A novel optimized liquid cooled heat sink integrated with 3D lattice structure under different blockage ratios

Abstract

In this numerical work, investigation is focused on thermo-hydraulic nature of a periodic metal foam-integrated heat sink with an octet lattice-structure topology. Heat sink is partially filled with octet structure based periodic metal foam having 2.5 mm unit cell length with blockage ratios of 0.25/0.5/0.75/1, porosity of 0.83/0.87/0.91, and flow velocity of 0.02–0.05 m/s for electronic thermal management. The effect of porosity and blockage ratio on the wall temperature and pressure gradient of the heat sink is examined. Among all configurations, the lowest value of wall temperature of 311.24 K and the highest value of pressure gradient of 5091 Pa/m are observed for the case of blockage ratio 1, porosity 0.83, and flow velocity of 0.05 m/s. Additionally, the thermo-hydraulic performance enhancement owing to the partly packed configuration is observed based on the enhancement ratio and thermo-hydraulic performance parameter (THPP). The highest enhancement ratio is observed for the case with a blockage ratio of 1, porosity of 0.83, and a velocity of 0.02 m/s. The thermal design with a velocity of 0.03 m/s, a blockage ratio of 0.75, and a porosity of 0.83 is considered the optimal design in accordance with the THPP, which has a value of approximately 1.7. © 2025 Elsevier Ltd