Numerical analysis of thermal performance in semi-enclosed electronics: investigating active and passive cooling techniques for SSD-driven single-board devices
Effective thermal management is critical for the stable operation of high-power single-board computers (SBCs), particularly in semi-enclosed environments with limited airflow. This study investigates and compares two Solid-State Drive (SSD) cooling strategies: conduction combined with natural convec...
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| Format: | Article |
| Language: | English |
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Elsevier
2025-09-01
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| Series: | Results in Engineering |
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| Online Access: | http://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S2590123025027367 |
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| author | Zheng Zhang Aizat Abas Jiao Dan Fakhrozi Che Ani |
| author_facet | Zheng Zhang Aizat Abas Jiao Dan Fakhrozi Che Ani |
| author_sort | Zheng Zhang |
| collection | DOAJ |
| description | Effective thermal management is critical for the stable operation of high-power single-board computers (SBCs), particularly in semi-enclosed environments with limited airflow. This study investigates and compares two Solid-State Drive (SSD) cooling strategies: conduction combined with natural convection, and forced convection using a heat sink. Results demonstrate that the conduction-based method reduces chip junction and package temperatures by approximately 4 °C compared to the forced convection setup, while the chassis shell temperature experiences only a marginal increase (∼0.2 °C), indicating efficient localized heat transfer. Airflow analysis reveals that forced convection achieves higher maximum velocity (0.55 m/s), but the flow is concentrated near the fan outlet, reducing its overall effectiveness. In contrast, the conduction model sustains a more stable pressure distribution, with a significantly higher average internal air pressure (8.73 Pa vs. 0.018 Pa), enhancing heat dissipation. Although the 7-fin heat sink design achieves a high fin efficiency of 0.9825, it is less effective overall due to limited airflow distribution. The conduction model also exhibits a substantially higher heat transfer coefficient, reinforcing its thermal superiority. These findings highlight the limitations of forced convection in constrained environments and demonstrate the effectiveness of conduction-driven cooling for SSDs in compact, low-airflow systems, offering valuable insights for future thermal design strategies in embedded computing applications. |
| format | Article |
| id | doaj-art-08b679b7fdaf4588964b5258cc55bca7 |
| institution | Kabale University |
| issn | 2590-1230 |
| language | English |
| publishDate | 2025-09-01 |
| publisher | Elsevier |
| record_format | Article |
| series | Results in Engineering |
| spelling | doaj-art-08b679b7fdaf4588964b5258cc55bca72025-08-20T03:43:44ZengElsevierResults in Engineering2590-12302025-09-012710666910.1016/j.rineng.2025.106669Numerical analysis of thermal performance in semi-enclosed electronics: investigating active and passive cooling techniques for SSD-driven single-board devicesZheng Zhang0Aizat Abas1Jiao Dan2Fakhrozi Che Ani3School of Mechanical Engineering, Universiti Sains Malaysia, Engineering Campus, Nibong Tebal, 14300 Penang, Malaysia; School of Applied Engineering, Zhejiang Business College, Hangzhou 310000, ChinaSchool of Mechanical Engineering, Universiti Sains Malaysia, Engineering Campus, Nibong Tebal, 14300 Penang, MalaysiaSchool of Applied Engineering, Zhejiang Business College, Hangzhou 310000, ChinaWestern Digital Corp, Plot 301A Persiaran Cassia Selatan 1, 14100 Simpang Ampat, Pulau Penang, MalaysiaEffective thermal management is critical for the stable operation of high-power single-board computers (SBCs), particularly in semi-enclosed environments with limited airflow. This study investigates and compares two Solid-State Drive (SSD) cooling strategies: conduction combined with natural convection, and forced convection using a heat sink. Results demonstrate that the conduction-based method reduces chip junction and package temperatures by approximately 4 °C compared to the forced convection setup, while the chassis shell temperature experiences only a marginal increase (∼0.2 °C), indicating efficient localized heat transfer. Airflow analysis reveals that forced convection achieves higher maximum velocity (0.55 m/s), but the flow is concentrated near the fan outlet, reducing its overall effectiveness. In contrast, the conduction model sustains a more stable pressure distribution, with a significantly higher average internal air pressure (8.73 Pa vs. 0.018 Pa), enhancing heat dissipation. Although the 7-fin heat sink design achieves a high fin efficiency of 0.9825, it is less effective overall due to limited airflow distribution. The conduction model also exhibits a substantially higher heat transfer coefficient, reinforcing its thermal superiority. These findings highlight the limitations of forced convection in constrained environments and demonstrate the effectiveness of conduction-driven cooling for SSDs in compact, low-airflow systems, offering valuable insights for future thermal design strategies in embedded computing applications.http://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S2590123025027367Single-board computersConduction coolingForced convectionSolid-state drive |
| spellingShingle | Zheng Zhang Aizat Abas Jiao Dan Fakhrozi Che Ani Numerical analysis of thermal performance in semi-enclosed electronics: investigating active and passive cooling techniques for SSD-driven single-board devices Results in Engineering Single-board computers Conduction cooling Forced convection Solid-state drive |
| title | Numerical analysis of thermal performance in semi-enclosed electronics: investigating active and passive cooling techniques for SSD-driven single-board devices |
| title_full | Numerical analysis of thermal performance in semi-enclosed electronics: investigating active and passive cooling techniques for SSD-driven single-board devices |
| title_fullStr | Numerical analysis of thermal performance in semi-enclosed electronics: investigating active and passive cooling techniques for SSD-driven single-board devices |
| title_full_unstemmed | Numerical analysis of thermal performance in semi-enclosed electronics: investigating active and passive cooling techniques for SSD-driven single-board devices |
| title_short | Numerical analysis of thermal performance in semi-enclosed electronics: investigating active and passive cooling techniques for SSD-driven single-board devices |
| title_sort | numerical analysis of thermal performance in semi enclosed electronics investigating active and passive cooling techniques for ssd driven single board devices |
| topic | Single-board computers Conduction cooling Forced convection Solid-state drive |
| url | http://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S2590123025027367 |
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