Three-dimensional topology optimization of thermal-fluid-structural problems for cooling system design

In the present study, a topology optimization method of thermal-fluid-structural problems is researched to design the three-dimensional heat sink with load-carrying capability. The optimization is formulated as a mean temperature minimization problem controlled by Navier-Stokes (N-S) equations as well as energy balance and linear elasticity equations. In order to prevent an unrealistic and low load-carrying design, the power dissipation of the fluid device and the normal displacement on the load-carrying surface are taken as constraints. A parallel solver of multi-physics topology optimization problems is built-in Open Field Operation And Manipulation (OpenFOAM) software. The continuous adjoint method is adopted for the sensitivity analysis to make the best use of built-in solvers. With the developed tool, the three-dimensional (3D) thermal-fluid topology optimization is studied. It is found that the Darcy number, which is suitable for fluid design, may cause severe problems in thermal-fluid optimization. The structural features of 3D thermal-fluid-structural problems are also investigated. The “2D extruded designs” are helpful to improve the structural stiffness, and channels with a larger aspect ratio in high-temperature areas improve the cooling performance.