Patent ID: 7232093

Claim:
A method of cooling a surface comprising: providing a structural plenum bounded by an inner structural member and an outer structural wall; providing a porous layer attached to said outer structural wall exterior to said plenum; providing a semi-permeable layer attached to said porous layer; providing a plurality of openings in said semi-permeable layer; providing openings in said outer structural wall to place said plenum in fluid communication with said porous layer; and providing pressurized air within said plenum, wherein a majority of said pressurized air exits said porous layer through the plurality of openings in said semi-permeable layer, and wherein a portion of said pressurized air transpires through said semi-permeable layer in regions between said openings, said pressurized air that exits through said plurality of openings combines with said portion of pressurized air that transpires through said semi-permeable layer to form a cooling film adjacent to said surface being cooled.