Cold plate design for thermal management of phase array-radar systems
AssigneesRaytheon Company, Southern Methodist Univ.
InventorsDonald C. Price, Richard M. Weber, Gary J. Schwartz, Joseph McDaniel, Jose' L. Lage
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Abstract
A cold plate for use in a thermal management system and a method of thermal management which comprises an inlet channel having coolant fluid disposed therein at a substantially uniform pressure throughout the inlet channel and an outlet channel having coolant fluid disposed therein at a substantially uniform pressure lower than the pressure in the inlet channel throughout the outlet channel. The cold plate includes a highly thermally-conductive metallic porous matrix filling the fluid passage, preferably of aluminum. The porous matrix is preferably from about two percent to about 15 percent percent solid.
Claims19
A cold plate for use in a thermal management system which comprises:
- (a) a plurality of fluid passages having a common cooling fluid inlet region and a common cooling fluid outlet region;
- and
- (b) a metallic porous matrix filling each of said fluid passages between said fluid inlet region and said fluid outlet region to maintain a uniform pressure differential across each of said passages.
A cold plate system which comprises:
- (a) an inlet channel having fluid coolant disposed therein at a substantially uniform pressure throughout said inlet channel;
- (b) an outlet channel having fluid coolant disposed therein at a substantially uniform pressure lower than said pressure in said inlet channel throughout said outlet channel;
- and
- (c) a cold plate having a cooling fluid inlet region coupled to said inlet channel, a cooling fluid outlet region coupled to said outlet channel, a plurality of fluid passages coupled between said inlet region and said outlet region and a metallic porous matrix filling said fluid passages of said cold plate providing a uniform pressure differential across each of said fluid passages.
A method of thermal management which comprises:
- (a) providing an inlet channel having coolant fluid disposed therein at a substantially uniform pressure throughout said inlet channel;
- (b) providing an outlet channel having coolant fluid disposed therein at a substantially uniform pressure lower than said pressure in said inlet channel throughout said outlet channel;
- (c) providing a cold plate, said cold plate having a cooling fluid inlet region coupled to said inlet channel, a cooling fluid outlet region coupled to said outlet channel, a plurality of fluid passages coupled between said inlet region and said outlet region and a metallic porous matrix filling each of said fluid passages of said cold plate to provide a uniform pressure differential across each of said passages;
- and
- (d) causing said coolant to flow through each of said passages.
Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.