Simulation of Emerging Heat Exchanger Technologies for Progressive Aerospace Platforms

Based on the need for both component and system-integrated thermal design tools, the development of an advanced heat exchanger modeling package is discussed. Conjugate fluid dynamics and heat transfer simulations are performed in an effort to quantify the boosted performance of microstructured and foam-type heat exchangers. Results are compared to experiment, while predictions are extended into correlations to be implemented within an integrated modeling architecture. Unsteady simulations provide thermal lag comparisons between conventional and emerging devices for use in time-integrated modeling of aircraft systems. Potential benefits, obstacles, and limitations of microstructured heat exchangers are discussed. The task of accelerating the concept initiation to fabrication timeframe within a complex assembly is illustrated through this modeling and integration effort.