CN110297530B

CN110297530B - Cooling method using liquefied gas

Info

Publication number: CN110297530B
Application number: CN201810245984.8A
Authority: CN
Inventors: 张宜穆; 官清标; 邓福胜
Original assignee: Acer Inc
Current assignee: Acer Inc
Priority date: 2018-03-23
Filing date: 2018-03-23
Publication date: 2022-08-30
Anticipated expiration: 2038-03-23
Also published as: CN110297530A

Abstract

A cooling method using liquefied gas for cooling a heat source, the cooling method comprising: injecting the liquefied gas into a chamber through an air inlet valve to absorb heat generated by the heat source when the temperature of the heat source rises to a first predetermined value; and when the temperature of the heat source is reduced from the first default value and then rises to a second default value, or when the pressure in the cavity reaches a critical value, opening an exhaust valve communicated with the cavity, and exhausting the liquefied gas in the cavity to the atmospheric environment through the exhaust valve after the liquefied gas is vaporized.

Description

Cooling method using liquefied gas

Technical Field

The present invention relates to a cooling method, and more particularly, to a cooling method using liquefied gas.

Background

With the increasing progress of computer and semiconductor technology, portable electronic devices have been gradually miniaturized, however, under the condition that the size of the electronic devices is smaller and smaller, the heat generated by the internal electronic components of the electronic devices is difficult to be dissipated quickly, and thus the problems of system overheating and failure may be easily caused.

Most of the heat dissipation modules commonly used in notebook computers or other portable electronic devices in the market at present adopt a heat pipe (heat pipe) in combination with heat dissipation fins, wherein the heat pipe is mainly used for conducting heat energy generated by a heat source to the fins and then exhausting the heat by a fan.

Disclosure of Invention

In view of the above-mentioned problems, it is an object of the present invention to provide a cooling method using liquefied gas, wherein the liquefied gas can be injected into a chamber adjacent to a heat source inside an electronic device to cool the heat source, the cooling method comprising: detecting the temperature of the heat source, wherein when the temperature of the heat source rises to a first default value, the liquefied gas is injected into the cavity through an air inlet valve to absorb the heat generated by the heat source; and when the temperature of the heat source is reduced from the first default value and then rises to a second default value, or when the pressure in the cavity reaches a critical value, opening an exhaust valve communicated with the cavity, and discharging the liquefied gas in the cavity to the atmospheric environment through the exhaust valve after the liquefied gas is vaporized.

In one embodiment, when the temperature of the heat source rises to the first predetermined value, the liquefied gas is injected into the chamber from a liquefied gas source until the pressure in the chamber is equal to the pressure of the liquefied gas source.

In one embodiment, the liquefied gas source is a liquefied gas tank or a replaceable liquefied gas cylinder.

In one embodiment, the heat source is an electronic component, and the liquefied gas source is disposed outside the electronic device.

In one embodiment, when the temperature of the heat source is decreased from the first predetermined value and then increased to the second predetermined value, or when the pressure in the chamber is greater than a threshold value, the exhaust valve is opened until the pressure in the chamber is equal to the atmospheric pressure.

In an embodiment, the method further includes: closing the exhaust valve when the temperature of the heat source drops from the second predetermined value to below a third predetermined value while the liquefied gas in the chamber is being vaporized and then exhausted to the atmosphere through the exhaust valve.

In one embodiment, the method further comprises: closing the exhaust valve when the pressure in the chamber drops from the threshold value and falls below a safe value while the liquefied gas in the chamber is vaporized and then exhausted to the atmosphere through the exhaust valve.

In an embodiment, the method further includes: when the pressure in the chamber is greater than a threshold value, a safety valve connected to the chamber is opened to reduce the pressure in the chamber.

In one embodiment, the liquefied gas comprises carbon dioxide.

In one embodiment, the first and second predetermined values range from 50 ℃ to 70 ℃.

The invention has the advantages that the opening and closing of the air inlet valve and the air outlet valve are automatically controlled by injecting liquefied gas into a cavity in the electronic device and the double electronic valves, so that the heat source can be effectively and rapidly cooled. Especially, when discharge valve was opened, the liquefied gas body that is located in this cavity can absorb a large amount of vaporization heats in the vaporization process that changes into gaseous state, can make the inside heat source of electron device reduce the temperature rapidly from this, and then can promote its radiating efficiency by a wide margin.

In order to make the aforementioned and other objects, features, and advantages of the present invention comprehensible, preferred embodiments accompanied with figures are described in detail below.

Drawings

Fig. 1 is a schematic diagram of a heat dissipation module according to an embodiment of the invention.

Fig. 2 is a schematic view illustrating the heat dissipation module in fig. 1 embedded in an electronic device C.

Fig. 3 shows a schematic diagram of a cooling method using liquefied gas according to an embodiment of the present invention.

The reference numbers are as follows:

a heat dissipation module 10;

a liquefied gas source 11;

an intake valve 12;

a chamber 13;

an exhaust valve 14;

a safety valve 15;

arrows D1, D2

Detailed Description

The following describes a heat dissipation module according to an embodiment of the present invention. It should be appreciated, however, that the embodiments of the present invention provide many suitable inventive concepts that can be embodied in a wide variety of specific contexts. The specific embodiments disclosed are merely illustrative of specific ways to make and use the invention, and do not delimit the scope of the invention.

Unless otherwise defined, all terms (including technical and scientific terms) used herein have the same meaning as commonly understood by one of ordinary skill in the art to which this disclosure belongs. It will be understood that terms, such as those defined in commonly used dictionaries, should be interpreted as having a meaning that is consistent with their meaning in the context of the relevant art and the present disclosure and will not be interpreted in an idealized or overly formal sense unless expressly so defined herein.

Referring to fig. 1, the present embodiment mainly discloses a heat dissipation module 10, which can rapidly discharge heat generated inside an electronic device by controlling the opening or closing of a valve in the heat dissipation module 10, so as to achieve the purpose of dissipating heat and cooling internal components of the electronic device. As shown in fig. 1, the heat dissipation module 10 mainly includes a liquefied gas source 11, an air inlet 12, a hollow chamber 13, an air outlet 14 and a safety valve 15, the liquefied gas source 11 may include a steel cylinder and liquefied gas (e.g., carbon dioxide) stored in the steel cylinder, and the chamber 13 may be located adjacent to a heat source inside an electronic device to cool the heat source and lower the temperature of the heat source.

It should be noted that when the aforesaid air inlet valve 12 is opened, part of the liquefied gas inside the liquefied gas source 11 is vaporized at the air inlet valve 12 due to the pressure difference, and then can be injected into the chamber 13 through the air inlet valve 12 (as shown by arrow D1 in fig. 1), until the pressure inside the chamber 13 is consistent with the pressure inside the liquefied gas source 11, the vaporized liquefied gas is not returned to the liquid state inside the chamber 13; in addition, when the exhaust valve 14 is opened, the liquefied gas in the chamber 13 is vaporized at the exhaust valve 14 due to the pressure difference and then sprayed out to the atmosphere (as shown by an arrow D2 in fig. 1), wherein the intake valve 12 and the exhaust valve 14 may be electronic valves, for example, and may be electrically connected to a circuit control unit, so that the intake valve 12 and the exhaust valve 14 can be opened/closed electrically.

As described above, in the present embodiment, the liquefied gas is injected into the chamber 13 through the inlet valve 12 to cool the heat source inside the electronic device, so as to achieve the purpose of rapid heat dissipation. Referring to fig. 2, in practical applications, the heat dissipation module 10 may be embedded inside an electronic device C, such as a notebook computer, wherein the air inlet valve 12, the chamber 13, the exhaust valve 14 and the safety valve 15 of the heat dissipation module 10 are located inside the electronic device C, and the liquefied gas source 11 is disposed outside the electronic device C and is detachably connected to the air inlet valve 12. Thus, when the liquefied gas in the liquefied gas source 11 (for example, a liquefied gas cylinder) is used up, the liquefied gas source 11 can be directly replaced from the outside of the electronic device C, thereby greatly improving the convenience in use. However, in another embodiment, the liquefied gas source may be a liquefied gas tank capable of continuously supplying liquefied gas, so as to supply the cooling fluid required by the thermal module 10 for a long time without interruption.

Referring to fig. 1 and 2, the chamber 13 of the present embodiment is adjacent to a heat source (not shown) inside the electronic device C, wherein the heat source is an integrated circuit device such as a Central Processing Unit (CPU) or a Graphics Processing Unit (GPU), and a temperature sensor may be disposed at the heat source for sensing a temperature of the heat source. It should be noted that when the temperature of the heat source rises to a first predetermined value, the gas inlet valve 12 is opened, so that the liquefied gas in the liquefied gas source 11 is injected into the chamber 13 through the gas inlet valve 12 until the pressure P in the chamber 13 is equal to the pressure P0 of the liquefied gas source 11, and then the gas inlet valve 12 is closed, so that the heat generated by the heat source is absorbed by the liquefied gas in the chamber 13, and the temperature of the heat source is lowered.

As mentioned above, in the present embodiment, the heat source absorbs heat to cool the heat source efficiently and cool down the heat source mainly by injecting liquefied gas into the chamber 13, but after a period of time as the temperature of the heat source decreases from the first predetermined value T1, the temperature of the heat source will increase to a second predetermined value T2 because the heat source continues to generate heat energy, and the exhaust valve 14 connected to the chamber 13 is opened to perform the second stage of cooling process. It should be understood that after the exhaust valve 14 is opened, since the pressure in the chamber 13 is greater than the Atmospheric pressure outside the exhaust valve 14, the liquefied gas in the chamber 13 is caused to vaporize at the exhaust valve 14 and then is discharged to the atmosphere (Atmospheric Environment) through the exhaust valve 14, wherein the liquefied gas absorbs a great amount of vaporization heat during the vaporization process of being transformed into the gaseous state, so that the heat source inside the electronic device C can be further dissipated to achieve the purpose of rapidly cooling the heat source.

In this embodiment, a pressure sensor may be disposed in the heat dissipation module 10 for detecting the pressure of the chamber 13, wherein when the internal pressure P of the liquefied gas in the chamber 13 is greater than a threshold value P1 due to rapid heat absorption, the exhaust valve 14 is opened to facilitate the liquefied gas in the chamber 13 to be exhausted to the atmosphere through the exhaust valve 14 after being vaporized.

It should be noted that, when the pressure sensor detects that the pressure in the chamber 13 rises sharply and exceeds a limit value, the safety valve 15 can directly and rapidly discharge the fluid in the chamber 13 to the atmosphere, so as to avoid safety concerns.

Referring to fig. 3, a schematic diagram of a cooling method using liquefied gas according to an embodiment of the invention is shown, wherein the liquefied gas can be injected into a chamber 13 by a liquefied gas source 11 as shown in fig. 1 and 2, and the chamber 13 is adjacent to a heat source inside the electronic device C for rapidly cooling the heat source and lowering the temperature thereof. As shown in steps S1 to S4 of fig. 3, the temperature of the heat source is sensed by a temperature sensor disposed at the heat source, and when the temperature T of the heat source rises to or exceeds the first default value T1, i.e., T ≧ T1 (step S1), i.e., the intake valve 12 is opened (step S2), so that the liquefied gas in the liquefied gas source 11 is injected into the chamber 13 through the intake valve 12 until the pressure P in the chamber 13 is equal to the pressure P0 of the liquefied gas source 11 (step S3), the intake valve 12 is closed (step S4), so that the heat source can be cooled down by the liquefied gas in the chamber 13 in a first stage; otherwise, if the temperature T of the heat source has not reached or exceeded the first predetermined value T1, the intake valve 12 is continuously closed (step S11) without cooling the heat source.

Next, as shown in steps S5 and S6 of fig. 3, after the temperature T of the heat source decreases from the first predetermined value T1 for a period of time, the temperature T of the heat source increases again or exceeds a second predetermined value T2, i.e., T ≧ T2 (step S5), at which time the exhaust valve 14 is opened (step S6); alternatively, when the pressure sensor detects that the pressure P in the chamber 13 is greater than a threshold value P1, i.e., P ≧ P1 (step S5), the exhaust valve 14 may be opened (step S6) to facilitate the liquefied gas in the chamber 13 to be vaporized and then exhausted to the atmosphere through the exhaust valve 14. In the present embodiment, the first default value T1 and the second default value T2 are approximately between 50 ℃ and 70 ℃.

As mentioned above, since the liquefied gas absorbs a large amount of vaporization heat during the vaporization process of transforming into the gaseous state, the heat source inside the electronic device C can be further dissipated, so as to achieve the purpose of rapidly cooling the heat source. Otherwise, when the temperature T of the heat source is lower than the second predetermined value T2 (i.e., T < T2) and the pressure P in the chamber 13 does not reach the threshold P1 (i.e., P < P1), the exhaust valve 14 is continuously closed (step S51) to prevent the liquefied gas in the chamber 13 from leaking from the exhaust valve 14 to the outside.

With continued reference to fig. 3, after opening the exhaust valve 14 (step S6), the liquefied gas in the chamber 13 can be continuously exhausted to the atmosphere after being vaporized until the pressure P in the chamber 13 is equal to the atmospheric pressure PA outside the chamber 13 (step S711), and then the exhaust valve 14 is closed (step S712) to completely exhaust the liquefied gas in the chamber 13; next, the process returns to step S1 to detect the temperature T of the heat source, and if the temperature T of the heat source rises to or exceeds the first predetermined value T1 again, i.e., T ≧ T1 (step S1), the gas inlet valve 12 may be opened (step S2), so that the liquefied gas in the liquefied gas source 11 is injected into the chamber 13 again through the gas inlet valve 12.

Alternatively, as shown in steps S721 and S722 of fig. 3, after the exhaust valve is opened (step S6), once the temperature T of the heat source is cooled to be decreased from the second predetermined value T2 to be lower than a third predetermined value TS, or the pressure P in the chamber 13 is decreased from the threshold value P1 to be lower than a safety value PS (step S721), i.e., T < TS or P < PS, the exhaust valve 14 can be closed (step S722) without completely exhausting the liquefied gas in the chamber 13; in other words, as long as the temperature T of the heat source and the pressure P in the chamber 13 are within a safe range, the exhaust valve 14 may be closed to retain the remaining liquefied gas in the chamber 13 to avoid waste, and then, if the temperature T of the heat source reaches the second predetermined value T2 again, or the pressure P in the chamber 13 is greater than the threshold value P1, i.e., T ≧ T2 or P ≧ P1 (step S5), the exhaust valve may be re-opened (step S6), so as to intermittently and moderately discharge the liquefied gas in the chamber 13 to the atmospheric environment.

In summary, the present invention is different from the conventional heat dissipation module in that the heat pipe is used to conduct the heat from the heat source to the fins, but a liquefied gas is injected into a chamber inside the electronic device, and the opening and closing of the intake valve and the exhaust valve are automatically controlled by the dual electronic valves, so that the heat source can be effectively and rapidly cooled. Especially, when discharge valve was opened, the liquefied gas body that is located in this cavity can absorb a large amount of vaporization heats in the vaporization process that changes into gaseous state, can make the inside heat source of electron device reduce the temperature rapidly from this, and then can promote its radiating efficiency by a wide margin.

Although embodiments of the present invention and their advantages have been disclosed, it should be understood that various changes, substitutions and alterations can be made herein by those skilled in the art without departing from the spirit and scope of the invention. Moreover, the scope of the present application is not intended to be limited to the particular embodiments of the process, machine, manufacture, composition of matter, means, methods and steps described in the specification, but it is to be understood that any process, machine, manufacture, composition of matter, means, method and steps, presently existing or later to be developed, that will perform substantially the same function or achieve substantially the same result as the corresponding embodiments described herein may be utilized according to the present application. Accordingly, the scope of the present application includes the processes, machines, manufacture, compositions of matter, means, methods, and steps described in the specification. In addition, each claim constitutes a separate embodiment, and the scope of protection of the present invention also includes combinations of the various claims and embodiments.

While the present invention has been described with reference to the preferred embodiments, it is not intended to be limited thereto. Numerous modifications and variations can be made by those skilled in the art without departing from the spirit and scope of the invention. Therefore, the scope of the present invention should be determined only by the following claims. Furthermore, each claim constitutes a separate embodiment, and various combinations of claims and embodiments are within the scope of the invention.

Claims

1. A method for cooling a liquefied gas injected into a chamber adjacent to a heat source inside an electronic device to cool the heat source, the method comprising:

detecting the temperature of the heat source, wherein when the temperature of the heat source rises to a first default value, the liquefied gas is injected into the chamber through an air inlet valve to absorb the heat generated by the heat source; and

when the temperature of the heat source is decreased from the first default value and then increased to a second default value, or when the pressure in the chamber reaches a critical value, an exhaust valve communicated with the chamber is opened, and the liquefied gas in the chamber is vaporized and then exhausted to the atmosphere through the exhaust valve.

2. The method of claim 1, wherein when the temperature of the heat source rises to the first predetermined level, the liquefied gas is injected into the chamber from a liquefied gas source until the pressure in the chamber is the same as the pressure of the liquefied gas source.

3. The cooling method using liquefied gas according to claim 2, wherein the liquefied gas source is a liquefied gas tank or a replaceable liquefied gas cylinder.

4. The method of claim 2, wherein the heat source is an electronic component and the liquefied gas source is disposed outside the electronic device.

5. The method of claim 1, wherein the exhaust valve is opened until the pressure in the chamber is equal to atmospheric when the temperature of the heat source is decreased from the first predetermined value to the second predetermined value or when the pressure in the chamber is greater than a threshold value.

6. The cooling method using liquefied gas according to claim 1, wherein the method further comprises:

when the temperature of the heat source is decreased from the second predetermined value to a third predetermined value, the exhaust valve is closed during the process of discharging the liquefied gas in the chamber to the atmosphere through the exhaust valve after the liquefied gas is vaporized.

7. The cooling method using liquefied gas according to claim 1, wherein the method further comprises:

when the pressure in the chamber drops from the critical value and is lower than a safe value, the vent valve is closed in the process that the liquefied gas in the chamber is discharged to the atmosphere through the vent valve after being vaporized.

8. The cooling method using liquefied gas according to claim 1, wherein the method further comprises:

when the pressure in the chamber is greater than a threshold value, a safety valve connected to the chamber is opened to reduce the pressure in the chamber.

9. The cooling method using liquefied gas according to claim 1, wherein the liquefied gas contains carbon dioxide.

10. The method of claim 1, wherein the first and second predetermined values range from 50 ℃ to 70 ℃.