Development of High-Performance Additively Manufactured Wicks for Two-Phase Heat Transfer Applications

The objective of this project is to leverage the design freedom offered by additive manufacturing (AM) to create and high-performance capillary structures optimized for two-phase heat transfer applications (e.g., heat pipes). Moreover, compared with conventional heat pipe systems, these wick structures can be directly fabricated as part of one-piece AM metal parts and housings, allowing a two-phase thermal management system to be directly integrated into virtually any component. This will serve to lower the weight and improve the thermal performance of heat sinks in applications such as electronics cooling, lighting, and thermal comfort.
As the auto industry pivots to EVs and autonomy, Ontario industries need to develop transformative automotive technologies to ensure their relevance in this quickly changing industry. These project outcomes will allow Magna to design and develop lightweight, high-performance, two-phase AM thermal management solutions for a myriad of applications and enable Magna to offer unique solutions to a wide and diverse range of potential customers, resulting in new product lines and revenue streams. By developing this technology, Magna will be positioned to pioneer next-generation electronics cooling and electric vehicle (EV) thermal management technology.

Faculty Supervisor:

Roger Kempers

Student:

Partner:

Magna

Discipline:

Engineering

Sector:

Advanced Manufacturing; Automotive; Clean Technology

University:

York University

Program: