Conduction Heat Transfer

Taylor Series Approximation

A Taylor series approximation uses a Taylor series to represent a number as
polynomial that has similar value to the number in the neighbourhood around
a specified x value.

Taylor Series are extremely powerful tools for approximating functions that can be
difficult to compute otherwise, as well as evaluating infinite sums and integrals by
recognizing Taylor series
 Steady versus Transient Heat Transfer

• Steady implies no change with

time at any point within the
medium.
• Transient implies variation
with time or time dependence.
• In the special case of variation
with time but not with position,
the temperature of the medium
changes uniformly with time.
Such heat transfer systems are
called lumped systems.

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1-1 CONDUCTION HEAT TRANSFER
When a temperature gradient exists in a body, experience has shown
that there is an energy transfer from the high-temperature region to
the low-temperature region. We say that the energy is transferred by
conduction and that the heat-transfer rate per unit area is
proportional to the normal temperature gradient:

When the proportionality constant is inserted, Figure 1-1 Sketch

showing direction of
heat flow.

where qx is the heat-transfer rate and ∂T/∂x is the temperature

gradient in the direction of the heat flow. The positive constant k is
called the thermal conductivity of the material, and the minus sign is
inserted so that the second principle of thermodynamics will be
satisfied; i.e., heat must flow downhill on the temperature scale, as
indicated in the coordinate system of Figure 1-1.
 Equation (1-1) is called Fourier’s law of heat conduction after the French mathematical
physicist Joseph Fourier, who made very significant contributions to the analytical treatment
of conduction heat transfer. It is important to note that Equation (1-1) is the defining equation
for the thermal conductivity and that ‘k’ has the units of watts per meter per Celsius degree in
a typical system of units in which the heat flow is expressed in watts.
We now set ourselves the problem of determining the basic equation that governs the
transfer of heat in a solid, using Equation (1-1) as a starting point.

Consider the one-dimensional system shown in Figure 1-2. If

the system is in a steady state, i.e., if the temperature does not
change with time, then the problem is a simple one, and we
need only integrate Equation (1-1) and substitute the
appropriate values to solve for the desired quantity. However,
if the temperature of the solid is changing with time, or if there
are heat sources or sinks within the solid, the situation is more
complex. We consider the general case where the temperature
may be changing with time and heat sources may be present
within the body.

Figure 1-2 Elemental volume for

one-dimensional heat conduction
analysis.
For the element of thickness dx, the following energy balance may be made:
Energy conducted in left face + heat generated within element =
change in internal energy + energy conducted out right face
These energy quantities are given as follows: m=density *Vol
Energy in left face = qx=−kA ∂T/ ∂x
Energy generated within element =˙qAdx m= ρ * A dx
= m C (∂T/∂τ)

Based on Taylor series

Figure 1-2 Elemental

volume for one-
dimensional heat
conduction analysis.
 ( [1-2] Heat generated /unit vol= 𝑞ሶ = 𝑒ሶ 𝑔𝑒𝑛
Time = τ = t
Variable conductivity, k can not be taken out view temp dependent)
9
• Examples:
• electrical energy being converted to heat at a rate of I2R,
• fuel elements of nuclear reactors, Heat Generation
• exothermic chemical reactions.
• Heat generation is a volumetric phenomenon.
• The rate of heat generation units : W/m3 or Btu/h·ft3.
• The rate of heat generation in a medium may vary with time as well as
position within the medium.

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 Three-dimensional heat-conduction
analysis (cartesian coordinates)

Heat generated /unit

volume = qgen= 𝑞ሶ . dx.dy.dz

Fig 1-3. Elemental Volume for three-dimensional heat-conduction analysis (cartesian coordinates)
Fig 1-3. Elemental Volume for three-
dimensional heat-conduction analysis
(cartesian coordinates)

Heat generated
/unit vol= qgen=
ሶ 𝑑𝑧
𝑞ሶ . 𝑑𝑥. 𝑑𝑦.

[1.3]

[1.4]
where the quantity α=k/ρc is called the thermal diffusivity of the material.

The larger the value of α, the faster heat will diffuse through the material.

This may be seen by examining the quantities that make up α.

A high value of α could result either from a high value of thermal conductivity, which would indicate a rapid
energy-transfer rate, or from a low value of the thermal heat capacity ρc.

A low value of the heat capacity would mean that less of the energy moving through the material would be
absorbed and used to raise the temperature of the material; thus more energy would be available for further
transfer.

Thermal diffusivity α has units of square meters per second.

In the derivations above, the expression for the derivative at x+dx has been written in the form of a Taylor-
series expansion with only the first two terms of the series employed for the development.

Equation (1-3a) may be transformed into either cylindrical or spherical coordinates by standard calculus
techniques. We shall see results subsequently:
(b)
18
Heat
Conduction
Equation in a
Long Cylinder

19
20
Heat Conduction Equation
in a Sphere

21
 Combined One-Dimensional Heat
Conduction Equation
An examination of the one-dimensional transient heat
conduction equations for the plane wall, cylinder, and sphere
reveals that all three equations can be expressed in a
compact form as

n = 0 for a plane wall

n = 1 for a cylinder
n = 2 for a sphere
In the case of a plane wall, it is customary to replace the
variable r by x.
This equation can be simplified for steady-state or no heat
generation cases as described before.

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GENERAL HEAT CONDUCTION EQUATION

In the last section, we considered one-dimensional heat

conduction and assumed heat conduction in other directions to be
negligible.
Most heat transfer problems encountered in practice can be
approximated as being one-dimensional, and we mostly deal with
such problems in this text.
However, this is not always the case, and sometimes we need to
consider heat transfer in other directions as well.
In such cases, heat conduction is said to be multi-dimensional,
and in this section we develop the governing differential equation
in such systems in rectangular, cylindrical, and spherical
coordinate systems.

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 Assignment 2
• Drive an expression for three dimensional heat
transfer in cylindrical coordinates.
• Drive an expression for three dimensional heat
transfer in spherical coordinates.
• Derive generic equation of heat transfer in all three
coordinate system.
• What do you understand by steady state and
transient heat transfer? Derive an expression for
steady state and transient