The development of a cross-flow fan for electronic devices cooling with a focus on laptop computers

Abstract

The directive is to develop a new type of cross-flow fan for cooling electronic devices. First, the module is based on the 60X60X6mm fan and attempts to use several parameters to enhance the fan\'s performance. The parameters considered here include blade number, angle of the blade, impeller diameter, divergent structure, and outlet area. Both numerical and experimental analyses are carried out on the cross-flow fan which was oriented horizontally. The ANSYS Fluent software is used in a 2D simulation to predict the heat transfer coefficient and the flow fields. Next, the flow and acoustic noise measurements are carried out at different parameters with the aid of AMCA and semi-anechoic chambers. The results show that when the outlet vent size is 70% of fan outside diameter the outcome is an enhanced fan performance of 12%. The optimal number of blades is 37. A block is inserted below the fan blade to improve the fan performance by 8%. The numerical and experimental values of air flow were plotted and found to be consistent. In summary, this study provides a systematic process to develop a cross-flow fan that can meet the requirements for thin and light laptop computers.