Engineers on the College of Wisconsin-Madison have created a warmth exchanger with complicated inner channels that outperforms conventional designs. The crew used topology optimization to develop twisting fluid pathways that improved warmth switch effectivity. This progressive design was then manufactured utilizing laser powder mattress fusion, a steel 3D printing method.
“Historically, warmth exchangers stream scorching fluid and chilly fluid by means of straight pipes, primarily as a result of straight pipes are simple to fabricate,” says Xiaoping Qian, a professor of mechanical engineering at UW-Madison. “However straight pipes are usually not essentially the most effective geometry for transferring warmth between cold and warm fluids.”
Testing confirmed the optimized design achieved 27% increased energy density in comparison with typical straight channel designs. This enchancment permits for extra compact and lighter warmth exchangers, significantly beneficial in aerospace and aviation functions. The crew printed their findings within the June 1, 2025 challenge of the Worldwide Journal of Warmth and Mass Switch.
The analysis stands out as a result of it efficiently bridges computational design and sensible manufacturing. The crew carried out a patented method referred to as projected undercut perimeter that ensures complicated designs stay manufacturable. Professor Qian famous this sensible focus: “Optimizing design on the pc is one factor, however to really make and check it’s a very completely different factor.”
Excessive-temperature warmth exchangers are important parts in lots of applied sciences, together with aerospace, energy era, and industrial processes. This work demonstrates how additive manufacturing allows extra environment friendly designs that have been beforehand inconceivable to supply with conventional manufacturing strategies.
Supply: engineering.wisc.edu
