Computational Design and Full-Scale Experimental Demonstration of a PCM Heat Exchanger for the Joint Strike Fighter

The thermal management system in the Joint Strike Fighter is sufficient for most flight modes, but in some scenarios where waste heat from avionics and electronics is substantial, and coolant temperature is high, electronics can become overheated. In contrast, during other flight modes, the coolant flow and temperature is such that there is excess cooling capacity available. It is therefore necessary to implement a system that can store the excess heat during the unfavorable flight modes and reject it during favorable modes. Mainstream recently completed a highly successful Phase I that resulted in an experimentally validated finite element (FE) model for the design of phase-change material heat exchangers (PCM-HX). Furthermore, Mainstream"s novel concept for heat distribution and thermal expansion within the PCM-HX was validated experimentally via extensive thermal cycling (over 2800 thermal cycles were demonstrated), vibrational testing, and thorough comparison to alternative materials. In Phase II, Mainstream will utilize the developed FE model to design a full-scale PCM-HX for the JSF. The full scale PCM-HX will be fabricated and tested extensively to verify performance. At the conclusion of Phase II, we will deliver a drop-in production-ready PCM-HX solution for the JSF system of interest.