Optimized distribution of a large number of power electronics components cooled by conjugate turbulent natural convection

Highlights: • Multiple power electronics modules are mounted on a plate with indirect liquid cooling. • The distribution of up to 36 heat sources is optimized to enhance cooling. • Turbulent effects are highlighted and influence the optimal vertical spacing. • Use of geometric parameters and ANN are efficient alternatives for comparing layouts. - Abstract: Natural convection allows for passive cooling which is used in many engineering applications. Placing dissipating components on a common vertical heatsink can be optimized to give the best possible cooling capacity. In this study, a numerical model for three-dimensional conjugated convective and conductive heat transfer was used to evaluate the distribution of up to 36 flush-mounted rectangular heaters. The temperature profiles and the heat fluxes were compared with experimental data for validation. The dissipated power was set as an input parameter and the optimal distribution was selected as the one with the lowest temperature elevation. Two different heuristics—a geometric parameter and an artificial neural network—were proposed and evaluated as alternatives to heavy CFD calculations.