When is a round pin or elliptical fin design more effective than a plate/straight fin alternative?
In lower airflow environments (to 250 lfm), round pins are typically 15% to 25% more efficient than plate fin designs. In these environments, elliptical fin designs also perform a bit better than plate fins – especially in the 50 to 150 lfm range. Since elliptical fins exhibit lower pressure drop characteristics, they allow more air to flow through and reach other parts for cooling. Round pins are ideally suited for applications where the direction of airflow is omnidirectional or unknown. Elliptical fins typically provide superior cooling performance in a series applications, when two or more heat sinks are used in a line. In these scenarios, elliptical fin designs have less shadowing effect on the rearmost, downstream fins – thereby resulting in higher performance from increased airflow.
