Chapter 1: Fourier Equation and Thermal Conductivity

1.1 . Introduction of Heat Transfer

1.2 . Fouriers law of heat conduction
1.3 . Thermal Conductivity of material
1.4 . General heat conduction equation
(a) Cartesian co-ordinates
(b) Cylindrical co-ordinates
(c) Spherical co-ordinates
(d) General one dimensional conduction equation
1.1 Introduction of Heat Transfer
Heat transfer is a science that studies the energy transfer between two bodies due
to temperature difference. There can be no net heat transfer between two
mediums that are at the same temperature. Basic requirement for heat transfer :
presence of temperature difference .
Note: Heat flow occurs only in the direction of decreasing temperature
The temperature difference is the driving force for heat transfer, just as the voltage
difference is the driving force for electric current flow and pressure difference is the
driving force for fluid flow.
Transfer Driving Force
Current (I) (Ampere) Voltage difference
Fluid flow (Q) (liter) Pressure difference
Heat Flow (Q) (kJ) Temperature Difference
Conduction is the transfer of heat through a solid or from one solid to another.
When you heat a metal strip at one end, the heat travels to the other end.
As you heat the metal, the particles vibrate, these vibrations make the adjacent particles
vibrate, and so on and so on, the vibrations are passed along the metal and so is the heat. We
call this?
http://education.jlab.org/jsat/ [Accessed 13 November 11]
Conduction
Introduction of Heat Transfer (continue)
5
Conduction
HOT
(lots of vibration)
COLD
(not much vibration)
Heat travels
along the rod
When the handle of a spoon stirring a cup of hot
chocolate gets hot, its because of conduction.

How ???????
When the particles of a solid are heated they gain
energy and vibrate more quickly. They bump into
neighbor particles and transfer the energy to them.
Introduction of Heat Transfer (continue)
1.2 Fouriers Law of Heat Transfer
The heat flux is proportional to the
temperature gradient:
(1)
Where k=thermal conductivity (W/mC or
Btu/h ft F)
-- a measure of how fast heat flows through
a material
-- k(T), but we usually use the value at the
average temperature
q can have x, y, and z components; its a
vector quantity
x
hot wall
cold wall
dx
dT
temperature
profile
Q
q k T
A
= = V
dx
dT
k
A
Q
q
dx
dT
A k Q
= =
=

"
.. (2) Fouriers Law
(3) Heat Flux
In most practical situations conduction,
convection, and radiation appear in
combination
1.3 Thermal Conductivity of Material
The heat transfer characteristics of a solid material are measured by a property called
the thermal conductivity (k) measured in W/m.K. It is a measure of a substances
ability to transfer heat through a solid by conduction.

K = Q L / (A T)
Thermal conductivity is defined as the quantity of heat (Q) transmitted through a unit
thickness (L) in a direction normal to a surface of unit area (A) due to a unit
temperature gradient (T) under steady state conditions and when the heat transfer is
dependent only on the temperature gradient.
Note: The thermal conductivity of most liquids and solids varies with temperature.
For vapors, it depends upon pressure.
Thermal conductivity values for various materials at 300 K
Thermal Conductivity of Material (continue)
9
Silver 410 W/m. C 237 Btu/h.ft.F
Copper 385 W/m. C 223 Btu/h.ft.F
Window glass 0.780 W/m. C 0.045 Btu/h.ft.F
Brick 0.720 W/m. C 0.0461
Btu/h.ft.F
Glass wool 0.038 W/m. C 0.022Btu/h.ft.F
Ammonia 0.147 W/m. C 0.085 Btu/h.ft.F
Water 0.556 W/m. C 0.327 Btu/h.ft.F
Hydrogen 0.175 W/m. C 0.101 Btu/h.ft.F
Steam 0.0206 W/m. C 0.0119 Btu/h.ft.F
Air 0.024 W/m. C 0.0138 Btu/h.ft.F
Metals
Nonmetallic
solids
Liquids
Gases
Note: 1 W/(m.K) =1W/(m.
o
C) =0.85984 kcal/(hr.m.
o
C) =0.5779 Btu/(ft.hr.
o
F)

Quantity Text Notation SI Unit English Unit

heat Q Joule (J) Btu
(heat transfer)

heat rate q Watt (W) Btu/hr
(heat transfer rate)
(heat energy rate)
(rate of heat flow)

heat flux q W/m
2
Btu/hr-ft
2

(heat rate per unit area)

heat rate per unit length q W/m Btu/hr-ft

volumetric heat
generation q W/m
3
Btu/hr-ft
3

Heat Quantities
1.4 General Heat Conduction Equation
(a) Cartesian (Rectangular) Coordinates:
Consider a medium within which there is no bulk motion (advection) and the
temperature distribution T(x,y,z) is expressed in Cartesian coordinates.
First define an infinitesimally small (differential or elemental) control volume,
dx.dy.dz, as shown in Fig.
Cartesian Coordinates system (continue)
Conduction Heat Rates
If there are temperature gradients, conduction heat transfer will occur across each
of the control surfaces and the conduction heat rates perpendicular to each of the
control surfaces at the x, y, and z coordinate locations are indicated by the terms
q
x
, q
y
and q
z
respectively.
The conduction heat rates at the opposite surfaces can then be expressed as a
Taylor series expansion with neglecting higher order terms,
dx
x
q
q q
x
x dx x
c
c
+ =
+
dy
y
q
q q
y
y dy y
c
c
+ =
+
dz
z
q
q q
z
z dz z
c
c
+ =
+

(4)
(5)
(6)
Above equations simply states that the x component of the heat transfer rate at
x +dx is equal to the value of this component at x plus the amount by which it
changes with respect to x times dx.
Cartesian Coordinates system (continue)
dxdydz q E
g
- -
=
dxdydz
t
T
p
C
st
E
c
c
=
-

- - - -
= +
st out g in
E E E E
Thermal energy
generation
Energy storage
Conservation of
energy
(7)
(8)
(9)
dxdydz
t
T
C q q q dxdydz q q q q
p dz z dy y dx x z y x
c
c
= + + +
+ + +
-
(10)
From equation (10),
dxdydz
t
T
C dxdydz q dz
z
q
dy
y
q
dx
x
q
p
z
y
x
c
c
= +
c
c

c
c

c
c

(11)
Cartesian Coordinates system (continue)
Where,
z
T
kdxdy q
y
T
kdxdz q
x
T
kdydz q
z
y
x
c
c
=
c
c
=
c
c
=
(12)
(13)
(14)
Net conduction heat flux into the controlled volume,
(15)
// //
dx x x
q q dx
x
T
k
x
+
=
|
.
|

\
|
c
c
c
c
Cartesian Coordinates system (continue)
Heat (Diffusion) Equation: at any point in the medium the rate of energy transfer
by conduction in a unit volume plus the volumetric rate of thermal energy must
equal to the rate of change of thermal energy stored within the volume.
t
T
C q
z
T
k
z y
T
k
y x
T
k
x
P
c
c
= +
|
.
|

\
|
c
c
c
c
+
|
|
.
|

\
|
c
c
c
c
+
|
.
|

\
|
c
c
c
c
-

(16)
Equation (16) is final form of heat conduction equation for rectangular co-ordinates system.
t
T
k
q
z
T
y
T
x
T
c
c
= +
c
c
+
c
c
+
c
c
-

1
2
2
2
2
2
2
If the thermal conductivity (k) is constant.
(17)
Where =k/(C
p
) is the thermal diffusivity i.e. rate of heat diffuse from system
Under steady-state condition, there can be no change in the amount of energy storage.
(18) Poisson's equation 0
2
2
2
2
2
2
= +
c
c
+
c
c
+
c
c
-
k
q
z
T
y
T
x
T
Cartesian Coordinates system (continue)
If the heat transfer is one-dimensional, steady state and there is no energy
generation, the above equation reduces to
(21)
If the no heat generation in volume,
(19)
Fourier's equation
If steady state heat conduction with no heat generation in volume,
t
T
z
T
y
T
x
T
c
c
=
c
c
+
c
c
+
c
c

1
2
2
2
2
2
2
0
2
2
2
2
2
2
=
c
c
+
c
c
+
c
c
z
T
y
T
x
T
(20)
0
2
2
=
c
c
x
T
Laplace's
equation
(b) Cylindrical Coordinates:
2
1 1
p
T T T T
kr k k q c
r r r z z t
r

f f
| | c c c c c c c
| | | |
+ + + =
| | |
c c c c c c c
\ . \ .
\ .

(22)
(c) Spherical Coordinates:
2
2 2 2 2
1 1 1
sin
sin sin
p
T T T T
kr k k q c
r r t
r r r
q
f f q q
q q
| | c c c c c c c
| | | |
+ + + =
| | |
c c c c c c c
\ . \ .
\ .

(23)
(c) General one dimensional conduction equation:
1
p
n
n
C
T q T
X
X X k k t
X

-
c c c
| |
+ =
|
c c c
\ .
Coordinate
system
X value n value
Cartesian X=x 0
Cylindrical X=r 1
Spherical X=r 2
(24)
In compact form,