Heat transfer specialistConflux Technologyhas announced the commercial launch of its first pre-designed 3D printed product.
建在Conflux先前的热交换器研发的背面水电空气冷却器or ‘WCAC,’ is designed to cool the air that enters the turbos used to boost some cars’ engines. Utilizing 3D printing, it’s said that the firm is able to not just optimize the device’s weight and performance, but to scale its dimensions in a way that allows it to slot into the existing designs of high-end automotive manufacturers.
“ Conflux WCAC体现了我们如何交付Motorsport和Elite Auto Makers的要求 - 最终的性能优势，” Furnux新的首席产品官Dan Woodford解释说。“产品已迅速配置为我们客户对性能，尺寸和包装要求的优先级。我可以让我们以较低的交货时间和竞争价格提供WCAC。”
Conflux’s ‘productization’ shift
使用3D打印用于热和流体管理应用的专家，Conflux成立于2017年by engineer Michael Fuller. Using the knowledge accrued during his time working in F1, the World Rally Championship and Le Mans motor racing, Fuller and his firm are now seeking to disrupt a heat exchanger market it values at $16.6 billion.
At present, Conflux offers a range of application development, design, prototyping and low volume-production services, via its suite of powder bed fusion systems. The company’s 3D printing capabilities are also backed by its computational heat transfer simulations, which enable the creation of optimized heat exchangers, with automotive, aerospace and defense applications, amongst others.
自从获得AM Ventures的初步投资five years ago, Conflux has managed to raise a further $8.5 million (AUD) to fund its R&D ambitions. In one recent initiative, the company hasbegun using the ‘Synchrotron’ particle acceleratorto inspect its parts at a sub-macroscopic level, while in another, it has teamed up withDeakin Universityto developnovel 3D printing aluminums。
就在上个月，Conflux还公布了partnership with GKN Aerospacethat will see the latter’s technology used to 3D print heat exchangers for European clients. However, with the launch of its WCAC, the company has announced a significant shift away from its traditional service-driven model, and into a product-driven one, in a step it considers to be the first in an “ongoing productization strategy.”
“我真的兴奋的产品路线图Conflux Technology’s AM heat exchangers,” adds Woodford. “The team has made significant strides developing in-house tools that deliver very high performance without compromising quality. I am really proud of everyone at Conflux for launching the next phase of our business with the WCAC product line.”
“Conflux has aggregated our expertise in first principles calculations, core engineering design and additive manufacturing into a set of tools that can rapidly inform a solution.”
A turbocharger-cooling device debut
In effect, a charge air-cooler is a device often deployed between the compressor and engine inlet valve of a performance vehicle, which uses a liquid to cool the hot air being ejected by its turbocharger. Often cited as a more efficient alternative to traditional air-to-air intercoolers, such devices can also be used in pursuit of performance, as a means of pumping higher density air into the engine bay.
Drawing on its long-established expertise in heat exchanger development, Conflux is now aiming to optimize this process, by developing its own air-cooling device that outperforms existing products. Compared to current microtube WCACs, the firm’s is said to feature a 15% smaller core volume, while enabling a reduction of 24% and 82% respectively, when it comes to air-side and coolant pressure drops.
此外，利用3D打印，Conflux表示，它能够以一种可以为用户车辆的自定义边界条件，性能和包装要求配置的方式生产其WCAC。考虑到这一点，该公司正在向赛车和高端汽车客户开放该设备，而在最近的贸易展览会上，这些设备很快就可以对其进行补充。
“Customers were commenting on both the detail of the parts and the surface finish,” says Ben Batagol, Conflux’s Head of Business Development. “They couldn’t believe the level of detail within the WCAC and how it was designed. It solidified their understanding that Conflux is a long way ahead of our competitors with what we showcased.”
“客户对我们的工程师设计的一部分将复杂的AM几何形状嵌入到生产准备就绪的WCAC中时感到惊讶和难以置信。”
Advancing heat exchanger 3D printing
Conflux has no doubt put itself at the cutting edge of heat exchanger design, but it’s far from the only firm using 3D printing in this area. Late last year,3D Metalforge还揭示了它已设法生产和ship 3D printed heat exchanger parts to Shell。Installed at Shell’s site on Jurong Island, the durability-enhanced components have essentially helped minimize equipment downtime there.
在University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign同时，研究人员已使用3D打印将热交换器的性能提高高达2000％。为做到这一点,团队开发了their own purpose-built design software with topology optimization functionality. The program effectively optimizes existing heat exchanger designs to maximize heat transfer while minimizing part weight.
过去，GE研究have also worked with colleagues at theUniversity of MarylandandOak Ridge National Laboratoryto 3D print aheat exchanger that’s resistant to temperatures of up to 900°C。该设备具有独特的类似葡萄的几何形状，为其提供了超过200°C以上的最先进设备所需的极端热和压力阻力。
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特色图片显示了一个图表，描绘了Conflux的新水电空气冷却器的工作方式。通过Conflux技术图像。
