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About Me
Hi, I’m Hiwa Najafi (officially Hasan Najafi Khaboshan). A passionate mechanical engineer with expertise in fluid dynamics, heat transfer enhancement techniques, computational fluid dynamics (CFD), lithium-ion batteries, and thermal analysis. My work focuses on applications in advanced thermal management systems for electric vehicles (EVs), automobiles, HVAC systems, and electronic devices.
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Skills
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Work Experiences
Present
Research Collaborator at University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign – USA ()
Collaborated with The Energy Transport Research Lab to develop a hybrid battery pack integrating phase change material, metal foam, and counterflow minichannels for enhanced thermal uniformity. Modeled lithium-ion battery heat generation using a detailed electrochemical–thermal model, and developed a high-fidelity equivalent circuit model (ECM) based on HPPC testing to simulate the electrical and thermal behavior of prismatic lithium-ion batteries.
Collaborated with The Energy Transport Research Lab to develop a hybrid battery pack integrating phase change material, metal foam, and counterflow minichannels for enhanced thermal uniformity. Modeled lithium-ion battery heat generation using a detailed electrochemical–thermal model, and developed a high-fidelity equivalent circuit model (ECM) based on HPPC testing to simulate the electrical and thermal behavior of prismatic lithium-ion batteries.
2024
Graduate Research Assistant at Universiti Malaysia Pahang – Malaysia
Improved the thermal management of a cylindrical lithium-ion battery by modeling phase change material (PCM) with the enthalpy-porosity method and a non-equilibrium thermal model for PCM and metal foam interactions. Developed and trained an artificial neural network (ANN) in Python to predict battery temperature and PCM liquid fraction, using a structured multizone hexahedral mesh generated with the blocking technique.
Improved the thermal management of a cylindrical lithium-ion battery by modeling phase change material (PCM) with the enthalpy-porosity method and a non-equilibrium thermal model for PCM and metal foam interactions. Developed and trained an artificial neural network (ANN) in Python to predict battery temperature and PCM liquid fraction, using a structured multizone hexahedral mesh generated with the blocking technique.
2021
Automotive Climate Control Engineer at CROUSE – Iran
As an engineer in Climate Control System Department, I worked on designing and improving the automotive climate control and HVAC unit systems for vehicles and preparing all documents of parts including the 2D/3D draft, test plans, test reports, CFD simulation reports, quality assurance forms, etc.
As an engineer in Climate Control System Department, I worked on designing and improving the automotive climate control and HVAC unit systems for vehicles and preparing all documents of parts including the 2D/3D draft, test plans, test reports, CFD simulation reports, quality assurance forms, etc.
2021
R&D Manager and HVAC Mechanical Engineer at DUCTINO – Iran
Designed and improved the DUCTINO ducted split system and supervised HVAC duct installations for residential and commercial air conditioning projects, ensuring quality and compliance with project requirements. Prepared mechanical and electrical installation documents, calculated cooling and heating capacity to select appropriate HVAC systems, and developed technical content and articles to enhance the company’s website and online visibility.
Designed and improved the DUCTINO ducted split system and supervised HVAC duct installations for residential and commercial air conditioning projects, ensuring quality and compliance with project requirements. Prepared mechanical and electrical installation documents, calculated cooling and heating capacity to select appropriate HVAC systems, and developed technical content and articles to enhance the company’s website and online visibility.
2018
Graduate Research Assistant at Imam Khomeini International University – Iran
Evaluated the performance of two-equation turbulence models and conducted nanofluid flow analysis in tube heat exchangers using a two-phase mixture model in Ansys Fluent, enhanced by a user-defined function (UDF) for nanofluid property modeling. Additionally, developed User-Defined Scalar (UDS) and User-Defined Memory (UDM) code to analyze the effect of a non-uniform magnetic field on forced convection heat transfer.
Evaluated the performance of two-equation turbulence models and conducted nanofluid flow analysis in tube heat exchangers using a two-phase mixture model in Ansys Fluent, enhanced by a user-defined function (UDF) for nanofluid property modeling. Additionally, developed User-Defined Scalar (UDS) and User-Defined Memory (UDM) code to analyze the effect of a non-uniform magnetic field on forced convection heat transfer.
2016
HVAC Senior Technical Expert at Atlantic Air Conditioning – Iran
Designed duct systems and pipeline branches for the installation of LG air conditioning systems.
Designed duct systems and pipeline branches for the installation of LG air conditioning systems.
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Education
2024
MSc in Mechanical Engineering – Thermal Engineering
Universiti Malaysia Pahang – Malaysia
Universiti Malaysia Pahang – Malaysia
2017
MSc in Mechanical Engineering – Energy Conversion
Imam Khomeini International University – Iran
Imam Khomeini International University – Iran
2015
BS in Mechanical Engineering
Parsian Institute of Higher Education – Iran
Parsian Institute of Higher Education – Iran
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Awards
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Selected Articles in Journals
- E. Yousefi, D. Ramasamy, K. Kadirgama, V. Talele, H. Najafi, M. Olyaei, N. Miljkovic, S. Panchal, “Electrochemical-thermal modeling of phase change material battery thermal management systems: investigating mesh types for accurate simulations,” Int. J. Heat. Mass Transf., 2025. link to paper
- H. Najafi Khaboshan, K. Kadirgama, D. Ramasamy, V. Talele, P. Zhao, H. Tyagi, N. Miljkovic, “Thermal uniformity analysis of a hybrid battery pack using integrated phase change material, metal foam, and counterflow minichannels,” Appl. Therm. Eng., 2025. link to paper
- H. Najafi Khaboshan, F. Jaliliantabar, A. A. Abdullah, S. Panchal, A. Azarinia, “Parametric investigation of battery thermal management system with phase change material, metal foam, and fins; utilizing CFD and ANN models,” Appl. Therm. Eng., 2024. link to paper
- V. Talele, U. Moralı, H. Najafi Khaboshan, M. S. Patil, S. Panchal, R. Fraser, M. Fowler, “Improving battery safety by utilizing composite phase change material to delay the occurrence of thermal runaway event,” Int. Commun. Heat Mass Transf., 2024. link to paper
- H. Najafi Khaboshan, F. Jaliliantabar, A. A. Abdullah, S. Panchal, “Improving the cooling performance of cylindrical lithium-ion battery using three passive methods in a battery thermal management system,” Appl. Therm. Eng., 2023. link to paper
- E. Yousefi, H. R. Nazif, H. Najafi Khaboshan, A. Azarinia, “Non-uniform magnetic field effect on forced convection heat transfer of flattened tubes using two-phase mixture model,” Heat Transfer Eng., 2021. link to paper
- H. Najafi Khaboshan, H. R. Nazif, “Entropy generation analysis of convective turbulent flow in alternating elliptical axis tubes with different angles between pitches; a numerical investigation,” Heat Mass Transfer, 2019. link to paper
- H. Najafi Khaboshan, H. R. Nazif, “The effect of multi-longitudinal vortex generation on turbulent convective heat transfer within alternating elliptical axis tubes with various alternative angles,” Case Stud. Therm. Eng., 2018. link to paper
- H. Najafi Khaboshan, H. R. Nazif, “Investigation of heat transfer and pressure drop of turbulent flow in tubes with successive alternating wall deformation under constant wall temperature boundary conditions,” J. Braz. Soc. Mech. Sci. Eng., 2018. link to paper
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