SBIR-STTR Award

Continuing development and integration of high power electronics devices with smaller footprints, higher power densities, electronic propulsion, weapon, and sensor systems, requires efficient thermal management strategies. The US Navy has identified two-phase cooling systems as a viable candidate approach for heat removal from for such devices that can experience high power electronics loads during pulsed operations. DynSAN proposes to develop an innovative, fast and efficient software toolkit for the design and optimization of two-phase thermal management in current and future warships. For design efficiency, the toolkit will allow parametric specification of heat exchanger layout and will account for differences in heat transfer coefficients induced by placement orientations and variable body forces due to wave action. It will also allow the minimization of component and system weight and volume. Multi-resolution simulations will allow system-level analysis with selective focusing on component-level dynamics. For example, the approach will allow detailed (2D-3D) CFD simulations of warship interior and variable-fidelity (1D) reduced model simulations in the cooling system flow loop. Controller design will allow for the optimal selection of control strategy to maximize the heat rejection process. The key innovative features of this our approach include the use of co-simulations to couple the dynamics of the different system components at selected resolutions and the innovative Modified State Observer (MSO) adaptive controller, capable for compensating for the controlled system uncertainties.

Benefit:
The compact variable-orientation cold plate design, and the unique suite of cooling system design and analysis tools will significantly impact the thermal design and prototyping of current and future Navy warships such as the planned DDG-51 Flight III, military an civilian aircraft, and will prove very useful in supporting the ongoing JSF, INVENT and other programs. Links with established prediction tools will provide rapid answers to the overall thermal management system design and optimization. The developed co-simulation tools will also have direct relevance to commercial automotive manufacturers and other defense contractors dealing with complex thermal systems. The developed capability however will not be restricted to warship and aircraft applications. The design tools will be versatile and general, and will be useful in other application areas ranging from building HVAC systems, to the medical community participating in co-simulation of complex bio-systems.

Keywords:
high heat flux, high heat flux, Micro-channels, high power electronics, critical heat flux, MSO adaptive controller, Thermal Management