Study on structural design and heat transfer characteristics of biomimetic honeycomb heat exchanger

IF 6.6 2区工程技术 Q1 THERMODYNAMICS

Case Studies in Thermal Engineering Pub Date : 2026-04-01 Epub Date: 2026-02-28 DOI:10.1016/j.csite.2026.107881

Yixin Zhang , Bao Meng , Jinquan Han , Yu Zhu , Min Wan

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Abstract

With the continuous rise in the power of chips for electric vehicle controllers, traditional air or liquid cooling can no longer meet the current heat dissipation requirements of such controllers. To meet the thermal management requirements of electric vehicle controllers, this study designs and optimizes a novel biomimetic honeycomb microchannel heat exchanger (HMHE) based on the leaf vein fractal network and honeycomb structure. Computational Fluid Dynamics (CFD) was employed to establish the simulation model of HMHE, and the effects of honeycomb grade, channel width ratio (r_c), channel width (a₁) and channel depth (H_ch) on the performance of HMHE were investigated. The comprehensive performance of HMHEs was compared using Figure of Merit (FOM), determining that the three-level Honeycomb Microchannel Heat Exchanger (L3-HMHE) exhibits the optimal performance. Meanwhile, through single-parameter optimization, it was confirmed that the optimal structural parameter range of L3-HMHE is around r_c = 0.9, a₁ = 8 mm and H_ch = 18 mm. Based on the optimization strategy combined with the Response Surface Methodology (RSM), a quantitative correlation model between the structural parameters of L3-HMHE and FOM was established. It was found that the channel width has the most significant impact on the comprehensive performance of the heat exchanger, while the optimal channel structural parameters are r_c = 0.8, a₁ = 9 mm and H_ch = 18 mm, respectively. By comparing the results of numerical simulations and actual experiments, the temperature performance errors and pressure drop errors of the L3-HMHE between numerical simulations and actual experiments are maintained within 6.5% and 11%, respectively, at the load powers of 100 W, 120 W and 140 W, which validates the established numerical simulation model of the L3-HMHE. The FOM of the optimized L3-HMHE reaches 1.283, representing a 77.2% improvement compared with the traditional U-shaped heat exchanger, and it can satisfy the heat transfer requirements under a stable heat generation power of 200 W. The research results provide new insights into the structural design of HMHEs and promote the application of L3-HMHEs in the thermal management of electric vehicle controllers.

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仿生蜂窝换热器结构设计及传热特性研究

随着电动汽车控制器芯片功率的不断提高，传统的风冷或液冷已经不能满足目前电动汽车控制器的散热要求。为满足电动汽车控制器的热管理需求，设计并优化了一种基于叶脉分形网络和蜂窝结构的仿生蜂窝微通道换热器（HMHE）。采用计算流体力学（CFD）方法建立了HMHE的仿真模型，研究了蜂窝等级、通道宽度比（rc）、通道宽度（a1）和通道深度（Hch）对HMHE性能的影响。采用优值图（FOM）对三层蜂窝微通道换热器的综合性能进行了比较，确定三层蜂窝微通道换热器（L3-HMHE）的性能最优。同时，通过单参数优化，确定了L3-HMHE的最佳结构参数范围为rc = 0.9, a1 = 8 mm, Hch = 18 mm左右。基于响应面法（RSM）优化策略，建立了L3-HMHE结构参数与FOM之间的定量关联模型。研究发现，通道宽度对换热器综合性能的影响最为显著，最优通道结构参数rc = 0.8, a1 = 9 mm, Hch = 18 mm。通过数值模拟结果与实际实验结果的对比，在负载功率为100 W、120 W和140 W时，L3-HMHE的温度性能误差与实际实验误差分别保持在6.5%和11%以内，验证了所建立的L3-HMHE数值模拟模型的正确性。优化后的L3-HMHE的FOM达到了1.283，比传统u型换热器提高了77.2%，可以满足200 W稳定产热功率下的换热要求。研究结果为高导热聚合物的结构设计提供了新的思路，促进了l3 -高导热聚合物在电动汽车控制器热管理中的应用。

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来源期刊

Case Studies in Thermal Engineering Chemical Engineering-Fluid Flow and Transfer Processes

CiteScore

8.60

自引率

11.80%

发文量

812

审稿时长

76 days

期刊介绍： Case Studies in Thermal Engineering provides a forum for the rapid publication of short, structured Case Studies in Thermal Engineering and related Short Communications. It provides an essential compendium of case studies for researchers and practitioners in the field of thermal engineering and others who are interested in aspects of thermal engineering cases that could affect other engineering processes. The journal not only publishes new and novel case studies, but also provides a forum for the publication of high quality descriptions of classic thermal engineering problems. The scope of the journal includes case studies of thermal engineering problems in components, devices and systems using existing experimental and numerical techniques in the areas of mechanical, aerospace, chemical, medical, thermal management for electronics, heat exchangers, regeneration, solar thermal energy, thermal storage, building energy conservation, and power generation. Case studies of thermal problems in other areas will also be considered.