As a key device for heat conduction, heat exchangers have penetrated into every corner of modern society, including data centers, ships, factories, and almost all kinds of buildings.

The essential function of such devices is to achieve efficient heat transfer, but at present, due to traditional manufacturing processes, mainstream products still use several standard structures with the lowest cost and simplest processing.

The latest research shows that innovative structures designed through 3D printing technology can make the core components of refrigeration equipment such as air conditioners and refrigerators smaller and more efficient. At present, the research results have been published in the International Journal of Heat and Mass Transfer.

Heat exchangers are one of the core equipment in the industrial economy, and they are an important component of every machine and every energy transmission system, "said William King, the corresponding author of this research paper and a professor at the University of Illinois at Urbana Champaign." Existing designs generally use structures that are easy to process, such as straight lines, right angles, and circular tubes