Heat Transfer Project

Faculty of engineering Heat transfer
Alexandria university Spring 2022
Heat Transfer Project
Name ID
Hanin Safwat Mohamed 6767
Aziza Walid Abdelghany 6884
Noran Mohamed Essa 7276
Haggar Ahmed Konsowa 6906
Nadia Ahmed 5883
Abdallah Gaber Abdelhaleem 7283
Mohamed Yahia Mohamed 7162
Jaida Ahmed Salama 6545
Yasmine Sherif 7133
Nourhan Mohamed Eldakroury 6228
Rana Mahmoud Derbala 6120
Salma Ahmed Fathy 6822
Omnia Mahmoud Mohamed El-Snosy 7281
Jasmine Mohamed Ahmed Draz 7120
Janna Adel Mosaad 6915
Title: Natural Convection on flat plate
Table of contents
Introduction………………………………………………………………………….…2
Natural convection………………………………………………………….………3
Convection Heat Transfer Coefficient…………………………….…….….4
Determining Convection Heat Transfer Coefficient practically…5
Boussinesq Approximation………………………………………………………6
Apparatus configuration………………………………………………..………..9
Testing procedures………………………….…………………………...…..…..10
Uncertainty and error analysis……………………………………………….11
Results…………………………………………………………………………………..12
Validation using Correlations ……………………………………………..…18
Validation using COMSOL……………………………………………………...19
Conclusion…………………………………………………………………………….29
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Natural Convection on flat plate

Introduction:
Convection is a way for heat to move, also referred to as a heat transfer mechanism. This transfer
of heat happens when a fluid such as air or water is in motion. Convection is driven by
temperature differences across that fluid. When a fluid is heated, the region in closest contact
with the heat source becomes less dense due to increased kinetic energy in the particles. The
portion of fluid that is less dense then rises, while the denser portion of fluid sinks. The process
repeats itself because the less dense fluids cool down as they move away from their heat source,
making them sink, while the denser fluids heat up as they near the heat source, making them rise.
This creates convection currents.
Faculty of engineering Heat transfer

Alexandria university Spring 2022
Figure 2. Convection warming a room is quiet and energy efficient.
Figure 1. Air over land heats faster than air over water, leading to convection which feels like a
cool ocean breeze.
Convection plays a large role in wind patterns and in passive ventilation. The movement of wind
across the globe is dependent on various spots where warm air rises and cool air sinks, creating
large wind currents that affect weather. For example, air over land will typically get heated up by
the sun during the day, while air over the sea will remain cool. The hot air over land will rise in
the atmosphere. As it rises, it also cools down and becomes denser, causing it to sink once more.
This concept is illustrated in Figure 1.
Similar to how convection works in the atmosphere, convection also causes passive ventilation
(natural air movement) in a room, as shown in Figure 2. While natural convection can be used
inside houses, forced convection is more common.
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Natural convection:
Natural convection, also known as free convection, is a mechanism, or type of mass and heat
transport, in which the fluid motion is generated only by density differences in the fluid
occurring due to temperature gradients, not by any external source (like a pump, fan, suction
device, etc.).
In natural convection, fluid surrounding a heat source receives heat, becomes less dense, and
rises by thermal expansion. Thermal expansion of the fluid plays a crucial role. In other words,
heavier (more dense) components will fall, while lighter (less dense) components rise, leading to
bulk fluid movement. Natural convection can only occur in a gravitational field or the presence
of another proper acceleration.
figure 3
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3|Page
Convection Heat Transfer Coefficient:

The basic equation for the rate of convection heat transfer is known as Newton's Law of Cooling:
Where 𝑄𝑐𝑜𝑛𝑣 is the convective heat transfer rate, h is the convective heat transfer coefficient (in
units such as W/m2K or Btu/hft2R), A is the surface area of the object being cooled or heated,
T∞ is the bulk temperature of the surrounding fluid, and Ts is the surface temperature of the
object. The algebraic sign of Newton's Law of Cooling is positive for T∞ > Ts (heat transfer into
the object) and negative when T∞ < Ts (heat transfer out of the object). The convective heat
transfer coefficient h is usually a positive, experimentally determined value.
When making convection heat transfer calculations, it is well to keep in mind that estimating
values for convection heat transfer coefficients is not an exact science. The value of a convection
heat transfer coefficient depends upon the physical configuration as well as upon several
properties of the fluid involved. Empirical correlations are available to estimate heat transfer
coefficients for a variety of natural convection and forced convection heat transfer
configurations. Those correlations are typically expressed in terms of dimensionless numbers.
The dimensionless numbers used for forced convection heat transfer coefficients are the Nusselt
number (Nu), Prandtl number (Pr), and Reynolds number (Re). The heat transfer coefficient, h,
appears in the Nusselt number, so the correlations are typically in the form of an equation for Nu
in terms of Re and Pr.
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Determining Convection Heat Transfer Coefficient practically:

There are several ways to determine the convection heat transfer coefficient practically. We are
going to examine natural convection over flat plate by using a flat plate of conducting material
insulated from all the sides except one face of known area. Using a heater of known power, we
are going to raise the temperature of the flat plate. On ideal case, assuming perfect insulation and
a high conductivity flat plate, most of the heat energy produced from the heater to the flat plate is
going to be dissipated from the one uninsulated face of the flat plate.
From the previous relation, its easy to determine the Convection Heat Transfer Coefficient
assuming Qconv is equal to the power of the used heater, measuring the temperature of the
surrounding air by a thermometer, and in case of the plate is at uniform temperature.
On practical side, there are several losses must be taken on consideration. Where there is no
perfect insulation and the efficiency of the insulator is multiplied to the power of the heater when
calculating the heat energy transferred to the flat plate. Also, there is a part of power which is
dissipated by radiation as follows:
So, by assuming perfect black body,and T4 is (Ts4-Tsurr4), we have a relation whose only unkown
is the Convection Heat Transfer Coefficient.
𝑄̇ = ℎ𝐴(𝑇𝑠 − 𝑇∞ ) + 𝜀𝜎𝐴(𝑇𝑆4 − 𝑇𝑠𝑢𝑟𝑟

4 )
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5|Page
Boussinesq Approximation
• The Boussinesq approximation is a way to solve non-isothermal flow, such as natural
convection problems, without having to solve for the full compressible formulation of
the Navier-Stokes equations.
• The approximation is accurate when density variations are small as this reduces the
nonlinearity of the problem. It assumes that variations in density have no effect on the
flow field, except that they give rise to buoyancy forces. In more practical terms, this
approximation is typically used to model liquids around room temperature, natural
ventilation in buildings, or dense gas dispersion in industrial set-ups.
• The Navier-Stokes equations govern the motion of fluids. In the general case of a
compressible fluid, these yields
where is the fluid velocity, is the fluid pressure, is the fluid density, is the
fluid dynamic viscosity, is the identity matrix, and is the acceleration due to gravity.
• The Navier-Stokes equations are solved together with the continuity equation:
• The Boussinesq approximation states that the density variation is only important in the
buoyancy term, , and can be neglected in the rest of the equation. These yields
where the temperature and pressure-dependent density, , have been replaced by a

constant density, , except in the body force term representing the buoyancy force.
6|Page
• Under the Boussinesq approximation, the continuity
equation reduces to the incompressible form ,
because the magnitude of is small with respect to the velocity
gradients . It follows that the term in the Navier-Stokes

equations is also equal to zero. It is also generally assumed that the viscosity, , is
constant. The diffusion term can thus be rewritten
as to yield:
• The buoyancy term can be rewritten as ,

where represents the density variation with respect to the reference
density . These yields:
• To avoid having to evaluate the fluid density based on the local temperature, the
buoyancy term can further be rewritten
as , where is the coefficient of thermal
expansion. For ideal
gases, and becomes . Again,
this is only valid when temperature and, therefore, density variations are small:
7|Page
Pressure Shift
• The Boussinesq approximation is valid only when . To avoid potential

round-off errors in the calculation of the buoyancy term, , the pressure and
buoyancy terms on the right-hand side of the Navier-Stokes
equations, , are often rewritten as ,
with , where represents the elevation.
• The equations for the conservation of momentum yield:
• The change from to is referred to as a pressure shift.
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Apparatus configuration:
1st: components:
1. A square flat plate of conducting material and negligible thickness of
dimensions 50*50cm.
2. Electric heater of 400watt.
3. Insulating material.
4. Wooden base.
5. Thermal grease.
6. Electric thermometers.
7. Black paint.
2nd: installation:
1. Using the black paint, we painted the flat plate to reach emissivity of 0.9~1.
2. We put the insulator above the wooden base and fix the heater between the insulator and
the base of the flat plate.
3. From the other side of the flat plate, we put the thermal grease at a distance X from the
beginning of the plate. (To take accurate reading as the plate is rough)
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Testing procedures:
1. Using the thermal grease, we fixed the thermometer on the flat plate at X=0(the
beginning of the plate).
2. We turned on the heater and waited till the temperature of the plate became constant.
3. We recorded the temperature at the horizontal position of the flat plate.
4. After that, we made angles of inclination of 30, 45, 60, 90, and recorded the temperature
at X=0 at those different angles.
5. We Changed the position of the thermometer to X=10, repeated the previous steps, and
recorded the temperature readings at the different angles of inclination.
6. We repeated the whole experiment at the positions X=10cm, X=20cm, X=30cm,
X=40cm, X=50cm.
The rate of heat transfer can be calculated from the following relation:
𝑄̇ = ℎ𝐴(𝑇𝑠 − 𝑇∞ ) + 𝜀𝜎𝐴(𝑇𝑆4 − 𝑇𝑠𝑢𝑟𝑟

4 )
From this relation, we can derive the following relation:
(𝐐 ∗ 𝟎. 𝟗𝟖) − 𝛆𝛔(𝐓𝐬 𝟒 − 𝐓∞𝟒 )

𝐡=
𝐀 ∗ (𝐓𝐬 − 𝐓∞)
Q=400W
𝛆=𝟏
𝛔 = 𝟓. 𝟔𝟕 ∗ 𝟏𝟎−𝟖
A=2500
𝐓∞=25°=298k
Assuming that the uncertainty of the used electrical thermometer is 1°C.
Assuming the power dissipated from the un-insulated face of the flat plate is 98% of the
total power of the heater.
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10 | P a g e
Uncertainty and error analysis:

Error analysis is the study and evaluation of uncertainty in measurement. Experience has shown
that no measurement, however carefully made, can be completely free of uncertainties. Because
the whole structure and application of science depends on measurements, the ability to evaluate
these uncertainties and keep them to a minimum is crucially important.
As a result, there is some error analysis must be done to show the error percentage due to human
mistakes of instrumental issues.
1. Area measurement:
Due to some human error, after measuring the flat plate dimensions several times, we found that
the error is ±3.54cm2.
2. Temperature:
The error in measuring the temperature is due to an error in the used device. After searching for
this data, it was found that the error is ±1°C.
3. Convection heat transfer coefficient:
Due to the errors in the temperature and the area measurement, there is also a slight error in the
convection heat transfer coefficient which is explained in the table below:
Ø 0° 30° 45° 60° 90°

𝛅 0.26788 0.27018 0.26979 0.27038 0.270111
After modifying those values to the accepted form, it was recognized that the general value
of error for h is ±0.27.
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11 | P a g e
Results:
1. Horizontal plate, Ø=0°.
L(cm) 0 10 20 30 40 50
T(°C) 91±1 106±1 109.4±1 105.9±1 102±1 92.5±1
Hlocal 15.45 10.4 9.5 10.5 11.5 14.9
Tavg=105.475±1°C
Havg=10.48±0.27 W/m2 k
the relation between h and X at horizontal position
12 | P a g e
2. Inclined plate, Ø=30°.

L(cm) 0 10 20 30 40 50
T(°C) 77±1 104.5±1 106.1±1 104.5±1 99.4±1 89±1
Hlocal 22.4 10.9 10.41 10.9 12.43 16.3
Tavg=103.625±1°C
Havg=11.16±0.27 W/m2 k
the relation between h and x at Ø=30°
13 | P a g e
3. inclined plate, Ø=45°.

L(cm) 0 10 20 30 40 50
T(°C) 83±1 103.6±1 104.1±1 106.2±1 101.6±1 82±1
Hlocal 19.04 11.13 10.98 10.37 11.73 19.55
Tavg=103.875±1°C
Havg=11.05 ±0.27 W/m2 k
14 | P a g e

L(cm) 0 10 20 30 40 50
T(°C) 80±1 101±1 102.3±1 106.2±1 104.6±1 86±1
Hlocal 20.63 11.92 11.52 10.37 10.83 17.6
Tavg=103.525±1°C
Havg=11.41±0.27 W/m2 k
15 | P a g e
5. Vertical plate, Ø=90°.

L(cm) 0 10 20 30 40 50
T(°C) 87.3±1 106.2±1 105.4±1 106.2±1 96.9±1 92.9±1
Hlocal 17 10.37 10.6 10.37 13.26 14.71
Tavg=103.675±1°C
Havg=11.15±0.27 W/m2 k
16 | P a g e
From the previous data, results, and calculations, we can show the relation between the
convection heat transfer coefficient and the angle of inclination of the flat plate by the
following curve:
The relation between angle of inclination of the flatplate and average heat transfer coefficient
• From the previous calculations and graphs, we found that there is a slight error in
measuring the temperature at the tips of the plate.
• This error is due to the low efficiency of the heater used at the tips of the plate.
• The power of the heater at the Centre of the plate easily reaches 400W while at the tips it
is slightly lower.
• Finally, we found that the average values of convection heat transfer coefficient at
different angles of inclination verifies the theoretical values and also verifies the ideal
range of convection heat transfer coefficient according to the table below.
• For extra validation, our team designed a numerical model using COMSOL Multiphysics
program.
• The model is explained widely in the upcoming pages.
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17 | P a g e
Validation using Correlations:

Ts = 105.075℃ , T∞=25℃
Ts + T∞
Tf = = 65.4125℃
2
From the tables:
𝑚2
v = 1.3022 ∗ 10−5 , K = 0.028475W/m. k , Pr=0.735988
𝑠
1 1
β= = = 2.955 ∗ 10−3 1/k
T 273 + 63.065
gβ(Ts − T∞)Lc 3
Ra = Pr = 19.85 ∗ 106
v2
1
Nu = 0.15 ∗ Ra3 = 40.62
From the previous data we deduce that:
𝐍𝐮∗𝐊
𝐡= = 𝟗. 𝟐𝟓w/m2k
𝐋

Ts = 103.675℃ , T∞=25℃
Ts + T∞
Tf = = 64.3375℃
2
From the tables:
𝑚2
v = 1.9455 ∗ 10−5 , K=0.028445W/m. k , Pr=0.71895
𝑠
1 1
β= = = 2.96 ∗ 10−3 1/k
T 273 + 63.065
gβ(Ts − T∞)Lc 3
Ra = Pr = 542.43 ∗ 106
v2
1
Nu = 0.59 ∗ Ra4 = 90.04
From the previous data we deduce that:
𝐍𝐮∗𝐊
𝐡= = 𝟓. 𝟏𝟐𝐰/m2 k
𝐋
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18 | P a g e
Validation using COMSOL:

• Using COMSOL Multiphysics program, we are simulating the different cases of natural
convection over flat plate.
• Assume that the flat plate is a two-dimensional geometric shape since the thickness is
neglected.
• The flat plate is square-shaped of side length of 50 cm and its inclination angle is Ø.
• Assuming the flow of air is laminar and non-isothermal, the heat flux is 400watt, the
room temperature of air is constant at 298 kelvin, and finally inletting boussinesq
approximation to the program.
• we started studying the natural convection of air across flat plate over time at step of 0.1
sec. and different inclination angles Ø.
the change of temp in k over time in msec
• From the previous graph, it is obvious that the temperature increases till it reaches the
steady state temperature.
• Average steady state temperature in this case= 436K.
• From the previous temperature, average h=1600/T-298=11.6W/m2k.
19 | P a g e
simulation of heat distribution over the flat plate:
20 | P a g e
2. Inclined plate, Ø=30°.
the change of temp in k over time in sec
steady state temperature with a little error.
• Average steady state temperature in this case= 418.68K.
21 | P a g e
22 | P a g e
• Average steady state temperature in this case= 420.05k.
23 | P a g e
24 | P a g e
steady state temperature.
• Average steady state temperature in this case= 435.98K.
25 | P a g e
26 | P a g e
• Average steady state temperature in this case= 420.38k.
27 | P a g e
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28 | P a g e
Conclusion:
• In case of horizontal plate, the values of hlocal and haverage are nearly equal so the
simulation of air distribution is nearly the same on the whole pate.
• In case of vertical plate, the values of hlocal and haverage are not equal as the temperature of
the lower part of the plate gets higher than the upper part due to difference in air density
and the air forms different shapes of vortices.
Finally, natural convection is present in various applications and it can be used as a source of
ventilation.so, it’s important to study this phenomenon and invent devices to let us evaluate
the natural heat convection coefficient. And since all the calculated values from the
experiment are near to the theoretical values and COMSOL values, we can assume that the
device works with accepted percentage of error.
Also, the analysis shown below assumes that the error within an accepted range:
Ø Havg using comsol Havg exp

0 11.6 10.475
30 13.25 11.16
45 13.11 11.05
60 11.6 11.41
90 13.07 11.51
*******
29 | P a g e

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Faculty of engineering Heat transfer

Alexandria university Spring 2022