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Vol. 13, pp. 11-21, 1986 Pergamon Press Ltd. Printed in the United States

HEAT CONDUCTION IN A PACKED BED WITH WALL EFFECTS

P. Cheng
Department of Mechanical Engineering
University of Hawaii at Manoa
Honolulu, HI 96822

(Ct,~,L~unicated by J.P. Hartnett and W.J. Minkow~cz)

ABSTRACT
The nonuniform porosity effect (wall effect) on steady one-dimensional
heat conduction in a packed bed between parallel plates, concentric
cylinders and concentric spheres at different temperatures is consid-
ered in this paper. The heat conduction characteristics in the bed is
shown to be a function of Y (the ratio of particle diameter to the
characteristic length of the geometry) and X (the ratio of the thermal
conductivity of the fluid phase to that of the solid phase). Dimen-
sionless temperature distributions at different values of Y are
obtained for fluid-saturated porous media composed of water/glass-
beads, silicon oil/glass-beads, air/glass-beads and water/steel-balls.

Introduction

Recently, a number of experiments have been performed on natural convec-

tion in porous media [1-5]. Some experimental results are shown to compare

favorably with theory; others are found to differ substantially from theoret-

ical predictions. These discrepancies can be attributed either to the

approximate nature of the theory [3], or to the inaccurate evaluation of the

stagnant thermal conductivity of the fluid-saturated porous medium during the

data reduction process.

In a recent paper, carton [5] has pointed out that a substantial error

will result for a water/steel-balls system if the thermal conductivity of the

system is evaluated based on the following commonly used approximation

(la)
or k~ = ~ k~ + (~-~)k~
* * =
kd/k f ~ + (I-~)/X (ib)

ii
12 P. Cheng Vol. 13, No. 1

where ~ is the porosity of the porous medium and i =k*/k* with k* and k*
~ s f s
denoting the thermal conductivities of the fluid phase and the solid phase of

the porous medium respectively. Catton [5] found the measured thermal conduc-

tivity of the water/steel-balls system is less than that computed according to

Eq. (la) by a factor of 3.

The fact that Eq. (i) is inaccurate for the evaluation of the stagnant

thermal conductivity of porous media with k~ << k~ is well known in the

chemical engineering literature. As early as 1970, Zehner and Schlunder [6]

pointed out that the thermal conductivity of a packed bed can be evaluated

more accurately from

k~/k~ = [I- I/f~] + 2 I/I-~ ( I - I ) B gn( ) (2)

a r I-~B L(I_~B )2 2

where B = 1 . 2 5 [ ~ ] I0/9 for a packed-sphere bed. Equation (2) has often been

used in the chemical engineering literature for the evaluation of the thermal

conductivity of a packed bed with a small value of particle/tube diameter

ratio where the wall effect is negligible. A comparison of Eqs. (Ib) and (2)

by Zehner and Schlunder [6] is reproduced in Fig. 1 which is a plot of k~ /k~

versus i/~ (i.e., k~/k~) for a packed bed with ~ = 0.4. It is shown that the

differences between the two computed thermal conductivities are small for the

water/glass-beads system with i ~ 0(i). For higher values of I/~ (or low

values of I), the values given by Eq. (Ib) are much higher than those given by

Eq. (2).

In a recent paper, Melanson and Dixon [7] measured the stagnant thermal

conductivity of an annular packed bed composed of nylon spheres, steel spheres

and glass hollow cylinders that were saturated with water. They found that

the non-uniform porosity distribution near the walls have a significant effect

on the value of the stagnant thermal conductivity if the particle diameter

Vol. 13, No. 1 HEAT CENDtL-TION IN A PACI41DB~D 13

I00 F ////"
50~ ,,,'"
30 //
20 . . . . . . Eq. (lb) //
Eq. ( 2 ) ,, , , / / / ~ "~"
5
3
2 Air/GIo$,Beads
1 ~/1 OdlGios$
Beads
0.5 - Woter/Gloss Beods
0.3
0.2
I | I I
O. 1.01 0.1 1.0 10 100 1000
s
ks/k f

FIG. 1
kdco/kf versus ks/k f given by Eqs. (Ib) and (2)

d is greater than the inner radius r~. They also observed large tempera-
p z
ture drops near the walls and that the temperature distribution is far from

linear when the data is plotted in a semi-log paper.

The purpose of this paper is to assess the effect of nonuniform porosity

on the stagnant thermal conductivity of a packed bed. To this end, the prob-

lems of steady one-dimensional heat conduction in a packed bed between

parallel plates, concentric cylinders and concentric spheres with wall effects

are considered. It is found that the heat conduction characteristics in the

packed beds depends on A as well as y where y = dp/ with i denoting a char-

acteristic length of the geometry under consideration. For a fluid-saturated

porous medium with I of 0(1), the wall effect on heat conduction is relatively

unimportant. For other systems with l < < i, the wall effect becomes increas-

ingly important as the value of Y is increased. For l < < I, the wall effect is

characterized by large temperature drops near the walls. The ratio of the

stagnant thermal conductivity with wall effects to those without wall effects

is obtained as a function of I and 7. It is shown that this ratio decreases

 14 P. Cheng Vol. 13, No. 1

substantially from one at low values of i and high values of 7. The curvature

of the wall tends to enhance the wall effect.

Conduction in a Packed Bed Between Parallel Plates

Consider the problem of steady one-dimensional heat conduction in a

packed bed between parallel plates with temperatures T~ (at y*=0) and T~ (at

y*=2H). The porosity of the bed ~ can be approximated by [8]

~(y) = ~ [i + C1 e-NIy/Y] , 0 ! Y ! 1 (3a)

-N 1 (y-2)/y]
~(y) = ~ [i + Cle , 0 < y < 2 (3b)

where ~ = 0.4, C 1 =1.4, N 1 =2, y=y*/H and y = d /H with dp denoting the

P
particle diameter. The energy equation for steady one-dimensional heat

conduction in the packed bed is given by

d (k~ d T *
dy* d--~) = 0 (4)

where k* is the stagnant thermal conductivity of the packed bed given by Eqs.
d
(2) and (3). Equation (4) is to be solved subject to the boundary conditions

y* = 0: T* = T* (5a)
c
y* = 2H: T* = T* (5b)
h
The solution of Eq. (4) and (5) is given by

Y .. ,dy

@=
I0
1
k d (Y, ~, y)
, O<y<l (6)
2f 0 -kd (Y'
dyI'Y)
T*-T*
where @ = __~T~_T~ and k d = k*/k* with k* denoting the stagnant thermal conduc-
h c d d~ d
tivity given by Eq. (2) with ~ = 0 . 4 . Note that the dimensionless temperature

for l ~ y ~ 2 can easily be obtained since temperature distribution is symmetric

with respect to the centerline at y=l. Equation (6) shows that the dimension-

less temperature distributions in the packed bed between two parallel plates

is a function of I and Y.
Vol. 13, NO. 1 HEAT ~ G N IN A PACKED B E D 15

1.0

Y : 0.074
0.8

0.6

8
0.4

Ap'\\~x=o.s,~- wo.~G,o,,,.~,
0.2
//// "~x. 0.026-Ai,/C,~,,~,~,
~-),=0.01 - WoterlSteel Bolls

0% I
0.5
I
1.0
I
1.5 2.0
Y

1.0

y:0.
0.8

0.6

8
0.4

////~=0 5,6 w=.,G,o,.~ ,

//// \'%~.o.,~-o,,,~o,,,,o~
0.2
~-k" 0.01 - W ~ l S t e e l Bells

0% 05 ! .0 1.5 2.0
Y
FIG. 2
Dimensionless Temperature Distribution in a
Rectangular Packed Bed

Figures 2 show the dimensionless temperature distribution given by

Eq. (6) with > = 0.074 and y = 0.37 for four values of I. The values of ~ are

chosen such that they correspond to the experimental apparatus used by

Schroeder, et al. [9] for the investigation of forced convective flow of water

through a rectangular packed bed. The four values of ~ correspond to the

water/glass-beads, silicon oil/glass-beads, air/glass-beads and

16 P. Cheng Vol. 13, No. 1

TABLE 1
Thermal Conductivities

Water k~ (W/m-K) k*s (W/m-K)

Oil Air Glass Beads Steel Beads

I

0.615 I 0.143 0.027 1.05 63.18

I
water/steel-balls systems whose thermal conductivities of the solid and fluid

phases are listed in Table i. It is shown from Figs. 2 that for the water/

glass-beads system (l= 0.586), the dimensionless temperature distribution is

linear across the bed indicating that the wall effect is negligible. Large

temperature drops near the walls, however, do exist for oil/glass-beads,

air/glass-beads, and water/steel-balls systems with l < < I. The wall effect

becomes increasingly important as the value of Y is increased.

The heat flux at the wall is given by

T*-T*
q= ch
(7)
2B ;1 dy
kc~:~ 0 kd
For heat conduction in a packed bed between parallel plates, the effective

thermal conductivity is defined as

k* = 2qH (8)
e (T~-T~)

It follows from Eqs. (7) and (8) that

k*
e 1
(9)
k~ [i dy
okd(Y,l,Y)

which depends on the values of I and y. Equation (9) is plotted as solid

lines in Fig. 3 where the value of k*/k~ is shown as a function of 7 at four

e ~o
different values ~. It is shown that the value of k g / k ~ decreases substan-

tially from one for the air/glass-beads and water/steel-balls systems even at

small values of y.
Vol. 13, NO. I HEAT ~ O N IN A P ~ B~D 17

1.0

- " "I/

gO.8

0.6

..... ConcentricCylinders ~ ....

---- Concentric Spheres ~-"---

0.40 0 I l i i
0.1 0.2 0.3 0.4

FIG. 3
Effective Stagnant Thermal Conductivities of
Fluld-Saturated Porous Media Confined in Different Geometries

Conduction in a Packed Bed Between Concentric C~linders and Spheres

Consider next the problem of radial heat conduction in a fluid-saturated

porous medium between concentric cylinders and spheres with temperatures T~

(at r*=r~) and T*. (at r*=r*). If d <<r*, the porosity in the packed bed
i i P i
can be approximated by

~(r) = ~o I+CIeXp -- - , l<r<__--~-- (10a)

{ [ N1 (r'qo-rl)]1 ro+l
~(r) = ~ l+CleX p - Y ]j, ~ <r<r 0 (lOb)

where y=dp/r~, r= r*/r~ and r 0 = ro/r

i * *.

The energy equation for steady radial heat conduction is given by

d r*) nk~ dT*]

dr*d = 0 (11)
dr*

where n = l for concentric cylinders and n = 2 for concentric spheres, with k~

given by Eq. (2). The boundary conditions are

18 P. Cheng Vol. 13, NO. 1

r* = r*: T* = T* (12a)
1 i
r* *.
= r0. T* = T* (12b)
0
The solution to Eqs. (ii) and (12) is

Iirnkd dr
(r, ~,y)
8 = , i < r < r0 (13]
rO

T*-T*
f dr

1 r nkd (r '1,7)

where @ = l
T*-T* "
0 i
The dimensionless temperature distributions in an annular packed bed with

inner and outer radii of 0.011 m and 0.035 m (and with T * < T*) at y = 0.052,
i 0
0.25 and 0.464 for four different saturated porous media are displayed in

Fig. 4 which i s a semilog plot. These values of r~, r* and y cor[espond to

0
the experimental apparatus and the sizes of the glass-beads used by Yagi and

Kunii [I0] for the investigation of forced convection of air through an

annular packed bed. It is shown from Pigs. 4 that for the water/glass-beads

system with ~ = 0 . 5 8 6 , the temperature variation is almost linear which indi-

cates the wall effect is negligible. From Figs. 4, it is shown that large

temperature drops near the walls do exist for smaller values of ~. For these

cases, the temperature drop is higher near the inner wall than that near the

outer wall. The magnitude of the temperature drop increases as the value of y

is increased.

The corresponding temperature distributions for a packed bed between

concentric spheres are displayed in Figs. 5 where the dimensionless tempera-

ture is plotted against l/r. Again, it is shown that the temperature varia-

tions are linear for the water/glass-beads system indicating that the wall

effect is negligibly small. Large temperature drops near the walls are

observed for other porous media systems. In comparison of Figs. 4 and

Vol. 13, No. 1 HEAT ~ O N IN A PACKED B]~) 19

z :0.052 Lo[ 7: 0.25 : 0.464

1.0 1.0

0.8 0.8 0.8

0.6 0.6 0.6

8 8
0.4 0.4
0o 4
:0.026
0.2: 0.2 0.2

0.0
2 0.0 0.0

I I I I i i
2 3 2 2 3
r r r

FIG. 4
Dimensionless Temperature Distributions in an Annular P a c k e d Bed

Figs. 5, it is shown that the curvature of the wall enhances the wall effect,

resulting in a larger temperature drop for the case of the concentric spheres.

The heat fluxes at the inner surface of the concentric cylinder (n=l) and

sphere (n=2) are given by

T*-T*
i 0
(14)
qi =-rl Ir0 dr

r kd
1
while the effective thermal conductivity is given by

qi i
r* n r 0
(T*-T*) for concentric cylinders (15a)
~ u
k*
e qir~ (r0-1)
for concentric spheres (15b)
r 0 (T*-T*)
1 u
20 P. Cheng Vol. 13, No. 1

1.0 ),':0.052 1.0 y:0.25

0.8 0.8
~ - k:O.01
\\~',q,, fx:o.o26
80.6 \~/x:o.o26 8 0.6
\'q-,~/-x:o.~36
0.4
~f:o.58 0.4

0.2 0.2

0.0 I. I l I I I 0.0
04 0.6 0.8 1.0 0.4 0.6 0.8 1.0
11r 11r

FIG. 5
Dimensionless Temperature Distribution in a Packed Bed
Between Concentric Spheres

It follows from Eqs. (14) and (15) that

Znr 0
t for concentric cylinders (16a)
I rO dr
k* 1 rkd
e
k~ (ro_l)

for concentric spheres (16b)
r0
ro[ .dr
)I r2kd

Equations (16a) and (16b) are plotted as dashed lines in Fig. 3. It is shown

that the value of k~/k~ decreases significantly from one for the air~glass-
beads and w a t e r / s t e e l - b a l l s systems with X << 1. Again, the wall e f f e c t is

most pronounced for the case of concentric spheres.

Vol. 13, No. i H E A T ~ G N IN A P ~ B ~ D 21

References

i. D.C. Reda, "Natural Convection Experiments in a Liquid-Saturated Porous

Medium Bounded by Vertical Coaxial Cylinders," J. of Heat Transfer,
v. 105, 795-802 (1983).
2. V. Prasad, F.A. Kulacki, and M. Keyhani, "Natural Convection in Porous
Media," J. Fluid Mechanics, v. 150, 89-120 (1985).
3. P. Cheng, "Natural Convection in Porous Media: External Flows," in
Natural Convection: Fundamentals and Applications, edited by W. Aung,
S. Kakac and R. Viskanta, Marinus Nijhoff Publishers (1985).
4. R. Fand, T. Steinberger, and P. Cheng, "Natural Convection from a Heated
Horizontal Cylinder Embedded in a Porous Medium," Int. J. Heat Mass
Transfer, v. 28, (in press).
5. I. carton, "Natural Convection Heat Transfer in Porous Media," in Natural
Convection: Fundamentals and Applications, edited by W. Aung, S. Kakac
and R. Viskanta, Marinus Nijhoff Publishers (1985).
6. P. zehner and E.U. Schlunder, Chemie. In~. Techn., v. 42, 933-941 (1970).
7. M.M. Melanson and A.G. Dixon, "Solid Conduction in Low dt/d p Beds of
Spheres Pellets and Rings," Int. J. Heat Mass Transfer, v. 28, 383-393
(1985).
8. D. Vortmeyer and J. schuster, "Evaluation of Steady Flow Profiles in
Rectangular and Circular Packed Beds by a Variational Method," Chem.
Engg. Sci., v. 38, 1691-1699 (1983).
9. K.J. Schroeder, V. Renz, and K. Eleget, "Forschungsberichte des Landes
Nordrhein-Westfalen," Nr. 3037 (1981).
10. S. Yagi and D. Kunii, "Studies on Heat Transfer Near Wall Surface in
Packed Beds," A.I.Ch.E.J., v. 6, 97-104 (1960).