A. Range of current applications

The most popular commercial applications of the dimpled surfaces nowadays are traditional type compact heat exchangers such as MAXCHANGER by Tranter, TherMax² by Process Technology or AlfaRex by Alfa Laval and other similar heat exchangers employing the "dimpled" surfaces in either flat or tubular shape.

Numerous semi-commercial developments were performed to provide an efficient thermal management to power semiconductor devices Dilevskaya et al. (1994), Dilevskaya (2007). Figure 1 illustrates the prototype of the traditional individual heat pipe cooler with the dimpled fins. Extensive evaluation of the cooler device assembly demonstrated possibility of the 10-15% reduction in thermal resistance.

Several boiler companies such as Cleaver Brooks or Hoval Boiler utilize the so-called "dimpled tubes" with the dimples serving as a means for making protrusions inside the tube to enhance heat transfer coefficient of the inner tube flow.

However, the widespread use of VHTE technology across industry is restricted by the lack of cost-effective and reliable manufacturing procedures to cover the variety of dimple geometries and application shapes (flat, tube, cylinder, sphere, pyramid, prism, etc.).