Abstract
This paper reports test results of active control of heat transfer performance of a small loop heat pipe (LHP) with a thermoelectric converter (TEC) in an atmospheric condition. The TEC is attached to a reservoir of the LHP to control the operating temperature by heating and cooling using a bipolar power supply. Tests were conducted by varying the evaporator power, the reservoir set point temperature, and the condenser sink temperature. The test results showed that the TEC is able to control the LHP operating with small electric power. The test results also demonstrated enhancement of the start-up success by maintaining a constant reservoir temperature during the start-up process. Forced shut-off of the loop operation by rapid heating of the reservoir was also demonstrated.
