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Analysis of institutional authors

Sanchez, PsCorresponding AuthorKachalov, AbAuthorPorter, JAuthorSimavilla, AlAuthor

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January 1, 2026
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A Laboratory Set-Up for Hands-On Learning of Heat Transfer Principles in Aerospace Engineering Education

Publicated to: Thermo. 5 (4): 45- - 2025-10-30 5(4), DOI: 10.3390/thermo5040045

Authors:

Salgado Sanchez, Pablo; Lebron, Antonio Rosado; Borshchak Kachalov, Andriy; Oviedo, Alvaro; Porter, Jeff; Laveron Simavilla, Ana
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Affiliations

Univ Politecn Madrid, Escuela Tecn Super Ingn Aeronaut & Espacio, Spanish User Support & Operat Ctr E USOC, Pl Cardenal Cisneros 3 - Author

Abstract

This paper describes a laboratory set-up designed to support hands-on learning of heat transfer principles in aerospace engineering education. Developed within the framework of experiential and project-based learning, the set-up enables students to experimentally characterize the convective coefficient of a cooling fan and the thermo-optical properties of aluminum plates with different surface coatings, specifically their absorptivity and emissivity. A custom-built, LED-based radiation source (the ESAT Sun simulator) and a calibrated temperature acquisition system are used to emulate and monitor radiative heating under controlled conditions. Simplified physical models are developed for both the ESAT Sun simulator and the plates that capture the dominant thermal dynamics via first-order energy balances. The laboratory workflow includes real-time data acquisition, curve fitting, and thermal model inversion to estimate the convective and thermo-optical coefficients. The results demonstrate good agreement between the model predictions and observed temperatures, which supports the suitability of the set-up for education. The proposed activities can strengthen the student's understanding of convective and radiative heat transport in aerospace applications while also fostering skills in data analysis, physical and numerical reasoning, and system-level thinking. Opportunities exist to expand the material library, refine the physical modeling, and evaluate the long-term pedagogical impact of the educational set-up described here.
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Keywords

Active learningAerospace educationDesignEquationsHands-on learningThermal control

Quality index

Bibliometric impact. Analysis of the contribution and dissemination channel

The work has been published in the journal Thermo due to its progression and the good impact it has achieved in recent years, according to the agency WoS (JCR), it has become a reference in its field. In the year of publication of the work, 2025, it was in position 34/79, thus managing to position itself as a Q2 (Segundo Cuartil), in the category Thermodynamics. Notably, the journal is positioned en el Cuartil Q2 para la agencia Scopus (SJR) en la categoría Engineering (Miscellaneous).

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Impact and social visibility

From the perspective of influence or social adoption, and based on metrics associated with mentions and interactions provided by agencies specializing in calculating the so-called "Alternative or Social Metrics," we can highlight as of 2026-04-24:

  • The use of this contribution in bookmarks, code forks, additions to favorite lists for recurrent reading, as well as general views, indicates that someone is using the publication as a basis for their current work. This may be a notable indicator of future more formal and academic citations. This claim is supported by the result of the "Capture" indicator, which yields a total of: 2 (PlumX).

With a more dissemination-oriented intent and targeting more general audiences, we can observe other more global scores such as:

    It is essential to present evidence supporting full alignment with institutional principles and guidelines on Open Science and the Conservation and Dissemination of Intellectual Heritage. A clear example of this is:

    • The work has been submitted to a journal whose editorial policy allows open Open Access publication.
    • Assignment of a Handle/URN as an identifier within the deposit in the Institutional Repository: https://oa.upm.es/94846/

    As a result of the publication of the work in the institutional repository, statistical usage data has been obtained that reflects its impact. In terms of dissemination, we can state that, as of

    • Views: 18
    • Downloads: 7
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    Leadership analysis of institutional authors

    There is a significant leadership presence as some of the institution’s authors appear as the first or last signer, detailed as follows: First Author (SALGADO SANCHEZ, PABLO) and Last Author (LAVERON SIMAVILLA, ANA).

    the author responsible for correspondence tasks has been SALGADO SANCHEZ, PABLO.

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