2.343 → 2.577 MW
TOPOHX COMPUTATIONAL DESIGN
Two-Fluid
Topology Optimization.
Better heat-exchanger geometries. Designed by physics. What if a simulation could help discover the geometry itself—rather than simply evaluate a channel arrangement chosen in advance?
topoHX is an engineering optimization technology developed by Helicon Consulting. It combines CFD, heat transfer and numerical sensitivities to explore how fluid passages and solid material should be distributed within a design space. The numerical methodology is operational; industrial validation is the next development milestone.
01 / OPTIMIZATION IN ACTIONGEOMETRY + THERMAL-HYDRAULIC HISTORY
INTERACTIVE RESEARCH VISUALIZATION
Watch the geometry evolve.
Follow the performance.
Explore the geometry evolution and the complete 149-state Q and pressure-drop histories using a shared playback timeline. Red and blue distinguish the two fluid regions.
TOPOLOGY EVOLUTION / VISUAL COMPARISONITERATION / 148
01 / GEOMETRY EVOLUTIONOPTIMIZATION PROGRESSION
Fluid region A Fluid region BTwo-fluid design evolution
02 / OPTIMIZATION HISTORY149 ACTUAL DATA POINTS
Heat-transfer rate Q MW
Pressure drop Δp Hot ColdkPa
INITIAL STATEFINAL RECORDED STATE
DESIGN STATE0 / 148
HEAT TRANSFER2.343 MW
HOT-SIDE Δp757.1 kPa
COLD-SIDE Δp995.4 kPa
Optimization progression. Explore the evolving two-fluid geometry together with the complete, original 149-state heat-transfer and pressure-loss histories. All Q and Δp data points are preserved from the numerical campaign.
02 / THE ENGINEERING CONCEPT
From predefined channels
to an evolving design space.
Conventional heat-exchanger development begins with a proposed arrangement of channels and walls. Engineers simulate it, modify the geometry and repeat.
topoHX explores a different possibility: treating the distribution of solid material and fluid passages as design variables inside a prescribed region. Flow and thermal equations are repeatedly solved, the design is evaluated, and adjoint-based sensitivities guide further changes.
This makes it possible to explore configurations beyond variations of a channel layout selected in advance. Operating conditions, performance objectives and engineering constraints guide the emerging topology.
THE CENTRAL IDEAOptimize the layout itself—not only the dimensions of a layout someone already drew.
03 / RECORDED NUMERICAL RESULTS
149 design states.
Three evolving objectives.
The two-fluid campaign used approximately 100,000 computational cells and recorded 149 design states, capturing how thermal and hydraulic performance evolved.
757 → 178 kPa
995 → 89.5 kPa
The numerical optimization developed higher heat transfer while reducing the recorded pressure-loss metrics in both modeled fluid streams. The charts present the complete simulation history and its final design objectives.
04 / THE NEXT CHALLENGE
The algorithms work.
Now scale the resolution.
The initial 100,000-cell demonstration established the optimization workflow. The next engineering phase targets refined geometry, higher resolution, and repeated coupled flow, thermal and sensitivity solves.
Uniform refinement scaling: 100K → 800K → 6.4M cells. Production studies will combine increased resolution with targeted local refinement.
3.2×
Measured eight-core speedupThe modern topoHX cold-plate implementation achieved approximately 3.2× speedup over serial execution in an eight-core MPI benchmark, establishing the basis for larger parallel campaigns.
The development roadmap combines multicore computing, high-memory simulation, and engineering validation.
05 / ENGINEERING VALIDATION
A useful design must
also be physically realizable.
Engineering qualification connects optimized flow paths with resolved channels, solid walls, and detailed thermal-hydraulic predictions.
DEMONSTRATED
Topology optimization
Coupled two-fluid optimization history, connected modeled fluid paths, recorded thermal-hydraulic trends, and a more extensively developed single-fluid cold-plate solver with verified numerical components.
DEVELOPMENT PRIORITIES
Engineering validation
Explicit hot/solid/cold geometry, resolved wall and channel dimensions, manufacturing feasibility, mesh refinement, and independent sharp-interface CFD confirmation.
The newer cold-plate campaign has completed 408 accepted updates beyond B31, recording a 37.2 K reduction in calculated maximum temperature and a quantifiable hydraulic trade-off. Together, the two programmes support development of the broader topoHX technology.
06 / APPLICATION AREAS
Where geometry matters.
Specialized thermal-fluid systems where conventional layouts may limit performance, integration or available design space.
Compact heat exchangers
Exploring unconventional distributions of fluid passages and conductive material.
Electronics cooling
Channel concepts within tightly constrained cold plates and power-electronics assemblies.
Fluid manifolds
Optimizing internal flow distribution and hydraulic resistance in compact networks.
Integrated thermal equipment
Application-specific internal geometry for space-constrained industrial components.
topoHX targets application-specific thermal-fluid systems where flexible channel design and automated numerical optimization can create new engineering options.
07 / FOR TECHNICAL READERS
Behind the numerical method.
Key numerical methods and engineering development capabilities.
METHOD NOTESView formulation and current status
- Flow physics
- Separate incompressible flow equations for two modeled streams in a single-mesh Brinkman material formulation.
- Thermal physics
- Coupled phase-weighted energy calculation with a development path toward explicit solid/fluid interfaces.
- Optimization
- Continuous material distributions, level-set evolution and pressure-drop objectives/constraints.
- Sensitivities
- Adjoint-based numerical methods, sensitivity calculations, and numerical component verification.
- Computational budget
- Historical ~100K-cell two-fluid campaign; cold-plate solver benchmarked on eight MPI ranks; refined meshes planned for the next stage.
- Manufacturing
- Minimum wall and channel dimensions, phase separation, and geometry reconstruction are central engineering development objectives.
- Result interpretation
- Recorded Q and Δp histories support comparison of thermal-hydraulic objectives as the optimized topology evolves.
08 / TECHNOLOGY DEVELOPMENT & PARTNERSHIPS
From numerical innovation
to industrial engineering.
topoHX has progressed beyond the concept stage, with working optimization algorithms, demonstrated design evolution, and an expanding numerical verification framework.
The next phase focuses on scaling computational capabilities, independently validating optimized geometries, and demonstrating their value in industrial applications.
Helicon Consulting is exploring seed investment and industrial development partnerships to accelerate this transition.
We welcome discussions with investors and engineering organizations interested in the commercial potential of physics-driven design optimization.
topoHX · Thermal-fluid design optimization · Helicon Consulting