High performance heat transfer device, methods of manufacture thereof and articles comprising the same

Abstract

Disclosed herein is an heat transfer device comprising a shell; the shell being an enclosure that prevents matter from within the shell from being exchanged with matter outside the shell; the shell having an outer surface and an inner surface; and a porous layer disposed on the inner surface of the shell; the porous layer having a thickness effective to enclose a region between opposing faces; the region providing a passage for the transport of a fluid; the porous layer having a thermal conductivity of about 0.1 to about 2000 watts per meter-Kelvin and a mass flow rate of about 10 −9 to about 10 −4 kilograms per second.

1 . A heat transfer device comprising:
 a shell; the shell being an enclosure that prevents matter from within the shell from being exchanged with matter outside the shell; the shell having an outer surface and an inner surface; and   a porous layer disposed on the inner surface of the shell; the porous layer having a thickness effective to enclose a region between opposing faces; the region providing a passage for the transport of a fluid; the porous layer having a thermal conductivity of about 0.1 to about 2000 watts per meter-Kelvin and a mass flow rate of about 10 −9  to about 10 −4  kilograms per second.   
     
     
         2 . The heat transfer device of  claim 1 , having a plurality of different cross-sectional designs along its length; the length being the dimension along the direction in which both heat and mass flow are predominantly directed. 
     
     
         3 . The heat transfer device of  claim 1 , where the heat transfer device has a first section having a first cross-sectional design proximately disposed to a first end of the heat transfer device where heat is introduced into the heat transfer device, a second section having a second cross-sectional design proximately disposed to the first section and a third section having a third cross-sectional design proximately disposed to the second section; where the third section is proximately disposed to the second end of the heat transfer device; the heat being removed from the second end of the heat transfer device. 
     
     
         4 . The heat transfer device of  claim 3 , where the first cross-sectional design is different from the second cross-sectional design or the third cross-sectional design. 
     
     
         5 . The heat transfer device of  claim 3 , where the second cross-sectional design is different from the third cross-sectional design. 
     
     
         6 . The heat transfer device of  claim 1 , where the shell has a height of about 100 nanometers to about 20 centimeters. 
     
     
         7 . The heat transfer device of  claim 3 , where the heat transfer device contacts a heat source at its first end and a heat sink at its second end. 
     
     
         8 . The heat transfer device of  claim 1 , where the fluid is in a saturated form. 
     
     
         9 . The heat transfer device of  claim 1 , where the heat transfer device recirculates the fluid. 
     
     
         10 . The heat transfer device of  claim 1 , where the shell comprises a metal, a ceramic, a polymer, or a combination thereof. 
     
     
         11 . The heat transfer device of  claim 1 , where the shell is a cylinder, a pyramid, a cube, an ellipsoid, a sphere, a rectangular cuboid, a geodesic dome, an n-sided antiprism, a cupola, a rhombohedron or a prism. 
     
     
         12 . The heat transfer device of  claim 1 , where the shell has an aspect ratio of about 5 to about 10,000. 
     
     
         13 . The heat transfer device of  claim 1 , where one or more porous layers comprise particles having average particle sizes of about 10 nanometers to about 10,000,000 nanometers. 
     
     
         14 . The heat transfer device of  claim 1 , where the porous layer comprises particles arranged in a plurality of layers. 
     
     
         15 . The heat transfer device of  claim 1 , where the porous layer comprises a first layer having particles of a first particle size distribution and a second layer having particles of a second particle size distribution; the second layer being disposed upon the first layer. 
     
     
         16 . The heat transfer device of  claim 15 , where the second layer has particles that have a larger particle size larger than those of the first layer; and where the first layer has a unimodal particle size distribution. 
     
     
         17 . The heat transfer device of  claim 15 , where the second layer has particles that have a larger particle size smaller than those of the first layer. 
     
     
         18 . The heat transfer device of  claim 15 , where the porous layer further comprises a third layer having particles of a third particle size distribution; the third layer being disposed upon the second layer; third particle size distribution being different from the second particle size distribution and the first particle size distribution. 
     
     
         19 . The heat transfer device of  claim 15 , where the porous layer is bounded on its sides by particles having the first particle size distribution. 
     
     
         20 . The heat transfer device of  claim 19 , where the first particle size distribution comprises particles having an average particle size of about 10 to about 10,000 nanometers; the second particle size distribution has particles having an average particle size of about 10,001 nanometers to about 100,000 nanometers and the third particle size distribution has particles having an average particle size of about 100,001 to about 10,000,000 nanometers. 
     
     
         21 . The heat transfer device of  claim 1 , where a particle of the porous layer has a contact angle with water of about zero degrees to about 120 degrees. 
     
     
         22 . The heat transfer device of  claim 1 , where the fluid is water, alcohol, ketones, or a combination comprising at least one of the foregoing fluids. 
     
     
         23 . The heat transfer device of  claim 1 , where the fluid is saturated water. 
     
     
         24 . The heat transfer device of  claim 1 , where the porous layer has pore sizes of about 10 to about 10,000,000 nanometers and where the porous layer has a porosity of about 10 to about 90 volume percent, based on the total volume of the layer. 
     
     
         25 . The heat transfer device of  claim 1 , where the particles comprise copper. 
     
     
         26 . The heat transfer device of  claim 1 , where the particles are coated with silica. 
     
     
         27 . The heat transfer device of  claim 1 , where the particles are coated with a metal oxide. 
     
     
         28 . The heat transfer device of  claim 1 , wherein the region enclosed between the opposing surfaces of the porous layer is filled with large particles having an average particle size of about 10,000 nanometers to about 10,000,000 nanometers. 
     
     
         29 . A method comprising:
 disposing a slurry upon a substrate; the slurry comprising a liquid and about 0.0001 to about 60 volume percent of nanoparticles, based upon the total volume of the slurry;   evaporating the liquid from the substrate to form a porous layer having a thickness of about 10 nanometers to about 10,000,000 nanometers upon the substrate; and   forming the substrate into a shell; the shell being an enclosure that prevents matter from within the shell from being exchanged with matter outside the shell; the porous layer being disposed upon an inner surface of the shell.   
     
     
         30 . The method of  claim 29 , where the evaporating is brought about by heating the liquid. 
     
     
         31 . The method of  claim 29 , where the disposing of the slurry upon the substrate is accomplished by spin coating, dip coating, spray painting, electrostatic spray painting or dip coating. 
     
     
         32 . An article manufactured by the method of  claim 29 . 
     
     
         33 . The article of  claim 29 , where the article is a pipe, a power electronic module, a magnetic resonance imaging gradient driver or a nuclear fuel rod. 
     
     
         34 . A method comprising:
 contacting a first end of an heat transfer device with a source of heat; the heat transfer device comprising:   a shell; the shell being an enclosure that prevents matter from within the shell from being exchanged with matter outside the shell; the shell having an outer surface and an inner surface; and   a porous layer disposed on the inner surface of the shell; the porous layer having a thickness effective to enclose a region between opposing faces; the region providing a passage for the transport of a fluid; the porous layer having a thermal conductivity of about 0.1 to about 2000 watts per meter-Kelvin and a mass flow rate of about 10 −9  to about 10 −4  kilograms per second;   evaporating a fluid that is disposed in the porous layer; and   promoting a flow of the fluid to a second end of the heat transfer device; the second end of the heat transfer device contacting a heat sink.   
     
     
         35 . The method of  claim 32 , where the first end is opposedly disposed to the second end. 
     
     
         36 . The method of  claim 32 , further comprising recycling the fluid from the second end of the heat transfer device to the first end.