Polymeric Cold Plate With Elastic Contact for Power Electronics
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Solution Overview
Problem
Conventional cooling methods for power electronics in data centers are inefficient and costly, with air cooling consuming large amounts of energy and liquid cooling incurring high upfront capital costs, while maintaining uniform heat transfer is challenging without additional thermal interface materials.
Innovation Solution
A polymeric cold plate with an elastically deformable membrane that expands to ensure uniform contact with the processor, eliminating the need for thermal interface materials and reducing thermal resistance, using a polymeric coolant housing and back plate that deforms to match the processor's surface for efficient heat transfer.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Loss of energy
If liquid cooling is used instead of air cooling, then cooling efficiency is improved, but upfront capital costs and implementation time increase
Solution Approach 1:
The patent changes the material parameter of the cold plate from traditional metal to elastomeric polymer material, which enables the structure to be inherently flexible and adaptable to surface variations without requiring complex assembly procedures or additional components, thus maintaining high cooling efficiency while reducing capital costs and implementation time
Solution Approach 2:
The patent employs an elastomeric polymer cold plate that is flexible and adaptable to the surface contours of electronic components. This flexible structure naturally conforms to uneven surfaces through elastic deformation, eliminating the need for rigid metal construction and complex mounting systems, thereby reducing capital costs and implementation time while maintaining effective thermal contact
2Stability of the object's composition
If rigid cold plate structures are used, then structural stability is improved, but uniform contact with processor surfaces is difficult to achieve without additional thermal interface materials
Solution Approach 1:
The patent replaces rigid cold plate structures with an elastomeric polymer cold plate that possesses flexible, film-like properties. This flexible structure can elastically deform to conform to the processor surface contours, achieving uniform thermal contact across the entire interface without requiring additional thermal interface materials or precision machining
Solution Approach 2:
The patent changes the mechanical properties of the cold plate from rigid to elastomeric, enabling the material to dynamically adjust its shape and conform to surface variations. This parameter change allows the cold plate to maintain stable structural integrity while simultaneously achieving uniform contact with the processor surface through elastic deformation
3Manufacturing precision
If thermal interface materials are used between cold plate and processor, then contact uniformity is improved, but thermal resistance increases and material costs increase
Solution Approach 1:
The patent uses an elastomeric polymer cold plate that acts as its own flexible interface layer. This flexible structure naturally conforms to the processor surface through elastic deformation, achieving uniform thermal contact directly without requiring additional thermal interface materials, thereby minimizing thermal resistance and reducing material costs
Solution Approach 2:
The patent extracts and eliminates the need for separate thermal interface materials by integrating the conformal contact function directly into the elastomeric polymer cold plate structure itself. The cold plate's inherent flexibility provides the interface functionality, removing the additional layer and its associated thermal resistance and cost
Applied Scientific Principles
This section explains which scientific principles are used to turn an abstract innovation direction into a practical engineering solution.
Function Achieved in This Case
The polymeric cold plate achieves efficient heat transfer with reduced thermal resistance and lower material costs, enhancing energy efficiency and reducing environmental impact by minimizing the need for additional thermal interface materials.
Implementation Method 1
The polymeric cooling housing is configured to receive and pass a flow of cooling fluid through the fluid channel and to deform elastically in response to receiving the flow of cooling fluid to provide uniform contact and heat transfer between the polymeric coolant housing and the planar external surface of the processor
Implementation Method 2
The cold plate is configured to transfer the waste heat generated by the processor away from the processor
Implementation Method 3
The polymeric cooling housing is configured to receive and pass a flow of cooling fluid through the fluid channel
Data Source
AI summary
A power electronic assembly includes a power electronic and a cold plate. The power electronic is configured to be powered by electric energy and to generate waste heat from the electric energy. The cold plate include polymeric material and is configured to elastically deform to uniformly cover the power electronic and transfer away the waste heat generated by the power electronic.