Refrigeration – Structural installation – With electrical component cooling
Patent
1997-12-16
1999-10-19
Doerrler, William
Refrigeration
Structural installation
With electrical component cooling
16510422, 16510433, F25B 2300, F28D 1502, H01L 27427, H01F 2718
Patent
active
059669578
DESCRIPTION:
BRIEF SUMMARY
TECHNICAL FIELD
The present invention relates to a cooling system, and then more particularly to a system for cooling electronic components which utilizes a thermosiphon effect to circulate the refrigerant used in the system. The system comprises an hermetically closed pipe circuit which includes an evaporator and a condenser, wherein the evaporator is in heat-conducting contact with a heat-emitting component to be cooled and absorbs heat therefrom, this heat being transported by the refrigerant through the pipe circuit and to the condenser and dissipated therein.
DESCRIPTION OF THE PRIOR ART
In principle a thermosiphon circuit is comprised of an evaporator and a condenser which are incorporated in a pipe circuit. The circuit is hermetical and is filled with a coolant or refrigerant suitable for the purpose intended. In order for the circuit to function, it is necessary for the condenser to be located somewhat above the evaporator. When heat is delivered to the evaporator, part of the coolant will boil off and a mixture of liquid and gas rises up to the condenser. The coolant condenses in the condenser and heat is released. The liquid thus formed then runs back to the evaporator under its own weight.
Thermosiphon circuits are normally very efficient heat transporters, insomuch as heat can be transported through long distances at low temperature losses. They can therefore be used advantageously for different cooling purposes. Furthermore, there is generally a great deal of freedom in the design of the evaporator and condenser. In the context of electronic component cooling, however, the components to be cooled are normally very small, which means that the evaporator must also be small. The external cooling medium used is normally air, which in turn means that the condenser must have a large external surface area. In these contexts, it can therefore be said that a thermosiphon circuit is an apparatus with whose aid very large surface enlargements can be obtained and that these surface enlargements can furthermore be placed at a long distance from the heat source.
One of the drawbacks with thermosiphon circuits is that the condenser must always be placed higher than the evaporator. In present-day electronic systems comprising a large number of densely packed components of which several need to be cooled, cooling is difficult to achieve because each of these heat-emitting components requires its own evaporator with associated condenser. Difficulties are encountered in laying out the pipes that form the pipe circuits and also in suitable positioning of the condensers.
SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION
The object of the present invention is to avoid the drawbacks of existing thermosiphon circuits, by providing a cooling system which does not require complicated pipe lay-outs, and with which positioning of the condenser is not restricted to the same extent as in earlier known systems of this kind. This object is achieved with a cooling system having the characteristic features set forth in the following Claims.
The invention is based on the concept that when more than one evaporator is used, the evaporators can be connected in series to provide a pumping action which will enable one or more evaporators to be situated above the condenser liquid level. This greatly increases the degree of freedom in condenser placement. In an electronic component cooling context, it may also be assumed that a number of components located at mutually different heights will normally require some form of additional cooling. In some cases, the liquid that is entrained with the gas that boils-off in the evaporators is able to improve the function, whereas in other cases the liquid can present a problem. However, the liquid content of this two-phase mixture can be regulated to a great extent with an evaporator construction of suitable design.
The invention will now be described in more detail with reference to a preferred embodiment thereof and also with reference to the accompanying drawings.
BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS
FIG. 1 is
REFERENCES:
patent: 3609991 (1971-10-01), Chu et al.
patent: 4502286 (1985-03-01), Okada et al.
patent: 4611654 (1986-09-01), Buchsel
patent: 5203399 (1993-04-01), Koizumi
International Search Report corresponding to International Application No. PCT/SE96/00307, mailed Jul. 4, 1996.
Malhammar .ANG.ke
Palm Bjorn
Doerrler William
Telefonaktiebolaget LM Ericsson
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