Transport Phenomena Questions: CHEP211

1. A solar energy collector measuring 6 m by 6 m is installed on a roof in a horizontal position. The

incident solar energy flux is 600 W/m2 and the collector surface temperature is 338 K. Determine
the fraction of incident solar energy lost by convection to the surrounding air at 282 K flowing
parallel to the collector surface at a velocity of 0.54 m/s. The heat transfer coefficient is estimated
using the following correlation:

1 1
𝑁𝑢𝐿 = 0.664 𝑅𝑒𝐿 2 𝑃𝑟 3

The properties of air, evaluated at the film temperature of 310 K are:

ρ = 1.14 kg/m3; cp = 1.0068 × 103 J/kg·K; µ = 1.89275 × 10-5 Pa·s;

k = 2.70125 × 10-2 W/m·K [14]

2. In a combustion chamber, oxygen diffuses through air to the carbon surface where it reacts to make
CO and/or CO2. The mole fraction of oxygen at z = δ is 0.21. The reaction at the surface may be
assumed to be instantaneous. No reaction occurs in the gas film. A schematic is shown in Figure 1.

Figure 1
The temperature of the system is 25℃ and total system pressure is 1 atm. The diffusivity of oxygen in
the gas mixture under these conditions is 1.86 × 10-8 m2/s and the gas film thickness, δ, is 2 cm.
Determine the rate of oxygen diffusion per hour through one square meter of area if:
i. only carbon monoxide, CO, is produced at the carbon surface. [9]
ii. only carbon dioxide, CO2, is produced at the carbon surface. [8]
3. Calculate the rate of cooling of an aluminium plate (1.5 m by 1.5 m) at 580 K when it is suspended
horizontally in stagnant air at 300 K. The heat transfer coefficient is estimated using the following
correlation:
1 1
𝑁𝑢𝐿 = 0.14 𝐺𝑟𝐿 3 𝑃𝑟 3

𝐿3 𝜌2 𝑔𝛽∆𝑇
where 𝐺𝑟𝐿 = 𝜇2

The properties of air, evaluated at the film temperature of 440 K are:

ρ = 0.8021 kg/m3; cp = 1.0197 × 103 J/kg·K; µ = 2.4453 × 10-5 Pa·s;
k = 3.6427 × 10-2 W/m·K ; β = 2.2681 × 10-3 K-1 [10]
4. In the absorption of component A from an air stream into an aqueous stream, the composition of the
two adjacent streams were CAL = 4 kgmol/m3 and PAG = 1.013 × 104 Pa. The Henry’s law constant
for this system is 1.674 × 103 Pa/(kgmol/m3). The overall liquid phase mass transfer coefficient, KL
was equal to 1.26 × 10-6 kgmol/m2·s·(kgmol/m3). If 60% of the total resistance to mass transfer is
encountered in the liquid film, determine the individual film mass transfer coefficients, kG and kL, the
molar flux of A and the interfacial concentration CAi.
[13]
5. In the absorption of component A from an air stream into an aqueous stream, the composition of the
two adjacent streams were CAL = 4 kgmol/m3 and PAG = 1.013 × 104 Pa. The Henry’s law constant
for this system is 1.674 × 103 Pa/(kgmol/m3). The overall liquid phase mass transfer coefficient, KL
was equal to 1.26 × 10-6 kgmol/m2·s·(kgmol/m3). If 60% of the total resistance to mass transfer is
encountered in the liquid film, determine the individual film mass transfer coefficients, kG and kL, the
molar flux of A and the interfacial concentration CAi.
[13]
6. A furnace wall consists of 30 cm of fire brick (k = 1 W/m·K), 25 cm of insulating brick (k = 0.12
W/m·K) and a 35 cm of red brick (k = 0.75 W/m·K). The inner wall of fire brick is exposed to
furnace gas at 1200K whilst air at 310K is adjacent to the outside wall of red brick. The inside and
outside convective heat transfer coefficients are 95 and 20 W/m2·K, respectively. Determine:
i. the heat loss per square metre of the composite wall. [7]
ii. the temperature of the innermost wall surface. [2]
7. Ethanol, C2H5OH, flows in a thin film down the outside surface of an inclined plane, 2 m wide and
4 m long. The liquid temperature is 289K. Ethanol-free air at 303K and 1 atm flows across the length
of the plate parallel to the surface. At the average temperature of the gas film, the diffusivity of
ethanol vapour in air is 1.32 × 10-5 m2/s. The vapour pressure of ethanol at 289K is 6.45 × 10-2 atm.
If the air velocity is 2.5 m/s, determine the rate at which the ethanol should be supplied to the top of
the plate to compensate for evaporation, which will otherwise prevent it from reaching the very
bottom of the plate. The heat transfer coefficient is estimated using the following correlation:
4 1
𝑆ℎ𝐿 = 0.0365 𝑅𝑒𝐿 5 𝑆𝑐 3
The properties of air, evaluated at film temperature of 296 K are:
ρ = 1.194 kg/m3; µ = 1.827 × 10-5 Pa·s [10]