Cylindrical Pin-fin Fan-sink Heat Transfer and Pressure Drop Correlations

New pressure drop / flow rate measurements coupled with a previously reported heat transfer database have resulted in new friction factor and heat transfer correlation equations for fan-driven impinging flow through square arrays of cylindrical cross-section pin-fins. The correlation equations include the effect of coolant flow rate, pin-fin density and pinfin height. A comparison with a similar jet-driven impingement flow configuration shows that the heat transfer / pressure drop characteristics of the two flow configurations are fundamentally different. When the same arrays are compared at the same coolant flow rate, the fan-driven configuration will result in a lower pressure drop and heat transfer rate. An analysis shows that different optimal pin-fin configurations (fin height and fin density) result, depending on the design criteria imposed on the flow.