Experimental investigation on the performance of a high capacity dual compensation chamber loop heat pipe under the effect of acceleration

Abstract

As an efficient two-phase heat transfer technology, the application of loop heat pipe (LHP) technology in the aerospace industry has received more attention in recent years. This paper presents a performance study of a high capacity dual compensation chamber loop heat pipe (DCCLHP) under acceleration environment. The experimental study investigated accelerations up to 8 g in five directions, while the DCCLHP operated close to the heat transfer limit in the corresponding directions. The experimental results indicated that the effect of acceleration on the performance of the DCCLHP could be either favorable or unfavorable, depending on the direction of acceleration. The operating temperature of the DCCLHP varied between −6 °C and +14 °C under different acceleration conditions. The thermal resistance changes of the DCCLHP ranged from −25 % to 116 %. For the high capacity DCCLHP, the effect of acceleration on its performance was mainly realized by affecting the thickness of the condensate film inside the condenser, which in turn affected the condenser performance. The research findings presented in this paper might aid in the advancement of DCCLHP technology for aircraft applications.

Keywords

• Loop heat pipe
• Dual compensation chamber
• Acceleration
• High capacity
• Condenser capacity