3-D printed luminescent sensor for heat transfer study in a micro-channel flow

The heat transfer in a microchannel has been paid great attention for various fluid-science applications, such as in an electronic component and a biochip. Due to the limitations in experimental data collection, the understanding of the microscale heat-transfer process is very challenging. Currently, only conventional CFD can provide information, but experimental validation is needed. There may exist a unique fluid-scientific phenomenon, but parametric experimental study is essential to extract such kind of scientific evidence. The research goal of the present topic is two folds. One is to develop a luminescent-imaging technique to capture detailed temperature information in a microchannel within the region of interest. The other is to create a model explaining the heat transfer in a microchannel.

The presentation will be given to describe the current status of this research. A 3-D printing technique is used to develop a luminescent sensor that can be embedded into a channel wall at specified locations to reveal the temperature evolution through sidewall heating. As the first step, we focus on the millimeter-scale channel to explore the capability of our experimental technique.

This research is an international collaboration between the University of Notre Dame, USA, and National Tsing Hua University, Taiwan.