The present study aims to develop a novel cross-corrugated primary surface for an intercooler in an aero-engine. Cross-corrugated primary surface heat exchangers are proposed for such applications due to their relatively high "volume goodness" and thus the potential for light weight designs. In the present study, modified primary surface geometries were analyzed using three-dimensional numerical simulation. The fully developed airflow in a cross-corrugated matrix unit cell was modeled with a low-Reynolds number k-epsilon turbulence model using steady incompressible Reynolds-Averaged Navier-Stokes (RANS) equations. The numerical approach was validated against experimental data for conventional cross-corrugated surfaces. The calculated pressure drop and heat transfer capacity of the novel surfaces were assessed in terms of the Fanning friction factor and Nusselt number while the overall performance was estimated using the volume and area goodness factors. Finally, the investigation on the pressure loss mechanism was achieved through a simplified analysis of the entropy generation. (C) 2012 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.