Lecture 24

Analogies in momentum and energy

transport

24.1 Introduction
In the previous lectures, we have seen the equations that govern the transport of momentum and
energy. If we look more closely at these equations, we can see strong analogies between these types
of transport.

24.2 Comparison of diffusive transport

To begin with, we will compare diffusive transport. Let’s first look at the change in the velocity profile
around a plate immersed in an initially stationary liquid. At time t = 0, the plate is instantaneously
accelerated to a velocity V . We are interested in how the velocity profile changes as a function of
time. For this problem, the momentum balance equation reduces to:
∂vx ∂ 2 vx
=ν 2 (24.1)
∂t ∂y
where ν = µ/ρ is the kinematic viscosity, which has units of length squared over time (e.g., m2 s−1 ).
The boundary conditions are that vx = V at y = 0 and vx = 0 as y → ∞. The initial condition is that
vx = 0 when t = 0. The solution of this equation is given by
  
y
vx (y, t) = V 1 − erf √
2 νt
 
vx (y, t) y
= 1 − erf √ (24.2)
V 2 νt
where erf is the error function, which is defined as:
Z x
2 2
erf(x) ≡ √ dte−t
π 0

Now, let’s look at the change in the temperature of a plate that is suddenly immersed in a pool
of liquid initially at a uniform temperature T0 . The temperature of the plate is kept constant at T1 .
If there is no convection in the fluid (i.e., all heat transport is due to conduction), then the governing
equation is
∂T ∂ 2T
ρCv =k 2 (24.3)
∂t ∂y

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where α = k/(ρCv ) is the thermal diffusivity, which also has units of length squared over time. The
boundary conditions are T = T1 at y = 0, and T = T0 as y → ∞. The initial condition is T = T0
when t = 0. The solution of this equation is given by
  
y
T (y, t) = T0 + (T1 − T0 ) 1 − erf √
2 αt
 
T (y, t) − T0 y
= 1 − erf √ (24.4)
T1 − T0 2 αt
If we compare Eqs. (24.2) and (24.4), we can see that they are essential identical, if we make the
identification ν ↔ α. In the first case, momentum diffuses from the plate into the bulk fluid; in the
second case, thermal energy diffuses into the bulk fluid, while in the third case, species A into the
bulk fluid.
As time progresses, the property (i.e., momentum, heat, or mass) slowly diffuses into the bulk of
the system. The distance δ from the wall at which this property is significantly different from the bulk
value varies with time as:
√
δ ∼ νt for momentum
√
δ ∼ αt for energy

The relative rate at which heat diffuses with respect to momentum is given by the Prandtl number
ν µCp
Pr ≡ = .
α k

24.3 Reynolds analogy

In the previous section, we compared the diffusive transport of momentum, heat, and mass. In this
section, we will compare the transport of these properties under turbulent flow conditions. In the
fully turbulent region, the turbulent stresses dominate the momentum transport and the eddy thermal
conductivity dominates heat transport. In this situation, the momentum balance is approximately
given by
(t)
τyx ≈ τw
 2
∂hvx i
ρl2 ≈ τw (24.5)
∂y

The energy balance is approximately given by

q (t) ≈ qw
  
2  ∂hvx i 
  ∂hT i
−ρCv l  ≈ qw (24.6)
∂y  ∂y

Dividing the energy balance by the momentum balance yields

∂hT i/∂y qw
Cv =−
∂hvx i/∂y τw
∂hT i qw
=− (24.7)
∂hvx i Cv τw

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 If we assume that the entire fluid can be considered turbulent, even near the wall, then this equation
can be integrated from the bulk (where the temperature is T∞ , and the velocity is V ) to the wall (where
the temperature is Tw , and the velocity is zero)
qw
T∞ − Tw = − V (24.8)
Cv τ w
The heat transfer coefficient h on the wall is defined by the relation

qw ≡ h(Tw − T∞ ) (24.9)

If we then introduce the Nusselt number

hL
Nu ≡
k
where L is some characteristic length of the system, such as a pipe diameter, the Reynolds number
LρV
Re ≡ ,
µ
and the friction factor:
2τw
f=
ρV 2
then we can rearrange Eq. (24.8) to the form
Nu f
= (24.10)
PrRe 2
This relation is known as Reynolds analogy and has been found to agree well with experimental data
for systems where Pr ≈ 1. It allows us to predict heat transfer coefficients from knowledge of the
flow behavior of a system.

24.4 Prandtl analogy

In the development of the Reynolds analogy, we assumed that the turbulent core extended all the way
down to the wall. However, at the wall, viscous forces dominate and turbulent eddies are almost
non-existent. Prandtl improved upon the previous derivation by accounting for the laminar sublayer.
In the laminar sublayer, the momentum transfer is governed primarily by viscous stress and can
be written as
∂hvx i
µ ≈ τw (24.11)
∂y
Heat transfer is dominated by conduction, and the energy balance is given by
∂hT i
−k = qw (24.12)
∂y
Dividing the energy balance equation by the momentum balance equation, we find
k ∂hT i/∂y qw
=−
µ ∂hvx i/∂y τw
∂hT i qw µ
=− (24.13)
∂hvx i τw k

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Integrating this equation from the edge of the laminar sublayer y = ξ to the wall y = 0, we find
qw µ
hT (ξ)i − hT (0)i = − (hvx (ξ)i − hvx (0)i)
τw k
qw µ
=− hvx (ξ)i (24.14)
τw k
In order to account for the turbulent core, Prandtl used Eq. (24.7). However, instead of integrating
this equation from the bulk all the way to the wall, he integrated it from the bulk to the edge of the
laminar sublayer:
qw
T∞ − hT (ξ)i = − (U − hvx (ξ)i) (24.15)
Cv τ w
The temperature at the edge of the laminar sublayer hT (ξ)i is unknown; however, it can be elimi-
nated by adding Eqs. (24.14) and (24.15) together:
qw µ qw
T∞ − Tw = − hvx (ξ)i − (U − hvx (ξ)i)
τw k C τ
  v w  
qw µCv hvx (ξ)i
=− U 1+ −1
C v τw k U
Nu f /2
= p (24.16)
PrRe 1 + 5(Pr − 1) f /2
√
where we have assume that the edge of the laminar sublayer is at ξ = 5µ/ τw ρ (see Sec. 22.4 on the
“universal velocity profile”). This relation is known as Prandtl’s analogy.
By taking into account the buffer layer, von Karman developed the following relation:

Nu f /2
= p (24.17)
PrRe 1 + 5(Pr − 1 + ln(1 + (Pr − 1)5/6)) f /2

24.5 Summary
In this lecture, we have examined the similarities between the transport of momentum and energy. The
mathematical form of the diffusive transport for momentum and energy in laminar flows is similar,
with the rate of momentum transfer due to viscous forces is governed by the kinematic viscosity
and the rate of heat transfer due to conduction is governed by the thermal diffusivity. There is also a
similarity of their transport in turbulent flows. These analogies allow the use of correlations developed
for momentum transport to be used for heat transport (and vice versa), if required.

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