Heat pipe structure

Abstract

The heat pipe structure disclosed by the invention relates to the technical field of heat dissipation of electronic components, the heat pipe structure comprises a heat pipe body and a microfluidic assembly, and the heat pipe body is provided with a condensation section, an evaporation section and a transportation section arranged between the condensation section and the evaporation section. The micro-fluidic assembly comprises a control piece and a micro-fluidic chip, the control piece is electrically connected with the micro-fluidic chip, and the micro-fluidic chip is arranged on the transportation section of the heat pipe body and used for replacing driving force of a conventional heat pipe through the dielectric wetting effect in the micro-fluidic technology to achieve transportation of a liquid heat exchange working medium in the direction from the condensation section to the evaporation section. According to the heat pipe structure disclosed by the invention, the microfluidic technology and the heat pipe technology are combined, the problems of insufficient working medium transportation capacity, low anti-gravity capacity, difficulty in starting or poor stability of various heat pipes in the prior art are solved, the microfluidic assembly is used as the driving force of the liquid heat exchange working medium, the larger transportation amount of the liquid heat exchange working medium can be obtained, and the heat exchange efficiency is improved. The heat dissipation effect is better, and the heat dissipation device can be suitable for heat dissipation of high-heat-flux elements in electronic heat dissipation.

Description

Technical Field

[0001] The present invention relates to the technical field of heat dissipation of electronic components, and more specifically to a heat pipe structure. Background Art

[0002] The high integration, high packaging density and high operating frequency of electronic chips will cause the temperature of the chip to rise rapidly. Studies have shown that the damage rate of electronic components is positively correlated with the operating temperature. When electronic devices are in a high-temperature working state for a long time, their reliability will be significantly reduced. At present, forced air cooling is the main method for heat dissipation of high-power devices, and heat pipes are the main devices for heat exchange between heat sources and cooling media in air-cooled heat dissipation modules. At present, there are some problems with conventional heat pipes, gravity heat pipes, pulsating heat pipes, loop heat pipes, etc. For example, the performance of conventional heat pipes is mainly determined by the capillary structure. In the working scenario of anti-gravity (that is, in the vertical direction, the hot end of the heat pipe is located above the cold end), the working fluid flows back from the cold end to the hot end by capillary force. The capillary force generated by the capillary structure needs to resist the resistance and gravity of the working fluid flow, but the capillary structure of existing products does not have excellent performance in transporting the working fluid, and the performance of the heat pipe is limited by it. Gravity heat pipes rely on gravity to complete condensation reflux, and cannot work normally in an anti-gravity working environment. Pulsating heat pipes have excellent anti-gravity capabilities when working normally, but their advantages are not obvious in working scenarios with higher heat flux density. At the same time, there are many factors that affect the startup of pulsating heat pipes. Loop heat pipes also have startup and stability problems.

[0003] A heat dissipation solution disclosed in the prior art adopts a single-phase heat transfer method, which is difficult to meet the heat dissipation requirements of high heat flux density. The driving unit of the working fluid is a piezoelectrically actuated fluid pump integrated on the PCB substrate. The piezoelectrically actuated fluid pump has the disadvantages of mechanical fatigue and pressure discontinuity, resulting in the risk of unstable operation. In addition, the driving unit and the transportation path need to occupy a certain space respectively, which is difficult to adapt to the heat dissipation requirements of PCB boards with non-planar structures such as folding and distributed structures.

[0004] Therefore, how to achieve reliable heat dissipation of electronic components has become a technical problem that needs to be solved urgently by those skilled in the art. Summary of the invention

[0005] In view of this, an object of the present invention is to provide a heat pipe structure to achieve reliable heat dissipation of electronic components.

[0006] To achieve the above object, the present invention provides the following technical solutions:

[0007] A heat pipe structure, comprising:

[0008] The heat pipe body comprises a condensing section, an evaporating section and a transport section arranged between the condensing section and the evaporating section;

[0009] The microfluidic component includes a control member and a microfluidic chip. The control member and the microfluidic chip are electrically connected. The microfluidic chip is disposed in the transportation section and is configured to transport the liquid heat transfer working medium from the condensation section to the evaporation section.

[0010] Optionally, in the above heat pipe structure, the heat pipe body includes:

[0011] A housing provided with a mounting groove;

[0012] A condensation bottom plate disposed at a first end of the housing through the mounting groove and forming the condensation section with the housing;

[0013] An evaporation bottom plate disposed at a second end of the housing through the mounting groove and forming the evaporation section with the housing. The microfluidic chip is disposed on the mounting groove and is connected to the condensation bottom plate and the evaporation bottom plate at both ends respectively.

[0014] Optionally, in the above heat pipe structure, a capillary wick is provided on the evaporation bottom plate or a hydrophilic coating is applied.

[0015] Optionally, in the above heat pipe structure, structural protrusions are provided on both sides of the surface of the condensation bottom plate facing the housing, and the structural protrusions extend to the position where the microfluidic chip is located.

[0016] Optionally, in the above heat pipe structure, a hydrophilic coating is applied to the surface of the condensation bottom plate facing the housing; and / or,

[0017] A hydrophobic coating is applied to the inner surface of the housing at a position corresponding to the condensation bottom plate.

[0018] Optionally, in the above heat pipe structure, a plurality of electrodes are provided on the microfluidic chip, and the electrodes extend in the direction from the condensation section to the evaporation section;

[0019] The sizes and shapes of the respective electrodes are the same or different;

[0020] In the direction from the condensation section to the evaporation section, the electrodes are arranged in one row or multiple rows.

[0021] Optionally, in the above heat pipe structure, an electrode interface for connecting to the control member is provided on the microfluidic chip;

[0022] The microfluidic chip is a multi-layer PCB board structure;

[0023] The electrodes and the electrode interface are on different layer PCB board structures of the microfluidic chip.

[0024] Optionally, in the above heat pipe structure, the control member is disposed outside the heat pipe body, and the control member and the microfluidic chip are of an integral structure; or,

[0025] the control member is disposed outside the heat pipe body, and the control member and the microfluidic chip are configured to be connected through a flexible wiring assembly.

[0026] Optionally, in the above heat pipe structure, a heat conductive agent is coated on the contact surface of the evaporation section for contacting the heat source; and / or,

[0027] a heat conductive agent is coated on the contact surface of the condensation section for contacting the cooling device.

[0028] Optionally, in the above heat pipe structure, the condensation section and the evaporation section are straight sections, and the transportation section is a straight section or an arc section.

[0029] The heat pipe structure provided by the present invention includes a heat pipe body and a microfluidic component. The heat pipe body has a condensation section, an evaporation section, and a transportation section disposed between the condensation section and the evaporation section. The evaporation section is used to contact the heat source to absorb heat, so that the liquid heat transfer working medium in the heat pipe body is transformed into a gas state. The condensation section is used to contact the cooling device and release heat, so that the gaseous heat transfer working medium in the heat pipe body condenses into a liquid state. The transportation section completes the heat transfer by transporting the gaseous heat transfer working medium and the liquefied heat working medium. The microfluidic component includes a control member and a microfluidic chip. The control member and the microfluidic chip are electrically connected. The microfluidic chip is disposed on the transportation section of the heat pipe body, and is used to replace the driving force of the conventional heat pipe through the electrowetting effect in the microfluidic technology to drive the movement of the liquid heat transfer working medium, so as to realize the transportation of the liquid heat transfer working medium from the condensation section to the evaporation section.

[0030] The heat pipe structure provided by the present invention combines the microfluidic technology with the heat pipe technology, and adopts the phase change heat transfer method, which improves the problems existing in various heat pipes in the past, such as insufficient working medium transportation capacity, weak anti-gravity ability, difficult startup or poor stability. Moreover, using the microfluidic component as the driving force of the liquid heat transfer working medium can obtain a larger transportation volume of the liquid heat transfer working medium, and does not contain power components, nor does it require the pressure difference in the flow channel to generate power, so the stability is better, and the space occupation can be greatly saved; it has a larger Qmax compared with ordinary heat pipes; and the microfluidic component is integrated into the heat pipe body, and the microfluidic component only functions to transport the liquid working medium, rather than having a heat conduction function, and has a smaller thermal resistance compared with the existing technology that directly uses the microfluidic chip for heat conduction, and can be applied to the heat dissipation of high heat flux density components in electronic heat dissipation. Description of the Drawings

[0031] To more clearly illustrate the technical solutions in the embodiments of the present invention or the prior art, the following will briefly introduce the drawings required for the description of the embodiments or the prior art. Obviously, the drawings in the following description are only some embodiments of the present invention. For those of ordinary skill in the art, without creative efforts, other drawings can be obtained based on these drawings.

[0032] Figure 1 Schematic diagram of the heat pipe structure disclosed in the embodiment of the present invention;

[0033] Figure 2 Overall structure schematic of the heat pipe structure disclosed in the embodiment of the present invention Figure 1 ;

[0034] Figure 3 Explosion schematic diagram of the heat pipe structure disclosed in the embodiment of the present invention;

[0035] Figure 4 Top view of the heat pipe structure disclosed in the embodiment of the present invention;

[0036] Figure 5 is Figure 4 Cross-sectional schematic diagram at A-A in

[0037] Figure 6 Structure schematic diagram of the outer shell disclosed in the embodiment of the present invention;

[0038] Figure 7 Internal structure schematic of the heat pipe structure disclosed in the embodiment of the present invention Figure 1 ;

[0039] Figure 8 Internal structure schematic of the heat pipe structure disclosed in the embodiment of the present invention Figure 2 ;

[0040] Figure 9 Structure schematic of the microfluidic chip disclosed in the embodiment of the present invention Figure 1 ;

[0041] Figure 10 Structure schematic of the microfluidic chip disclosed in the embodiment of the present invention Figure 2 ;

[0042] Figure 11 Overall structure schematic of the heat pipe structure disclosed in the embodiment of the present invention Figure 2 ;

[0043] Figure 12 is Figure 11 Local structure schematic diagram of

[0044] Figure 13 Overall structure schematic of the heat pipe structure disclosed in the embodiment of the present inventionFigure 3 。

[0045] Among them, 1 is the liquid filling port, 2 is the condensation section, 3 is the wiring assembly, 4 is the control component, 5 is the heat source, 6 is the evaporation section, 7 is the transportation section, 8 is the cooling device, 9 is the FPC connector, 10 is the flexible cable, 11 is the evaporation bottom plate, 12 is the capillary wick, 13 is the microfluidic chip, 14 is the housing, 15 is the condensation bottom plate, 16 is the electrode, 17 is the structural protrusion, 18 is the electrode interface, 19 is the microfluidic-control integrated board, 20 is the large droplet, and 21 is the small droplet. Detailed implementation manners

[0046] The core of the present invention lies in disclosing a heat pipe structure to achieve reliable heat dissipation for electronic components.

[0047] Hereinafter, the embodiments will be described with reference to the accompanying drawings. In addition, the embodiments shown below do not impose any limitation on the content of the invention described in the claims. Furthermore, all the contents of the configurations shown in the following embodiments are not limited to those necessary for the solution of the invention described in the claims. It should be noted that for the convenience of description, only the parts related to the relevant invention are shown in the drawings. Without conflict, the embodiments in the present invention and the features in the embodiments can be combined with each other.

[0048] Combined with Figure 1 and Figure 2 , the heat pipe structure disclosed in the embodiment of the present invention includes a heat pipe body and a microfluidic component. The heat pipe body has a condensation section 2, an evaporation section 6, and a transportation section 7 disposed between the condensation section 2 and the evaporation section 6. The evaporation section 6 is used to contact the heat source 5 to absorb heat, so that the liquid heat transfer working medium in the heat pipe body is transformed into a gas state. The condensation section 2 is used to contact the cooling device 8 and release heat, so that the gaseous heat transfer working medium in the heat pipe body condenses into a liquid state. The transportation section 7 completes the transfer of heat by transporting the gaseous heat transfer working medium and the liquefied heat working medium.

[0049] The microfluidic component includes a control component 4 and a microfluidic chip 13. The control component 4 and the microfluidic chip 13 are electrically connected. The microfluidic chip 13 is disposed in the transportation section 7 of the heat pipe body and is used to drive the movement of the liquid heat transfer working medium by replacing the driving forces (capillary force, gravity) of the conventional heat pipe through the dielectrophoretic wetting effect in microfluidic technology, so as to realize the transportation of the liquid heat transfer working medium from the condensation section 2 to the evaporation section 6.

[0050] The heat pipe structure disclosed in the embodiment of the present invention combines microfluidic technology with heat pipe technology and adopts phase change heat transfer to improve the problems of insufficient working fluid transport capacity, weak anti-gravity ability, difficult startup or poor stability existing in various types of heat pipes in the past. The microfluidic component is used as the driving force for the liquid heat exchange working fluid, so a larger liquid heat exchange working fluid transport volume can be obtained. It does not contain power components and does not require the pressure difference in the flow channel to generate power. It has better stability and can greatly save space. Compared with ordinary heat pipes, it has a larger Qmax (peak value of heat transfer). The microfluidic component is integrated into the heat pipe body. The microfluidic component only serves the function of transporting liquid working fluid but not the heat conduction function. Compared with the prior art solution of directly using microfluidic chips for heat conduction, it has a smaller thermal resistance and can be suitable for heat dissipation of high heat flux density components in electronic heat dissipation.

[0051] Combination Figure 8 and Figure 9 A plurality of electrodes 16 are arranged on the microfluidic chip 13 , and the electrodes 16 extend along the condensation section 2 toward the evaporation section 6 .

[0052] The size and shape of each electrode 16 are the same or different. In one embodiment, a plurality of cross-shaped electrodes 16 are arranged on the microfluidic chip 13, and the cross-shaped electrodes 16 are more convenient for the heat exchange fluid droplets (hereinafter referred to as droplets) to be transported along a straight line and are easy to process.

[0053] The shape, size and quantity of the electrodes 16 can be designed according to the type and transport volume of the heat exchange medium.

[0054] Specifically, the shape of the electrode 16 can be set to be square, circular, curved quadrilateral, crescent, cross, etc. Different shapes of electrodes 16 have different functions. The square electrode 16 is simple to arrange and easy to process, but droplets will be retained during the transport of droplets; the crescent-shaped electrode 16 has the advantage of unidirectional rapid drive; the circular electrode 16 is usually used in combination with the bidirectional crescent-shaped electrode 16 to achieve bidirectional rapid transportation; the cross-shaped electrode 16 also has the function of bidirectional rapid transportation.

[0055] Voltage can drive the movement of droplets. The larger the size of the electrode 16, the larger the size of the droplets that can be driven. For the same electrode 16, the larger the voltage applied, the more drastic the change in the surface tension of the droplets at the moment of power-on, and the greater the acceleration of its movement. The size and movement speed of the droplets can be controlled by adjusting the voltage and interval time. The method of using electric field to control the movement of droplets has the advantage of rapid response, which can ensure that the microfluidic component immediately enters the best working state after power-on.

[0056] Along the extending direction of the transport section 7, the electrodes 16 can be arranged in one row or multiple parallel rows, which can be designed according to the requirements of the installation space and the transport volume. By designing the electrodes 16 and controlling the voltage, the microfluidic chip 13 can have a stronger transport capacity and anti-gravity capacity for the liquid heat transfer working medium.

[0057] To avoid the wiring of the microfluidic chip 13 affecting its transport function, the microfluidic chip 13 has a multi-layer PCB board structure, for example, it can be a three-layer PCB board structure. Specifically, the electrodes 16 are arranged on the surface of the first-layer PCB board closer to the inside of the heat pipe body, and the traces corresponding to the respective electrodes 16 are arranged on the second-layer PCB board (the interlayer between the first-layer PCB board and the third-layer PCB board). Figure 10 Combined with

[0058] The electrode interface 18 for connecting the control member 4 is located on the surface of the third-layer PCB board far from the inside of the heat pipe body, and the three-layer PCB boards do not interfere with each other.

[0059] In a specific embodiment disclosed in the present invention, combined with Figure 4 and Figure 5 the heat pipe structure includes a housing 14, a condensation bottom plate 15 and an evaporation bottom plate 11. An installation groove is provided on the housing 14, the condensation bottom plate 15 is arranged at the first end of the housing 14 through the installation groove, and forms a condensation section 2 with the housing 14. The evaporation bottom plate 11 is arranged at the second end of the housing 14 through the installation groove, and forms an evaporation section 6 with the housing 14. The microfluidic chip 13 is also arranged on the installation groove, and both ends are respectively connected to the condensation bottom plate 15 and the evaporation bottom plate 11, so that the microfluidic chip 13 is arranged at the middle position of the housing 14 to form a transport section 7 with the housing 14 that can play a role in transporting the liquid heat transfer working medium.

[0060] Combined with Figure 1 after the liquid heat transfer working medium accumulated in the condensation section 2 enters the transport section 7, it continuously receives the electro-wetting force of the electrodes 16 on the microfluidic chip 13 and quickly moves from the condensation section 2 to the evaporation section 6 (in the direction shown by the solid arrow in Figure 1 ), and then is quickly vaporized under the influence of the heat of the heat source 5 (the electronic component to be cooled) at the evaporation section 6. Under the action of the vapor pressure, the gaseous heat transfer working medium continuously moves in the direction of the condensation section 2 through the transport section 7 (in the direction shown by the dashed arrow in Figure 1 ) until it is condensed into a liquid at the condensation section 2, completing a heat exchange.

[0061] Combined with Figure 6, the outer shell 14 is tubular, and the installation groove is a strip-shaped groove structure opened on one side wall of the outer shell 14 along the extension direction of the outer shell 14. The condensation bottom plate 15, the microfluidic chip 13, and the evaporation bottom plate 11 are sequentially installed at the installation groove, and both sides of them in their respective extension directions have step structures for positioning and mating with the installation groove. The condensation bottom plate 15, the microfluidic chip 13, and the evaporation bottom plate 11 respectively form the tubular channels of the condensation section 2, the transportation section 7, and the evaporation section 6 with the outer shell 14. And the ends of the outer shell 14 can be closed by the end baffles respectively arranged on the condensation bottom plate 15 and the evaporation bottom plate 11 to form a heat pipe structure.

[0062] Further, in the direction from the condensation section 2 to the evaporation section 6, the cross-sections of all positions of the above-mentioned tubular channel are the same, and the height of the tubular channel corresponds to the diameter of the liquid droplets on the transportation section 7, and the width is much larger than the diameter of the liquid droplets. Combining Figure 1 , in the tubular channel, the liquid droplets move along the solid arrow direction, and the steam (gaseous heat transfer working medium) moves along the dashed arrow direction. In the heat pipe structure, the amount of substance of the liquid droplets generated in the condensation section 2 is the same as that of the steam generated in the evaporation section 6. Assuming that the heat transfer working medium is water, at the same pressure, the density of the liquid droplets is 10^5 times that of the steam density. Therefore, in order to prevent the high-speed moving steam from impacting the liquid droplets transported by the microfluidic, it is necessary to ensure that the cross-sectional area of the steam channel (the part of the transportation section 7 except for the electrode 16 transporting the liquid droplets) is larger than the cross-sectional area of the liquid channel (the part of the electrode 16 transporting the liquid droplets).

[0063] By designing the tubular channel in the heat pipe body, the microfluidic chip 13 can have a stronger transportation ability and anti-gravity ability for the liquid heat transfer working medium. In one embodiment, the width of the tubular channel is more than four times its height.

[0064] The material of the outer shell 14 can be prepared from common metal materials such as aluminum and copper. In order to ensure sufficient liquid heat transfer working medium supply after the evaporation section 6 extracts heat from the heat source 5, a capillary wick 12 is provided on the evaporation bottom plate 11 or a hydrophilic coating is applied.

[0065] The structure of the capillary wick 12 can be a capillary structure of conventional heat pipes such as sintered copper mesh, electrodeposited copper capillary structure, and laser-engraved grooves, which is used to quickly absorb and spread the liquid droplets transported by the transportation section 7. While storing the liquid heat transfer working medium, it evenly distributes it in the capillary wick 12. At the same time, after the heat generated by the heat source 5 is transmitted to the capillary wick 12, the capillary wick 12 can play a role in strengthening boiling and prevent the liquid heat transfer working medium from being burned dry, resulting in a sharp rise in the temperature at the heat source 5 and causing damage to electronic components.

[0066] Preferably, the capillary wick 12, the evaporation bottom plate 11, and the outer shell 14 are made of the same material to ensure the firmness of the sintering of the capillary wick 12 and the evaporation bottom plate 11, and the reliability of the welding of the evaporation bottom plate 11 and the outer shell 14.

[0067] In one embodiment, in combination with Figure 1 , the large droplets 20 aggregated in the condensation section 2 are pulled and broken into small droplets 21 of a fixed size under the electrowetting force of the electrode 16, so as to increase the transportation speed of individual droplets. After the small droplets 21 enter the transportation section 7, they are continuously under the action of the electrowetting force of the electrode 16 and quickly move from the condensation section 2 to the evaporation section 6. After the small droplets 21 move to the evaporation section 6, they contact the capillary wick 12 and are quickly absorbed. After the heat of the heat source 5 is conducted to the capillary wick 12, the liquid heat transfer working fluid in the porous medium of the capillary wick 12 is vaporized. Under the action of the vapor pressure, the vapor continuously moves from the transportation section 7 to the condensation section 2.

[0068] In some low heat flux / low power heat source scenarios, by coating a hydrophilic layer above the evaporation bottom plate 11, the droplets transported by the transportation section 7 can also be quickly spread by means of the hydrophilicity of the hydrophilic layer, increasing the evaporation area and performing boiling heat transfer. As long as the amount of heat absorbed by the phase change of the liquid heat transfer working fluid in the evaporation section 6 is not less than the heat at the extraction heat source 5, the heat source 5 can be maintained within the target temperature range.

[0069] When designing the heat pipe structure, the structure on the evaporation bottom plate 11 can be selected according to factors such as cost and processing difficulty.

[0070] In combination with Figure 3 and Figure 7 , structural protrusions 17 are provided on both sides of the surface of the condensation bottom plate 15 facing the outer shell 14. The structural protrusions 17 are used to make the condensed liquid heat transfer working fluid gather in the middle area of the condensation bottom plate 15.

[0071] Furthermore, the structural protrusions 17 extend from the condensation bottom plate 15 to the position where the microfluidic chip 13 is located, and the extension length is more than twice the length of the electrode 16, so that the electrode 16 of the microfluidic chip 13 can smoothly pick up droplets from the condensation bottom plate 15.

[0072] In one embodiment disclosed by the present invention, a hydrophobic coating is applied to the inner surface of the outer shell 14 to make the condensed liquid roll more easily on the condensation bottom plate 15. Correspondingly, a hydrophilic coating is applied to the surface of the condensation bottom plate 15 facing the inside of the outer shell 14, so that the condensed droplets can more easily form an aggregated liquid heat transfer working fluid on the surface of the condensation bottom plate 15 for collecting the liquid heat transfer working fluid, so that the microfluidic chip 13 can conveniently obtain the liquid heat transfer working fluid from the condensation bottom plate 15 and transport it to the evaporation section 6 at the moment when the heat pipe structure is started, ensuring that the transportation section 7 can have a stable liquid heat transfer working fluid transportation and improving the transportation efficiency.

[0073] It should be noted that since only the condensation section 2 needs to control the convergence of the liquid heat transfer working medium and most of the other regions are gaseous heat transfer working media, the hydrophobic coating can be provided only on the inner wall surface of the housing 14 corresponding to the condensation bottom plate 15. However, due to process and cost issues, the overall coating of the housing 14 is easier than local coating, and coating the entire inner wall surface of the housing 14 with the hydrophobic coating will not affect the transportation of the gaseous heat transfer working medium. Therefore, it is possible to choose to coat the entire inner wall surface of the housing 14 with the hydrophobic coating.

[0074] Combined with Figure 2 , the control member 4 (generally a control board) is arranged outside the heat pipe structure. The control member 4 and the microfluidic chip 13 can be designed as an integrated structure such as the microfluidic-control integrated board 19 shown in Figure 11 and Figure 12 , that is, the functions of the microfluidic chip 13 and the control member 4 are directly integrated on a PCB board to save space and have a lower cost, and can be applied to application scenarios with a compact structure and no folding or bending requirements.

[0075] The control member 4 is also connected to the microfluidic chip 13 through a flexible wiring assembly 3. Through the flexible connection method of the wiring assembly 3, the heat pipe body and the control member 4 can be installed on different planes, so that the heat pipe structure can be applied to folding and distributed (rotating shaft connection, hinge connection, etc.) scenarios.

[0076] Specifically, the wiring assembly 3 includes an FPC connector 9 and a flexible cable 10.

[0077] Combined with Figure 6 , an electrode interface 18 is provided on the microfluidic chip 13, and an electrode avoidance opening corresponding to the electrode interface 18 is provided on the housing 14. The electrode interface 18 is connected to the control member 4 through the FPC connector 9 and the flexible cable 10 at the electrode avoidance opening, realizing the power supply and signal control of the electrode 16 on the microfluidic chip 13.

[0078] The heat pipe body disclosed in the embodiment of the present invention can be fixed on the electronic component to be cooled by the same installation method as the conventional heat pipe structure. The control member 4 can be powered by the electronic component to be cooled or by an external power supply alone. Compared with the design of directly integrating the microfluidic structure on the electronic component to be cooled or the PCB board to be cooled, the layout method of the heat pipe structure disclosed in the embodiment of the present invention will not occupy too much space of the electronic device to be cooled.

[0079] In one embodiment, a liquid filling port 1 for liquid filling is provided on the heat pipe structure. Combined with Figure 3 , the liquid filling port 1 can be fixed at the end of the condensation section 2 or the evaporation section 6 of the housing 14 by welding, gluing or the like. The liquid filling port 1 can also be directly prepared by processing the end of the housing 14 in the form of a shrinkable hose. After one liquid filling is completed, the liquid filling port 1 is sealed by welding.

[0080] After the heat exchange working fluid is injected into the heat pipe structure through the liquid filling port 1, the liquid heat exchange working fluid accumulates in the condensation section 2. When the microfluidic chip 13 in the transportation section 7 is powered on, the heat pipe structure enters the working state, and the electrodes 16 arranged on the microfluidic chip 13 are sequentially and circularly powered on in the direction from the condensation section 2 to the evaporation section 6, so that the droplets on the microfluidic chip 13 are continuously transported from the condensation section 2 to the evaporation section 6.

[0081] In another embodiment, a fluorine injection nozzle is welded on the outer shell 14, and the fluorine injection nozzle is used to adjust the liquid filling amount in the heat pipe structure. The body of the fluorine injection nozzle is usually made of metal, and a valve for controlling the flow rate of the heat exchange working fluid is arranged inside it. The valve is opened when filling the cavity of the heat pipe structure with the heat exchange working fluid, and automatically closed after filling is completed.

[0082] In order to improve the heat conduction effect, a heat conducting agent such as heat conducting silicone grease or liquid metal is coated on the contact surface of the outer wall of the evaporation section 6 for contacting the heat source 5; a heat conducting agent such as heat conducting silicone grease or liquid metal is coated on the contact surface of the outer wall of the condensation section 2 for contacting the cooling device 8.

[0083] The evaporation section 6 can also be directly and weldably connected to the heat source 5. The cooling device 8 can be selected in ways such as air cooling or water cooling according to the amount of condensation, and the cooling device 8 can be directly arranged in contact with the outer shell 14 of the condensation section 2.

[0084] In one embodiment, the condensation section 2, the evaporation section 6 and the transportation section 7 are all straight sections.

[0085] In order to adapt to the scenario where the relative positions of the heat source 5 and the cooling device 8 are relatively complex, in another embodiment, Figure 13 , the condensation section 2 and the evaporation section 6 are straight sections, and the transportation section 7 is an arc section, so that the overall shape of the heat pipe structure is similar to an "L" shape.

[0086] The heat pipe structure can also be adjusted according to the relative positions of the heat source 5 and the cooling device 8, and designed into other shapes not limited to L, N, M, etc. Correspondingly, the outer shell 14 can be prepared by metal stamping, and the substrate of the microfluidic chip 13 can be prepared from materials not limited to polyamide (PI), polyester film, etc. with high flexibility and bendability, so that the heat pipe structure can be processed into a straight shape or a bent shape to meet different heat conduction path requirements.

[0087] The foregoing description of the disclosed embodiments enables those skilled in the art to practice or use the present invention. Various modifications to these embodiments will be readily apparent to those skilled in the art, and the general principles defined herein may be implemented in other embodiments without departing from the spirit or scope of the present invention. Thus, the present invention is not intended to be limited to the embodiments shown herein but is to be accorded the widest scope consistent with the principles and novel features disclosed herein.

Claims

1. A heat pipe structure, characterized in that, it includes: A heat pipe body having a condensation section (2), an evaporation section (6), and a transport section (7) disposed between the condensation section (2) and the evaporation section (6); A microfluidic component including a control member (4) and a microfluidic chip (13), the control member (4) and the microfluidic chip (13) being electrically connected, and the microfluidic chip (13) being disposed on the transport section (7) for transporting a liquid heat transfer working medium from the condensation section (2) to the evaporation section (6).

2. The heat pipe structure according to claim 1, characterized in that, the heat pipe body includes: A housing (14) provided with a mounting groove; A condensation bottom plate (15) disposed at a first end of the housing (14) through the mounting groove and forming the condensation section (2) with the housing (14); An evaporation bottom plate (11) disposed at a second end of the housing (14) through the mounting groove and forming the evaporation section (6) with the housing (14), the microfluidic chip (13) being disposed on the mounting groove and connected to the condensation bottom plate (15) and the evaporation bottom plate (11) at both ends respectively.

3. The heat pipe structure according to claim 2, characterized in that, a capillary core (12) is provided on the evaporation bottom plate (11) or a hydrophilic coating is applied.

4. The heat pipe structure according to claim 2, characterized in that, structural protrusions (17) are provided on both sides of the surface of the condensation bottom plate (15) facing the housing (14), and the structural protrusions (17) extend to the position where the microfluidic chip (13) is located.

5. The heat pipe structure according to claim 2, characterized in that, a hydrophilic coating is applied to the surface of the condensation bottom plate (15) facing the housing (14); and / or, a hydrophobic coating is applied to the inner surface of the housing (14) at a position corresponding to the condensation bottom plate (15).

6. The heat pipe structure according to any one of claims 1-5, characterized in that, a plurality of electrodes (16) are provided on the microfluidic chip (13), and the electrodes (16) extend in a direction from the condensation section (2) to the evaporation section (6); the sizes and shapes of the respective electrodes (16) are the same or different; in a direction from the condensation section (2) to the evaporation section (6), the electrodes (16) are arranged in one row or multiple rows.

7. The heat pipe structure according to claim 6, characterized in that, an electrode interface (18) for connecting to the control member (4) is provided on the microfluidic chip (13); the microfluidic chip (13) is a multi-layer PCB board structure; the electrodes (16) and the electrode interface (18) are on different layer PCB board structures of the microfluidic chip (13).

8. The heat pipe structure according to any one of claims 1-5, characterized in that, the control member (4) is disposed outside the heat pipe body, and the control member (4) and the microfluidic chip (13) are of an integral structure; or, The control member (4) is arranged outside the heat pipe body, and the control member (4) and the microfluidic chip (13) are used to be connected through a flexible wiring assembly (3).

9. The heat pipe structure according to any one of claims 1-5, characterized in that, a heat conducting agent is coated on the contact surface of the evaporation section (6) for contacting the heat source (5); and / or, a heat conducting agent is coated on the contact surface of the condensation section (2) for contacting the cooling device (8).

10. The heat pipe structure according to any one of claims 1-5, characterized in that, the condensation section (2) and the evaporation section (6) are straight sections, and the transportation section (7) is a straight section or an arc section.

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