Model Predictive Control of a Pumped Two-Phase Cooling System With Microchannel Heat Exchangers

Two-phase cooling systems provide a viable technology for high–heat flux rejection in electronic systems. They provide high cooling capacity and uniform surface temperature. However, a major restriction of their application is the critical heat flux condition (CHF). This work presents model predictive control (MPC) design for CHF avoidance in two-phase pump driven cooling systems. The system under study includes multiple microchannel heat exchangers in series. The MPC controller performance is compared to the performance of a baseline PI controller. Simulation results show that while both controllers are able to maintain the two-phase cooling system below CHF, MPC has significant reduction in power consumption compared to the baseline controller.