Thermal Fluid Analysis of the Heat Sink and Chip Carrier Assembly for a US Army Research Laboratory Liquid-Fueled Thermophotovoltaic Power Source Demonstrator   [open pdf - 3MB]

"Compact power sources with high energy and power densities are critical for many military applications. These applications span from personal or squad-level power sources for long-duration missions without resupply to unmanned air vehicles requiring only a few hours of running time. In the 10-100 W+ power range, battery technology is the best solution currently available, but higher-energy dense technologies are needed to augment batteries and extend the available energy density well beyond state-of-the-art battery technology. One way to approach this is to take advantage of the large energy content of hydrocarbons or alcohols. Conversion efficiencies of only a few percent can provide comparable energy density to battery technology with the added advantage of instant recharge. One technology being pursued by the US Army Research Laboratory is combustion-based thermophotovoltaic power sources. Combustion can be used to convert fuel to heat a surface to temperatures above 500 deg C. To support this work, this report details the analysis of the chip carrier and water-cooled heat sink to control the temperature of the photovoltaic cell while exposed to radiation from the emitter."