James Colley

At Reaction Engines, James oversees the development of ram-air heat exchangers for zero-emissions aerospace. This includes project Fresson, for which Reaction Engines are supplying ram air radiators and aftercoolers. Before joining Reaction Engines, he worked as a design and simulation engineer for Mercedes AMG High Performance Powertrains, contributing to the development of the record-breaking Project One and has further background in the automotive industry, working in design and systems engineering.

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Presentation

Thermal management: don't let low-grade heat drag you down

Historically, gas turbines reject the majority of their waste heat with their exhaust. Electric aircraft do not have this luxury and yet thermal management is historically considered late in the design process. A key driver of airframe efficiency, a systems approach to thermal management is needed with novel technology pushing the bounds of what can be achieved. Reaction Engines’ expertise and game-changing microtube heat exchangers represent enabling technology for zero-emission aviation. Through case studies, such as Project NEWBORN, Reaction Engines examines the development of these solutions to combat the real thermal management challenges that the industry is facing.