Alternative Internal Configurations for Enhancing Heat Transfer in Telecommunication Cabinets

Abstract

Telecommunication systems have become a critical part of society which enables connectivity to many essential and trivial services. Consequently, telecommunication equipment is housed in cabinets to protect the electronics from a variety of hazards; one of which is temperature-related failure. Current practices use a notable amount of power for the thermal management of telecommunication cabinets which can be reduced by considering alternative methods of cooling. In this paper, experiments were carried out to investigate the effectiveness of different internal mounting configurations of electronic components on the thermal performance of a telecommunication cabinet. The investigation tested inclinations (0–90°), different staggered offsets (0–50 mm), changing stream-wise spacing (29–108 mm), and fan speed (with a Reynolds number in the range of 1604 to 5539). The experimental study revealed that heat transfer was enhanced by 9.99% by altering component inclination to 90°, 25.90% by increasing stream-wise spacing from 29 mm to 108 mm, and 36.02% by increasing the Reynolds number from 1604 to 5539. However, the staggered arrangement of internal components decreased Nu by 3.26% for the natural convection condition but increased by 5.69% for the forced convection condition over the tested range and increasing the centre offset of the staggered components with respect to the cabinet did not influence Nu in any significant manner. Natural convection and forced convection also had notable influence on the heat transfer rate. Hence it was seen that alternative internal configurations positively influence heat transfer in telecommunication cabinets for the cases studied.