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R-value (insulation)
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Aerogel is an extremely efficient man-made insulator and has a very high R-value.
[1]
The R-value is a measure of thermal resistance
used in the building and construction industry. Under
uniform conditions it is the ratio of the temperature difference across an insulator and the heat flux (heat
transfer per unit area, ) through it or .The R-value being discussed is the unit thermal resistance. This is used
for a unit value of any particular material. It is expressed as the thickness of the material divided by the
thermal conductivity. For the thermal resistance of an entire section of material, instead of the unit resistance,
divide the unit thermal resistance by the area of the material. For example, if you have the unit thermal
resistance of a wall, divide by the cross-sectional area of the depth of the wall to compute the thermal
resistance. The unit thermal conductance of a material is denoted as C and is the reciprocal of the unit
[2]
thermal resistance. This can also be called the unit surface conductance and denoted by h. The higher the
[3]
number, the better the building insulation's effectiveness. (R value is 1/h.) R-value is the reciprocal of
U-value.

Contents
1 Internationally

2 Different insulation types

3 Thickness

-2-

4 Factors
o
o
o 4.1 Primary role
o
o 4.2 Units
o
o 4.3 Example (SI units)
o
o 4.4 Relationships

4.4.1 U-factor

4.4.2 Thickness

4.4.3 Multiple layers

o
o
o 4.5 Controversy

4.5.1 Thermal conductivity versus apparent thermal conductivity

4.5.2 Surface temperature in relationship to mode of heat transfer

4.5.3 The limitations of R-values in evaluating radiant barriers

o
o
o 4.6 Deterioration

4.6.1 Insulation aging

4.6.2 Infiltration
o
o
o 4.7 Example values

4.7.1 Typical per-unit-thickness R-values for material

4.7.2 Typical R-values for surfaces

[26]
4.7.2.1 Non-reflective surface R-values for air films

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4.7.2.2 Radiant barriers

4.7.3 R-Value Rule in the U.S.

4.7.3.1 Thickness

o
o
o
o
o
o
o

4.8 See also

4.9 References
4.10 External links

Internationally
Around most of the world, R-values are given in SI units, typically square-metre kelvins per watt or mK/W
(or equivalently, mC/W). In the United States customary units, R-values are given in units of ftFh/Btu.
It is particularly easy to confuse SI and US R-values, because R-values both in the US and elsewhere are
often cited without their units, e.g., R-3.5. Usually, however, the correct units can be inferred from the
context and from the magnitudes of the values. United States R-values are approximately six times SI
R-values [2].
Heat transfer through an insulating layer is analogous to electrical resistance. The heat transfers can be
worked out by thinking of resistance in series with a fixed potential, except the resistances are thermal
resistances and the potential is the difference in temperature from one side of the material to the other. The
resistance of each material to heat transfer depends on the specific thermal resistance [R-value]/[unit
thickness], which is a property of the material (see table below) and the thickness of that layer. A thermal
barrier that is composed of several layers will have several thermal resistors in the analogous circuit, each in
series. Like resistance in electrical circuits, increasing the physical length of a resistive element (graphite, for
example) increases the resistance linearly; double the thickness of a layer means half the heat transfer and
double the R-value; quadruple, quarters; etc. In practice, this linear relationship does not hold for
compressible materials such as glass wool batting whose thermal properties change when compressed.

Different insulation types

The US Department of Energy has recommended R-values for given areas of the USA based on the general
local energy costs for heating and cooling, as well as the climate of an area. There are four types of insulation:
rolls and batts, loose-fill, rigid foam, and foam-in-place. Rolls and batts are typically flexible insulators that
come in fibers, like fiberglass. Loose-fill insulation comes in loose fibers or pellets and should be blown into a
space. Rigid foam is more expensive than fiber, but generally has a higher R-value per unit of thickness.
Foam-in-place insulation can be blown into small areas to control air leaks, like those around windows, or
[4]
can be used to insulate an entire house.

Thickness

-4-

Increasing the thickness of an insulating layer increases the thermal resistance. For example, doubling the
thickness of fibreglass batting will double its R-value, perhaps from 2.0 mK/W for 110 mm of thickness, up
to 4.0 mK/W for 220 mm of thickness. Heat transfer through an insulating layer is analogous to adding
resistance to a series circuit with a fixed voltage. However, this only holds approximately because the
effective thermal conductivity of some insulating materials depends on thickness. The addition of materials to
enclose the insulation such as sheetrock and siding provides additional but typically much smaller R-value.

Factors
There are many factors that come into play when using R-values to compute heat loss for a particular wall.
Manufacturer R values apply only to properly installed insulation. Squashing two layers of batting into the
thickness intended for one layer will increase but not double the R-value. (In other words, compressing a
fiberglass batt decreases the R-value of the batt but increases the R-value per inch.) Another important factor
to consider is that studs and windows provide a parallel heat conduction path that is unaffected by the
insulation's R-value. The practical implication of this is that one could double the R-value of insulation
installed between framing members and realize substantially less than a 50% reduction in heat loss. When
installed between wall studs, even perfect wall insulation only eliminates conduction through the insulation but
leaves unaffected the conductive heat loss through such materials as glass windows and studs. Insulation
installed between the studs may reduce, but usually does not eliminate, heat losses due to air leakage through
the building envelope. Installing a continuous layer of rigid foam insulation on the exterior side of the wall
sheathing will interrupt thermal bridging through the studs while also reducing the rate of air leakage.

Primary role
The R-value is a measure of an insulation sample's ability to reduce the rate of heat flow under specified test
conditions. The primary mode of heat transfer impeded by insulation is conduction, but insulation also
reduces heat loss by all three heat transfer modes: conduction, convection, and radiation. The primary means
of heat loss across an uninsulated air-filled space is natural convection, which occurs because of changes in
air density with temperature. Insulation greatly retards natural convection making the primary mode of heat
transfer conduction. Porous insulations accomplish this by trapping air so that significant convective heat loss
is eliminated, leaving only conduction and minor radiation transfer. The primary role of such insulation is to
make the thermal conductivity of the insulation that of trapped, stagnant air. However this cannot be realized
fully because the glass wool or foam needed to prevent convection increases the heat conduction compared
to that of still air. The minor radiative heat transfer is minimized by having many surfaces interrupting a "clear
view" between the inner and outer surfaces of the insulation much as visible light is interrupted from passing
through porous materials. Such multiple surfaces are abundant in batting and porous foam. Radiation is also
minimized by low emissivity (highly reflective) exterior surfaces such as aluminum foil. Lower thermal
conductivity, or higher R-values, can be achieved by replacing air with argon when practical such as within
special closed-pore foam insulation because argon has a lower themal conductivity than air.

Units
The conversion between SI and US units of R-value is 1 hftF/Btu = 0.176110 Km/W, or 1 Km/W =
[5]
5.678263 hftF/Btu.
More simply, R-values may be converted from SI to US units through the following, where RSI is the given
unit in metric units:

-5-

R-value (US) = RSI 5.678263337

Or converted from US units to SI units, where R-value is given in imperial units:
RSI (SI) = R-value 0.1761101838
To disambiguate between the two, some authors use the abbreviation "RSI" for the SI definition [3].

Example (SI units)

To find the heat loss per square metre, simply divide the temperature difference by the R value.
If the interior of your home is at 20 C, and the roof cavity is at 10 C, the temperature difference is 10 C
(= 10 K difference). Assuming a ceiling insulated to R2 (R = 2.0 mK/W), energy will be lost at a rate of
10 K / 2 Km/W = 5 watts for every square metre of ceiling.

Relationships
U-factor
See also: Thermal transmittance
The U-factor (sometimes incorrectly referred to as "U-value"), is the overall heat transfer coefficient that
describes how well a building element conducts heat. It measures the rate of heat transfer through a building
element over a given area under standardized conditions. The usual standard is at a temperature gradient of
[6]
24 C, at 50% humidity with no wind (a smaller U-value is better at reducing heat transfer).
U is the inverse of R with SI units of W/(mK) and US units of BTU/(h F ft);

where k is the material's thermal conductivity and L is its thickness.

See also: tog (unit) or Thermal Overall Grade (where 1 tog = 0.1 m K / W), used for duvet rating.

Thickness
R-value should not be confused with the intrinsic property of thermal resistivity and its inverse, thermal
conductivity. The SI unit of thermal resistivity is Km/W. Thermal conductivity assumes that the heat transfer
of the material is linearly related to its thickness.

Multiple layers
In calculating the R-value of a multi-layered installation, the R-values of the individual layers are added:

[7]

R-value(outside air film) + R-value (brick) + R-value (sheathing) + R-value (insulation) + R-value
(plasterboard) + R-value (inside air film) = R-value (total).
To account for other components in a wall such as framing, an area-weighted average R-value of the whole

-6-

wall may be calculated.

Controversy
This section needs additional citations for
verification. (July 2008)
Thermal conductivity versus apparent thermal conductivity
Thermal conductivity is conventionally defined as the rate of thermal conduction through a material per unit
area per unit thickness per unit temperature differential (delta-T). The inverse of conductivity is resistivity (or
R per unit thickness). Thermal conductance is the rate of heat flux through a unit area at the installed
thickness and any given delta-T.
Experimentally, thermal conduction is measured by placing the material in contact between two conducting
plates and measuring the energy flux required to maintain a certain temperature gradient.
For the most part, testing the R-value of insulation is done at a steady temperature, usually about 70F with
no surrounding air movement. Since these are ideal conditions, the listed R-value for insulation could be
higher than it really is, because most situations with insulation are under different conditions
A definition of R-value based on apparent thermal conductivity has been proposed in document C168
published by the American Society for Testing and Materials. This describes heat being transferred by all
three mechanismsconduction, radiation, and convection.
Debate remains among representatives from different segments of the U.S. insulation industry during revision
[8]
of the U.S. FTC's regulations about advertising R-values
illustrating the complexity of the issues.

Surface temperature in relationship to mode of heat transfer

There are weaknesses to using a single laboratory model to simultaneously assess the properties of a material
to resist conducted, radiated, or convective heating. Surface temperature varies depending on the mode of
heat transfer.
In the absence of radiation or convection, the surface temperature of the insulator should equal the air
temperature on each side.
In response to thermal radiation, surface temperature depends on the thermal emissivity of the material. Light,
reflective, or metallic surfaces that are exposed to radiation tend to maintain lower temperatures than dark,
non-metallic ones.
Convection will alter the rate of heat transfer (and surface temperature) of an insulator, depending on the flow
characteristics of the gas or fluid in contact with it.
With multiple modes of heat transfer, the final surface temperature (and hence the observed energy flux and
calculated R-value) will be dependent on the relative contributions of radiation, conduction, and convection,
even though the total energy contribution remains the same.
This is an important consideration in building construction because heat energy arrives in different forms and

-7-

proportions. The contribution of radiative and conductive heat sources also varies throughout the year and
both are important contributors to thermal comfort
In the hot season, solar radiation predominates as the source of heat gain. As radiative heat transfer is related
to the cube power of the absolute temperature, such transfer is then at its most significant when the objective
is to cool (i.e. when solar radiation has produced very warm surfaces). On the other hand, the conductive
and convective heat loss modes play a more significant role during the cooler months. At such lower ambient
temperatures the traditional fibrous, plastic and cellulose insulations play by far the major role: the radiative
heat transfer component is of far less importance and the main contribution of the radiation barrier is in its
superior air-tightness contribution. In summary: claims for radiant barrier insulation are justifiable at high
temperatures, typically when minimizing summer heat transfer; but these claims are not justifiable in traditional
winter (keeping-warm) conditions.

The limitations of R-values in evaluating radiant barriers

See also: Cool roofs
Unlike bulk insulators, radiant barriers resist conducted heat poorly. Materials such as reflective foil have a
high thermal conductivity and would function poorly as a conductive insulator. Radiant barriers retard heat
transfer by two means - by reflecting radiant energy away from its surface or by reducing the emission of
radiation from its opposite side.
The question of how to quantify performance of other systems such as radiant barriers has resulted in
controversy and confusion in the building industry with the use of R-values or 'equivalent R-values' for
products which have entirely different systems of inhibiting heat transfer. (In the U.S., the federal
government's R-Value Rule establishes a legal definition for the R-value of a building material; the term
'equivalent R-value' has no legal definition and is therefore meaningless.) According to current standards,
R-values are most reliably stated for bulk insulation materials. All of the products quoted at the end are
examples of these.
Calculating the performance of radiant barriers is more complex. With a good radiant barrier in place, most
heat flow is by convection, which depends on many factors other than the radiant barrier itself. Although
radiant barriers have high reflectivity (and low emissivity) over a range of electromagnetic spectra (including
visible and UV light), their thermal advantages are mainly related to their emissivity in the infra-red range.
[9]
Emissivity values
are the appropriate metric for radiant barriers. Their effectiveness when employed to
[10]
resist heat gain in limited applications is established,
even though R-value does not adequately describe
them.

Deterioration
Insulation aging
R-values of products may deteriorate over time. For instance the compaction of loose fill cellulose creates
voids that reduce overall performance; this may be avoided by densely packing the initial installation. Some
types of foam insulation, such as polyurethane and polyisocyanurate are blown with heavy gases such as
chlorofluorocarbons (CFC) or hydrochlorofluorocarbons (HFCs). However, over time a small amount of
these gases diffuse out of the foam and are replaced by air, thus reducing the effective R-value of the
product. There are other foams which do not change significantly with aging because they are blown with
water or are open-cell and contain no trapped CFCs or HFCs (e.g., half-pound low density foams). On

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certain brands, twenty-year tests have shown no shrinkage or reduction in insulating value.

[citation needed]

This has led to controversy as how to rate the insulation of these products. Many manufacturers will rate the
[citation needed]
R-value at the time of manufacture;
critics argue that a more fair assessment would be its
[citation needed]
[when?]
settled value.
The foam industry
adopted the LTTR (Long-Term Thermal
[11]
Resistance) method,
which rates the R-value based on a 15 year weighted average. However, the LTTR
effectively provides only an eight-year aged R-value, short in the scale of a building that may have a lifespan
of 50 to 100 years.

There has been a test method conceived to test the flammability of thermal/acoustic insulation. This type of
insulation usually contains a thin film of moisture barrier over a batting material, with the possibility of foam
being a second barrier. The test also takes into account small detail parts of the insulation which might
contribute to whether or not the insulation is flammable. Such details include thread, tape, and fasteners. The
test consists of putting the insulation next to an ignition source, then observing whether or not it catches fire.
Then, if the specimen has caught fire, the ignition source is removed and the insulation is observed to see if it
[12]
continues to burn.

Infiltration
Correct attention to air sealing measures and consideration of vapor transfer mechanisms are important for
the optimal function of bulk insulators. Air infiltration can allow convective heat transfer or condensation
formation, both of which may degrade the performance of an insulation.
One of the primary values of spray-foam insulation is its ability to create an airtight (and in some cases,
watertight) seal directly against the substrate to reduce the undesirable effects of air leakage.

Example values
The examples and perspective in this article may
not represent a worldwide view of the subject.
Please improve this article and discuss the issue on
the talk page. (January 2010)
Note that these examples use the non-SI definition and/or given for a 1 inch (25.4 mm)
thick sample.
Vacuum insulated panels have the highest R-value (approximately R45 per inch in American customary
units); aerogel has the next highest R-value (about R10-30 per inch), followed by isocyanurate and phenolic
foam insulations with, R8.3 and R7 per inch, respectively. They are followed closely by polyurethane and
polystyrene insulation at roughly R6 and R5 per inch. Loose cellulose, fiberglass (both blown and in batts),
and rock wool (both blown and in batts) all possess an R-value of roughly R-2.5 to R-4 per inch. Straw
bales perform at about R1.5. However, typical straw bale houses have very thick walls and thus are well
insulated. Snow is roughly R1. Brick has a very bad insulative ability at a mere R0.2, however it does have
a good Thermal mass.

-9-

Typical per-unit-thickness R-values for material

R-values per inch given in SI and Imperial units (Typical values are approximations, based on the average of
available results. Ranges are marked with "". Clicking on SI column sorts by median value of range, clicking
on Imperial column sorts by lowest value. Third column are real SI values that are not per inch. Based on the
units, the two last columns should have a conversion factor of 5.71. In practice, the numbers will have been
measured using different methods.)
2
2
Material
mK/W
m K/(Win)
ft Fh/(BTUin)
Vacuum insulated panel 5.288.8
R-30R-50
Silica aerogel
1.76
R-10
Polyurethane rigid
1.231.41
R-7R-8
panel (CFC/HCFC
expanded) initial
Polyurethane rigid
panel (CFC/HCFC
1.10
R-6.25
expanded) aged 510
years
Polyurethane rigid
1.20
R-6.8
panel (pentane
expanded) initial
Polyurethane rigid
panel (pentane
0.97
R-5.5
expanded) aged 510
years
Foil faced Polyurethane
[13]
rigid panel (pentane
45-48
expanded)
Foil-faced
polyisocyanurate rigid
[13]
1.20
R-6.8
55
panel (pentane
expanded ) initial
Foil-faced
polyisocyanurate rigid
0.97
R-5.5
panel (pentane
expanded) aged 510
years
Polyisocyanurate spray
0.761.46
R-4.3R-8.3
foam
Closed-cell
0.971.14
R-5.5R-6.5
polyurethane spray
foam
Phenolic spray foam
0.851.23
R-4.8R-7
Thinsulate clothing
1.01
R-5.75
insulation
Urea-formaldehyde
0.881.06
R-5R-6
panels

- 10 -

[14]
Urea foam
Extruded expanded
polystyrene (XPS)
high-density
[14]
Polystyrene board
Phenolic rigid panel
Urea-formaldehyde foam
High-density fiberglass
batts
Extruded expanded
polystyrene (XPS)
low-density
Icynene loose-fill (pour
[15]
fill)
Molded expanded
polystyrene (EPS)
high-density
[
Air-entrained concrete
16]
[17]
Home Foam
[18]
Fiberglass batts
Cotton batts (Blue Jean
[19]
insulation)
Molded expanded
polystyrene (EPS)
low-density
[15]
Icynene spray
Open-cell polyurethane
spray foam
Cardboard
Rock and slag wool
batts
[20]
Cellulose loose-fill
[20]
Cellulose wet-spray
Rock and slag wool
[21]
loose-fill
[21]
Fiberglass loose-fill
Polyethylene foam
Cementitious foam

0.92

R-5.25

0.880.95

R-5R-5.4

0.88

R-5.00

0.700.88
0.700.81

R-4R-5
R-4R-4.6

0.630.88

R-3.6R-5

0.630.82

R-3.6R-4.7

0.70

R-4

0.70

R-4.2

0.69

R-3.90

0.69

R-3.9

0.550.76

R-3.1R-4.3

0.65

R-3.7

0.65

R-3.85

0.63

R-3.6

0.63

R-3.6

0.520.7

R-3R-4

0.520.68

R-3R-3.85

0.520.67

R-3R-3.8

0.520.67

R-3R-3.8

0.440.65

R-2.5R-3.7

0.440.65

R-2.5R-3.7

0.52
0.350.69

R-3
R-2R-3.9

26-40

22-32

[13]

[13]

- 11 -

Perlite loose-fill
Wood panels, such as
sheathing
Fiberglass rigid panel
Vermiculite loose-fill
[16]
Vermiculite
[23]
Straw bale
[24]
Papercrete
[25]
Softwood (most)
Wood chips and other
loose-fill wood products
Snow
[25]
Hardwood (most)

0.48

R-2.7

0.44

R-2.5

0.44
0.380.42

R-2.5
R-2.13R-2.4

0.38

R-2.13

16-17

0.26

R-1.45

16-22

Brick
Glass

[14]

Poured concrete

[14]

[22]

[13]
[13]

R-2.6-R-3.2
[22]

0.25

R-1.41

0.18

R-1

0.18

R-1

0.12

R-0.71

5.5

0.030

R-0.2

1.3-1.8

0.025

R-0.14

0.014

R-0.08

7.7

[22]
[22]

0.43-0.87

[22]

Typical R-values for surfaces

[26]
Non-reflective surface R-values for air films
When determining the overall thermal resistance of a building assembly such as a wall or roof, the insulating
effect of the surface air film is added to the thermal resistance of the other materials.
Surface position

Direction of heat
transfer

RUS (hrftF/Btu)

RSI (Km/W)

Horizontal (e.g., a flat

Upward (e.g.. winter)
0.61
0.11
ceiling)
Horizontal (e.g., a flat
Downward (e.g., summer) 0.92
0.16
ceiling)
Vertical (e.g., a wall)
Horizontal
0.68
0.12
Outdoor surface, any
position, moving air
Any direction
0.17
0.030
6.7 m/s (winter)
Outdoor surface, any
position, moving air
Any direction
0.25
0.044
3.4 m/s (summer)
In practice the above surface values are used for floors, ceilings, and walls in a building, but are not accurate
for enclosed air cavities, such as between panes of glass. The effective thermal resistance of an enclosed air
cavity is strongly influenced by radiative heat transfer and distance between the two surfaces. See insulated
glazing for a comparison of R-values for windows, with some effective R-values that include an air cavity.

- 12 -

Radiant barriers
Material

Reflective insulation

Value (Min)

[27]
R-1
(For assembly
without adjacent air
space.)

Value (Max)
Reference
R-10.7 (heat transfer
down), R-6.7 (heat
transfer horizontal), R-5
(heat transfer up)
[21][28]
Ask for the R-value tests
from the manufacturer for
your specific assembly.

R-Value Rule in the U.S.

The Federal Trade Commission (FTC) governs claims about R-values to protect consumers against
[29]
deceptive and misleading advertising claims. "The Commission issued the R-Value Rule
to prohibit, on
an industry-wide basis, specific unfair or deceptive acts or practices." (70 Fed. Reg. at 31,259 (May 31,
2005).)
The primary purpose of the Rule, therefore, is to correct the failure of the home insulation marketplace to
provide this essential pre-purchase information to the consumer. The information will give consumers an
opportunity to compare relative insulating efficiencies, to select the product with the greatest efficiency and
potential for energy savings, to make a cost-effective purchase and to consider the main variables limiting
insulation effectiveness and realization of claimed energy savings.
The Rule mandates that specific R-value information for home insulation products be disclosed in certain ads
and at the point of sale. The purpose of the R-value disclosure requirement for advertising is to prevent
consumers from being misled by certain claims which have a bearing on insulating value. At the point of
transaction, some consumers will be able to get the requisite R-value information from the label on the
insulation package. However, since the evidence shows that packages are often unavailable for inspection
prior to purchase, no labeled information would be available to consumers in many instances. As a result, the
Rule requires that a fact sheet be available to consumers for inspection before they make their purchase.

Thickness
The R-value Rule specifies:

[30]

In labels, fact sheets, ads, or other promotional materials, do not give the R-value for one inch or the
"R-value per inch" of your product. There are two exceptions:
a. You can do this if you suggest using your product at a one-inch thickness.
b. You can do this if actual test results prove that the R-values per inch of your product does
not drop as it gets thicker.
You can list a range of R-value per inch. If you do, you must say exactly how much the R-value drops with
greater thickness. You must also add this statement: "The R-value per inch of this insulation varies with
thickness. The thicker the insulation, the lower the R-value per inch."

- 13 -

See also
Building insulation

Building insulation materials

Cool roofs

Superinsulation

Thermal bridge

Condensation

Passive solar design

Passivhaus

Sol-air temperature

Heat transfer

Thermal mass

Thermal conductivity

Thermal comfort
References
1. ^ Oak Ridge National Laboratory, Which Kind Of Insulation Is Best?, retrieved 2008-07-13.
2.
2. ^ McQuiston, Parker, Spitler. Heating, Ventilation, and Air Conditioning: Analysis and Design, Sixth
Edition. Hoboken NJ: John Wiley and Sons Inc., 2005.
3.
3. ^ US Department of Energy, The R-Value of Insulation, retrieved 2008-07-13.
4.
4. ^ Insulation. U.S. Department of Energy. USA.gov. October 2010. 14 November 2010. <
http://www.energysavers.gov/tips/insulation.cfm>
5.
5. ^ 2009 ASHRAE Handbook - Fundamentals (I-P Edition). (pp: 38.1). American Society of
Heating, Refrigerating and Air-Conditioning Engineers, Inc
6.
6. ^ [P2000 Insulation System [1], R-value Testing
7.
7. ^ http://www.ornl.gov/sci/roofs+walls/insulation/ins_02.html
8.
8. ^ R-Value Rule Review

- 14 -

9.
9. ^
http://www.electro-optical.com/bb_rad/emissivity/matlemisivty.htm#Metals%20and%20Conversion
%20Coatings
10.
10. ^ FSEC-CR-1231-01-ES
11.
11. ^ "Thermal resistance and polyiso insulation" by John Clinton, Professional Roofing magazine,
February 2002
12.
12. ^ United States. Federal Aviation Administration. Thermal/Acoustic Insulation Flame Propagation
Test Method Details. Washington, D.C. : U.S. Dept. of Transportation, Federal Aviation
Administration, 2005.
13.
abcdef
13. ^
Energy Saving Trust. "CE71 - Insulation materials chart thermal properties and
environmental ratings".
14.
abcd
14. ^
Ristinen, Robert A., and Jack J. Kraushaar. Energy and the Environment. 2nd ed.
Hoboken, NJ: John Wiley & Sons, Inc., 2006.
15.
ab
15. ^
Icynene product information
16.
ab
16. ^
E-Star Colorado. Energy Saving Calculations. Energy Living Alliance, 2008. Web. 27 Oct.
2009. <http://www.e-star.com/ecalcs/table_rvalues.html>.
17.
17. ^ Home Foam Product Specifications
18.
18. ^ Fiberglass Batts R Value Information
19.
19. ^ Environmental Home Center Cotton Batt Information
20.
ab
20. ^
ICC Legacy Report ER-2833 - Cocoon Thermal and Sound Insulation Products, ICC
Evaluation Services, Inc., http://www.icc-es.org
21.
abc
21. ^
DOE Handbook.Link text
22.
abcde
22. ^
Brian Anderson (2006). [
http://www.bre.co.uk/filelibrary/pdf/rpts/BR_443_(2006_Edition).pdf "Conventions for U-value
calculations"].
23.
23. ^ http://www.buildinggreen.com/auth/article.cfm?fileName=070902b.xml
24.
24. ^ http://www.masongreenstar.com/sites/default/files/Research_Report_Thermal_17p.pdf
25.
ab
25. ^
http://www.energysavers.gov/your_home/designing_remodeling/index.cfm/mytopic=10170

- 15 -

26.
26. ^ 2009 ASHRAE Handbook - Fundamentals (I-P Edition & SI Edition). (pp: 26.1). American
Society of Heating, Refrigerating and Air-Conditioning Engineers, Inc
27.
27. ^ FTC Letter, Regarding reflective insulation used under slab where no air space is present
28.
28. ^ ICC ES Report, ICC ES Report ESR-1236 Thermal and Moisture Protection - ICC Evaluation
Services, Inc.

Thermal conductivity
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
Jump to: navigation, search
In physics, thermal conductivity, k (also denoted as ? or ?), is the property of a material's ability to
conduct heat. It appears primarily in Fourier's Law for heat conduction.
Heat transfer across materials of high thermal conductivity occurs at a higher rate than across materials of low
thermal conductivity. Correspondingly materials of high thermal conductivity are widely used in heat sink
applications and materials of low thermal conductivity are used as thermal insulation. Thermal conductivity of
materials is temperature dependent. The reciprocal of thermal conductivity is thermal resistivity.

Contents
1 Units of thermal conductivity

2 Measurement

3 Experimental values

4 Definitions
o
o
o 4.1 Conductance
o
o 4.2 Resistance
o
o 4.3 Transmittance

5 Influencing factors
o
o

- 16 -

o
o
o
o
o
o
o
o
o

5.1 Temperature
5.2 Material phase
5.3 Material structure
5.4 Electrical conductivity
5.5 Convection

6 Physical origins
o
o
o 6.1 Lattice waves
o
o 6.2 Electronic thermal conductivity

7 Equations
8 Simple kinetic picture
9 See also
10 References
11 Further reading
12 External links

Units of thermal conductivity

1 1 -3 -1
The dimension of thermal conductivity is M L T T . In SI units, thermal conductivity is measured in watts
-1 -1
[note 1][
per meter kelvin (Wm K ). In Imperial units, thermal conductivity is measured in BTU/(hrftF).
1]
Other units which are closely related to the thermal conductivity are in common use in the construction and
textile industries. The construction industry makes use of units such as the R-value and the U-value. Although
related to the thermal conductivity of a material used in an insulation product, R and U-values are dependent
[note 2]
on the thickness of the product.
Likewise the textile industry has several units including the tog and the clo which express thermal resistance of
a material in a way analogous to the R-values used in the construction industry.

Measurement

- 17 -

Main article: Thermal conductivity measurement

There are a number of ways to measure thermal conductivity. Each of these is suitable for a limited range of
materials, depending on the thermal properties and the medium temperature. There is a distinction between
steady-state and transient techniques.
In general, steady-state techniques are useful when the temperature of the material does not change with
time. This makes the signal analysis straightforward (steady state implies constant signals). The disadvantage
is that a well-engineered experimental setup is usually needed. The Divided Bar (various types) is the most
common device used for consolidated rock solids.

Experimental values

Experimental values of thermal conductivity.

Main article: List of thermal conductivities
Thermal conductivity is important in material science, research, electronics, building insulation and related
fields, especially where high operating temperatures are achieved. However, materials used in such trades are
rarely subjected to chemical purity standards. Several materials are shown in the list of thermal conductivities.
These should be considered approximate due to the uncertainties related to material definitions.
Cooling solutions for electronics or turbines usually use high thermal conductivity materials such as copper,
aluminium, and silver to cool down specific components. On the other hand, applications in construction or
furnaces use low thermal conductive materials such as polystyrene and alumina for insulation purposes.

Definitions
The reciprocal of thermal conductivity is thermal resistivity, usually measured in kelvin-meters per watt
-1
(KmW ). When dealing with a known amount of material, its thermal conductance and the reciprocal
property, thermal resistance, can be described. Unfortunately, there are differing definitions for these terms.

Conductance
For general scientific use, thermal conductance is the quantity of heat that passes in unit time through a plate
of particular area and thickness when its opposite faces differ in temperature by one kelvin. For a plate of
-1
thermal conductivity k, area A and thickness L this is kA/L, measured in WK (equivalent to: W/C).

- 18 -

-1 -1
Thermal conductivity and conductance are analogous to electrical conductivity (Am V ) and electrical
-1
conductance (AV ).
There is also a measure known as heat transfer coefficient: the quantity of heat that passes in unit time
through unit area of a plate of particular thickness when its opposite faces differ in temperature by one
kelvin. The reciprocal is thermal insulance. In summary:

thermal conductance = kA/L, measured in WK

o

-1

-1
thermal resistance = L/(kA), measured in KW (equivalent to: C/W)
heat transfer coefficient = k/L, measured in WK -1 m-2
o
2 -1
o thermal insulance = L/k, measured in Km W .
The heat transfer coefficient is also known as thermal admittance
o

Resistance
Main article: Thermal resistance
It is a thermal-property of a material to resist the flow of heat.
It is a resistance offered by a material (a metal in general and a heat sink material in particular) to the
conduction or flow of heat through it.
Thermal resistance is the reciprocal of thermal conductance, i.e., lowering its value will raise the heat
conduction and vice versa.
When thermal resistances occur in series, they are additive. So when heat flows through two components
each with a resistance of 1 C/W, the total resistance is 2 C/W.
A common engineering design problem involves the selection of an appropriate sized heat sink for a given
heat source. Working in units of thermal resistance greatly simplifies the design calculation. The following
formula can be used to estimate the performance:
where:

Rhs is the maximum thermal resistance of the heat sink to ambient, in C/W (equivalent to K/W)
?T is the temperature difference (temperature drop), in C
Pth is the thermal power (heat flow), in watts

Rs is the thermal resistance of the heat source, in C/W

For example, if a component produces 100 W of heat, and has a thermal resistance of 0.5 C/W, what is the
maximum thermal resistance of the heat sink? Suppose the maximum temperature is 125 C, and the ambient
temperature is 25 C; then ?T is 100 C. The heat sink's thermal resistance to ambient must then be 0.5
C/W or less.

- 19 -

Transmittance
A third term, thermal transmittance, incorporates the thermal conductance of a structure along with heat
transfer due to convection and radiation. It is measured in the same units as thermal conductance and is
sometimes known as the composite thermal conductance. The term U-value is another synonym.

Influencing factors
Temperature
The effect of temperature on thermal conductivity is different for metals and nonmetals. In metals conductivity
is primarily due to free electrons. Following WiedemannFranz law thermal conductivity of metals is
approximately proportional to the absolute temperature (in Kelvin) times electrical conductivity. In pure
metals the electrical resistivity often increases proportional to temperature and thus thermal conductivity stays
approximately constant. In alloys the change in electrical conductivity is usually smaller and thus thermal
conductivity increases with temperature, often proportional to temperature.
On the other hand conductivity in nonmetals is mainly due to lattice vibrations (phonons). Except for high
quality crystals at low temperatures, the phonon mean free path is not reduced significantly at higher
temperatures. Thus the thermal conductivity of nonmetals is approximately constant at not too low
temperatures. At low temperatures well below Debye-temperature thermal conductivity decreases just like
the heat capacity does.

Material phase
When a material undergoes a phase change from solid to liquid or from liquid to gas the thermal conductivity
may change. An example of this would be the change in thermal conductivity that occurs when ice (thermal
conductivity of 2.18 W/(mK) at 0 C) melts into liquid water (thermal conductivity of 0.90 W/(mK) at 0
C).

Material structure
Pure crystalline substances can exhibit different thermal conductivities along different crystal axes, due to
differences in phonon coupling along a given crystal axis. Sapphire is a notable example of variable thermal
conductivity based on orientation and temperature, with 35 W/(mK) along the c-axis and 32 W/(mK)
[2]
along the a-axis.

Electrical conductivity
In metals, thermal conductivity approximately tracks electrical conductivity according to the
Wiedemann-Franz law, as freely moving valence electrons transfer not only electric current but also heat
energy. However, the general correlation between electrical and thermal conductance does not hold for other
materials, due to the increased importance of phonon carriers for heat in non-metals. As shown in the table
below, highly electrically conductive silver is less thermally conductive than diamond, which is an electrical
insulator.

Convection

- 20 -

Ceramic coatings with low thermal conductivities are used on exhaust systems to prevent heat from reaching
sensitive components
Air and other gases are generally good insulators, in the absence of convection. Therefore, many insulating
materials function simply by having a large number of gas-filled pockets which prevent large-scale
convection. Examples of these include expanded and extruded polystyrene (popularly referred to as
"styrofoam") and silica aerogel. Natural, biological insulators such as fur and feathers achieve similar effects
by dramatically inhibiting convection of air or water near an animal's skin.
Light gases, such as hydrogen and helium typically have high thermal conductivity. Dense gases such as
xenon and dichlorodifluoromethane have low thermal conductivity. An exception, sulfur hexafluoride, a dense
gas, has a relatively high thermal conductivity due to its high heat capacity. Argon, a gas denser than air, is
often used in insulated glazing (double paned windows) to improve their insulation characteristics.

Physical origins
Heat flux is exceedingly difficult to control and isolate in a laboratory setting. Thus at the atomic level, there
are no simple, correct expressions for thermal conductivity. Atomically, the thermal conductivity of a system
is determined by how atoms composing the system interact. There are two different approaches for
calculating the thermal conductivity of a system.

The first approach employs the Green-Kubo relations. Although this employs analytic expressions
which in principle can be solved, calculating the thermal conductivity of a dense fluid or solid using
this relation requires the use of molecular dynamics computer simulation.
The second approach is based upon the relaxation time approach. Due to the anharmonicity within
the crystal potential, the phonons in the system are known to scatter. There are three main
mechanisms for scattering:
o Boundary scattering, a phonon hitting the boundary of a system;
o Mass defect scattering, a phonon hitting an impurity within the system and scattering;
o Phonon-phonon scattering, a phonon breaking into two lower energy phonons or a phonon
colliding with another phonon and merging into one higher energy phonon.

Lattice waves
Heat transport in both glassy and crystalline dielectric solids occurs through elastic vibrations of the lattice (
phonons). This transport is limited by elastic scattering of acoustic phonons by lattice defects. These
predictions were confirmed by the experiments of Chang and Jones on commercial glasses and glass
-2
ceramics, where mean free paths were limited by "internal boundary scattering" to length scales of 10 cm
-3
[3][4]
to 10 cm.
The phonon mean free path has been associated directly with the effective relaxation length for processes

- 21 -

without directional correlation. Thus, if Vg is the group velocity of a phonon wave packet, then the relaxation
length is defined as:
where t is the characteristic relaxation time. Since longitudinal waves have a much greater phase velocity than
transverse waves, Vlong is much greater than Vtrans, and the relaxation length or mean free path of
longitudinal phonons will be much greater. Thus, thermal conductivity will be largely determined by the speed
[3][5]
of longitudinal phonons.
[disambiguation needed]
Regarding the dependence of wave velocity on wavelength or frequency (dispersion
), low-frequency phonons of long wavelength will be limited in relaxation length by elastic Rayleigh scattering.
This type of light scattering form small particles is proportional to the fourth power of the frequency. For
higher frequencies, the power of the frequency will decrease until at highest frequencies scattering is almost
frequency independent. Similar arguments were subsequently generalized to many glass forming substances
[6][7][8][9]
using Brillouin scattering.
Phonons in the acoustical branch dominate the phonon heat conduction as they have greater energy
dispersion and therefore a greater distribution of phonon velocities. Additional optical modes could also be
caused by the presence of internal structure (i.e., charge or mass) at a lattice point; it is implied that the group
velocity of these modes is low and therefore their contribution to the lattice thermal conductivity ? L (L) is
[10]
small.
Each phonon mode can be split into one longitudinal and two transverse polarization branches. By
extrapolating the phenomenology of lattice points to the unit cells it is seen that the total number of degrees of
freedom is 3pq when p is the number of primitive cells with q atoms/unit cell. From these only 3p are
associated with the acoustic modes, the remaining 3p(q-1) are accommodated through the optical branches.
This implies that structures with larger p and q contain a greater number of optical modes and a reduced ? L.
From these ideas, it can be concluded that increasing crystal complexity, which is described by a complexity
factor CF (defined as the number of atoms/primitive unit cell), decreases ? L. Micheline Roufosse and P.G.
Klemens derived the exact proportionality in their article Thermal Conductivity of Complex Dielectric
Crystals at Phys. Rev. B 7, 53795386 (1973). This was done by assuming that the relaxation time t
decreases with increasing number of atoms in the unit cell and ten scaling the parameters of the expression for
[10]
thermal conductivity in high temperatures accordingly.
Describing of anharmonic effects is complicated because exact treatment as in the harmonic case is not
possible and phonons are no longer exact eigensolutions to the equations of motion. Even if the state of
motion of the crystal could be described with a plane wave at a particular time, its accuracy would
deteriorate progressively with time. Time development would have to be described by introducing a
spectrum of other phonons, which is known as the phonon decay. The two most important anharmonic
effects are the thermal expansion and the phonon thermal conductivity.
0
Only when the phonon number n deviates from the equilibrium value n , can a thermal current arise as
stated in following expression

- 22 -

where v is the energy transport velocity of phonons. Only two mechanisms exist that can cause time variation
of n in a particular region. The number of phonons that diffuse into the region from neighboring regions
differs from those that diffuse out, or phonons decay inside the same region into other phonons. A special
form of the Boltzmann equation
states this. When steady state conditions are assumed the total time derivate of phonon number is zero,
because the temperature is constant in time and therefore the phonon number stays also constant. Time
variation due to phonon decay is described with a relaxation time (t) approximation
which states that the more the phonon number deviates from its equilibrium value, the more its time variation
increases. At steady state conditions and local thermal equilibrium are assumed we get the following equation
Using the relaxation time approximation for the Boltzmann equation and assuming steady-state conditions, the
phonon thermal conductivity ?L can be determined. The temperature dependence for ? L originates from the
variety of processes, whose significance for ? L depends on the temperature range of interest. Mean free path
is one factor that determines the temperature dependence for ? L, as stated in the following equation
where ? is the mean free path for phonon and denotes the heat capacity. This equation is a result of
[

combining the four previous equations with each other and knowing that for cubic or isotropic systems and .
11]

At low temperatures (<10 K) the anharmonic interaction does not influence the mean free path and therefore,
the thermal resistivity is determined only from processes for which q-conservation does not hold. These
processes include the scattering of phonons by crystal defects, or the scattering from the surface of the
crystal in case of high quality single crystal. Therefore, thermal conductance depends on the external
dimensions of the crystal and the quality of the surface. Thus, temperature dependence of ? L is determined
3 [11]
by the specific heat and is therefore proportional to T .
Phonon quasimomentum is defined as ?q and differs from normal momentum due to the fact that it is only
defined within an arbitrary reciprocal lattice vector. At higher temperatures (10 K<T <T), the conservation of
energy and quasimomentum , where q1 is wave vector of the incident phonon and q2, q3 are wave vectors
of the resultant phonons, may also involve a reciprocal lattice vector G complicating the energy transport
process. These processes can also reverse the direction of energy transport.
Therefore, these processes are also known as Umklapp (U) processes and can only occur when phonons
with sufficiently large q-vectors are excited, because unless the sum of q2 and q3 points outside of the
Brillouin zone the momentum is conserved and the process is normal scattering (N-process). The probability
of a phonon to have energy E is given by the Boltzmann distribution . To U-process to occur the decaying
phonon to have a wave vector q1 that is roughly half of the diameter of the Brillouin zone, because otherwise
quasimomentum would not be conserved.
Therefore, these phonons have to possess energy of , which is a significant fraction of Debye energy that is
needed to generate new phonons. The probability for this is proportional to , with . Temperature dependence
of the mean free path has an exponential form . The presence of the reciprocal lattice wave vector implies a
[10]
net phonon backscattering and a resistance to phonon and thermal transport resulting finite ? L,
as it

- 23 -

means that momentum is not conserved. Only momentum non-conserving processes can cause thermal
[11]
resistance.
-1
At high temperatures (T>T) the mean free path and therefore ? L has a temperature dependence T , to
which one arrives from formula by making the following approximation and writing . This dependency is
known as Euckens law and originates from the temperature dependency of the probability for the U-process
[10][11]
to occur.
Thermal conductivity is usually described by the Boltzmann equation with the relaxation time approximation in
which phonon scattering is a limiting factor. Another approach is to use analytic models or molecular
dynamics or Monte Carlo based methods to describe thermal conductivity in solids.
Short wavelength phonons are strongly scattered by impurity atoms if an alloyed phase is present, but mid
and long wavelength phonons are less affected. Mid and long wavelength phonons carry significant fraction of
heat, so to further reduce lattice thermal conductivity one has to introduce structures to scatter these
phonons. This is achieved by introducing interface scattering mechanism, which requires structures whose
characteristic length is longer than that of impurity atom. Some possible ways to realize these interfaces are
[12]
nanocomposites and embedded nanoparticles/structures.

Electronic thermal conductivity

Hot electrons from higher energy states carry more thermal energy than cold electrons, while electrical
conductivity is rather insensitive to the energy distribution of carriers because the amount of charge that
electrons carry, does not depend on their energy. This is a physical reason for the greater sensitivity of
electronic thermal conductivity to energy dependence of density of states and relaxation time, respectively.
10]

Mahan and Sofo have showed in their article The best thermoelectric (PNAS 1996 93 (15) 7436-7439) that
materials with a certain electron structure have reduced electron thermal conductivity. Based on their analysis
one can demonstrate that if the electron density of states in the material is close to the delta-function, the
electronic thermal conductivity drops to zero. By taking the following equation , where ? 0 is the electronic
thermal conductivity when the electrochemical potential gradient inside the sample is zero, as a starting point.
As next step the transport coefficients are written as following
,

,
where and a0 the Bohr radius. The dimensionless integrals In are defined as
,
where s(x) is the dimensionless transport distribution function. The integrals In are the moments of the
function

- 24 -

,
where x is the energy of carriers. By substituting the previous formulas for the transport coefficient to the
equation for ?E we get the following equation
.
From the previous equation we see that ?E to be zero the bracketed term containing In terms have to be
zero. Now if we assume that
,
where d is the Dirac delta function, In terms get the following expressions
,
,
.
By substituting these expressions to the equation for ?E, we see that it goes to zero. Therefore, P(x) has to
[12]
be delta function.

Equations
In an isotropic medium the thermal conductivity is the parameter k in the Fourier expression for the heat flux
where is the heat flux (amount of heat flowing per second and per unit area) and the temperature gradient.
The sign in the expression is chosen so that always k > 0 as heat always flows from a high temperature to a
low temperature. This is a direct consequence of the second law of thermodynamics.
In the one-dimensional case q = H/A with H the amount of heat flowing per second through a surface with
area A and the temperature gradient is dT/dx so
In case of a thermally-insulated bar (except at the ends) in the steady state H is constant. If A is constant as
well the expression can be integrated with the result
where TH and TL are the temperatures at the hot end and the cold end respectively, and L is the length of
the bar. It is convenient to introduce the thermal-conductivity integral
The heat flow rate is then given by
If the temperature difference is small k can be taken as constant. In that case

- 25 -

Simple kinetic picture

Gas atoms moving randomly through a surface.

In this Section we will derive an expression for the thermal conductivity. Consider a gas with a vertical
temperature gradient. The upper side is hot and the lower side cold. There is a downward energy flow due to
the fact that the gas atoms, going down, have a higher energy than the atoms going up. The net flow of energy
per second is the heat flow H. The heat flow is proportional to the number of particles that cross the area A
per second. This number is proportional to the product nvA where n is the particle density and v the mean
particle velocity. The magnitude of the heat flow will also be proportional to amount of energy transported
per particle so with the heat capacity per particle c and some characteristic temperature difference ?T. So far
we have
3
2
The unit of H is J/s and of the right-hand side it is (particle/m )(m/s)(J/(Kparticle))(m )(K) = J/s, so this
is already of the right dimension. Only a numerical factor is missing. For ?T we take the temperature
difference of the gas between two collissions
where l is the mean free path. Detailed kinetic calculations
in all,

[13]

show that the numerical factor is -1/3, so, all

Comparison with the one-dimension expression for the heat flow, given above, gives as the final result
The particle density and the heat capacity per particle can be combined as the heat capacity per unit volume
so
where CV is the molar heat capacity at constant volume and Vm the molar volume.
For an ideal gas the mean free path is given by
where s is the collision cross section. So
The heat capacity per particle c and the cross section s both are temperature independent so the temperature
dependence of k is determined by the T dependence of v. For a monatomic ideal gas, with atomic mass M,
v is given by
So

- 26 -

This expression also shows why gases with a low mass (hydrogen, helium) have a high thermal conductivity.
For metals at low temperatures the heat is carried mainly by the free electrons. In this case the mean
velocity is the Fermi velocity which is temperature independent. The mean free path is determined by the
impurities and the crystal imperfections which are temperature independent as well. So the only
temperature-dependent quantity is the heat capacity c, which, in this case, is proportional to T. So
with k 0 a constant. For pure metals such as copper, silver, etc. l is large, so the thermal conductivity is high.
At higher temperatures the mean free path is limited by the phonons, so the thermal conductivity tends to
down with temperature. In alloys the density of the impurities is very high, so l and, consequently k, are small.
Therefore alloys, such as stainless steel, can be used for thermal insulation.

See also
Heat transfer

Heat transfer mechanisms

Insulated pipes

Interfacial thermal resistance

Laser flash analysis

Specific heat

Thermal bridge

Thermal conductance quantum

Thermal contact conductance

Thermal diffusivity

Thermal rectifier

Thermal resistance in electronics

Thermistor

Thermocouple
References
Notes
1. ^ 1 Btu/(hrftF) = 1.730735 W/(mK)
2.

- 27 -

2. ^ R-Values and U-Values quoted in the US (based on the imperial units of measurement) do not
correspond with and are not compatible with those used outside the US (based on the SI units of
measurement).
References
1. ^ Perry, R. H.; Green, D. W., eds. (1997). Perry's Chemical Engineers' Handbook (7th ed.).
McGraw-Hill. Table 14. ISBN 978-0-07-049841-9.
2.
2. ^ "Sapphire, Al2O3". Almaz Optics. Retrieved 2012-08-15.
3.
ab
3. ^
Klemens, P.G. (1951). "The Thermal Conductivity of Dielectric Solids at Low
Temperatures". Proceedings of the Royal Society of London A 208 (1092): 108. Bibcode
1951RSPSA.208..108K. doi:10.1098/rspa.1951.0147.
4.
4. ^ Chan, G. K.; Jones, R. E. (1962). "Low-Temperature Thermal Conductivity of Amorphous
Solids". Physical Review 126 (6): 2055. Bibcode 1962PhRv..126.2055C. doi:
10.1103/PhysRev.126.2055.
5.
5. ^ Pomeranchuk, I. (1941). "Thermal conductivity of the paramagnetic dielectrics at low
temperatures". Journal of Physics (Moscow) 4: 357. ISSN 0368-3400.
6.
6. ^ Zeller, R. C.; Pohl, R. O. (1971). "Thermal Conductivity and Specific Heat of Non-crystalline
Solids". Physical Review B 4 (6): 2029. Bibcode 1971PhRvB...4.2029Z. doi:
10.1103/PhysRevB.4.2029.
7.
7. ^ Love, W. F. (1973). "Low-Temperature Thermal Brillouin Scattering in Fused Silica and
Borosilicate Glass". Physical Review Letters 31 (13): 822. Bibcode 1973PhRvL..31..822L. doi:
10.1103/PhysRevLett.31.822.
8.
8. ^ Zaitlin, M. P.; Anderson, M. C. (1975). "Phonon thermal transport in noncrystalline materials".
Physical Review B 12 (10): 4475. Bibcode 1975PhRvB..12.4475Z. doi:
10.1103/PhysRevB.12.4475.
9.
9. ^ Zaitlin, M. P.; Scherr, L. M.; Anderson, M. C. (1975). "Boundary scattering of phonons in
noncrystalline materials". Physical Review B 12 (10): 4487. Bibcode 1975PhRvB..12.4487Z. doi:
10.1103/PhysRevB.12.4487.
10.
abcde
10. ^
Pichanusakorn, P.; Bandaru, P. (2010). "Nanostructured thermoelectrics". Materials
Science and Engineering: R: Reports 67 (2-4): 19-63. doi:10.1016/j.mser.2009.10.001.
11.
abcd
11. ^
Ibach, H.; Luth, H. (2009). Solid-State Physics: An Introduction to Principles of
Materials Science. Springer. ISBN 978-3-540-93803-3.
12.
ab
12. ^
"Bulk nanostructured thermoelectric materials: Current research and future prospects". Energy
& Environmental Science 2: 466-479. 2009. doi:10.1039/b822664b.
13.
13. ^ Kittel, C.; Kroemer, H. (1980). Thermal Physics. W. H. Freeman and Company. Chapter 14.

- 28 -

ISBN 978-0716710882.
Further reading
Callister, William (2003). "Appendix B". Materials Science and Engineering - An Introduction.
John Wiley & Sons, INC. p. 757. ISBN 0-471-22471-5.
Halliday, David; Resnick, Robert; & Walker, Jearl(1997). Fundamentals of Physics (5th ed.).
John Wiley and Sons, INC., NY ISBN 0-471-10558-9

Thermal resistance
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
Jump to: navigation, search
Thermal resistance is a heat property and a measure of a temperature difference by which an object or
material resists a heat flow (heat per time unit or thermal resistance). Thermal resistance is the reciprocal of
thermal conductance.

Thermal resistance R has the units (m2K)/W.

Specific thermal resistance or specific thermal resistivity R? in (Km)/W is a material constant.
Absolute thermal resistance Rth in K/W is a specific property of a component. It is e.g., a
characteristic of a heat sink.

Contents

1 Absolute thermal resistance

o
o
o 1.1 Explanation from an electronics point of view

1.1.1 Equivalent thermal circuits

1.1.2 Example calculation

o
o
o 1.2 Derived from Fourier's Law for heat conduction

2 References
3 External links

Absolute thermal resistance

Absolute thermal resistance is the temperature difference across a structure when a unit of heat energy flows
through it in unit time. It is the reciprocal of thermal conductance. The SI units of thermal resistance are
kelvins per watt or the equivalent degrees Celsius per watt (the two are the same since as intervals 1 K = 1
C).

- 29 -

The thermal resistance of materials is of great interest to electronic engineers because most electrical
components generate heat and need to be cooled. Electronic components malfunction or fail if they overheat,
and some parts routinely need measures taken in the design stage to prevent this.

Explanation from an electronics point of view

Equivalent thermal circuits

The diagram shows an equivalent thermal circuit for a semiconductor device with a heat sink:
is the power dissipated by the device.
is the junction temperature in the device.
is the temperature at its case.
is the temperature where the heat sink is attached.
is the ambient air temperature.
is the device's absolute thermal resistance from junction to case.
is the absolute thermal resistance from the case to the heatsink.
is the absolute thermal resistance of the heat sink.
The heat flow can be modelled by analogy to an electrical circuit where heat flow is represented by current,
temperatures are represented by voltages, heat sources are represented by constant current sources,
absolute thermal resistances are represented by resistors and thermal capacitances by capacitors.
The diagram shows an equivalent thermal circuit for a semiconductor device with a heat sink.

Example calculation
Consider a component such as a silicon transistor that is bolted to the metal frame of a piece of equipment.
The transistor's manufacturer will specify parameters in the datasheet called the absolute thermal resistance
from junction to case (symbol: ), and the maximum allowable temperature of the semiconductor junction
(symbol: ). The specification for the design should include a maximum temperature at which the circuit should
function correctly. Finally, the designer should consider how the heat from the transistor will escape to the

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environment: this might be by convection into the air, with or without the aid of a heat sink, or by conduction
through the printed circuit board. For simplicity, let us assume that the designer decides to bolt the transistor
to a metal surface (or heat sink) that is guaranteed to be less than above the ambient temperature. Note: T HS
appears to be undefined.
Given all this information, the designer can construct a model of the heat flow from the semiconductor
junction, where the heat is generated, to the outside world. In our example, the heat has to flow from the
junction to the case of the transistor, then from the case to the metalwork. We do not need to consider
where the heat goes after that, because we are told that the metalwork will conduct heat fast enough to keep
the temperature less than above ambient: this is all we need to know.
Suppose the engineer wishes to know how much power he can put into the transistor before it overheats.
The calculations are as follows.
Total absolute thermal resistance from junction to ambient =
where is the absolute thermal resistance of the bond between the transistor's case and the metalwork. This
figure depends on the nature of the bond - for example, a thermal bonding pad or thermal transfer grease
might be used to reduce the absolute thermal resistance.
Maximum temperature drop from junction to ambient = .
We use the general principle that the temperature drop across a given absolute thermal resistance with a
given heat flow through it is:
.
Substituting our own symbols into this formula gives:
,
and, rearranging,