An examination of metal felt wicks for heat-pipe applications
- Sandia National Labs., Albuquerque, NM (United States)
- Bekaert Fibre Technologies, Marietta, GA (United States)
- Porous Metal Products, Jacksboro, TX (United States)
Precision metal felts are made of filaments of microndiameter wires that are chopped and layered onto a flat surface to form a wool-like material. Metal felts are commonly used as filters for micron-sized particles. The small diameters of the wires and the relatively open structure of these non-woven materials provide porosities on the order of 90% and greater. The high porosities of metal felts make them interesting candidate materials for heat pipe applications. Property measurements on selected samples of metal felts have demonstrated that typical effective pore radii range from 40 to 120 {mu}m and the respective Darcy permeabilities range from 30 to 300 {mu}m{sup 2}. Through careful compaction of these materials, it is possible to tailor the flow characteristics of the materials to specific applications. Recently, a series of tests have been conducted at Sandia to measure the flow characteristics and pore structures of these materials as a function of compaction. Results from these tests and a discussion of the current applications of these materials in liquid-metal heat pipes for solar power conversion systems are presented in this paper.
- Research Organization:
- Sandia National Labs., Albuquerque, NM (United States)
- Sponsoring Organization:
- USDOE, Washington, DC (United States)
- DOE Contract Number:
- AC04-94AL85000
- OSTI ID:
- 10193596
- Report Number(s):
- SAND-94-0657C; CONF-950336-6; ON: DE95002608; BR: GB0103012
- Resource Relation:
- Conference: American Society of Mechanical Engineers/Japanese Society of Mechanical Engineers/Japan Solar Energy Society international solar energy conference,Lahaina, HI (United States),19-24 Mar 1995; Other Information: PBD: [1994]
- Country of Publication:
- United States
- Language:
- English
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