Additive Manufacturing of Lattice Structures for Heat Transfer Enhancement in Pipe Flow

Additive manufacturing has added a new dimension to manufacturing technology. The Design for Additive Manufacturing (DFAM) principles provide guidelines for successful 3D printing. Several industrial applications utilize the cellular structures in AM for design improvement by light weighting, topology optimization, etc. Self-supporting behavior is the most desired characteristic for DFAM of cellular structures. In the present work, gyroid, star kagome and BCC cellular structures are evaluated for self-supporting behavior using Materialize Magics software. The lattice designs of different sizes are 3D printed and visually examined for defects. The lattice designs are introduced into a smooth circular pipe. Conjugate heat transfer analysis is done for different Reynolds numbers (1193–10736) using FloEFD to study heat transfer and pressure drop characteristics. All the lattice designs show heat transfer enhancement and higher pressure drop with respect to smooth pipe. Among all lattice designs, gyroid shows the highest heat transfer enhancement and highest pressure drop.