01L2924/0002—Not covered by any one of groups H01L24/00, H01L24/00 and H01L2224/00
Definitions
- the passive heat sink 110 is installed by bringing the lower surface of the thermal plate 112 into contact with the exposed surface of the die 116 .
- ambient airflow passes between the fins in the direction shown by an arrow 124 in FIG. 1A .
- FIG. 1A is a schematic elevation view of a conventional passive heat sink installed on a microprocessor.
- thermoelectric cooler Heat energy drawn from the top surface by thermoelectric cooler may be dissipated through chiller 2111 and fan 2114 .
- a passage is provided for the circulation of a fluid that is comprised of a series of cylindrical chambers, two representative ones of which are referred to by reference numerals 1416 and 1418 , connected by constrictions, a representative one of which is referred to by reference numeral 1420 .
Abstract
A chiller for cooling an electronic device using circulating fluids to cool electronic components which comprises a thermoelectric cooler having a cool face and a warm face when connected to a power source; a heat spreader plate; and a heat exchanging surface, said thermoelectric cooler, said heat spreader plate and said heat exchanging surface all thermally coupled to dissipate heat energy from a heat input surface to said heat exchanging surface.
Description
- This is a continuation-in-part application of U.S. application Ser. No. 10/757,493, filed Jan. 15, 2004, presently pending, which is a divisional application of U.S. application Ser. No. 10/025,846, filed Dec. 26, 2001, issued Apr. 27, 2004 as U.S. Pat. No. 6,725,682. This application is related to a commonly-owned patent, U.S. Pat. No. 6,687,142, entitled “Inverter”, issued Feb. 3, 2004 which is incorporated herein by reference.
- The invention relates to the field of cooling electronic devices and, in particular, to using circulating fluids to cool microprocessors, graphics processors, and other computer components.
- Microprocessor dies typically used in personal computers are packaged in ceramic packages that have a lower surface provided with a large number of electrical contacts (e.g., pins) for connection to a socket mounted to a circuit board of a personal computer and an upper surface for thermal coupling to a heat sink. In the following description, a die and its package are referred to collectively as a microprocessor.
- Elevation views of typical designs for heat sinks suggested by Intel Corporation for its Pentium® III microprocessor are shown in
FIGS. 1A and 1B . - In
FIG. 1A , a passive heat sink indicated generally by reference numeral 110 is shown. The passive heat sink 110 comprises athermal plate 112 from the upper surface of which a number of fins, one of which is indicated byreference numeral 114, protrude perpendicularly. The passive heat sink 110 is shown inFIG. 1A installed upon a microprocessor generally indicated by reference numeral 118. The microprocessor 118 is comprised of a die 116 and apackage 120. The die 116 protrudes from the upper surface of thepackage 120. The lower surface of thepackage 120 is plugged into asocket 122, which is in turn mounted on a circuit board (not shown). The passive heat sink 110 is installed by bringing the lower surface of thethermal plate 112 into contact with the exposed surface of thedie 116. When installed and operated as recommended by the manufacturer, ambient airflow passes between the fins in the direction shown by anarrow 124 inFIG. 1A . - In
FIG. 1B , an active heat sink, indicated generally byreference numeral 126, is shown. Theactive heat sink 126 comprises athermal plate 128 from the upper surface of which a number offins 130 protrude perpendicularly. Afan 132 is mounted above thefins 130. Theactive heat sink 126 is shown inFIG. 1B installed upon a microprocessor, generally indicated byreference numeral 136, which is comprised of a die 134 and apackage 138. The die 134 protrudes from the upper surface of thepackage 138. The lower surface of thepackage 138 is plugged into asocket 140, which is in turn mounted on a circuit board (not shown). Theactive heat sink 126 is installed by bringing the lower surface of thethermal plate 128 into contact with the exposed surface of thedie 134. When installed and operated as recommended by the manufacturer, ambient air is forced between thefins 130 in the direction shown by anarrow 142 inFIG. 1B . - A difficulty with the cooling provided by the heat sinks shown in
FIGS. 1A and 1B is that at best the temperature of thethermal plates microprocessor 118, 136 is operated at a high enough frequency, thedie die FIGS. 1A and 1B . - Liquid cooling, which is inherently more efficient due to the greater heat capacity of liquids, has been proposed for situations in which air cooling in the manner illustrated in
FIGS. 1A and 1B is inadequate. In a typical liquid cooling system, such as that illustrated inFIG. 1C , a heatconductive block 144 having internal passages or a cavity (not shown) replaces thethermal plate 128 inFIG. 1B . Theblock 144 has an inlet and an outlet, one of which is visible and indicated byreference numeral 146 inFIG. 1C . Liquid is pumped into theblock 144 through the inlet and passes out of theblock 144 through the outlet to a radiator or chiller (not shown) located at some distance from theblock 144. Theblock 144 is shown inFIG. 1C installed upon a microprocessor generally indicated byreference numeral 148, which is comprised of a die 150 and apackage 152. The die 150 protrudes from the upper surface of thepackage 152. The lower surface of thepackage 152 is plugged into asocket 154, which is in turn mounted on a circuit board (not shown). Theblock 144 is installed by bringing its lower surface into contact with the exposed surface of thedie 150. - In all liquid cooling systems known to the inventor, only a small portion of the lower surface of the
block 144 comes into contact with thedie 150. Since thedie 150 protrudes above the upper surface of thepackage 152, agap 156 remains between the upper surface of thepackage 152 and theblock 144. If thegap 156 is not filled with insulation and sealed, convective and radiative heat transfer from thepackage 152 to theblock 144 may occur. This will have no serious consequences so long as theblock 144 is not cooled below the dew point of the air in thegap 156. If the liquid pumped throughblock 144 is only cooled by a radiator, then that liquid and consequently theblock 144, can only approach the ambient air temperature. However, if a chiller is used to cool the liquid, then the temperature of theblock 144 can decrease below the ambient air temperature, which may allow condensation to form on thepackage 152 or theblock 144. Such condensation, if not removed, can cause electrical shorts, which may possibly destroy themicroprocessor 148. - Current solutions to the condensation problem referred to above include (1) controlling the chiller so that the temperature of the
block 144 does not decrease below the dew point of the air in thegap 156 or (2) providing sufficient insulation and sealing material to prevent condensation from forming or to at least prevent any condensation that does form from reaching critical portions of themicroprocessor 148 or surrounding circuit elements. Placing a lower limit on the temperature of the chiller limits the amount of heat that can effectively be removed from themicroprocessor 148 without using bulky components. Further, the operating temperature of themicroprocessor 148 can only approach the temperature of theblock 144; operation at lower temperatures may be desirable in many circumstances. Alternatively, if insulation and sealing is used, trained technicians must do the installation properly if the installation is to be effective. If the insulation or seals fail, condensation can occur and cause catastrophic failure of the personal computer. A simpler, more reliable solution to the condensation problem is needed. - In one aspect the invention there is provided a chiller for cooling an electronic device, comprising: a thermoelectric cooler having a cool face and a warm face when connected to a power source, a heat spreader plate; and a heat exchanging surface, said thermoelectric cooler, said heat spreader plate and said heat exchanging surface all thermally coupled to dissipate heat energy from a heat input surface to said heat exchanging surface.
- In another aspect the invention provides a printed circuit board comprising: a board; a heat generating component on the board; a heat spreader plate, a first face of which is thermally coupled to the heat generating component; a thermoelectric cooler having a cool face and a warm face when connected to a power source, the thermoelectric cooler mounted with its cool face thermally coupled to the heat spreader plate; and a liquid heat exchanger thermally coupled to the warm face of the thermoelectric cooler.
- In another aspect the invention provides a laptop cooling device comprising: a support plate including a top surface formed to support a laptop thereon, a lower surface, and at least a portion formed to act as a heat sink in a position exposed on top surface and extending to the lower surface; a thermoelectric cooler having a cool face and a warm face when connected to a power source, the thermoelectric cooler mounted with its cool face thermally coupled to the at least a portion formed to act as a heat sink; and a heat exchanging surface thermally coupled to the warm face of the thermoelectric cooler.
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FIG. 1A is a schematic elevation view of a conventional passive heat sink installed on a microprocessor. -
FIG. 1B is a schematic elevation view of a conventional active heat sink installed on a microprocessor. -
FIG. 1C is a schematic elevation view of a conventional liquid-cooled heat sink installed on a microprocessor. -
FIG. 2A is a schematic pictorial view of a partially assembled desktop personal computer with an embodiment of the cooling apparatus described herein installed. Many of the conventional components of the desktop personal computer that are not relevant to the cooling apparatus are omitted. -
FIG. 2B is a schematic pictorial view of a partially assembled tower-case personal computer with an embodiment of the cooling apparatus described herein installed. Many of the conventional components of the desktop personal computer that are not relevant to the cooling apparatus are omitted. -
FIG. 3A is a schematic elevation view of a portion of the desktop personal computer ofFIG. 2A showing a fluid heat exchanger in accordance with the present invention coupled to the CPU microprocessor of the computer. -
FIG. 3B is a schematic elevation view of a portion of the tower-case personal computer ofFIG. 2B showing a fluid heat exchanger in accordance with the present invention coupled to the CPU microprocessor of the computer. -
FIGS. 3C-3F are schematic elevation views of a series of variant fluid heat exchangers. -
FIG. 3G is a schematic elevation view of a variant fluid heat exchanger having an external cooling conduit. -
FIG. 3H is a schematic cross-sectional view of the fluid heat exchanger shown inFIG. 3G taken alongline 3H-3H ofFIG. 3G . -
FIG. 4A is a schematic exploded isometric view of the fluid heat exchanger shown inFIG. 3A . -
FIGS. 4B, 4C , and 4D are schematic cross-sectional views of the fluid heat exchanger ofFIG. 4A taken alonglines 4B-4B, 4C-4C, and 4D-4D ofFIG. 4A , respectively. -
FIG. 4E is a schematic pictorial view of the fluid heat exchanger ofFIG. 3A showing the internal fluid flow pattern. -
FIG. 5A is a schematic partially exploded isometric view of the fluid heat exchanger ofFIG. 3B . -
FIG. 5B is a schematic cross-section of the fluid heat exchanger ofFIG. 5A taken alongline 5B-5B ofFIG. 5A . -
FIG. 6A is a schematic isometric view of a molded or cast one-piece fluid heat exchanger in accordance with the present invention. -
FIG. 6B is a schematic elevation view of the fluid heat exchanger ofFIG. 6A . -
FIG. 6C is a schematic cross-sectional view of the fluid heat exchanger ofFIG. 6A taken alongline 6C-6C ofFIG. 6B . -
FIGS. 6D, 6E , 6F, 6G, 6H, 6I, 6J, and 6K are schematic cross-sections of the fluid heat exchanger ofFIG. 6A taken alonglines 6D-6D, 6E-6E, 6F-6F, 6G-6G, 6H-6H, 6I-6I, 6J-6J, and 6K-6K ofFIG. 6C , respectively. The barbs and protrusion are not shown. -
FIG. 7A is a schematic elevation view of the pump/tank module of the cooling apparatus ofFIG. 2A and 2B . -
FIG. 7B is a schematic side elevation view of a molded pump/tank module that could be included in the cooling apparatus ofFIGS. 2A and 2B . -
FIG. 7C is a schematic end elevation view of the pump/tank module ofFIG. 7B . -
FIG. 7D is a schematic internal side elevation view of the pump/tank module ofFIG. 7B . -
FIG. 8 is a schematic end elevation view of a copper-finned chiller module in accordance with the invention, with the fan removed. The view is taken in the direction of airflow when chiller module is in operation. -
FIG. 9 is a schematic longitudinal section of the chiller module ofFIG. 8 taken along line 9-9 ofFIG. 8 . -
FIG. 10 is a schematic end elevation view of an aluminum-finned chiller module having four extruded fin sections, in accordance with the invention. The view is taken with the fan removed and in the direction of airflow when chiller module is in operation. -
FIG. 11 is a longitudinal cross-section of the chiller module ofFIG. 10 taken along line 11-11 ofFIG. 10 . -
FIG. 12 is a side elevation view of the chiller module ofFIG. 10 with the housing removed. -
FIG. 13 is a cross-section of one of the four extruded fin sections of the chiller module ofFIG. 10 . -
FIG. 14 is a schematic end elevation view of an aluminum-finned chiller module having two extruded fin sections, in accordance with the invention. The view is taken with the fan removed and in the direction of airflow when chiller module is in operation. -
FIG. 15 is a longitudinal cross-section of the chiller module ofFIG. 14 taken along line 15-15 ofFIG. 14 . -
FIG. 16 is a cross-section of one of the two extruded fin sections of the chiller module ofFIG. 14 . -
FIG. 16A is a schematic side elevation view of a useful chiller module. -
FIG. 16B is an isometric view of a printed circuit board including a chiller. -
FIG. 16C is an exploded isometric view of the printed circuit board ofFIG. 16B . -
FIG. 16D is a sectional view alonglines 16D-16D ofFIG. 16B . -
FIG. 16E is an isometric view of the underside of a laptop cooler according to the present invention. -
FIG. 16F is a sectional view along lines 16F-16F ofFIG. 16E . -
FIG. 17 is a partially exploded isometric view of a bored fluid heat exchanger for use in the chiller modules ofFIGS. 8, 10 , and 14. -
FIG. 18A is a schematic isometric view of a molded or cast fluid one-piece heat exchanger for use in the chiller modules ofFIGS. 8, 10 , and 14. -
FIG. 18B is a schematic elevation view of the fluid heat exchanger ofFIG. 18A . -
FIG. 18C is a schematic cross-sectional view of the fluid heat exchanger ofFIG. 18A taken alongline 18C-18C ofFIG. 18B . -
FIGS. 18D, 18E , 18F, 18G, 18H, 18I, and 18J are schematic cross-sections of the fluid heat exchanger ofFIG. 18A taken alonglines 18D-18D, 18E-18E, 18F-18F, 18G-18G, 18H-18H, 181-18I, and 18J-18J ofFIG. 18C , respectively. The barbs are not shown. -
FIG. 19A is a schematic plan view of a molded retainer for retaining a fluid heat exchanger coupled to a CPU microprocessor in accordance with the invention. -
FIG. 19B is a schematic front elevation view of the retainer ofFIG. 19A . -
FIG. 19C is a schematic side elevation view of the retainer ofFIG. 19A . - Two embodiments of the present invention are shown in
FIGS. 2A and 2B as they would appear when installed in two typical forms of desktop personal computer (“PC”), the PCs generally indicated byreference numerals FIG. 2A , thePC 210 is a desktop-type PC, while inFIG. 2B , thePC 250 is a tower-type PC. InFIGS. 2A and 2B , thePC PC motherboard CPU microprocessor socket FIGS. 2A and 2B . In each case, thesocket motherboard - As illustrated in
FIGS. 2A and 2B , each cooling apparatus is comprised of three modules: aheat exchanger CPU microprocessor chiller module pump module heat exchanger CPU microprocessor FIGS. 1A and 1B . The details of the manner in which theheat exchangers chiller module pump module PC tubing chiller module heat exchanger tubing heat exchanger pump module tubing pump module chiller module heat exchanger pump module heat exchanger microprocessor -
FIGS. 3A and 3B provide more detailed views of theheat exchangers microprocessors FIGS. 2A and 2B . Theupright heat exchanger 218 ofFIG. 2A differs in several details from thehorizontal heat exchanger 258 ofFIG. 2B . Hence, each is described separately. - In
FIG. 3A , themicroprocessor 214 can be seen to be of the conventional flip-chip type comprising adie 310 mounted in a mountingpackage 312. Thedie 310 extends above the surroundingsurface 313 of the mountingpackage 312 and provides anon-active surface 311 that is generally parallel to the surroundingsurface 313. In this type of mounting, no thermal plate is provided as part of themicroprocessor 214, it being intended that a heat sink will be installed directly in contact with thenon-active surface 311. “Non-active surface” as used herein refers to the face of a die that does not have electrical contacts and that is normally exposed to cooling air flow or placed in contact with a heat sink or other means from removing heat from thedie 310. - As illustrated in
FIG. 3A , theupright heat exchanger 218 is comprised of acuboid body 314 of a heat-conducting material such as copper, aluminum, or plastic that has acuboid protrusion 316 extending from itsbottom face 318. Optionally, the bottom face of theprotrusion 316 may be athin silver cap 319. As will be discussed in relation toFIGS. 4A-4E , thebody 314 contains internal passages and chambers (not shown inFIG. 3A ) through which a fluid may be circulated. Theprotrusion 316 ends in a face 320 (sometimes referred to as a surface herein), which should preferably be dimensionally substantially congruent with thenon-active surface 311 of thedie 310. Some of the advantages of the invention are reduced if theface 320 is not substantially congruent with thenon-active surface 311. If theface 320 does not contact the entirenon-active surface 311, then the rate at which heat can be transferred is reduced, although if for some reason the die is not uniformly hot, this may be desirable or at least tolerable. On the other hand, if theface 320 is larger than thenon-active surface 311, the disadvantages of conventional liquid heat exchangers such as that shown inFIG. 1C begin to appear as the difference in size increases. An empirical approach should be used to applying the present invention to a particular microprocessor installation. - While the
body 314 and theprotrusion 316 are shown as cuboid in the drawings, they may be any convenient shape so long as thebody 314, through which fluid is circulated, is separated from themicroprocessor 214 by a sufficient distance and aface 320 is provided that is approximately dimensionally congruent with and conforms to thenon-active surface 311 of thedie 310. Further, in some circumstances theprotrusion 316 may be eliminated or reduced to thesilver cap 319. For example, inFIGS. 3C-3F a sample of some possible body shapes are shown. In those drawings, reference numerals correspond to those inFIG. 3A where there are corresponding elements. For example, inFIG. 3C , aspherical body 380 having no protrusion is shown; theface 320 is simply a flattened portion of the surface of thebody 380. InFIG. 3D , an inverted truncatedpyramidal body 382 is shown; theface 320 is provided by anoptional silver cap 319 that is in effect a small protrusion. InFIG. 3E , acolumnar body 384 is shown and inFIG. 3F , a truncatedpyramidal body 386 is shown. In each case, appropriate internal passages (not shown) must be provided to circulate cooling fluid; a fluid inlet fitting 328 and a fluid outlet fitting 330 are shown in each drawing. Further, inFIG. 3A , theprotrusion 316 could be cylindrical rather than rectangular in cross-section preferably ending in aface 320 that is approximately dimensionally congruent with and conforms to the non-active surface of thedie 310. - One goal in designing the
upright heat exchanger 218 is to provide means to conduct heat away from thedie 310 and then transfer that heat to a fluid circulating through thebody 314 of theupright heat exchanger 218. If aprotrusion 316 is provided, it should preferably have a cross-sectional area that does not increase rapidly with distance from thedie 310 and should be designed to transfer heat as efficiently as possible to thebody 314, rather than to dissipate heat itself. Ideally the temperature should drop as little as possible from thenon-active surface 311 to thebody 314 so as to minimize the possibility of condensation forming on theprotrusion 316 if the fluid circulating through thebody 314 is chilled below the dew point of the ambient air. In other words, a heat-conducting path must be provided from theprotrusion 316 to the circulating fluid. This path may be provided by the material out of which theupright heat exchanger 218 is formed, or by a heat pipe integrated into theupright heat exchanger 218, or by a thermoelectric heat pump placed between the die 310 and thebody 314, possibly as aprotrusion 316 from thebody 314. - Preferably, the
protrusion 316 should extend far enough from themicroprocessor 214 so that thelower surface 318 of thebody 314 is sufficiently distant from thesurface 313 of themicroprocessor 214 such that sufficient ambient air may circulate in the gap between them so as to substantially prevent condensation from forming on thesurface 313 of themicroprocessor 214 and from forming on and dripping from thebody 314 when fluid is cooled below the dew point of the ambient air and circulated through thebody 314. Just how far the fluid should be cooled depends upon how much heat needs to be conducted away from thedie 310. The further the fluid is cooled, the more heat can be conducted away using the same sizes for components such as thepump module heat exchanger body 314 and the surface of themicroprocessor 214 will no longer allow sufficient air circulation. Hence the distance that theprotrusion 316 extends from thebody 314 must be determined empirically based upon the amount of heat needed to be conducted away and the sizes of the components. As noted above, a discrete protrusion may not be needed if thebody 314 has a shape that provides a sufficient gap between thebody 314 and the surface of themicroprocessor 214. Several examples of this are shown inFIGS. 3C-3G . - The inventor has found that even a small distance between the
lower surface 318 of thebody 314 and thesurface 313 of themicroprocessor 214 will allow the fluid to be cooled further than is possible using conventional heat exchangers without sealing and insulation. For example, a distance of approximately 6 mm has been found to be sufficient to allow for cooling current CPU microprocessors using circulating fluid cooled to below the dew point of the ambient air. - It is critical that (1) condensation not be allowed to form on the
microprocessor 214 or other components and, (2) if condensation does form on theupright heat exchanger 218, then it does not drip or otherwise run onto themicroprocessor 214 or other components. In general, heat transfer from thesocket 216, themotherboard 212, or themicroprocessor 214 to thebody 314 should not be allowed to lower the temperature of any portion of thesocket 216, themotherboard 212, or themicroprocessor 214 so as to allow condensation to form on them. One way to accomplish this is to keep the gap between thebody 314 and themicroprocessor 214 sufficiently large that convection cells will not establish themselves in that gap under normal operating conditions so as to cause convective heat transfer. Further, thebody 314 should be sufficiently exposed to ambient air flow that if condensation does form on thebody 314, it will evaporate without dripping onto themicroprocessor 214 or other components. - The
upright heat exchanger 218 is held in place so that theface 320 of theprotrusion 316 is thermally coupled to the die 310 by a clamping arrangement formed from aplastic bar 322, two stainless steel spring clips 324, and abolt 326. The spring clips 324 hook under opposite sides of thesocket 216 and extend upward to attach to opposite ends of theplastic bar 322. Theplastic bar 322 is provided with an opening aligned with the center of the die 310 that is threaded to accept thebolt 326. Theupright heat exchanger 218 is installed by placing theface 320 of theprotrusion 316, preferably coated with thermal grease, against the non-active surface of thedie 310 and then tightening thebolt 326 until thebolt 326 contacts theupright heat exchanger 218. The use of aplastic bar 322 minimizes the possibility that excessive pressure will be applied to the die 310 by tightening thebolt 326, because theplastic bar 322 will break if too much pressure is applied. - As illustrated in
FIG. 3A , theupright heat exchanger 218 is also provided with a fluid inlet fitting 328 and a fluid outlet fitting 330. When installed in thePC 210 shown inFIG. 2A , the tubing indicated byreference numeral 226 is connected to the fluid inlet fitting 328 and the tubing indicated byreference numeral 228 is connected to the fluid outlet fitting 330. - Also illustrated in
FIG. 3A is a screw-inplug 332 and anylon washer 334. The top of thebody 314 is provided with a threaded filler opening (not shown inFIG. 3A ), which is threaded to accept the screw-inplug 332. The purpose of the threaded filler opening is discussed below, but when assembled, thenylon washer 334 is placed over the opening and the screw-inplug 332 screwed into the opening to cause thenylon washer 334 to seal the opening. The head of the screw-inplug 332 is indented so as to accept the end of thebolt 326 and align theupright heat exchanger 218 while thebolt 326 is being tightened. - In
FIG. 3B , themicroprocessor 254 can be seen to be of the conventional flip-chip type having a die 350 mounted in a mountingpackage 352. Thedie 350 extends above the surroundingsurface 353 of the mountingpackage 352 and provides anon-active surface 351 that is generally parallel to the surroundingsurface 353. In this type of mounting, no thermal plate is provided as part of themicroprocessor 254, it being intended that a heat sink will be installed directly in contact with thenon-active surface 351. - As illustrated in
FIG. 3B , thehorizontal heat exchanger 258 is comprised of acuboid body 354 of copper that has acuboid protrusion 356 extending from aface 358 adjacent and parallel to thenon-active surface 351 of thedie 350. As will be discussed in relation toFIGS. 5A and 5B , thebody 354 contains internal passages and chambers through which a fluid may be circulated. Theprotrusion 356 ends in a face 360 (sometimes referred to as a surface herein), which should preferably be dimensionally substantially congruent with and conform to thenon-active surface 351 of thedie 350. Some of the advantages of the invention are reduced if theface 360 is not substantially congruent with the surface of thedie 350. If theface 360 does not contact the entire surface of thedie 350, then the rate at which heat can be transferred is reduced, although if for some reason thedie 350 is not uniformly hot, this may be desirable or at least tolerable. On the other hand, if theface 360 is larger than the surface of thedie 350, the disadvantages of current liquid heat exchangers such as that shown inFIG. 1C begin to appear as the difference in size increases. An empirical approach should be used to applying the present invention to a particular microprocessor installation. - The discussion above regarding variant body shapes and design goals for the
upright heat exchanger 218 applies as well to thehorizontal heat exchanger 258. - The
horizontal heat exchanger 258 is held in place so that theface 360 of theprotrusion 356 is thermally coupled to the die 350 by a clamping arrangement formed from aplastic bar 362, two stainless steel spring clips 364, and abolt 366. The spring clips 364 hook under opposite sides of thesocket 256 and extend outward to attach to opposite ends of theplastic bar 362. Theplastic bar 362 is provided with an opening aligned with the center of thedie 350 and threaded to accept thebolt 366. Thehorizontal heat exchanger 258 is installed by placing theface 360 of theprotrusion 356, preferably coated with thermal grease, against the non-active surface of thedie 350 and then tightening thebolt 366 until thebolt 366 contacts thehorizontal heat exchanger 258. The face of thebody 354 may be indented so as to accept the end of thebolt 366 and align thehorizontal heat exchanger 258 while thebolt 366 is being tightened. The use of plastic minimizes the possibility that excessive pressure will be applied to the die 350 by tightening thebolt 366, as theplastic bar 362 will break if too much pressure is applied. - The
horizontal heat exchanger 258 is also provided with a fluid outlet fitting 370 and a fluid inlet fitting 368, which is not visible inFIG. 3B as it is behind fluid outlet fitting 370 in the view provided inFIG. 3B (seeFIG. 5A ). When thehorizontal heat exchanger 258 is installed in aPC 250, the tubing indicated byreference numeral 266 is connected to the fluid inlet fitting 368 and the tubing indicated byreference numeral 228 is connected to fluid outlet fitting 370. - An alternative heat exchanger is shown in
FIGS. 3G and 3H and indicated generally byreference numeral 390. Theheat exchanger 390 has acolumnar body 392 similar in shape to thecolumnar body 384 shown inFIG. 3E , but with cooling provided by an exterior winding oftubing 394 rather than an internal passage for circulating cooling fluid. The exterior winding oftubing 394 has aninlet 396 and anoutlet 398 corresponding to the fluid inlet fitting 328 and thefluid outlet 330 fitting of theupright heat exchanger 218 ofFIG. 3A , respectively. The same design criteria apply to the combination of thebody 392 and the exterior winding oftubing 394 shown inFIGS. 3G and 3H as apply to thebody 314 and theprotrusion 316 shown inFIG. 3A . Specifically, if thatcombination 392/394 were used in place of theupright heat exchanger 218 ofFIGS. 2A and 3A , the exterior winding oftubing 394 should preferably be located so as to reduce heat transfer from thesocket 216, themotherboard 212, or themicroprocessor 214 to the exterior winding oftubing 394 so that the temperature of any portion of thesocket 216,motherboard 212, or themicroprocessor 214 would not drop to the point at which condensation would form on them. Further, the exterior winding oftubing 394 should be sufficiently exposed to ambient air flow that if condensation does form on thetubing 394, the condensation will evaporate without dripping onto themicroprocessor 214 or other components. Design dimensions are best determined empirically. - The
body 392 may be either solid, preferably copper, or may be constructed as a heat pipe as shown inFIG. 3H . If so, thebody 392 may be bored axially through from its bottom 381 to close to itstop surface 383 forming a bored outchamber 385. Asilver cap 387 may be joined to the bottom 381 as shown inFIG. 3G . Afiller opening 389 passes from the chamber through thetop surface 383. Thefiller opening 389 is threaded to receive a screw-inplug 391. Thebody 392 may be used as a heat pipe if thechamber 385 is evacuated, partially filled with a mixture of approximately 50% acetone, 35% isopropyl alcohol, and 15% water, and the screw-inplug 391, fitted with anylon washer 393, is tightened to compress thenylon washer 393, thereby sealing thechamber 385. It should be noted that the heat pipe configuration illustrated inFIGS. 3G and 3H is optional; asolid body 392 may also be used. - As illustrated in
FIG. 4A , theupright heat exchanger 218 is formed from three sections, acentral section 410 from which protrudes a protrudingportion 412 which together with thesilver cap 319 form theprotrusion 316 ofFIG. 3A , aninlet side section 414, and anoutlet side section 416. The three sections are bored through in the pattern shown inFIG. 4A andFIGS. 4B, 4C , and 4D. Aninlet end cap 418 covers theinlet side section 414 and anoutlet end cap 420 covers theoutlet side section 416. When in operation, fluid entering theinlet side section 414 through the fluid inlet fitting 328 flows in a generallyspiral pattern 610 as shown inFIG. 4E and leaves theupright heat exchanger 218 through the fluid outlet fitting 330. - As illustrated in
FIG. 4C , thecentral section 410 has an axial bore orchamber 510 that extends from theface 511 of the protrudingportion 412 through thecentral section 410 nearly to thetop surface 513 of thecentral section 410. A threadedfiller opening 422 passes from thechamber 510 through the top surface of thecentral section 410. The threadedfiller opening 422 is threaded to receive the screw-inplug 332. When thesilver cap 319 is joined to thelower face 511 of the protrudingportion 412 and the screw-inplug 332 tightened to compress thenylon washer 334, thechamber 510 is sealed and may be used as a heat pipe if evacuated and partially filled with a mixture of approximately 50% acetone, 35% isopropyl alcohol, and 15% water. -
FIG. 5A andFIG. 5B illustrate the structure of thehorizontal heat exchanger 258 in more detail. Thehorizontal heat exchanger 258 does not include a heat pipe such as that provided by thechamber 510 in theupright heat exchanger 218, nor does it include asilver cap 319. It comprises acentral block 450 bored through by nine parallel bores that are laterally connected in the manner shown inFIG. 5B to form a passage from the fluid inlet fitting 368 to the fluid outlet fitting 370. End caps 452, 454 cover the faces of thecentral block 450 through which thecentral block 450 is bored. The end cap indicated byreference numeral 454 covers the face of thecentral block 450 closest to thedie 350. Aprotrusion 356 is attached to the outer face ofend cap 454. The end cap indicated byreference numeral 452 covers the other face of thecentral block 450 and may have a small indentation on its outer face to assist in aligninghorizontal heat exchanger 258 during installation. - While the
upright heat exchanger 218 and thehorizontal heat exchanger 258 have been shown in the drawings and described as intended for installation in an upright and a horizontal orientation, respectively, those skilled in the art will understand that thehorizontal heat exchanger 258 could be installed in an upright orientation and theupright heat exchanger 218 could be installed in a horizontal orientation. However, in the case of theupright heat exchanger 218, suitable wicking (not shown) would then have to be provided in theheat pipe chamber 510, as gravity would not cause condensed liquid to flow back toward theprotrusion 412. Theheat pipe chamber 510 and more elaborate construction of theupright heat exchanger 218 may not be warranted in all cases. Hence the designer may wish to use thehorizontal heat exchanger 258 wherever a simple, less expensive heat exchanger is desired, in both horizontal and upright orientations. - In both the
upright heat exchanger 218 and thehorizontal heat exchanger 258, a passage provided for the circulation of a fluid is comprised of a series of cylindrical chambers connected by constrictions. For example, inFIG. 5B fluid entering thehorizontal heat exchanger 258 through fluid inlet fitting 368 passes through ninechambers FIG. 5B are indicated byreference numerals FIG. 5B constriction 470 connects the first pair ofchambers 451, 453. Thechambers section 450 and may be formed by boring through solid copper blocks, although casting or other methods may be used depending upon the material used. The constrictions also pass completely through thesection 450, so that each of the chambers connected by the constriction has an opening in its interior wall passing into the constriction having a boundary defined by two lines along the interior wall of the chamber that run parallel to the axis of the chamber that are connected by segments of the edges of the circular ends of the chamber. The area of the opening should preferably by approximately equal to the cross-section area of the fluid inlet fitting 368 and the fluid outlet fitting 370. - While the
chambers FIG. 5B and the chambers shown inFIGS. 4B and 4D are drawn so that the axes of successive pairs of chambers are spaced apart by a distance that is somewhat greater than the diameter of one chamber, it is also within the scope of the invention to space the axes of successive chambers closer to each other or farther apart. For example, inFIGS. 4A and 5A , the axes of successive chambers are close enough to each other that the constrictions between successive chambers are formed by the overlapping of the chambers. One method for forming such chambers and constrictions is to bore a block of material so that the center of each bore is closer to the next successive bore than the diameter of the bore. - The inventor has found that the one-piece fluid heater exchanger indicated generally by
reference numeral 610 inFIGS. 6A-6C is less costly to manufacture than thefluid heat exchangers FIGS. 3A and 3B and described above and may be used in place offluid heat exchangers heat exchanger 610 shown inFIGS. 6A-6C is die cast in one piece from an aluminum alloy such as 1106 alloy or 6101 alloy using processes that are known to those skilled in the art. That process is not within the scope of the invention, although the arrangement and shapes of the internal passages are within the scope of the invention. Theheat exchanger 610 shown inFIGS. 6A-6C might also be formed by molding heat-conducting plastic material. - The
heat exchanger 610 shown inFIGS. 6A, 6B , and 6C comprises acuboid body 612, aprotrusion 614, aninlet barb 616, and anoutlet barb 618, all of which are die cast as a unitary structure. Theprotrusion 614 provided complies with the design guidelines discussed above, extending from thelower face 617 of thebody 612 and having a face orsurface 619 for coupling thermally to the non-active surface of a die. The perpendicular distance between the plane of thesurface 619 and thelower face 617 is approximately 6.25 mm. The four sidewalls of theprotrusion 614, the face of one of which is indicated byreference numeral 621, are concave with a radius of curvature of approximately 6.25 mm, resulting in thesidewalls 621 being perpendicular to the plane of thesurface 619 at their line of contact with it. The inventor has found that for currently available microprocessors, this perpendicular distance and sidewall design works. However, an empirical approach is recommended if the circulating fluid is chilled to lower temperatures. For example, steeper sidewalls, greater perpendicular distance, or both, may be needed. - As illustrated in
FIG. 6C , inside the body 612 apassage 620 through which chilled fluid may be circulated is provided. Thepassage 620 connects the opening in theinlet barb 616 to the opening in theoutlet barb 618. Thepassage 620 comprises a series of nine generally spherical chambers connected by eight cylindrical constrictions.FIGS. 6D-6K provide a set of cross-sections showing the shapes and relative diameters of the spherical chambers and cylindrical constrictions. The transitions between the spherical chambers and constrictions are smooth. Because thebody 612 and theprotrusion 614 are formed as a unitary structure from heat-conducting material, a heat-conducting path is provided from thesurface 619 to the material of thebody 612 adjacent thepassage 620 so that heat may flow from the die to fluid circulated through thepassage 620. - A
pump module FIG. 7A . Thepump module volt AC pump 710 installed inside aconventional tank 712. Thetank 712 has a screw-onlid 714, an inlet fitting 716, an outlet fitting 718, and acompression fitting 720. Theoutlet 722 of thepump 712 is connected to the outlet fitting 718 bytubing 724. Theinlet 726 of thepump 712 is open to the interior of thetank 712 as is the inlet fitting 716. Thepower cord 721 of thepump 710 is lead through the compression fitting 720 to a suitable power supply outside the case of thePC PC PC tank 712 may be initially filled with fluid by removing the screw-onlid 714. The preferred fluid is 50% propylene glycol and 50% water. Thetank 712 should be grounded to reduce the risk of a static electrical charge building up and causing sparking. Preferably this should be accomplished by the use of atank 712 composed of metalized plastic, although a metal plate connected to the case of thePC - In
FIGS. 7B, 7C , and 7D, a variant pump module indicated generally byreference numeral 750 is shown that includes a pump having a center-tapped motor winding and an inverter. The inverter is disclosed in a copending, commonly-owned application entitled “Inverter” having application Ser. No. 10/016,678, which is incorporated herein by reference. It generally comprises a submersible 20-volt AC pump 752 installed inside atank 754. Thetank 754 has alid 756, an inlet fitting 757, and anoutlet fitting 759. Theoutlet 758 of thepump 752 is connected to the outlet fitting 759 byheater pipe 760. Theinlet 762 of thepump 752 is open to the interior of thetank 750 as is the inlet fitting 757. A power cord from the DC power supply of thePC inverter 766. Thetank 754 may be initially filled with fluid by removing thelid 756. The preferred fluid is 50% propylene glycol and 50% water. Thetank 754 should be grounded to reduce the risk of a static electrical charge building up and causing sparking. Preferably this should be accomplished by the use of atank 754 composed of metalized plastic. - Two basic designs for the
chiller module FIGS. 8 and 9 illustrate a copper-finned chiller 810, whileFIGS. 10-13 illustrate a cylindrical aluminum-finned chiller 1010.FIGS. 14-16 illustrate a variant of the cylindrical aluminum-finned chiller 1010. Both chiller designs include achiller heat exchanger 814 shown inFIG. 17 or may use thechiller heat exchanger 1810 shown inFIGS. 18A-18J in place of thechiller heat exchanger 814 shown inFIG. 17 . - As shown in
FIGS. 8 and 9 , the copper-finned chiller 810 generally comprises ahousing 812 for mounting in alignment with anopening 912 in awall 910 of the case of thePC volt DC fan 914, achiller heat exchanger 814 having a chiller inlet fitting 816 and a chiller outlet fitting 818, two conventionalthermoelectric heat pumps PC 210, 250 (connection not shown), twocopper base plates fins 828. An arrow 916 inFIG. 9 shows the direction of airflow. When installed in the case of thePC reference numerals reference numerals - The
chiller heat exchanger 814, essentially a block through which a chilled fluid may be circulated, is discussed in the detail below in reference toFIG. 17 . In the copper-finned chiller 810, thechiller heat exchanger 814 is sandwiched between the cold sides of the twothermoelectric heat pumps chiller heat exchanger 814 is thermally coupled to the cold sides of thethermoelectric heat pumps chiller heat exchanger 814 and thethermoelectric heat pumps copper base plates thermoelectric heat pumps copper base plates copper base plates thermoelectric heat pumps fins 828 that are generally perpendicular to the sides of thecopper base plates - As illustrated in
FIG. 9 , abuffer zone 918 is provided between thefan 914 and the finned assembly, indicated generally byreference numeral 920, that includes thechiller heat exchanger 814, thethermoelectric heat pumps base plates fins 828. The purpose of thebuffer zone 918 is to allow air flow from the circular outlet of thefan 914 to reach the corners of thefinned assembly 920, which has a square cross-section as shown inFIG. 8 ,. - Optionally, as shown in
FIG. 8 , a plurality of parallel spaced apartfins 830 may be joined to a portion of the side of acopper base plate 824 that is thermally coupled to the hot side of thethermoelectric heat pump 820, but that is not in contact with the hot side of thethermoelectric heat pump 820. Also optionally, a plurality of parallel spaced apartfins 832 may be joined to a portion of the side of thecopper base plate 826 that is thermally coupled to the hot side of thethermoelectric heat pump 822, but that is not in contact with the hot side of thethermoelectric heat pump 822. If thefins fins 828. - In operation, the copper-
finned chiller 810 chills fluid that has picked up heat from themicroprocessor chiller heat exchanger 814. The cold sides of the twothermoelectric heat pumps chiller heat exchanger 814 and pump it to their respective hot sides. Thecopper base plates fins fins fan 914 picks up heat from thefins PC - The cylindrical aluminum-
finned chiller 1010 shown inFIGS. 10, 11 , and 12 may be used in place of the copper-finned chiller 810. The basic difference between the two designs is in the use of fouraluminum extrusions fins finned chiller 810. Thechiller heat exchanger 814 and the twothermoelectric heat pumps finned chiller 810 may be used in the cylindrical aluminum-finned chiller 1010 and are indicated by the same reference numerals. Two copperheat spreader plates copper base plates finned chiller 810. - As shown in
FIGS. 10-13 , the aluminum-finned chiller 1010 generally comprises acylindrical housing 1030 that may be attached to awall 1110 of the case of thePC opening 1112 in thewall 1110, a conventional 12volt DC fan 1114, thechiller heat exchanger 814 having a chiller inlet fitting 816 (visible only inFIG. 10 ) and a chiller outlet fitting 818, the twothermoelectric heat pumps PC 210, 250 (connection not shown), two copperheat spreader plates aluminum extrusions arrow 1116 inFIG. 11 shows the direction of airflow. When installed in the case of thePC reference numerals reference numerals - As illustrated in
FIG. 11 , abuffer zone 1118 is provided between thefan 1114 and the finned assembly, indicated generally byreference numeral 1120, that includes thechiller heat exchanger 814, thethermoelectric heat pumps heat spreader plates aluminum extrusions buffer zone 1118 shown inFIG. 11 is much smaller than thebuffer zone 918 shown inFIG. 9 as both thefan 1114 and thefinned assembly 1120 has approximately the same circular cross-sectional area so that little or nobuffer zone 1118 is needed to provide airflow to thefinned assembly 1120. However, thebuffer zone 1118 provides space for the tubing indicated byreference numerals reference numerals - The
chiller heat exchanger 814, essentially a block through which a fluid to be chilled can be circulated, is discussed in the detail below in reference toFIG. 17 . In the aluminum-finned chiller 1010, thechiller heat exchanger 814 is sandwiched between the twothermoelectric heat pumps thermoelectric heat pumps chiller heat exchanger 814 and thethermoelectric heat pumps heat spreader plates thermoelectric heat pumps heat spreader plates aluminum extrusions fins finned chiller 810, and are preferred because they may be extruded as units rather than joined by soldering or brazing to thecopper base plates fins finned chiller 810 and are formed from less expensive material (aluminum, rather than copper). -
Aluminum extrusions FIG. 13 , which is a cross-section through thealuminum extrusion 1012, illustrates all of them. As illustrated inFIG. 13 , thealuminum extrusion 1012 comprises a base 1310 from which a plurality offins 1312 protrude. - In operation, the aluminum-
finned chiller 1010 chills fluid that has picked up heat from themicroprocessor chiller heat exchanger 814. The cold sides of the twothermoelectric heat pumps chiller heat exchanger 814 and pump it to their respective hot sides. The copperheat spreader plates aluminum extrusions fins 1312 by thefan 1114 picks up heat from thefins 1312 and carries that heat out of the case of thePC -
FIGS. 14, 15 , and 16 illustrate a variant, indicated generally byreference numeral 1011 of the aluminum-finned chiller 1010 ofFIGS. 10-13 in which the copperheat spreader plates aluminum extrusions identical aluminum extrusions FIG. 14 corresponds toFIG. 10 ,FIG. 15 toFIG. 11 , andFIG. 16 toFIG. 13 . The elevation view of the aluminum-finned chiller 1010 provided inFIG. 12 is identical for thevariant 1011.Aluminum extrusion 1017 is shown in cross-section inFIG. 16 . As illustrated inFIG. 16 , thealuminum extrusion 1017 comprises a base 1610 from which a plurality offins 1612 protrude. Thebase 1610 is thicker than base 1310; the extra thickness replacing the copperheat spreader plate 1020. - In operation, the variant aluminum-
finned chiller 1011 chills fluid that has picked up heat from themicroprocessor chiller heat exchanger 814. The cold sides of the twothermoelectric heat pumps chiller heat exchanger 814 and pump it to their respective hot sides. The hot sides of the twothermoelectric heat pumps aluminum extrusions fins 1612 by thefan 1114 picks up heat from thefins 1612 and carries that heat out of the case of thePC - If desired, a chiller such as for example any of those described with reference to any of FIGS. 8 to 16 may be used to accept heat input to the thermoelectric heat pumps from sources other than a liquid heat exchanger, if desired. For example, rather than providing a liquid heat exchanger as the heat input surface, the cold side of a thermoelectric cooler may be in direct thermal communication with a heat generating component such as a microprocessor, transistor, phet, etc. or a conductive material such as a heat spreader plate positioned between heat generating component and the thermoelectric cooler or through other fluid heat exchange components such as a heat pipe, wherein the condenser portion thereof may be thermally coupled to the cold side of the thermoelectric cooler.
- Likewise, if desired, a chiller such as for example any of those described with reference to any of FIGS. 8 to 16 may employ heat exchanging surfaces other than finned structures for use with air as the heat exchanging coolant. For example, heat exchanging surfaces, such as finned structures or other forms, cooled by liquid coolants may be used, such as may be more commonly termed a fluid heat exchanger formed to accept a flow of liquid. Examples of various fluid heat exchangers are described throughout this application.
- The chiller may be positioned inside the housing of a computer or other electronic or electric device as disclosed previously or may be positioned externally as an alternative. For example, the chiller may operate internally or on an exposed surface of a computer or electric or electronic device, as desired.
- With reference to
FIG. 16A , for example, achiller 1711 may include a heat exchanging surface in the form of afinned structure 1712 thermally coupled to athermoelectric cooler 1722, which has a cold side 1722 a that is in turn is thermally coupled to acondenser portion 1714 a of a heat pipe 1714. The heat pipe may be in thermal communication with anelectronics heat source 1754 such as a microprocessor, a phet, a transistor, etc. of a computer or other electronic or electric device. As will be appreciated, a heat pipe operates by phase change of a heat transfer, working medium, arrows F, between the heat pipe's evaporator portion 1714 b andcondenser portion 1714 a. Heat pipes generally include a closed envelope in which heat transfer working medium is contained. The heat transfer is achieved by vaporization of the working medium at the evaporator portion by action of heat energy input and condensation of the gaseous working medium atcondenser portion 1714 a, which is cooler in this case due to its thermally conductive contact with the cold side of thermoelectric cooler 1722 that permits dissipation of the heat energy. A circuit is set up within a heat pipe wherein condensed working medium moves from the condenser portion to the evaporator portion by gravity flow or wicking action. - As described herein, a chiller may be used to cool heat generating components on a electronic printed circuit board, which for example may include a video card, a mother board, a sound card, a physics card or other purpose built cards. In another embodiment shown in
FIGS. 16B to 16D, avideo card 2052 is shown for example which may be installed in an expansion slot of a computer and achiller 2011 is mounted thereon for cooling hot spots on the card. In the illustrated embodiment for example,chiller 2011 is mounted to cool amicroprocessor 2054, for example a GPU, on the card'sboard 2056. -
Card 2052 includes aspreader plate 2014 thermally coupled on a top surface of, to accept heat energy from, themicroprocessor 2054.Heat spreader plate 2014 includes afirst surface 2014 a thermally coupled to an exposed surface 2054 a of the microprocessor and asecond surface 2014 b exposed for thermal communication to the chiller. The heat spreader plate may be formed of a conductive material such as copper or aluminum in order to conduct thermal energy fromfirst surface 2014 a tosecond surface 2014 b.First surface 2014 a may be raised, as shown, or recessed from the surrounding surface of the heat plate or may be coplanar therewith, as desired. - At least
second surface 2014 b of the heat spreader plate has a surface area greater than the exposed surface of the microprocessor such that heat from the microprocessor is distributed over a greater surface area. -
Card 2052 also carries a plurality ofthermoelectric coolers 2022 with their cold sides 2022 a each thermally coupled to heatspreader plate 2014. When powered, the thermoelectric coolers conduct heat energy from their cold sides 2022 a to their warm sides 2022 b to conduct heat away from the heat spreader plate. - In the illustrated embodiment, three thermoelectric coolers are shown, but other numbers may be used as desired. The numbers of thermoelectric coolers may be selected with consideration as to the heat energy which is desired to be handled.
- By combining unique design features, thermoelectric heat transfer may be used to efficiently cool electronic components. In one embodiment, it is desired to spread the total heat transfer (Q) across one or more TECs to achieve a coefficient of performance (COP) of 2 or more. COP is the ratio of power used to the heat moved: COP=Q1/W. This may be achieved by limiting the input power for the thermoelectric coolers to below 40% of the rated Qmax.
- Although a single thermoelectric cooler may be considered for installation on a card, a single thermoelectric cooler may not operate in a desireably efficient manner with respect to issues of thermal density and the ratio of power consumption against thermal transfer. A single thermoelectric cooler may have to be driven at such a high thermal transfer that it may induce condensation. Using a plurality of thermoelectric coolers operated at input power below 40% of the rated Qmax, such as at 25 to 125 watts, for example of 40 to 100 watts or possibly 40 to 60 watts, permits reasonably efficient heat dissipation from components with very high thermal density with reasonable power input and few concerns regarding condensation.
- Additional advantages of this technology combined with multiple TECs is the increased surface area to dissipate the heat from the hot side of the TEC. The total heat dissipation can be done more easily with a heat exchanger.
- The warm sides of the
thermoelectric coolers 2022 are then thermally coupled to a heat exchange surface, which may include air-cooled fins, a heat pipe, etc., but in this embodiment includes afluid heat exchanger 2023 formed to include a heat spreader bottom surface in thermal communication with heat exchanging ribs 2023 a, which extend into a liquid tight inner chamber 2023 b. Heat exchanging liquid passes throughbarbs - The heat
spreader plate fluid 2014,thermoelectric coolers 2022 andheat exchanger 2023 may be secured tocard 2054 byclamps 2056 andfasteners 2058 or other means as desired. - In some embodiments, further heat dissipating devices may be used with
card 2052 such as afinned heat exchanger 2059 that operates to dissipate heat from other components on the card via air flow through fins 2059 a. - Another embodiment of a chiller 2111 is shown in
FIGS. 16E and 16F . In that illustrated embodiment, chiller 2111 is included as part of alaptop cooling device 2157 operable to assist with the cooling of alaptop 2159 if one is placed thereon.Laptop cooling device 2157 may include asupport plate 2161 including atop surface 2161 a and a lower surface 2161 b. The top surface is formed to support a laptop thereon and at least a portion thereof is selected to act as a heat sink. Thus, for example at least a portion of the top surface may include aheat conductive material 2163 capable of absorbing heat energy from a laptop and from air passing over the surface, as will be appreciated by the further description hereinbelow.Top surface 2161 a may include a plurality ofsmall surface undulations 2165 for example in the form of ribs, protrusions, bumps, etc. The surface undulations increase the surface area of the heat conductive material on the top surface and may also create turbulence in, and thereby increase residence time of, air flowing between the lap top and the top surface. - Heat
conductive material 2163 of the top surface extends to the lower surface and is thermally coupled to the cold side of at least one, and in the illustrated embodiment two,thermoelectric coolers 2122 mounted on lower surface 2161 b. Theheat conductive material 2163 on lower surface creates a form of heat spreader plate to conduct heat energy into contact with the thermoelectric coolers. - A heat exchanging surface, such as a
finned structure 2112, a fluid heat exchanger or heat pipe is thermally coupled to the warm side of the thermoelectric coolers to accept and dissipate the heat conducted away from the top surface. In the illustrated embodiment, the heat exchanging surface includes a finned structure through which cooling air may flow. In one embodiment, afan 2114 is mounted to move (push or draw) air through the finned structure. - In operation, the laptop cooling device may support a laptop, with the underside of the laptop overlying
top surface 2161 a of the support plate. Many laptops include cooling systems that draw air in through air vents opened on or adjacent the underside of the laptop. The underside of the laptop also tends to be an area of the laptop that becomes warm during operation. As such, the laptop cooling device may operate in two ways. First, heatconductive material 2163 may act as a heat sink for heat emitted from the laptop underside and also, heat conductive material, which remains in a cooled state from operation of the thermoelectric cooler may also act to cool air passing between the laptop andtop surface 2161 a toward the laptop vents. - Heat energy drawn from the top surface by thermoelectric cooler may be dissipated through chiller 2111 and
fan 2114. - Although not shown, the lap top cooling device may include a housing extending about various components thereof. For example, a housing may extend about chiller and fan, which may include vents for passage therethrough of air. A housing may also or alternately extend about the edges of
top surface 2161 a. - As illustrated in
FIG. 17 , the structure of thechiller heat exchanger 814 is, in general, similar to that of thehorizontal heat exchanger 258 described above in relation toFIGS. 5A and 5B ; the primary differences being that noprotrusion 356 is provided and there are 20 chambers.Chiller heat exchanger 814 comprises acentral block 1410 bored through by 20 bores that are laterally connected in the manner shown inFIG. 17 to form a passage from the chiller inlet fitting 816 to the chiller outlet fitting 818. Anend cap central block 1410. A passage is provided for the circulation of a fluid that is comprised of a series of cylindrical chambers, two representative ones of which are referred to byreference numerals reference numeral 1420. - In
FIG. 17 fluid entering thechiller heat exchanger 814 through the chiller inlet fitting 816 passes through the 20 chambers before leaving through the chiller outlet fitting 818. Each pair of successive chambers is connected by a constriction. For example, inFIG. 17 theconstriction 1420 connects the pair ofchambers central block 1410 and may be formed by boring through a solid copper block, although casting or other methods may be used depending upon the material used. The constrictions, such asconstriction 1420 also pass completely through thecentral block 1410, so that each of the chambers connected by the constriction has an opening in its interior wall passing into the constriction having a boundary defined by two lines along the interior wall of the chamber that run parallel to the axis of the chamber that are connected by segments of the edges of the circular ends of the chamber. The area of the opening should preferably by approximately equal to the cross-section area of the chiller inlet fitting 816 and the chiller outlet fitting 818. - While the chambers shown in
FIG. 17 are shown so that the axes of most of the successive pairs of chambers are spaced apart by slightly less than the diameter of one chamber so that most of the constrictions between successive chambers are formed by the overlapping of the chambers, it is also within the scope of the invention to space the axes of successive chambers farther apart, as shown inFIG. 5B . One method for forming such chambers and constrictions is to bore a block of material so that the center of each bore is closer to the next successive bore than the diameter of the bore. - While twenty chambers are shown in
FIG. 17 , more or fewer chambers could be used and are within the scope of this invention. - As in the case of the one-piece
fluid heater exchanger 610 shown inFIGS. 6A-6C , the inventor has found that the one-piece chiller heat exchanger indicated generally byreference numeral 1810 inFIGS. 18A-18C is less costly to manufacture than thechiller heat exchanger 814 shown inFIG. 17 and described above and may be used in place ofheat exchanger 814 in many applications. However, the same design principles apply. Theheat exchanger 1810 shown inFIGS. 6A-6C is die cast in one piece from an aluminum alloy such as 1106 alloy or 6101 alloy using processes that are known to those skilled in the art. That process is not within the scope of the invention, although the arrangement and shapes of the internal passages are within the scope of the invention. Theheat exchanger 1810 shown inFIGS. 18A-18C might also be formed by molding heat conducting plastic material. - The
heat exchanger 1810 shown inFIGS. 18A, 18B , and 18C comprises abody 1812, aninlet barb 1816, and anoutlet barb 1818, all of which are die cast as a single unitary structure. Inside the body 1812 apassage 1820 shown inFIG. 18C connects the opening in theinlet barb 1816 to the opening in theoutlet barb 1818. Thepassage 1820 comprises a series of sixteen spherical chambers connected by fifteen cylindrical constrictions. More or fewer chambers could be used and are within the scope of this invention.FIGS. 18D-18J provide a set of cross-sections showing the shapes and relative diameters of the spherical chambers and cylindrical constrictions. The transitions between the spherical chambers and constrictions are smooth. - The inventor has found it advantageous to use the molded retainer shown in
FIGS. 19A, 19B , and 19C for coupling thefluid heat exchanger reference numeral 1910, may be used instead of theplastic bar 322 andspring clips 324 inFIG. 3A and theplastic bar 362 andspring clips 364 shown inFIG. 3B . The moldedretainer 1910 comprises aplate 1912 of plastic material having afront hook 1914 and arear hook 1916 that extend perpendicularly from theplate 1912 and perform the same function as the spring clips 324, 364. Portions of thehooks socket plate 1912 rather than fastened to the edges of theplate 1912 by screws as is the case in theplastic bar FIGS. 3A and 3B . Further, the ends of thehooks socket plate 1912 and extend perpendicularly from theplate 1912 to formside brackets 1918. Theside brackets 1918 extend far enough to restrain the body of the fluid heat exchanger from twisting. Twofurther side brackets 1920 each having a end molded into theplate 1912 are provided so that the body of the fluid heat exchanger is surrounded on all four sides bybrackets hooks brackets plastic bar plate 1912 is provided with anopening 1922 that is threaded to accept a bolt (not shown) that may be the same as the bolt shown inFIGS. 3A and 3B . Theopening 1922 is located so that the bolt is aligned with the center of thedie plastic bar FIGS. 3A and 3B . The plastic used to form theplate 1912 may be acrylic, although other plastics or other material may be used. The material used and its thickness should be selected so that theplate 1912 will break if the bolt is over-tightened. - Those skilled in the art will understand that the invention may be used to cool electronic components such as graphics processors as well as microprocessors by adding additional fluid heat exchanger modules either in series or in parallel with the fluid heat exchanger used to cool the microprocessor. Similarly, multiprocessor computers can be cooled using multiple fluid heat exchangers.
- Other embodiments will be apparent to those skilled in the art and, therefore, the invention is defined in the claims.
Claims (38)
1. A chiller for cooling an electronic device, comprising:
a thermoelectric cooler having a cool face and a warm face when connected to a power source;
a heat spreader plate; and
a heat exchanging surface,
said thermoelectric cooler, said heat spreader plate and said heat exchanging surface all thermally coupled to dissipate heat energy from a heat input surface to said heat exchanging surface.
2. The chiller as defined in claim 1 , wherein the cool face of the thermoelectric cooler is thermally coupled to the heat input surface.
3. The chiller as defined in claim 1 wherein the heat spreader plate includes a first face and the first face is thermally coupled to said warm face of the thermoelectric cooler.
4. The chiller as defined in claim 1 wherein the heat spreader plate is thermally coupled between the heat input surface and the thermoelectric cooler.
5. The chiller as defined in claim 1 , wherein the heat exchanging surface is thermally coupled to the heat spreader plate and the heat exchanging surface includes a plurality of spaced-apart heat conductive fins, each of which extends away from the heat spreader plate opposite to said heat spreader plate.
6. The chiller as defined in claim 1 , wherein the heat exchanging surface is a portion of a fluid heat exchanger.
7. The chiller as defined in claim 6 , wherein the fluid heat exchanger is capable of containing a flow of liquid coolant.
8. The chiller as defined in claim 1 , further comprising a system for passing cooling fluid past the heat exchanging surface.
9. The chiller as defined in claim 1 , wherein the system for passing cooling fluid includes a pump.
10. The chiller as defined in claim 1 , wherein the heat input surface is part of a fluid heat exchanger through which a fluid may be circulated.
11. The chiller as defined in claim 1 , wherein the heat input surface is a portion of a heat pipe.
12. The chiller as defined in claim 1 , wherein the heat input surface is a portion of the electronic device.
13. The chiller as defined in claim 1 , wherein said electronic device is a microprocessor comprising a die mounted in a package and the said hot portion is an exposed surface of the die.
14. The chiller as defined in claim 13 , wherein a first face of the heat spreader plate defines a primary plane and the plurality of spaced-apart heat-conductive fins are positioned such that air can move through the plurality of spaced-apart heat-conductive fins and in a direction substantially parallel to said primary plane.
15. The chiller as defined in claim 14 wherein the fluid heat exchanger is formed as a thick plate and is positioned in a plane parallel to the primary plane.
16. The chiller as defined in claim 1 , wherein the thermoelectric cooler is positioned in the chiller such that air can pass thereover when the air moves through the chiller.
17. The chiller as defined in claim 5 , further comprising a fan oriented to move air between said fins.
18. The chiller as defined in claim 1 positioned in a case for the electronic device, the case including an opening therethrough for access between its inner and outer surfaces and the chiller is positioned within the case open to the opening.
19. The chiller as defined in claim 5 , wherein the plurality of spaced-apart fins are together formed as a unitary structure.
20. The chiller as defined in claim 5 , wherein the heat spreader plate and the plurality of spaced-apart fins are joined together as a unitary structure.
21. The chiller as defined in claim 1 , further comprising a second thermoelectric cooler having a cool face and a warm face when connected to a power source, the second thermoelectric cooler also sandwiched between the heat input surface and the heat spreader plate so that the cool face of the second thermoelectric cooler is thermally coupled to the heat input surface and its warm face is thermally coupled to the heat spreader plate.
22. The chiller as defined in claim 1 positioned in a case for the electronic device, the case including an opening therethrough for access between its inner and outer surface and the chiller is positioned adjacent the opening within the case.
23. The chiller as defined in claim 1 mounted on a printed circuit board.
24. The chiller as defined in claim 23 wherein the heat exchanging surface includes a portion of a liquid heat exchanger.
25. The chiller as defined in claim 1 mounted on a laptop cooling device.
26. A printed circuit board comprising:
a board;
a heat generating component on the board;
a heat spreader plate, a first face of which is thermally coupled to the heat generating component;
a thermoelectric cooler having a cool face and a warm face when connected to a power source, the thermoelectric cooler mounted with its cool face thermally coupled to the heat spreader plate; and
a liquid heat exchanger thermally coupled to the warm face of the thermoelectric cooler.
27. The printed circuit board of claim 26 further comprising at least one additional thermoelectric cooler mounted with its cool face thermally coupled to the heat spreader plate and its warm face thermally coupled to the liquid heat exchanger.
28. The printed circuit board of claim 26 further comprising a second heat spreader plate mounted on the board to dissipate heat from a second heat generated component on the board.
29. The printed circuit board of claim 26 wherein the thermoelectric cooler has a power rating of between 25 and 125 watts.
30. The printed circuit board of claim 26 including pins for mounting in an expansion slot of a computer.
31. The printed circuit board of claim 26 wherein the heat generating device is the CPU of a video card.
32. A laptop cooling device comprising:
a support plate including a top surface formed to support a laptop thereon, a lower surface, and at least a portion formed to act as a heat sink in a position exposed on top surface and extending to the lower surface;
a thermoelectric cooler having a cool face and a warm face when connected to a power source, the thermoelectric cooler mounted with its cool face thermally coupled to the at least a portion formed to act as a heat sink; and
a heat exchanging surface thermally coupled to the warm face of the thermoelectric cooler.
33. The laptop cooling device of claim 32 wherein the at least a portion formed to act as a heat sink includes a heat conductive material.
34. The laptop cooling device of claim 32 wherein the top surface includes a plurality of surface undulations.
35. The laptop cooling device of claim 32 wherein the support plate acts is formed of a heat conductive material.
36. The laptop cooling device of claim 32 wherein heat exchanging surface includes a finned structure.
37. The laptop cooling device of claim 32 wherein the heat exchanging surface includes an open finned structure through which air may flow.
38. The laptop cooling device of claim 32 further comprising a fan to move air past the heat exchanging surface.
Priority Applications (1)
Application Number | Priority Date | Filing Date | Title |
---|---|---|---|
US11/673,766 US20080006037A1 (en) | 2001-12-26 | 2007-02-12 | Computer cooling apparatus |
Applications Claiming Priority (3)
Application Number | Priority Date | Filing Date | Title |
---|---|---|---|
US10/025,846 US6725682B2 (en) | 2001-07-13 | 2001-12-26 | Computer cooling apparatus |
US10/757,493 US7174738B2 (en) | 2001-07-13 | 2004-01-15 | Computer cooling apparatus |
US11/673,766 US20080006037A1 (en) | 2001-12-26 | 2007-02-12 | Computer cooling apparatus |
Related Parent Applications (1)
Application Number | Title | Priority Date | Filing Date |
---|---|---|---|
US10/757,493 Continuation-In-Part US7174738B2 (en) | 2001-07-13 | 2004-01-15 | Computer cooling apparatus |
Publications (1)
Publication Number | Publication Date |
---|---|
US20080006037A1 true US20080006037A1 (en) | 2008-01-10 |
Family
ID=34192572
Family Applications (1)
Application Number | Title | Priority Date | Filing Date |
---|---|---|---|
US11/673,766 Abandoned US20080006037A1 (en) | 2001-12-26 | 2007-02-12 | Computer cooling apparatus |
Country Status (1)
Country | Link |
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US (1) | US20080006037A1 (en) |
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US20110162818A1 (en) * | 2008-09-23 | 2011-07-07 | Tyrell Kyle Kumlin | Providing Connection Elements For Connecting Fluid Pipes To Carry Cooling Fluid In A System |
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US20150233647A1 (en) * | 2014-02-20 | 2015-08-20 | Thermotek, Inc. | Method and system of heat dissipation utilizing a heat pipe in combination with an extruded heat sink |
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CN110191616A (en) * | 2019-05-08 | 2019-08-30 | 深圳兴奇宏科技有限公司 | Liquid-cooling heat radiator fixed fastener and its liquid-cooling heat radiation module |
US20190297746A1 (en) * | 2018-03-26 | 2019-09-26 | Lenovo Enterprise Solutions (Singapore) Pte. Ltd. | Systems and methods that use thermal energy transfer devices to reduce thermal energy within environments |
US20200349857A1 (en) * | 2019-05-02 | 2020-11-05 | Sean Rojas | Virtual reality pc case / simulation chassis |
US11467638B2 (en) * | 2020-02-24 | 2022-10-11 | American Future Technology | Water-cooling head adjustment structure for computer water cooling |
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