Manufacturing Procedure and Characteristic of Sintered Wick for Heat Pipe

히트파이프용 소결윅의 제작과정 및 특성

There are various wick types for heat pipe. In the present study, the manufacturing technology of a sintered wick among various wick types is discussed. The sintering technology using metal has been applied broadly in the field of electronic-telecommunication as well as heat pipes. A study of manufacturing procedure and characteristic of sintered wick for heat pipe have been performed. Copper powder was used as wick material and stainless steel as a mandrel. A manufacturing technology of the mandrel for arranging vapor core in heat pipe, a sintering technology by first or second times and operating temperature for sintering, the measurements of a porosity, pore size, and pore distribution of sintered wick were considered. In the meantime, a heat pipe with sintered wick has been manufactured and a performance test of the heat pipe has been performed in order to review cooling performance. The performance test results for the 4mm diameter heat pipe with the sintered wick shows the stability since the temperature difference between a evaporator and a condenser of the heat pipe is less than $4.4^{\circ}C$, and thermal resistance is less than $0.7^{\circ}C/W$.