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Aerospace
Special Issues
Aerospace Vehicle Optimization: Design Innovations, Thermal Management, and Practical Applications
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Aerospace Vehicle Optimization: Design Innovations, Thermal Management, and Practical Applications

A special issue of Aerospace (ISSN 2226-4310).

Deadline for manuscript submissions: 31 January 2026 | Viewed by 926

Special Issue Editor

Dr. Yu Xu

E-Mail Website
Guest Editor
Key Laboratory of Aircraft Environment Control and Life Support, MIIT, Nanjing University of Aeronautics and Astronautics, 29 Yudao St., Nanjing 210016, China
Interests: aircraft environmental control and thermal management; enhanced heat exchange technology and applications; new refrigeration technology and applications; gas–liquid–solid phase conversion thermal technology
Special Issues, Collections and Topics in MDPI journals

Special Issue Information

Dear Colleagues,

This Special Issue is devoted to the latest advancements in aerospace vehicle optimization, particularly focusing on design methodologies, thermal management strategies, and their practical applications. As the aerospace industry progresses toward more complex missions and increasingly stringent performance requirements, innovation in both design and thermal management has become a critical driver of technological advancement. In design optimization, Multidisciplinary Optimization (MDO) integrates aerodynamics, structural engineering, and materials science, employing advanced algorithms to identify optimal solutions. Aerodynamic layout refinement reduces drag, while structural topology optimization enables lightweight design. The incorporation of novel materials, such as carbon fiber composites, further enhances overall performance. Effective thermal management is essential for ensuring the reliable operation of aerospace vehicles under extreme conditions. Liquid cooling systems circulate coolant fluids, such as water–glycol mixtures or dielectric liquids, to dissipate heat from high-temperature components in aircraft engines and avionics systems. Two-phase flow heat transfer leverages the latent heat of phase changes, with two-phase loops enabling efficient long-distance heat transfer in spacecraft and microchannel heat sinks that manage high-heat fluxes. Phase change materials (PCMs), including paraffin-based substances, absorb and release latent heat during phase transitions to stabilize temperatures and are integrated into electronic enclosures and thermal protection systems. For hydrogen-related components, PCMs can help regulate the temperature of hydrogen storage tanks, preventing excessive evaporation and ensuring a stable fuel supply. Hybrid PCM-enhanced heat exchangers combine heat storage and transfer capabilities, supporting reliable operation across diverse aerospace applications, particularly in advanced propulsion systems. This Special Issue invites researchers from around the world to contribute original research, innovative technologies, and practical applications related to aerospace vehicle optimization.

Dr. Yu Xu
Guest Editor

Manuscript Submission Information

Manuscripts should be submitted online at www.mdpi.com by registering and logging in to this website. Once you are registered, click here to go to the submission form. Manuscripts can be submitted until the deadline. All submissions that pass pre-check are peer-reviewed. Accepted papers will be published continuously in the journal (as soon as accepted) and will be listed together on the special issue website. Research articles, review articles as well as short communications are invited. For planned papers, a title and short abstract (about 250 words) can be sent to the Editorial Office for assessment.

Submitted manuscripts should not have been published previously, nor be under consideration for publication elsewhere (except conference proceedings papers). All manuscripts are thoroughly refereed through a single-blind peer-review process. A guide for authors and other relevant information for submission of manuscripts is available on the Instructions for Authors page. Aerospace is an international peer-reviewed open access monthly journal published by MDPI.

Please visit the Instructions for Authors page before submitting a manuscript. The Article Processing Charge (APC) for publication in this open access journal is 2400 CHF (Swiss Francs). Submitted papers should be well formatted and use good English. Authors may use MDPI's English editing service prior to publication or during author revisions.

Keywords

  • aerospace vehicle optimization
  • design methodologies
  • multidisciplinary optimization
  • thermal management
  • liquid cooling
  • two-phase flow heat transfer
  • phase change material
  • hydrogen
  • heat exchanger

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Published Papers (1 paper)

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Research

21 pages, 9262 KB  
Article
Experimental Investigation on Melting Heat Transfer Characteristics of Microencapsulated Phase Change Material Slurry Under Stirring
by Zhaohao Xu, Minjie Wu and Yu Xu
Aerospace 2025, 12(10), 868; https://doi.org/10.3390/aerospace12100868 - 26 Sep 2025
Viewed by 603
Abstract
As avionics advance, heat dissipation becomes more challenging. Microencapsulated phase change material slurry (MPCMS), with its latent heat transfer properties, offers a potential solution. However, the low thermal conductivity of microencapsulated phase change material (MPCM) limits heat transfer rates, and most studies focus [...] Read more.
As avionics advance, heat dissipation becomes more challenging. Microencapsulated phase change material slurry (MPCMS), with its latent heat transfer properties, offers a potential solution. However, the low thermal conductivity of microencapsulated phase change material (MPCM) limits heat transfer rates, and most studies focus on improving conductivity, with little attention given to convective enhancement. This study prepared MPCMS with an MPCM mass fraction (Wm) of 10% and 20%, investigating melting heat transfer under mechanical stirring at 0–800 RPM and heat fluxes of 8.5–17.0 kW/m2. Stirring significantly alters MPCMS heat transfer behavior. As rotational speed increases, both wall-to-slurry and internal temperature differences decrease. Stirring extends the time at which the heating wall temperature (Tw) stays below a threshold. For example, at Wm = 10% MPCM and 8.50 kW/m2, increasing speed from 0 to 800 RPM raises the holding time below 70 °C by 169.6%. The effect of MPCM mass fraction on heat transfer under stirring is complex: at 0 RPM, 0% > 10% > 20%; at 400 RPM, 10% > 0% > 20%; and at 800 RPM, 10% > 20% > 0%. This is because as Wm increases, the latent heat and volume expansion coefficients of MPCMS rise, promoting heat transfer, while viscosity and thermal conductivity decrease, hindering it. At 0 RPM, the net effect is negative even at Wm = 10%. Stirring enhances internal convection and significantly improves heat transfer. At 400 RPM, heat transfer is positive at Wm = 10% but still negative at Wm = 20%. At 800 RPM, both Wm levels show positive effects, with slightly better performance at Wm = 10%. In addition, at the same heat flux, higher speeds maintain Tw below a threshold longer. Overall, stirring improves MPCMS cooling performance, offering an effective means of convective enhancement for avionics thermal management. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Aerospace Vehicle Optimization: Design Innovations, Thermal Management, and Practical Applications)
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