New concept for waterblock design: Heat Pipes

This is an idea I had in mind for a while: using heat pipes in a CPU block so that water could have more surface coverage. Imagine my surprise when I saw the concept being realized by Thermaltake. It's by no means what I had in mind but the design seems promising and I think it opens up a new field of possibilities, they call it the Aqua RX Series-R2 UFO CPU Waterblock (whoa, longest name I've ever seen on a cpu block):

http://www.thermaltake.com/product/L...leview_450.gif

http://www.thermaltake.com/product/L...ntview_450.gif

http://www.thermaltake.com/product/L...deview_450.gif

http://www.thermaltake.com/product/L...opview_450.gif

For more info go here: http://www.thermaltake.com/product/L.../cl-w0092.asp#

Before the usual trolling and flaming shows up about Thermaltake having bad products for W/C to which I agree to some extent, let me warn you that this block falls within good specs as far as I can see. It uses copper not aluminum and it's got 3/8" fittings which are widely accepted But above all it's the design that deserves the most merit since I think there is a lot of potential for other companies to capitalize on this concept. Having said that, what do you think?

I'm trying to find a place to buy this sucker but so far I've had no luck :rolleyes:

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Material Copper & Acrylic
Dimension 106 mm(L) X 82 mm(W) X 70 mm(H)
Quick install connector For 6.4mm ID (1/4”) tubing
For 9.5mm ID (3/8”) tubing
Weight 557(g)

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Look kinda like an evap for phase than anything but the pipes hopfull go a long way down!

I was expecting to see Scythe's WC Ninja ... erm, okay, LC Ninja ( :D )
Doesn't look too bad. Maybe it will be like the BT of TT's water side.

It looks like the water goes back-and-forth at each fin till it gets down, then
the same up. Seems there's ten on each side. All these turns seem a bit too
much for me. Wonder how restrictive it will be. Maybe half as many turns
would be better.

IMO, cpus are the easier task - gpus, OTOH, have higher heat output and less
space. So here's my idea for heatpipe+water+low-restriction+compact:
_________
-> =U= ->

So: water in - fins - heatpipe - fins - water out.

It may have 3/8" fittings but I'll bet the threads are still G1/8".;)

ahahaha... the idea looks interesting, but the fact its thermaltake scares me.

AquaPC Cuplex Double Impact XT <--- isnt that longer? :P

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Originally Posted by NaeKuh

ahahaha... the idea looks interesting, but the fact its thermaltake scares me.

AquaPC Cuplex Double Impact XT <--- isnt that longer? :P

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you can make it longer if you name it correctly, which is:
AquaComputer Cuplex XT Double Impact

the first thing i though was before reading anything was that... that block has to be made by thermaltake. and it sure was *sigh*
this is only a guess but i thing that block is gonna be restrictive as hell.. and why in gods name have they implemented those ridiculous 3/8 fittings..
dont they read from forums what people thing of there products and watercooling in general... jeez

Hmm, how does that look like its going to transfer ANY heat to the Water?

Heatpipes + Water, dont mix well.

Forget about Restriction, I cant see where the Water will go in that mess of Heatpipe fins. :/.

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Originally Posted by Ad1tya

Hmm, how does that look like its going to transfer ANY heat to the Water?

Heatpipes + Water, dont mix well.

Forget about Restriction, I cant see where the Water will go in that mess of Heatpipe fins. :/.

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simple.
the heatpipes transfer the heat from the base to the fins. the fins give the heat to the water. The surface area of the fins is way bigger then that of a normal CPU block.

the only 2 bits that give me doubts is its build quality and that its a water block made by Thermaltake.
o and it also looks pretty restrictive seeing the amount of fins the water has to go past.

This block makes no sense, why use heatpipes to transfer the heat when you can use water directly? Surely that would be far more efficient than introducing another medium the heat has to travel through (Waits for someone to tell me what a n00b I am).

^^ Exactly my point.

Theres no way, that the Fins of the heatpipe will dissipate more heat than a Normal CPU WB.

Crappy design IMHO, Unless I see some results that prove otherwise.

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Originally Posted by Ad1tya

Crappy design IMHO, Unless I see some results that prove otherwise.

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and i doubt that we will

I think it would make more sense to have the top housing made of copper and have heatpipes running from the base to the top housing on the OUTSIDE of the waterblock.. While using a more traditional design on the inside of the waterblock itself.

Would be a :banana::banana::banana::banana::banana: to change Orings, so you would probobly have to weld the top to the bottom.

the heatpipes should be connected to the actual copper base which makes contact to the cpu itself. If the heatpipes extended externally so to speak and not inside the WB then maybe this would be a good idea.... fins and heatpipes outside of the WB itself would sound more appealing.

Rough sketch w/ paint, but wouldn't something like this be less restrictive using the same idea?

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Originally Posted by Chewbenator

Rough sketch w/ paint, but wouldn't something like this be less restrictive using the same idea?

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yeah thatd be much better. but it still introduces a heatpipe as another medium as someone else said.

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Originally Posted by Chewbenator

Rough sketch w/ paint, but wouldn't something like this be less restrictive using the same idea?

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Great idea man, whoa :yepp:

lol.. I came up with something like this quite some time ago... interesting to see it in real life.

Looks interesting. Can't wait to see the results... if it performs within 3-5 degrees of a typical XS setup using their weak Bigwater setup... then I'll be all ears.

But I agree... maybe if Thermalright design a waterblock that had direct watercooling on the insides, and extra heatpipe+fin cooling on the outside of the waterblock... then it could be considered the next level of watercooling.

I still want to see a waterblock utilize a vapor phase chamber....

Eww wtf, more thermaltake crap. I can already tell you by looking at it that it wont hold up against a regular wb, dont waste your money or time

LOL... what's next... a Scythe Ninja surrounded by a giant water res/tank!?!?!

Water doesn't need as much surface area as air to work well... that's why we use it... and at some point the added surface area will just diminish the flow without any added cooling effect. This seems like a terribly inefficient way to use water in my opinion.

How many 180 degree turns does the water make in that block! 10-20? LOL.

I bet an MCW-30 out-performs that thing!

At least it's innovative..

Can't wait to see some results :)

Tt design, restrictive i'd presume...

chewbenator's design seems better with a few more tweaks...

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Originally Posted by virtualrain

Water doesn't need as much surface area as air to work well... that's why we use it... and at some point the added surface area will just diminish the flow without any added cooling effect. This seems like a terribly inefficient way to use water in my opinion.

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If that were true we would still be using the maze blocks :p:. Why do you think blocks like the Apogee work so well with its pin matrix? More surface area. ;)

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Originally Posted by migueld

If that were true we would still be using the maze blocks :p:. Why do you think blocks like the Apogee work so well with its pin matrix? More surface area. ;)

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Exactly. :up:

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Originally Posted by quicksilverXP

But I agree... maybe if Thermalright design a waterblock that had direct watercooling on the insides, and extra heatpipe+fin cooling on the outside of the waterblock... then it could be considered the next level of watercooling.

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Originally Posted by virtualrain

LOL... what's next... a Scythe Ninja surrounded by a giant water res/tank!?!?!

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Didn't I already say Water-Ninja? :)

http://www.ixbt.com/short/images/scy...ter_ninja2.jpg

It was displayed at Cebit.

here is the thing about heat pipes.

Yes, they MOVE heat more effeciently than plain old copper, but the problem is that you have to get the heat INTO the heatpipe. whever there is a heatpipe to copper/aluminum joint, a significant thermal resistance is introduced.

Secondly, to remove the heat from the heat pipe. again with the joint thermal resistance issue. On top of that, when you put a heatsink into a water chamber like thermaltake did you are wasting alot of thermal effeciency because the water will remove all of the heat from the fins (attached to the heatpipe) very quickly. Because of this you want more heatpipes with ALOT of short fins, not a few longer fins like you have in the more common air based heatsinks like the scythe ninja and thermalright HR series.


Lastly, the way that thermaltake has the fins and water inlet/outlet arranged is absolutely retarded. For maximum thermal effeciency you need to have the water moving at a decent pace with no dead spots (stagnant water). This design will create alot of hot spots where the water will stand still.

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Originally Posted by MaxxxRacer

Lastly, the way that thermaltake has the fins and water inlet/outlet arranged is absolutely retarded. For maximum thermal effeciency you need to have the water moving at a decent pace with no dead spots (stagnant water). This design will create alot of hot spots where the water will stand still.

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I'm worried about that as well, but it's not really clear. It seems some fins are shorter than others and water would flow in a channel-like path. If that's the case it may be very restrictive but I dont think there'll be stagnant water.

Hey this block may not be perfect, but it's the first of its kind. I think there is a lot of potential for this concept.

There are a couple of great ideas so far, I think your suggestion for shorter fins and more pipes is a good idea.

I'll add that it'd be interesting to see a block with pipes covering a larger area at the base, and a hybrid design: pin matrix at the middle and pipes around.

hehehe.. hope to see some results.. :D

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Originally Posted by Frank M

I was expecting to see Scythe's WC Ninja ... erm, okay, LC Ninja ( :D )
Doesn't look too bad. Maybe it will be like the BT of TT's water side.

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there was one of those at some type of computex show.

so negative guys

let them experiment
who knows maybe they'll stumble into something good :)

At least it shows somebody is still thinking; even if it probably won't help much, and it's going to be absurdly restrictive. Maybe if they removed the heatpipes, and turned the fins so that they're more vertical to fit with the water flow, it'd be worth something.

That design makes zero sense period . It pretty and all but performance wise it will be 7c higher temps than the most efficient designs out today. looks very restrictive also .

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Originally Posted by Turtle 1

That design makes zero sense period . It pretty and all but performance wise it will be 7c higher temps than the most efficient designs out today. looks very restrictive also .

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and how do you figure that lol

Well if you look at the base its very thick so the water won't help much as far as kooling the base. 2 heat pipes isn't efficient at all compared to water combining them and not using the water to help cool the base is just stupid.
Lets wait for some results befor we debate this much . ITS real pretty tho.

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Originally Posted by migueld

If that were true we would still be using the maze blocks :p:. Why do you think blocks like the Apogee work so well with its pin matrix? More surface area. ;)

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Yes, but there's a reason the pins are not 2 inches long or 6 inches long in a GTX/Fuzion... it would add little benefit. Water is much more efficient than air so using a design that works with air for a water cooling block is rediculous and ignores why water is good in the first place.