Development of Rib-to-Baffle configurations for enhanced thermo-hydraulic performance in adaptive latticework heat exchangers

Conventional heat exchangers exhibit excessive pressure losses and lack thermal adaptability under off-design conditions, prompting the development of adaptive latticework heat exchangers (ALHE). While ALHE addresses this regulatory deficit, their rib-based designs constrain flow coupling between the channel walls and the internal fluid. This research introduces an innovative baffle structure to overcome the limitations of ribs and enhance wall-fluid interactions. Through integrated experimental and computational methods, we rigorously compared the thermal–hydraulic performance of rib and baffle structures. The results demonstrate that the baffle outperforms the rib design, with heat transfer and flow resistance regulation coefficients reaching 3.485 and 12.909, respectively, at a flow rate of 426.29 kg/h, exceeding the rib performance by 99.88 % and 280.23 %. The baffle achieved a peak performance factor of 2.635 at ΔX (SMA warpage values) = 0.6 D_h (hydraulic diameter) and Re = 2500, outperforming ribs across all warpage values. Crucially, baffle-induced flow acceleration generated significant velocity enhancements, with transverse (X-direction) velocity surpassing that of the ribs by 29.48 % at ΔX = 0.2 D_h, while longitudinal (Z-direction) velocity exceeded that of the ribs by 79.49 % at ΔX = 0.6 D_h. Maximum velocity improvements occurred at ΔX = D_h, with transverse velocity increasing by 89.64 % and longitudinal velocity surging by 738.24 % compared to the rib structure. This study concludes that the baffle structure significantly optimizes flow coupling, substantially enhancing thermal–hydraulic performance and establishing a critical foundation for the application of ALHE in the aerospace sector.