Thermo-hydraulic performance of a cryogenic printed circuit heat exchanger for liquid air energy storage

•The nature of local flow and heat transfer was analyzed using vortex identification.•The reverse flow suppresses local heat transfer and increases the flow resistance.•The air side has larger thermal resistance (∼58 %) in the absence of phase change.•The best comprehensive performance can be achieved at an inclined angle of 45°.•The pressure drop and heat transfer correlations for the best angle were developed.