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ii

Chemical Engineering Heat Transfer

(Detailed Approach)

Volume I

Ali A. Rabah
Department of Chemical Engineering
University of Khartoum

2018
 iii

Dedication
To my Parents
To my Family
iv

Preface
With pressing need of energy efficiency, the heat transfer subject is becom-
ing more complicated. This resulted from complicated geometrical con-
figuration used to improve the efficiency of convectional equipment such
as heat exchangers, reboilers, evaporators, etc... High accuracy in the
design of these equipment requires exact solution of mathematically com-
plicated heat transfer problems. This complicated trend has made the
subject of heat transfer difficult for engineering students. Engineering stu-
dents require advanced knowledge of mathematics and numerical methods
to understand heat transfer. The aims of this book are to extend the ex-
isting concise approach in heat transfer to more detailed one; explaining
the phenomena and providing more mathematical details.
In this book the student will find detailed derivation of heat transfer rate
and temperature distribution in different solid geometries including com-
plicated fins. The temperature distribution in solids of variable thermal
conductivity and heat generation are given. Transient conduction prob-
lems under the assumptions of lumped heat capacity, semi-finite and finite
slap models are handled in details. The emphasis is made on analytical
methods rather than Heisler Charts.
The heat transfer coefficients of forced and free convection are correlated
to heat transfer variables using Buckungham π theorem. Correlation for
prediction of heat transfer coefficients for single phase laminar and turbu-
lent flow in different flow geometries are presented. The range of applica-
tion of these correlations are also given. Heat transfer in two phase flow
(condensation and boiling) and methods for determination of heat transfer
coefficients are presented. Here Nusselt’s theory of film condensation is
explained in details.
The student will find derivation of energy, momentum and mass equations
from the first principles. Analytical solution of these equations to obtain
temperature and velocity distribution and ultimately the heat transfer co-
efficient using boundary layer theorem is given in details.
In thermal radiation the topics of radiation properties and radiation ex-
change between black-black, grey-grey and black-grey bodies are covered.
The concept of analysis of heat transfer in composite walls, cylinders and
spheres and other geometries are given. The concept of overall heat transfer
coefficient is introduced.
 v

Methods of estimating the insulation thickness for energy conservation

(critical and economic thickness of insulation), personnel protection based
on safe touch temperature, condensation and process control are given in
details. Solved examples using Excel worksheet are given for the calcula-
tion of economic thickness of insulation.
Each chapter contains worked examples and closed with review questions
and review problems. The examples are of practical applications such as
analysis of heat transfer in a wall of a furnace, steam main and oil pipelines
and heating and cooling of vessels.
In this book correlations are presented for simple hand calculation and
computer programming. An additional feature of this book is that the use
of charts (e.g. Heisler charts) to obtain heat transfer data is minimized.

Ali A. Rabah
Khartoum, 2018
vi

Author
Ali A. Rabah obtained his BSc in Chemical Engineering (University of
Khartoum, Sudan); MSc in Mechnical Engineering (University of Nairob,
Kenya); PhD (Dr.-Ing.) in Mechnaical Engineering (Leibniz University of
Hannover, Germany). he is a Professor of chemical engineering. He taught
the subject of heat transfer, thermodynamics and transport phenomena to
BSc and MSc Chemical Engineering students at University of Khartoum
for several years. He has published extensively in the area of heat trans-
fer. He is an Alexander von Humboldt Stiftung fellow at the Institute for
Thermodynamics, University of Helmut-Schmidt, Hamburg, Germany. In
2012. he was awarded the prize excellence of Academic and Scientific Re-
search, University of Khartoum. He served University of khartoum as head
of Chemical Engineering Department and as a Dean Engineering.

Ali A. Rabah
Khartoum, 2018
Table of contents vii

Table of contents

1 Introduction to Heat Transfer 1

1.1 Overview of heat transfer . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1
1.2 Mechanisms of heat transfer . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 2
1.2.1 Conduction . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 3
1.2.2 Convection . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 4
1.2.3 Radiation . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 6
1.3 Review questions . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 9

2 Mass, Momentum and Energy Equations 11

2.1 Basic definitions . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 11
2.1.1 Substantial derivatives . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 11
2.2 Continuity equation . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 14
2.3 Momentum equation . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 17
2.4 Energy equation . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 19
2.5 Heat Conduction Equation . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 27
2.6 Boundary and initial conditions . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 27

3 Steady State Heat Conduction 31

3.1 Heat transfer rate . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 32
3.2 Thermal resistance . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 37
3.3 Temperature distribution . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 38
3.4 Heat Conduction with internal energy generation . . . . . 46
3.5 Review questions . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 51
3.6 Review problems . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 52

4 Transient conduction 55
4.1 Lumped thermal capacity . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 55
4.1.1 Example . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 58
4.1.2 Example . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 59
viii Table of contents

4.1.3 Example . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 60
4.2 Semi-infinite solid . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 62
4.2.1 Example . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 66
4.3 Finite solid . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 67
4.3.1 Example . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 73
4.3.2 Example . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 74
4.4 Review Questions . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 76
4.5 Review Problems . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 77

5 Fins 81
5.1 Longitudinal fin . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 86
5.1.1 Rectangular longitudinal fin . . . . . . . . . . . . . 86
5.1.2 Triangular fin . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 91
5.1.3 Trapezoidal fin . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 93
5.2 Radial convecting fin . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 95
5.3 Convecting spine fin . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 97
5.3.1 Cylindrical spine . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 97
5.3.2 Conical spine . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 97
5.4 Fin performance . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 98
5.4.1 Fin effectiveness . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 99
5.4.2 Fin efficiency . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 100
5.4.3 Overall fin efficiency . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 103
5.5 Review questions . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 107
5.6 Review problems . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 107

6 Convection 110
6.1 Convection fundamentals . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 110
6.2 Dimensional analysis . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 118
6.2.1 Forced convection . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 119
6.2.2 Natural convection . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 124
Table of contents ix

6.3 Forced convection heat transfer coefficient . . . . . . . . . 126

6.3.1 Flat plate . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 127
6.3.2 Circular pipe . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 132
6.3.3 None circular pipe . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 137
6.3.4 Flow across cylinder . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 138
6.3.5 Flow over sphere . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 141
6.4 Free convection heat transfer coefficient . . . . . . . . . . . 142
6.4.1 Vertical plate . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 143
6.4.2 Inclined plate . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 144
6.4.3 Horizontal plate . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 144
6.4.4 Horizontal cylinder . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 145
6.4.5 Vertical cylinder . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 146
6.4.6 Sphere . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 146
6.5 Review questions . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 148
6.6 Review problems . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 150

7 Boundary Layer 153

7.1 Hydrodynamic boundary layer . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 153
7.2 Thermal boundary layer . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 154
7.3 Mass, momentum and energy equations . . . . . . . . . . . 155
7.4 Velocity distribution over flat plate . . . . . . . . . . . . . 161
7.4.1 Numerical method . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 161
7.4.2 Integral method . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 163
7.5 Velocity distribution for flow in pipes . . . . . . . . . . . . 167
7.6 Temperature distribution over a flat plate . . . . . . . . . 170
7.6.1 Exact solution . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 170
7.6.2 Integral method . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 171
7.7 Temperature distribution for flow in pipes . . . . . . . . . 176
7.8 Boundary layer: Free convection . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 179
7.8.1 Similarity analysis . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 180
x Table of contents

7.8.2 Integral method . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 181

7.9 Review questions . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 189
7.10 Review problems . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 190

8 Thermal Radiation 193

8.1 Basic definitions . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 193
8.1.1 Electromagnetic radiation . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 193
8.1.2 Black and grey bodies . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 193
8.1.3 Emissive power . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 194
8.1.4 Spectral radiation . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 195
8.1.5 Radiation intensity . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 195
8.1.6 Radiative properties . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 198
8.1.7 Kirshoff law . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 199
8.2 Stefan-Boltzmann law . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 200
8.3 View factors . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 202
8.4 View factor relations . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 207
8.5 Radiative exchange between black surfaces . . . . . . . . . 209
8.6 Radiation exchange between grey bodies . . . . . . . . . . 215
8.7 Review questions . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 230
8.8 Review problems . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 232

9 Heat Transfer in Composite Walls 234

9.1 Composite walls in series . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 234
9.2 Composite walls in parallel . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 236
9.3 Composite cylinders in series . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 237
9.4 Overall heat transfer coefficient . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 243
9.5 Review problems . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 247

10 Condensation and Boiling 251

10.1 Condensation . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 252
10.1.1 Nusselt’s film condensation theory . . . . . . . . . . 253
Table of contents xi

10.1.2 Deviations from Nusselt’s film condensation theory 262

10.1.3 Flowing vapor . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 266
10.2 Boiling . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 268
10.2.1 Pool boiling . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 269
10.2.2 Flow boiling . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 274
10.3 Review questions . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 282
10.4 Review problems . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 283

11 Thermal Insulation 286

11.1 Thermal insulation purposes . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 286
11.2 Insulation materials . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 287
11.2.1 Types of insulation materials . . . . . . . . . . . . 287
11.2.2 Insulation properties . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 288
11.3 Insulation thickness . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 291
11.3.1 Insulation thickness for personnel protection . . . . 293
11.3.2 Insulation thickness for condensation control . . . . 295
11.3.3 Insulation thickness for process control . . . . . . . 296
11.3.4 Insulation thickness for energy conservation . . . . 302
11.3.5 Critical thickness of insulation . . . . . . . . . . . . 302
11.3.6 Economical thickness of insulation (ETI) . . . . . . 305
11.4 Review questions . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 312
11.5 Review problems . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 314

12 Heating and Cooling of Vessels 318

12.1 Cooling a vessel in isothermal environment . . . . . . . . . 319
12.2 Heating and cooling of agitated batch . . . . . . . . . . . . 323
12.3 Heating and cooling a batch with external heat exchanger 325
12.4 Review Problems . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 330

Bibliography 331
xii Table of contents

A Special Functions 336

A.1 Gaussian error function . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 336
A.2 Bessel functions . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 337
A.3 Modified Bessel functions . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 337
List of Tables xiii

List of Tables
1.1 The thermal conductivity at the room temperature . . . . 5
1.2 Thermal conductivity of Copper and Aluminum . . . . . . 5
1.3 Typical values of heat transfer coefficient . . . . . . . . . . 6
4.1 Gaussian error function . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 79
6.1 Dynamic viscosity at 1 atm and 20 C . . . . . . . . . . . . 115
6.2 Dependent variables of forced convection heat transfer coef-
ficient . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 119
6.3 q variables . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 119
6.4 q dimensions . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 120
6.5 Forced convection dimensionless groups . . . . . . . . . . . 120
6.6 Experimental data and thermophysical properties . . . . . 122
6.7 Calculated parameters . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 123
6.8 Dependent variables of free convection heat transfer coefficient125
6.9 Natural convection dimensionless groups . . . . . . . . . . 125
6.10 Properties of air at atmospheric pressure . . . . . . . . . . 131
6.11 Air properties . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 151
7.1 Exact velocity profile in the boundary layer . . . . . . . . 162
8.1 Electromagnetic wave spectrum . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 193
8.2 Radiometry units . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 198
8.3 Emissivity at 300 K . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 200
8.4 Radiation constants . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 202
10.1 Coefficients of equation 10.71 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 273
11.1 Insulation materials and temperature application range . . 288
11.2 Thermal conductivity at the room temperature . . . . . . 288
11.3 Data for example 11.3.3.2 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 300
11.4 Thickness of insulation for example 11.3.6.1 . . . . . . . . 311
A.1 Gaussian error function . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 338
xiv List of Figures

List of Figures
1.1 Conduction mechanisms a) vibration b) collision . . . . . . 3
1.2 Convection mechanisms . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 6
1.3 Electromagnetic spectrum . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 7
2.1 Volume element for mass balance. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 14
2.2 Volume element for x-momentum balance. . . . . . . . . . 18
2.3 A control volume for energy balance . . . . . . . . . . . . . 23
2.4 Boundary conditions at the interface of two bodies in perfect
contact. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 29
3.1 Conduction in solids . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 32
3.2 Thermal and electrical resistances . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 38
3.3 Temperature profile in solids . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 39
3.4 Conduction in a solid sphere . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 52
4.1 Lumped thermal capacity body . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 56
4.2 Transient conduction in semi-finite plates . . . . . . . . . . 63
4.3 Temperature distributions in simple geometries . . . . . . 67
5.1 Longitudinal fins (a) rectangular, (b) trapezoidal, (c) trian-
gular, (d) concave parabolic, and (e) convex parabolic profiles. 82
5.2 Radial fins (a) rectangular, (b) triangular, (c) parabolic pro-
files. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 83
5.3 Spine fins (a) cylindrical; (b) conical; (c) concave parabolic;
(d) convex parabolic. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 83
5.4 Rectangular fin . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 84
5.5 Triangle Fin . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 92
5.6 Trapezoidal Fin . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 93
5.7 Radial rectangular fin a) original (b) approximate . . . . . 97
6.1 Flow in a pipe . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 110
6.2 Horizontal hot plate . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 145
7.1 Boundary layer a) hydrodynamic b) thermal . . . . . . . . 153
7.2 Velocity distribution in a pipe . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 169
List of Figures xv

q
7.3 The value of the term 3
(1 − φ2 /14) of Eq. (7.129) . . . . . 175
7.4 Boundary layer on vertical plates a) heated b)cooled . . . 180
8.1 Electromagnetic wave spectrum . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 194
8.2 Solid angles . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 196
8.3 Zenith, azimuth and solid angle . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 197
8.4 Radiation properties . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 199
8.5 View factors . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 202
8.6 View factors between two surfaces . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 203
8.7 Symmetrical view factors . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 205
8.8 Zero View factors . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 205
8.9 View factors from a small to a large sphere. . . . . . . . . 206
8.10 View factors relations . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 206
8.11 View factors in a cylinder . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 208
8.12 Radiation exchange between black bodies . . . . . . . . . . 210
8.13 Grey body model . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 215
8.14 Radiation network . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 217
8.15 Radiation exchange between two grey bodies . . . . . . . . 218
8.16 Radiation exchange between three grey bodies . . . . . . . 227
9.1 Composite walls in series . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 234
9.2 Thermal network for composite walls in series . . . . . . . 235
9.3 Thermal network for composite walls in parallel . . . . . . 237
9.4 Thermal network for composite cylinders . . . . . . . . . . 238
9.5 Overall heat transfer coefficient . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 243
9.6 Energy interactions at the outer wall surface . . . . . . . . 245
10.1 P T diagram . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 251
10.2 Film condensation on a vertical plate. . . . . . . . . . . . . 255
10.3 Condensation on external horizontal tube . . . . . . . . . . 260
10.4 Tubes bank . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 261
10.5 Condensation inside tube . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 267
xvi List of Figures

10.6 Pool boiling regimes . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 270

10.7 Nukijama boiling curve . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 270
10.8 Flow boiling regimes in a) a vertical tube b) a horizonal tube 275
11.1 Critical thickness of insulation . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 303
11.2 Economic thickness of insulation . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 306
11.3 Thickness of insulation for example 11.3.6.1 . . . . . . . . 310
12.1 Cooling of fluid in a thin-wall-vessel . . . . . . . . . . . . . 319
12.2 Adiabatic tank a) coil b)Jacket . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 323
12.3 Adiabatic tank external heating . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 326
 1

1 Introduction to Heat Transfer

1.1 Overview of heat transfer
The energy of a system can exist in numerous forms such as chemical, ther-
mal, mechanical and electrical. For example electrical energy is produced
from fuel oil or natural gas. The energy in the fuel oil is a chemical energy
which is the energy associated with the atomic bonds in a molecule, when
the fuel is burned the chemical energy is transformed into thermal energy;
the fuel is convected into hot flue gases. The thermal energy in fuel gas
is used to evaporate water and produce steam. The energy in the steam
produced is still thermal energy, however at a lower temperature than that
of flue gas. The steam is then injected into a turbine hence the thermal
energy is convected into mechanical energy. The mechanical energy is in
turn converted into electrical energy in the generator. This chain of energy
conversions can best be depicted as

Chemical → Thermal → Mechanical → Electrical (1.1)

From the above example it can be seen that the flue gas thermal energy
(high temperature) is converted into steam thermal energy (low tempera-
ture). The conversion of high temperature thermal energy to low tempera-
ture thermal energy is defined as heat transfer or simply heat (Q) in Joules
[J]. In accordance with second law of thermodynamics the heat transfers
form the source (high temperature) to the sink (low temperature). The
rate at which heat transfer is called the heat transfer rate and is defined
as
dQ
Q̇ = (1.2)
dt
where Q̇ is in (W=J/s).
The amount of heat Q can be determined using thermodynamics alone.
However, the heat transfer rate Q̇ can not be determined using thermo-
dynamics because it depends on the mode by which heat is transferred.
Hence, it is the science of heat transfer that deals with heat transfer rate.
In thermodynamics, steam power generation or Rankine cycle consists of a
boiler, a turbine, a condenser and a pump andthe refrigeration cycle con-
sists of an evaporator, a condenser, a compressor and an expansion device.
In these processes, the system is analyzed and the energy is quantified in a
form of heat or work. The efficiency or coefficient of performance is also de-
2 1 Introduction to Heat Transfer

termined. However, the condensers, evaporators and boilers involved have

not being sized. Why?. It is the subject of heat transfer that relates the
heat transfer rate to the equipment size and geometry. So, heat transfer
is a science that deals with sizing and rating of heat transfer equipment
and analysis of heat transfer system. Sizing deals with the determination
of the size of equipment of known heat transfer rate. Here the equipment
dimensions (length, diameter, and the number of tubes or plate) are to
be determined. Rating means specifying the heat transfer rate for a given
size of equipment at specified temperature; on other words evaluating the
performance of existing equipment.

Heat transfer equipment is involved almost in every chemical process such

as petroleum refineries, sugar production, paper industry, textile, pharma-
ceutical to mention. The heat transfer equipment include heat exchangers,
boilers, condensers, chemical evaporators, furnaces, solar collectors and re-
generator. Thermal insulation of steam mains and oil and water pipes is
another application of heat transfer. All these equipments are designed
primarily on the basis of heat transfer.

1.2 Mechanisms of heat transfer

The basic requirement of heat to transfer is the presence of a temperature
difference. There can be no net heat transfer between two media that are
at the same temperature. The temperature difference is the driving force
for heat transfer, similar to potential difference in electric current flow,
pressure difference in fluid flow and concentration difference in the transfer
of chemical species. The rate of heat transfer in a certain direction depends
on the magnitude of the temperature gradient (the temperature difference
per unit length or the rate of change of temperature) in that direction.
The larger the temperature gradient, the higher the rate of heat transfer.
As the fluid flows in the direction of low pressure and the current in the
direction of low voltage, the heat transfer flows from high temperature to
low temperature (i.e. from hot to cold).
There are three modes of heat transfer: conduction, convection, and radi-
ation. Any energy exchange between bodies occurs through one of these
modes or a combination of them. Conduction is the transfer of heat through
solids or stationery fluids. Convection uses the movement of fluids to trans-
fer heat from solid to fluid or vise versa depending on the temperatures of
1.2.1 Conduction 3

the fluid and solid. Radiation does not require a medium for transferring
heat; this mode uses the electromagnetic radiation emitted by an object
for exchanging heat.

1.2.1 Conduction
Conduction occurs in solids or stationery fluids. The energy transfer from
the hot side of the solid to the cold side by two mechanisms: lattice vibra-
tion and electron collision. In solids, atoms are bounded to each other by
a series of bonds, analogous to springs as shown in Fig. 1.1. When there
is a temperature difference in the solid, the hot side of the solid experi-
ences more vigorous atomic movements. The vibrations are transmitted
through the springs to the cooler side of the solid. Eventually, they reach
an equilibrium, where all the atoms are vibrating with the same energy.
Solids, especially metals, have free electrons, which are not bounded to
any particular atom and can freely move about the solid. The electrons
in the hot side of the solid move faster than those on the cooler side (Fig.
1.1b). As the electrons undergo a series of collisions, the faster electrons
give off some of their energy to the slower electrons. Eventually, through a
series of random collisions, an equilibrium is reached, where the electrons
are moving at the same average velocity. Conduction through electron
collision is more effective than through lattice vibration; this is why metals
generally are better heat conductors than ceramic materials, which do not
have many free electrons.

Cold Particle

Hot Particle
b)

a)

Fig. 1.1. Conduction mechanisms a) vibration b) collision

In fluids, where molecules are in free movement, conduction occurs through

collisions between freely moving molecules. The mechanism is identical to
the electron collisions in metals.
4 1 Introduction to Heat Transfer

The heat transfer rate by conduction is defined by Fourier’s law1 of con-

duction as
dT
Q̇ = −kAn (1.3)
dn
where A is heat transfer area normal to the direction of heat transfer, T
is the temperature, n is the coordinate in which heat is transferred and k
is thermal conductivity. The minus sign indicates that heat transfers from
the hot end to the cold end of the body, which is one of the postulates of
the second law of thermodynamic. The rate of heat transfer per unit area
normal to the direction of heat transfer is called heat flux (W/m2 ) and is
expressed as
Q̇
q̇ = (1.4)
A
The thermal conductivity is a thermophysical property of the material. A
material can be said a good conductor when it has a high conductivity and
a poor conductor, or an insulator, when has low conductivity. Conductivity
is measured in Watts per meter per Kelvin (W/mK). In general, thermal
conductivity is a function of both temperature and location; that is,

k = k(T, n) (1.5)

For homogenous (isotropic) materials, k is the same in all directions, but

for nonhomogeneous (anisotropic) materials such as wood and laminated
materials, k is significantly higher along the grain or lamination than per-
pendicular to it. Thus for nonhomogeneous materials, k can have a strong
directional dependence. For both homogenous and nonhomogeneous the
dependency of thermal conductivity on temperature can not be ignored if
the temperature in the conduction material is large. Table 1.1 shows the
thermal conductivity of various materials. Table 1.2 shows the thermal
conductivity dependence on temperature for some materials.

1.2.2 Convection
Convection occurs between solid surface and adjacent fluid. There are two
types of convection: forced and natural (or free). Forced convection uses
external means of producing fluid movement. Examples of external force
1
Jean Baptiste Fourier (1768-1830) was Professor for Analysis at the Ecole Polytechnique in Paris and
from 1807 a member of the French Academy of Science. His most important work ”Theorie analytique
de la chaleur” appeared in 1822. It is the .rst comprehensive mathematical theory of conduction and
contains the ”Fourier Series” for solving boundary value problems in transient heat conduction.
1.2.2 Convection 5

Table 1.1. The thermal conductivity at the room temperature

Material k, W/mC Material k, W/mC
Diamond 2300 Silver 429
Copper 401 Gold 317
Aluminum 237 Nickel 91
Iron 80.2 Mercury (L) 8.54
Glass 0.78 Brick 0.72
Water (L) 0.613 Human skin 0.37
Wood (oak) 0.17 Helium (g) 0.152
Soft rubber 0.13 Glass fiber 0.043
Fiberglass 0.035 Air 0.026

Table 1.2. Thermal conductivity of Copper and Aluminum

T, K k, W/mC
Copper Aluminum
100 482 302
200 413 237
300 401 237
400 393 240
600 379 231
800 366 218

include natural wind, fan or pump. In windy winter one feels much colder
than a calm day with same temperature. This is an example of force
convection. Convection uses the motion of fluids to transfer heat. In a
typical convective heat transfer, a hot surface heats the surrounding fluid,
which is then carried away by fluid movement. The warm fluid is replaced
by cooler fluid, which can draw more heat away from the surface. Natural
convection (or free convection) refers to a case where the fluid movement
is created by the warm fluid itself. The density of fluid decrease as it is
heated; thus, hot fluids are lighter than cool fluids. Warm fluid surrounding
a hot object rises, and is replaced by cooler fluid due to buoyancy force.
The result is a circulation of air above the warm surface, as shown in Fig.
1.2. The rate of heat transfer by convection is governed by Newton’s law
of cooling as

Q̇ = hA(Tw − T∞ ) (1.6)
where A is the surface area of the object, Tw is the surface or wall temper-
ature, and T∞ is the ambient or fluid temperature. h is the heat transfer
coefficient, is the measure of how effectively a fluid transfers heat by con-
vection. It is measured in W/m2 K, and is determined by factors such as
6 1 Introduction to Heat Transfer

T∞

Tw

a) Forced convection
T∞ Air

Tw

b) Free convection

Fig. 1.2. Convection mechanisms

the fluid thermophysical properties (density, viscosity, thermal conductiv-

ity, and specific heat), flow geometry (duct shape and size) and flow regime
(laminar, turbulent or transition), type of convection (forced or natural)
and state of the fluid (single phase, condensation, boiling). For example
water has higher heat transfer coefficient than air under same convective
condition. Table 1.3 shows typical values of heat transfer coefficients.

Table 1.3. Typical values of heat transfer coefficient

Fluid Free convection Forced convection
Gas 5-30 20-3000
Liquid 20-1000 50-20,000

1.2.3 Radiation
Unlike conduction and convection, radiative heat transfer does not require
a medium to pass through; thus, it is the only form of heat transfer present
in vacuum. It uses electromagnetic radiation, which travels at the speed
of light and is emitted by any matter with temperature above 0 Kelvin
(-273.15 C). Radiative heat transfer occurs when the emitted radiation
strikes another body and is absorbed. We all experience radiative heat
transfer everyday; solar radiation, absorbed by our skin, is why we feel
warmer in the sun than in the shade.
The electromagnetic spectrum classifies radiation according to wavelengths
of the radiation (Fig. 1.3). Main types of radiation are (from short to long
wavelengths): gamma rays, x-rays, ultraviolet (UV), visible light, infrared
1.2.3 Radiation 7

(IR), microwaves and radio waves. Radiation with shorter wavelengths

are more energetic and contains more heat. X-rays, having wavelengths
10−9 m, are very energetic and can be harmful to humans, while visible
light with wavelengths 10−7 m contain less energy and therefore have little
effect on life. A second characteristic which will become important later
is that radiation with longer wavelengths generally can penetrate through
thicker solids. Visible light, as it is known, is blocked by a wall. However,
radio waves, having wavelengths on the order of meters, can readily pass
through concrete walls. The wave that carry thermal radiation ranges from
ultraviolet to infrared in the range from 0.1 to 3000 µm.
Thermal Radiation
Gamma Rays Visible Light
X Rays Ultraviolet Infrared Microwaves

10-6 10-5 10-4 10-3 10-2 10-1 100 101 102 103 104 105 106

Wavelength micrometer

Fig. 1.3. Electromagnetic spectrum

Any body with temperature above 0 Kelvin emits radiation. The type of
radiation emitted is determined largely by the temperature of the body.
Most hot objects, from a cooking standpoint, emit infrared radiation. Hot-
ter objects, such as the sun at 5780 K, emit more energetic radiation in-
cluding visible and UV. The visible portion is evident from the bright glare
of the sun; the UV radiation causes burns.
Consider an object at temperature Ts in an enclosure, the amount of radi-
ation emitted by an object to the inclosure is governed by
Q̇emit = εσATs4 (1.7)
where A is the surface area, Ts is the temperature of the body, σ is a
constant called Stefan2 -Boltzmann3 constant, equal to 5.67×10−8 W/m 2
K4 , and ε is a material property called emissivity. The emissivity has a
value between zero and 1, and is a measure of how efficiently a surface
2
Josef Stefan (1835-1893) became Professor of Physics at the University of Vienna in 1863. He was
an excellent researcher and published numerous papers on heat conduction and diffusion in fluids, ice
formation, and the connection between surface tension and evaporation. He suggested the T 4 -law after
careful evaluation of lots of earlier experiments on the emission of heat from hot bodies.
3
Ludwig Boltzmann (1844-1906) gained his PhD in 1867 as a scholar of J. Stefan in Vienna. He
was a physics professor in Graz, Munich, Leipzig and Vienna. His main area of work was the kinetic
theory of gases and its relationship with the second law of thermodynamics. In 1877 he found the
fundamental relation between the entropy of a system and the logarithm of the number of possible
molecular distributions which make up the macroscopic state of the system.
8 1 Introduction to Heat Transfer

emits radiation. It is the ratio of the radiation emitted by a surface to

the radiation emitted by a perfect emitter at the same temperature. If
the inclosure emitted radiation E, when the radiation strikes the surface
of the object then it is reflected, absorbed, or transmitted. The portion
that contributes to the heating of the surface is the absorbed radiation.
The percentage of the incident radiation that is absorbed is called the
absorptions, α. The amount of heat absorbed by the surface is given by:

Q̇absorbed = αAs E (1.8)

4
the incident radiation E =σT∞ . For the object in an enclosure, the radia-
tive exchange between the object and the wall is

Q̇net = Q̇emit − Q̇absorbed = σAs (εTs4 − αT∞

4
) (1.9)
1.3 Review questions 9

1.3 Review questions

1. State two differences between heat transfer and thermodynamics?
2. What is the difference between heat transfer rate and heat? are they
related to each other?
3. An ideal gas is heated from 50 C to 80 C at (a) constant volume
and (b) constant pressure. For which case do you think the energy
required will be greater? Why?
4. Is fourier’s law of conduction an empirical relation?
5. What are the main mechanisms of heat transfer?
6. What is the driving force for (a) Heat transfer(b) Electric current (c)
Momentum transfer d) Mass transfer?
7. How do rating problems in heat transfer differ from sizing problems?
8. What is a heat flux? What is the equivalent flux in mass, momentum
and current flow?
9. A cylinder with (d=20 mm, L= 2 m) is exposed to radial heat transfer
at a rate of 1 kW what is the heat flux. What is heat flux if the same
heat transferred in axial direction.
10. What is conduction? What are the main mechanisms of conduction?
11. Does conduction occurs in flowing fluid?
12. What are the similarities between heat and mass transfer?
13. Feeling the cold, is it by conduction or convection?
14. Why do we feel colder in windy winter day than in a winter clam day
at the same ambient temperature?
15. Does radiation occur in dark places?
16. In a clear sky summer night the earth surface cools faster than when
the sky is cloudy at the same average day temperature. Explain?
17. The nomads at the desert wear heavy cloths covering their body from
head to toe, is this has something to do with heat transfer? if yes,
from which type of heat transfer are they protected?
 10 1 Introduction to Heat Transfer

18. An electric heater has a disc of 20 cm in diameter. You want to boil

a 1 liter of water and you have two pots of 15 cm diameter and 20 cm
diameter both are made of the same material. Which pot will you use
to boil your water?
19. What is forced convection? How does it differ from natural convec-
tion? Which types of convection is caused by winds?
20. What forces cause natural convection currents?
21. What is buoyancy force? Compare the relative magnitudes of the
buoyancy force acting on a body immersed in: (a) air, (b) water (c)
mercury and (d) an evacuated chamber.
22. Write down the laws that govern the heat transfer by conduction,
convection, radiation.
23. Give one example of a material that its thermal conductivity varies
with location.

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