Engineering Science

Introduction to Heat Transfer

Asiri Manchanayaka (B Sc Eng , MEng, AMIESL, AMIMechE, ASNT Level II)
Engineering Science – Introduction to Heat Transfer

➢ Heat is a form of energy that can be transferred from one system to

another as a result of temperature difference. The science that deals with
the determination of the rates of such energy transfers is the heat
transfer.

➢ Heat can be transferred in three different modes: conduction,

convection, and radiation. All modes of heat transfer require the
existence of a temperature difference, and all modes are from the high-
temperature medium to a lower-temperature one.
Engineering Science – Introduction to Heat Transfer

Modes of Heat Transfer - Classification

Modes of
Heat Transfer

Conduction Convection Radiation

Engineering Science – Introduction to Heat Transfer

Heat Flux
The rate of heat transfer per unit area
normal to the direction of heat transfer
is called heat flux.

The average heat flux is expressed as;

Engineering Science – Introduction to Heat Transfer

Conduction
This is the mode of energy transfer as heat due to temperature difference
within a body or between bodies in thermal contact without the
involvement of mass flow and mixing

Fourier’s law of heat conduction

Heat flow by conduction in any direction is proportional to the temperature
gradient and area perpendicular to the flow direction and is in the direction
of negative gradient.
Engineering Science – Introduction to Heat Transfer

For example, consider a steady-state conduction

experiment carried out for a cylindrical rod of known
material which is insulated on its lateral surface,
while its end faces are maintained at different
temperatures, with T1 and T2. (T1 > T2)
The temperature difference causes conduction heat
transfer in the positive x - direction.
According to the Fourier’s law heat transfer rate qx,
Where k, the thermal conductivity (W/m K). Evaluating this expression in the limit as
Δx → 0, we obtain for the heat rate;

The negative sign is because the heat flow is towards the direction of temperature fall.
Engineering Science – Introduction to Heat Transfer

Heat transfer through a plain wall

Figure shows a cross section of a

plane wall. An expression using the
Fourier’s law, for the rate of heat
transfer across the faces of the wall is
to be derived.

Consider a small elemental strip of thickness ds as shown and apply Fourier’s Law;
Engineering Science – Introduction to Heat Transfer

Example 01
Determine the heat flow across a plain wall of 10 cm thickness with a constant thermal
conductivity of 8.5 W/m K when the surface temperatures are steady at 100 0C and
30 0C. The wall area is 3 m2. Find the temperature gradient in the flow direction.

Given:
s = 10 cm; k = 8.5 W/m K; T1 = 100 0C; T2 = 30 0C; A = 3 m2

Apply Fourier's law;

Engineering Science – Introduction to Heat Transfer

Heat transfer through pipe lagging

Figure shows a pipe with a surface temperature T1
and a layer of insulation with surface temperature
T2. The diameter of the pipe is r1 and the radius to
the outer surface of the lagging is r2. The thermal
conductivity of the lagging is k.
Apply Fourier's law;

For length, l, the area of the elemental strip is (circumference × length) 2πrl
Engineering Science – Introduction to Heat Transfer

Heat transfer through pipe lagging cont..

Engineering Science – Introduction to Heat Transfer

Example 02
A pipe of inner diameter 0.15 m is lagged with 0.065 m thick material of thermal
conductivity 0.6 W/m K. If the inner and outer surface temperatures of the lagging are
260°C and 50°C respectively, calculate the heat loss per metre length of pipe.
Engineering Science – Introduction to Heat Transfer
Convection
Convection is the mode of energy transfer between a solid surface and the adjacent
liquid or gas that is in motion, and it involves the combined effects of conduction and
fluid motion. The faster the fluid motion, the greater the convection heat transfer. In the
absence of any bulk fluid motion, heat transfer between a solid surface and the adjacent
fluid is by pure conduction.
Free and Forced Convection
Convection is called forced convection if the fluid
is forced to flow over the surface by external means
such as a fan, pump, or the wind. In contrast,
convection is called natural (or free) convection if
the fluid motion is caused by buoyancy forces that
are induced by density differences due to the
variation of temperature in the fluid.
Engineering Science – Introduction to Heat Transfer

Newton’s law of cooling for convection

Despite the complexity of convection, the rate of convection heat transfer is observed to
be proportional to the temperature difference, and is conveniently expressed by
Newton’s law of cooling as;

where h is the convection heat transfer coefficient in W/m2 K. As is the surface area
through which convection heat transfer takes place, Ts is the surface temperature, and
T∞ is the temperature of the fluid sufficiently far from the surface. Note that at the
surface, the fluid temperature equals the surface temperature of the solid.
Engineering Science – Introduction to Heat Transfer

Example 03
Determine the heat transfer by convection over a surface of 0.5 m2 area if the surface is
at 160 0C and fluid is at 40 0C. ( h = 25 W/ m2 K)
Engineering Science – Introduction to Heat Transfer
Radiation
Electromagnetic radiation carries energy and radiation is emitted by various means.
Such radiation due to temperature called thermal radiation. It is a surface phenomenon.
No medium is required.
Blackbody Radiation
A body at a temperature above zero emits radiation in all
directions over a wide range of wavelengths. Different
bodies may emit different amounts of radiation per unit
surface area, even when they are at the same temperature.
A blackbody is an idealized body, defined as a perfect emitter
and absorber of radiation. At a specified temperature and
wavelength, no surface can emit more energy than a
blackbody. A blackbody emits radiation energy uniformly in
all directions per unit area normal to direction of emission.
Engineering Science – Introduction to Heat Transfer

Blackbody Radiation cont..

Heat transfer rate by radiation can be calculated using the following Stefan –
Boltzmann equation.

Where;
σ – Stefan – Boltzmann constant (σ = 5.67 × 10-8 W/ m2 K4)
T is the absolute temperature of the surface in K where radiation heat transfer occur
As is the surface area
Q̇ is the radiation heat transfer rate (in W)
Es is called the blackbody emissive power (in W/m2)
Engineering Science – Introduction to Heat Transfer

Emissivity (ε)
The emissivity of a surface represents the ratio of the radiation emitted by the surface at a
given temperature to the radiation emitted by a blackbody at the same temperature. The
emissivity of a surface is denoted by ε, and it varies between zero and one, 0 < ε < 1.
Emissivity is a measure of how closely a surface approximates a blackbody, for which
ε = 1.
The emissivity of a real surface is not a constant. Rather, it varies with the temperature of
the surface as well as the wavelength and the direction of the emitted radiation.
Assuming the emissivity is same throughout the radiating surface or considering the
average emissivity, the Stefan – Boltzmann equation can be rewritten as;
Engineering Science – Introduction to Heat Transfer

Example 04
Consider a 20-cm-diameter spherical ball at 800 K
suspended in air as shown in the figure. Assuming the ball
closely approximates a blackbody, determine
(a) the total blackbody emissive power,
(b) the total amount of radiation emitted by the ball in 5 min,
(c) If the ball is actually having an average emissivity of
0.521, calculate the radiation heat transfer rate emitting
from the ball.