EP2486359A2

EP2486359A2 - Method for producing a cooling plate and device produced by said method

Info

Publication number: EP2486359A2
Application number: EP10745222A
Authority: EP
Inventors: Norbert Huber; Karsten Rechenberg
Original assignee: Siemens AG
Current assignee: Siemens AG
Priority date: 2009-09-29
Filing date: 2010-08-18
Publication date: 2012-08-15
Also published as: WO2011038988A2; WO2011038988A3

Abstract

The invention relates to a method for producing a cooling plate and to a device produced by said method, wherein the method comprises the following steps: providing at least one first and at least one second plate (10, 10') each having recesses (13) and arranging the at least two plates (10, 10') over one another such that the recesses (13) of the at least one first plate (10) overlap with recesses (13) of the at least one second plate (10') and are structured by continuous cooling channels along a longitudinal direction (30) in a plane of the plates (10, 10'). According to the invention, a material for mechanically stable joining of the plates (10, 10') is inserted between the at least two plates (10, 10') substantially does not penetrate into the recesses (13) of the plates (10, 10') upon temporally stable joining.

Description

description

Method of manufacturing a cooling plate and apparatus made by this method

The present invention relates to a method for producing a cooling plate and to a device produced by the method, the method comprising the following steps, providing at least one first and at least one second plate each with recesses and arranging the at least two plates one above the other in such a way, that recesses of the at least one first plate overlap with recesses of the at least one second plate and continuous cooling channels are formed along a longitudinal direction in a plane of the plates.

In a number of applications, which are given for example by capacitors, by power electrical components or by electrical machines, the devices must be cooled. One possibility of effective cooling is the use of a cooling plate. In the cooling plate Kanä ^¬ le are formed, which are flowed through by a fluid. As the fluid, a gas such as air or a liquid such as water or oil is usually used.

In general, the cooling plates are made of a stack of Ble ^¬ chen. In order to achieve a tightness of the channels, the plates are pressed together by means of an external pressure, for example by screwing, or cold glued together. Another way me the plates ^¬ mechanically and stable over time and fluid-tight zusammenzufü ^¬ gen, represents the soldering. In a normal soldering process, however, can never be ruled out that the solder enters the channels and these clogged fluid-tight. Other substances than

Copper, such as aluminum or steel, can not be soldered. A disadvantage when gluing the sheets is that the glued joints only up to a certain, low temperature temperature of eg one to two hundred degrees Celsius, are thermally stable. Especially with regard to the possible high on ^¬ passing temperatures of a few hundred degrees Celsius when cooling devices adhesive bonds are only limited suitable when joining the sheets.

Fittings when joining sheets are technically very complex, as an accurate production of the holes for the screws is necessary, and usually lead to kei ^¬ ner fluidic sealing of the channels against each other and the environment, since fittings give a strong unequal distribution of pressures occurring ,

Object of the method according to the invention is to provide A possible ^¬ friendliness, which enables a simple, cost-effective and fluid-tight assembly of plates to a cooling plate. In particular, it is an object to specify a method of ^¬ which allows a fluid-tight joining of non-solderable materials such as aluminum. In this case, penetration of materials used for joining, in recesses of the plates should be prevented. Furthermore, it is an object to provide a device which is produced with the aid of the method according to the invention particularly favorable and stable and allows a particularly uniform cooling effect.

The stated object is achieved for the method for Her ^¬ position of a cooling plate with the features of claim 1 and with respect to the device manufactured by the method having the features of claim 10.

Advantageous embodiments of the method according to the invention for the production of a cooling plate and the device produced by the method, will become apparent from the respective associated dependent claims. The features of the main claim with features of the subclaims and / or features of subclaims can be combined with each other. The inventive method for manufacturing a cooling plate comprising the steps, recesses providing at least one first and at least a second plate each having from ^¬, and arranging the at least two plates above the other such that the recesses of the at least one first plate with recesses of at least one overlap the second plate. In this case, continuous cooling channels are formed ent ^¬ long a longitudinal direction in a plane of the plates. Between the at least two plates, a material is inserted for the mechanically stable assembly, which does not substantially penetrate into the recesses of the plates during the time-stable assembly.

An advantage of the method according to the invention is that the cooling channels are not blocked during assembly and so fluid can continue to flow through the channels. The function ^¬ ability of the cooling plate is thus obtained.

The steps can take place chronologically successively in the order of providing, inserting and arranging, with a subsequent step, forming a temporally and mechanically stable connection of the at least one first and the at least one second plate. When carrying out the method with the specified sequence of steps, a simple and inexpensive production of the cooling plate is possible. In contrast to the subsequent insertion of the material for mechanically stable assembly of the plates, insertion before arranging the plates one above the other is easier to accomplish.

The arrangement of the recesses can be formed in regular patterns. As at least one second plate, a plate having an identical shape of the at least one first plate may be used. The at least one second plate is then placed 180 degrees about the one longitudinal direction in the plane of the plates rotated on the at least one first plate. The production of plates with only one Pattern of recesses reduces costs and simplifies manufacturing.

Aluminum may be used as the material for the at least one first and the at least one second plate. Aluminum can not be soldered. Thus remain as possible einzu ^¬ mating materials between the at least two plates silicone, aluminum or an adhesive. Silicone and adhesives are liquid or viscous, which can clog the channels if used inappropriately. Only with very thin application in the range of ym can this be prevented. Alternatively, a layer of aluminum may be inserted in plates made of aluminum, which in particular has the same pattern of recesses on ^¬ as the stacked plates. The eingefüg- te material and the at least one first and the at least one second plate may then be heated, preferably to a temperature a few degrees Celsius below the Schmelztem ^¬ temperature of the material of at least a first and a second plate we ^¬ nigstens. In this case, the thin layer, which has, for example, a thickness in the range of ym, melted and slightly viscous. The shape of the plates, however, remains stable. When cooled to room temperature, a mechanically stable, fluid-tight and stable connection is formed between the plates.

The at least two plates may be sandwiched between a base and a top plate. Inlets and outlets for a fluid can be arranged in the base and / or cover plate, in particular with connections, such that a fluidic contact of the inlets and outlets to the formed cooling channels is formed in the at least two plates. It is advantageous if the step of at ^¬ ordering the base and cover plate in front of a step of forming a stable time from ^¬ and mechanically connecting the at least one first and at least a second

Plate is performed. A step forming a time ^¬ and mechanically stable connection of the base plate with the at least one second plate and the cover plate with which can at least one first plate from the step of forming a stable time from ^¬ and mechanically connecting the second plate to be encompassed at least one of the at least first and.

A device according to the invention, produced by the method described above, has at least two plates each having dimensions of one plate, which are in the range of 0.4 m width by 0.6 m length and in the range of 0.5 to 5 mm thickness d ,

The width b of formed cooling channels may be in the range of 5 to 30 mm, a leg length 1 of the recesses may be in the range of 5 to 30 mm, a length a of overlaps of the recesses may be in the range of 2 to 20 mm and Connection channels can have a width k in the range of 5 to 50 mm.

A base plate may have a thickness d 'in the range of 1 to 10 mm. A cover plate may also have a thickness d 'in the range of 1 to 10 mm.

For the inventive apparatus produced by the method described before to ^¬, there are the above-mentioned ER, with the inventive method for manufacturing a cooling plate benefits.

Preferred embodiments of the invention with advantageous developments according to the features of the dependent claims are explained in more detail with reference to the following figures, but without being limited thereto.

In the drawings: Figure 1 is a plan view of a single plate with Ausnehmun ^¬ gen, and. b

Fig. 2 is an oblique view of a cooling plate according to the invention, consisting of a base and cover plate and a first and a second plate with recesses, which form continuous cooling channels, and

Fig. 3 is an enlarged view of the oblique view of Fig. 2 with dimensions.

In Fig. 1, a plate 10 with Y-shaped recesses 13 and connecting channels 11 is shown. Holes for mechanical attachment 12 may be in the form of circular holes in the plate 10 or both in the plate 10 and in the adjacent plates 20, 21 executed. Via the inlets and outlets, fluids can be supplied to or removed from an upper or lower plate 10, 20, or 21.

The Y-shaped recesses 13 shown in Fig. 1 are each formed of straight, equal length parts with a length 1 in the range of eg 5 mm to 30 mm, which touch at one end and are mutually rotated by 120 °. Recesses 13 may also have other shapes, such as triangular shape, circular shape or T-shape. The recesses are completely through a plate 10, for example, a rectangular, thin aluminum sheet with a thickness d in the range of, for example, 0.5 to 5 mm, ^{ausgebil ¬} det. They can be stamped into the sheet metal, milled, cut by a laser or formed by other methods. The recesses 13 are arranged so that they form a regular pattern and each have a distance to the nearest neighbor, which is smaller than a single or at least smaller than a double leg length 1.

At the ends along the width of the rectangular plate 10 are arranged parallel to each other, elongated An ^¬ closing channels 11 as recesses. The length of the connection channels 11 is almost equal to or smaller than the total length ^{¬ of} the plate 10 and is for example in the range of about 0.6 m. The plate length may be in the range of 0.6 m, and the plate width may be in the range of about 0.4 m.

2, a cooling plate according to the invention is shown. The cooling plate comprises a plate stack of base plate

20, two plates with recesses 10 and a cover plate 21. The two plates with recesses 10 are sandwiched between ^¬ tween the base plate 20 and the cover plate 21 is arranged. In primary and in the cover plate 20, 21 are supply and conducting away stanchions forms ^¬ out for the supply and discharge of a cooling fluid 12, and these are in fluidic contact with the on ^¬ circuit channels 11, or at least formed by recesses 13 Cooling channels in the plates 10. The base and cover plate may have the same circumferential dimensions as the plates 10, ie a length in the range of 0.6 m and a width in the range of 0.4 m. The thickness d 'of the base and cover plates 20, 21 may differ from the thickness d of the plates 10 in the range of 1 to 10 mm. In the embodiment shown in Fig. 2, the sandwiched between the base and cover plates 20, 21 arranged two plates 10 are equal to the plate 10 shown in Fig. 1. The two plates 10 each have the same shape and dimensions. It can be used ^¬ to more than two plates 10 for the inventive cooling plate but. In the embodiment shown in Fig. 2, the second plate 10 is rotated about an axis parallel to the longitudinal direction 30 of the plate 10 by 180 °, and placed on the first plate 10 with the outer edges each congruent. This results in a plate stack in which recesses 13 of adjacent plates 10 each overlap at their ends, in the case of Y-shaped recesses 13 at each of the three ends of the Y. The length a of the overlap of adjacent recesses 13 is for example in the range of 2 to 20 mm. There are formed along one direction in the plane of the plates 10 perpendicular to the longitudinal direction 30 through cooling channels, which connect the connection channels 11 on opposite ^{sides ¬} fluidly with each other. The channels can be one Have width b in the range of 5 to 30 mm, wherein connection channels 11 have a width in the range of 5 to 50 mm on ^¬ . In order to get a previously described stack of plates fluidically tight, the plates can be mechanically pressed together. This is done by screw, not shown, brackets or other means for applying pressure. A permanent seal is usually but only if in addition between adjacent plates 10 and the plates 10 and the base plate 20 and the cover plate 21, Ma ^¬ material is introduced for sealing. Material for sealing may be silicone, a foil and / or an adhesive. These materials must also be applied thinly, ie in the range from ym to nm. This prevents penetration of the materials into the cooling channels or recesses 13 and connection channels 11 when the plates 10, 20, 21 are pressed together. In a drying step, heating lead to a hardening of the material for sealing. A problem with a number of materials for sealing, based on polymer compounds is the chemical, thermal and Langzeitstabi ^¬ quality. Even a wafer-thin application of the materials for sealing on the plates 10 and / or 20, 21 can lead to problems and be very expensive.

It is easier to carry out a seal by means of a foil of a material which has a melting point less than or equal to the material of the plates 10, 20, 21. In one step, heating to the melting point of the material for sealing, capillary forces between adjacent plates 10, 20, 21 may cause the liquid or nearly liquid material to not reach the recesses for sealing. The ^¬ ser effect works particularly well when a thin film of material for sealing, is arranged with a thickness ranging from ym to nm, between the plates 10, 20, 21, which, in particular, the pattern of the recesses of the adjacent plates 10 , 20, 21. For aluminum panels, for example, an aluminum foil can be placed between the panels 10, 20, 21 are arranged respectively. In this case, it is possible to use the effect that thin films of a material have a lower melting point compared to plates made thickly of the material. When the cooling plate is heated with the plate stack and foils between the plates of the same material, the foils melt first without the plates completely melting and losing their shape at this time. If no further heating Runaway ^¬ leads and thus achieved a temperature for heating, which just below the temperature of complete

Melting the plates 10, 20, 21 is located, so the Plat ^¬ th when cooling mechanically stable and fluid-tight over the material of the films are connected without the original shape of the recesses 13 or the connection channels 11 is changed and without material for sealing Channels clogged for fluid transport through these channels.

Also, a use of films of a material having a melting point less than the melting point of the material of the plates 10, 20, 21 may be useful. A diffusion at high temperatures of the material of the film into the material of the plates 10, 20, 21 can lead to a mechanically permanently stable, fluid-tight connection. In this case, a heating to the melting temperature of the films, without a temperature of melting of the plates 10, 20, 21 to errei ^¬ Chen.

A heating to a temperature below the melting point of the film may even be sufficient to achieve a high diffusion rate and thus to produce a connection of the plates 10, 20, 21. This is the case both for the same material film and plates 10, 20, 21 or for different materials of films and plates 10, 20, 21. Also, a use of deposited on the plates

Layers instead of films between the plates can be done. For example, thin layers can be deposited by sputtering, vapor deposition, chemical vapor deposition (CVD) or metal organic chemical vapor deposition. pour deposition (MOCVD) on the plates 10, 20, 21 are applied. For example, a deposition can take place before the recesses 13 and connection channels 11 are formed, or regions of the recesses 13 and connection channels 11 can be covered by a mask during a deposition. In particular ^¬ sondere a mask having pattern elements slightly larger than the recesses 13 and connecting channels 11 can be useful because such a penetration of material for sealing when heated in the recesses 13 and connecting ducts 11 can be prevented particularly well ^¬ ver.

In Fig. 3 is an enlarged section of the plate stack shown in Fig. 2 is shown in an oblique view. Over ^¬ lappungen of recesses 13 and the dimensions are particularly well visible from the figure shown in Fig. 3.

Claims

claims

1. A method for producing a cooling plate with

the steps:

- providing at least a first plate (10) from ^¬ recesses (13), and

- Providing at least one second plate (10 ') with

Recesses (13), and

Arranging the at least one first and the at least one second plate (10, 10 ') one above the other such that

Recesses (13) of the at least one first plate (10) overlap with recesses (13) of the at least one second plate (10 ') and continuous cooling channels are formed along a longitudinal direction (30) in a plane of the plates (10, 10'),

characterized in that between the at least two plates (10, 10 ') a material for mechanically stable assembly of the plates is inserted, which does not substantially penetrate into the recesses of the plates in the time-stable assembly.

2. The method according to claim 1, characterized in that the steps take place in succession in the order of providing, inserting and arranging, with a subsequent step, forming a temporally and mechanically stable connection of the at least one first and the at least one second plate ( 10, 10 ').

3. The method according to any one of the preceding claims, characterized in that by the arrangement of the recesses

(13) regular patterns are formed.

4. The method according to any one of the preceding claims, characterized in that as at least one second plate (10 ') a plate having an identical shape of the at least one first plate (10) is used and the at least one second plate (10, 10') rotated 180 degrees around the one Longitudinal direction (30) in the plane of the plates (10, 10 ') on the at least one first plate (10) is arranged.

5. The method according to any one of the preceding claims, characterized in that as material for the at least one first and the at least one second plate (10, 10 ') Alumi ^¬ nium is used.

6. The method according to claim 5, characterized in that as the material to be inserted between the at least two Plat ^¬ th (10, 10 ') silicone, aluminum or an adhesive is used.

7. The method according to claim 6, characterized in that the inserted material and the at least one first and the at least one second plate (10, 10 ') are heated, in ^¬ particular to a temperature a few degrees Celsius below the melting temperature of the material of at least a first and the at least one second plate (10, 10 ').

8. The method according to any one of the preceding claims, characterized in that the at least two plates (10, 10 ') sandwiched between a base (20) and a cover plate (21) are arranged, with inlets and outlets (12) for a Fluid in the base (20) and / or cover plate (21), in ^¬ particular with terminals (12), are arranged such that a fluidic contact of the inlets and outlets (12) to the formed cooling channels in the at least two plates (10, 10 ') is formed.

9. The method of claim 8, wherein the step of arranging the base (20) and cover plate (21) before a step Ausbil ^¬ the one temporally and mechanically stable connection of the at least one first and the at least one second plate (10, 10 ' ) and a step forming a temporally and mechanically stable connection of the base plate (20) with the at least one second plate (10 ') and the Cover plate (21) with the at least one first plate (10) is included.

10. Device manufactured by a method according to one of the preceding claims, characterized in that the at least two plates (10, 10 ') each have dimensions in the range of 0.4 m wide by 0.6 m in length and a thickness d in the range from 0.5 to 5 mm.

11. The device according to claim 10, characterized in that the width b of trained cooling channels in the range of 5 to 30 mm, a leg length 1 of the recesses (13), in particular of Y-shaped recesses (13), in the range of 5 bis 30 mm, a length a of overlaps of the recesses (13) is in the range of 2 to 20 mm and connecting channels (11) have a width k in the range of 5 to 50 mm.

12. Device according to one of claims 10 or 11, characterized in that a base plate (20) has a thickness d 'in

Range of 1 to 10 mm and / or that a Deckplat ^¬ te (21) has a thickness d 'in the range of 1 to 10 mm.