Performance Evaluation of the Three Dimensional Woven Copper Matrix as Heat Exchanger

The three dimensional copper woven matrix is used as a heat exchanger device. The structure of copper mesh is made up of the fill, cross plane and warp yarn. Various geometrical configurations of the mesh are obtained by removing the alternate yarns and by varying the diameter ratio. These variations change the porosity, specific surface area and the metal fraction of the woven mesh. A mathematical model to quantify these changes is suggested. Seven woven meshes having different geometrical configurations, are manufactured. The effect of these geometrical variations on thermal properties is studied. An open circuit is built to determine the friction factor and number of transfer units of the specimen. Air is passed through the woven mesh. The mesh is heated and the pressure drop across the mesh is noted. The functional form of the friction factor and the number of transfer units is developed. It is observed that an increase in ply ratio increases the thermal performance and the friction factor. It is observed that the removal of cross plane yarn decreases the friction factor by 25%, but the number of transfer units also decreases by 30%. The increase in diameter ratio leads to the enhanced heat transfer characteristics and a decrease in pressure drop. The mesh system is compared with existing fin technology and it was found that the mesh system is efficient at low pumping power.