Heat Exchangers in the Aviation Engineering

Heat exchangers are crucial in thermal science and engineering because of their essential role across the landscape of technology, from geothermal and fossil power generation to refrigeration, desalination, and air conditioning. In the aviation engineering, they have a fundamental role especially in reducing the temperatures of the fuel and thus increasing the efficiency of the aircraft engines. The literature on aviation heat exchangers is voluminous and continues to be updated today. Two main aspects of this class of flow systems are widely investigated: fluid flow and heat transfer performances, and criteria for evaluating those performances. In addition, the need of a smart and light equipment to be used inside a transport system is ever and ever felt. This requires a particular attention in the selection of components, for example in the engine zone, not only to reduce the weight but also to improve the whole heat transfer efficiency. With this aim, engineers focus their attention on new materials, for example porous materials, that recently have attracted researchers. The design process may be considered the heart of engineering. In this chapter, we will explore methods for the design or the choice of heat exchangers and list some practical case studies