Thermal performance of phase change material–based heat sink with hybrid fin-metal foam structure under hypergravity conditions

The thermal management systems or heat sinks are an integral part of electronic devices for aerospace applications. The heat transfer characteristics of the widely used phase change material (PCM)-based heat sinks under hypergravity conditions are essential in the designation of the heat sink. The current study conducts a systematic evaluation on the thermal characteristics of PCM coupled with hybrid fin-metal foam (FMF) structure under variable hypergravity conditions. A validated two-dimensional transient melting heat transfer model of the designed system is proposed, and the influences of enclosure orientation, fin height, PCM slab thickness, and the distribution of fin and metal foam under different hypergravity conditions are investigated. Results show that with the decrease in inclination angle, the melting time and the heating wall temperature become lower, and the optimal inclination angle is 0°. As the PCM slab thickness gets larger, natural convection is enhanced, while the heating wall temperature and melting time become larger. With the rise of hypergravity value, the effect of inclination angle strengthens, while the influence of PCM slab thickness weakens. Furthermore, with the rise of the copper foam fraction in the hybrid FMF structure, the melting time and the heating wall temperature firstly decrease and increase afterward. The optimal copper foam fraction is 58.62%. This study guides the optimal design of the PCM-based heat sink in aerospace applications.