Heat-transfer characteristics of pin-fins with in-line arrangement

Systematic measurements using a wind tunnel were conducted to investigate the pressure loss characteristics and heat-transfer performance of pin-fin heat sinks exposed to air flow in a cross-flow direction, varying the pin pitch as a parameter. The pin-fin heat sinks used in the present study were made of thin copper pins of square cross section arranged densely in a rectangular pattern. A modified single-blow transient testing method was used for the measurements. Flow visualization was also carried out using the dye injection technique in order to investigate the flow pattern inside the pin-fin arrays. In the experimental results, the effects of the pin pitch, in both the flow and transverse directions, on the overall performance were clarified.