College of Engineering and Computer Science

Mechanical Engineering Department

Mechanical Engineering 375
Heat Transfer
Spring 2007 Number 17629
Instructor: Larry Caretto
In-class Exercise Three
1. Steam at 320C flows in a stainless steel pipe (k = 15 W/mC) whose inner and outer
diameters are 5 cm and 5.5 cm, respectively. The pipe is covered with 3-cm-thick glass
wool insulation (k = 0.038 W/mC). Heat is lost to the surroundings at 5C by natural
convection and radiation, with a combined natural convection and radiation heat transfer
coefficient of 15 W/m
2
C. Taking the heat transfer coefficient inside the pipe to be 80
W/m
2
C, determine the rate of heat loss from the steam per unit length of the pipe. Also
determine the temperature drops across the pipe shell and the insulation. (Problem 3-72
in text.)
The problem can be modeled
as a thermal circuit where
there are four resistances:
inside convection, conduction
through the pipe wall and the
insulation and the combined convection plus radiation resistance on the outside. The overall heat
transfer is given by the equation.
L D h r
r
L k r
r
L k L D h
T T
R R R R
T T
Q
o o o
ins
ins i
o
pipe i i

+

,
_

,
_

+ + +

1
ln
2
1
ln
2
1 1
2 1
4 3 2 1
2 1

Dividing by L gives the heat transfer per unit length.

o o o
ins
ins i
o
pipe i i
D h r
r
k r
r
k D h
T T
L
Q

,
_

,
_

1
ln
2
1
ln
2
1 1
2 1

We can calculate the individual resistances (multiplied by L) as follows.

W
C m
m W
C m
D h W
C m
m W
C m
D h
o o
o o
o o
i i

1845 . 0
115 . 0
1 1
15
1 0796 . 0
05 . 0
1 1
80
1
2 2
W
C m
cm
cm
W
C m
D
D
k r
r
k
o o
i
o
pipe i
o
pipe
15
1011 . 0
5
5 . 5
ln
15 2
1
ln
2
1
ln
2
1

,
_

,
_

,
_

W
C m
cm
cm
W
C m
D
D
k r
r
k
o o
o
ins
ins o
ins
ins

,
_

,
_

,
_

089 . 3
5 . 5
5 . 11
ln
038 . 0 2
1
ln
2
1
ln
2
1
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E-mail: lcaretto@csun.edu 8348 Fax: 818.677.7062
m
W
W
C m
C
W
C m
W
C m
W
C m
W
C m
C C
L
Q
o
o
o o o o
o o
9 . 96
354 . 3
315
1845 . 0 089 . 3 001011 . 0 0796 . 0
5 320

The temperature drops across individual resistances are simply found by the Ohms law analogy.
( ) C
W
C m
m
W
LR
L
Q
T
o
o
pipe pipe
095 . 0
001011 . 0 9 . 96

( ) C
W
C m
m
W
LR
L
Q
T
o
o
ins ins
290
089 . 3 9 . 96

Almost all of the 315
o
C temperature drop occurs across the insulation. The resistance of the
steel pipe is negligible.
2. The boiling temperature of nitrogen at atmospheric pressure at sea level (atmospheric
pressure) is 196C. Therefore, nitrogen is commonly
used in low-temperature scientific studies since the
temperature of liquid nitrogen in a tank open to the
atmosphere will remain constant at 196C until it is
depleted. Any heat transfer to the tank will result in the
evaporation of some liquid nitrogen, which has a heat of
vaporization of 198 kJ/kg and a density of 810 kg/m
3
at
atmospheric pressure. Consider a 3-m-diameter spherical
tank that is initially filled with liquid nitrogen at
atmospheric pressure and 196C. The tank is exposed to
ambient air at 15C, with a combined convection and
radiation heat transfer coefficient of 35 W/mC. The
temperature of the thin-shelled spherical tank is observed
to be almost the same as the temperature of the nitrogen
inside. Determine the rate of evaporation of the liquid nitrogen in the tank as a result of
the heat transfer from the ambient air if the tank is (a) not insulated, (b) insulated with 5-
cm-thick fiberglass insulation (k = 0.035 W/mC), and (c) insulated with 2-cm-thick
superinsulation which has an effective thermal conductivity of 0.00005 W/mC. (Problem
3-85 in text.)
(a) If the tank is not insulated, and the outer tank temperature is almost the same as that of the
nitrogen, the only resistance is due to the external convection plus radiation.
( ) ( ) [ ]( ) W C C m
C m
W
T T hA Q
o o
o
s
208806 196 15 5 . 1 4
35
2
2

The heat transfer is the product of the evaporation rate and the latent heat of vaporization.
s
kg
s W
kJ
kg
kJ
W
h
Q
m h m Q
fg
fg
055 . 1
1000
198
208806

If the tank is insulated, we have to consider two series resistances: conduction through the
insulation and convection from the outer surface of the
insulation. We have the following equation for the
sphere with heat transfer from the outside into the
sphere.
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( ) [ ]
( )( ) ( )
W
m
C m
W
m m
C m
W
m m
C C
r h
r kr
r r
T T
R R
T T
Q
o o
o o
o o
o i
i o
s
o ins
s
4233
55 . 1
35
1
5 . 1 55 . 1
035 . 0
5 . 1 55 . 1
196 15 4
4
1
4 2
2
2

As before, we compute the evaporation rate from the heat transfer and the latent heat.
s
kg
s W
kJ
kg
kJ
W
h
Q
m
fg
0214 . 0
1000
198
4233

If the fiberglass is replaced with the superinsulator, we have the same analysis with different data.
( ) [ ]
( )( ) ( )
W
m
C m
W
m m
C m
W
m m
C C
r h
r kr
r r
T T
R R
T T
Q
o o
o o
o o
o i
i o
s
o ins
s
11 . 15
52 . 1
35
1
5 . 1 52 . 1
00005 . 0
5 . 1 52 . 1
196 15 4
4
1
4 2
2
2

s
kg
s W
kJ
kg
kJ
W
h
Q
m
fg
000076 . 0
1000
198
11 . 15

3. A 10-in-thick, 30-ft-long, and 10-ft-high wall is

to be constructed using 9-in-long solid bricks
(k = 0.40 Btu/hftF) of cross section 7 in by 7
in, or identical size bricks with nine square air
holes (k = 0.015 Btu/hftF) that are 9 in long
and have a cross section of 1.5 in by 1.5 in.
There is a 0.5-in-thick plaster layer (k = 0.10
Btu/hftF) between two adjacent bricks on all
four sides and on both sides of the wall. The
house is maintained at 80F and the ambient
temperature outside is 30F. Taking the heat
transfer coefficients at the inner and outer
surfaces of the wall to be 1.5 Btu/hft
2
F and
4 Btu/hft
2
F, respectively, determine the rate
of heat transfer through the wall constructed of
(a) solid bricks and (b) bricks with air holes.
(Problem 3-58E in text.)
In this problem we have a combination of series and parallel resistances. The inner and outer
plaster walls are single resistances. Between these we have two or three resistances. For part
(a) we have resistance of plaster and resistance of the solid brick. For part (b) we have parallel
resistances of plaster, brick, and air. We also have inner and outer convection resistances for
each part. The equivalent thermal circuit when the bricks are solid is shown on the next page.
Here Ri and Ro represent the inside and outside convection resistances; R1 and R5 are the
resistances of the plaster on the inner and outer sides of the wall. There are three components in
the inner part of the wall: R2 is the resistance of a 7.5 in horizontal length of plaster that includes
the square of plaster surrounded by four bricks; R3 is the resistance of the 7 in vertical length of
plaster and R4 is the resistance of the brick. The typical inner section has an area of (7.5 in)
2
/
(ft
2
/144 in
2
) = 0.3906 ft
2
.
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E-mail: lcaretto@csun.edu 8348 Fax: 818.677.7062
The inner and outer convection resistances for the area of the typical inner section with an area of
0.3906 ft
2
are.
Btu
F h
ft
Btu
F ft h
A h
R
Btu
F h
ft
Btu
F ft h
A h
R
o o
o
o
o o
i
i

640 . 0
3906 . 0
1
4
1 707 . 1
3906 . 0
1
15
1
2
2
2
2
Btu
F h
in
ft
ft
in
Btu
F ft h
A k
L
R
A k
L
R R
o o

0607 . 1
12
3906 . 0
5 . 0
10 . 0
2
5
5
5
1
1
5 1
For the inner, parallel, resistances, the bricks have an area of (7 in)
2
/(ft
2
/144 in
2
) = 0.34036 ft
2
; the
longer plaster strip has an area of (7.5 in)(0.57in)/(ft
2
/144 in
2
) = 0.02604 ft
2
; the shorter plastic
strip has an area of (7 in)(0.5 in)/(ft
2
/144 in
2
) = 0.02431 ft
2
; the sum of the three areas shown here
do not add to the total area of 0.3906 ft
2
because of rounding. With these areas we can now
compute the values of the inner resistances as follows.
Btu
F h
in
ft
ft
in
Btu
F ft h
A k
L
R
o o

288
12
02604 . 0
9
10 . 0
2
2 2
2
2
Btu
F h
in
ft
ft
in
Btu
F ft h
A k
L
R
o o

309
12
02431 . 0
9
10 . 0
2
3 3
3
3
Btu
F h
in
ft
ft
in
Btu
F ft h
A k
L
R
o o

51 . 5
12
34036 . 0
9
40 . 0
2
4 4
4
4
The total inner resistance is computed using the formula for parallel resistances.
Btu
F h
F h
Btu
F h
Btu
F h
Btu
R R R
R
o
o o o
inner

+ +

31 . 5
51 . 5 309 288
1
1 1 1
1
3 3 2
The total resistance is then found as the sum of this resistance plus the other resistances in
series.
Btu
F h
Btu
F h
Btu
F h
Btu
F h
Btu
F h
Btu
F h
R R R R R R
o o o o o o
o inner i total

+ + + +
794 . 9 640 . 0 0607 . 1 31 . 5 0607 . 1 707 . 1
5 1
So the heat transfer for one section of the wall is
h
Btu
Btu
F h
F F
R
T T
Q
o
o o
total
tion
105 . 5
794 . 9
30 80
2 1
sec

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If the heat flux through this typical section applies to the entire wall we have the following result.
( )( )
h
Btu
ft ft
ft
h
Btu
A
A
Q
A q A q Q
wall
tion
tion
wall tion wall wall wall
3921
10 30
3906 . 0
105 . 5
2
sec
sec
sec

When the bricks have air spaces, the equivalent circuit has an additional resistance for the air.
All the resistances in this case are the same as they were in the previous problem except for the
resistance of the bricks which now has a lower area, and the new resistance of the air gaps. The
area of the air gaps is 9(1.5 in)
2
/(ft
2
/144 in
2
) = 0.140625 ft
2
. The remaining area of brick is
0.34036 ft
2
0.150625 ft
2
= 0.19965 ft
2
. Thus, the two new resistances are
Btu
F h
in
ft
ft
in
Btu
F ft h
A k
L
R
o o

39 . 9
12
19965 . 0
9
40 . 0
2
4 4
4
4
Btu
F h
in
ft
ft
in
Btu
F ft h
A k
L
R
o o

6 . 355
12
140625 . 0
9
015 . 0
2
5 5
5
5
As before, we compute the total inner resistance and then use that to compute the total
resistance and the heat transfer over the typical section.
Btu
F h
F h
Btu
F h
Btu
F h
Btu
F h
Btu
R R R R
R
o
o o o o
inner

+ + +

62 . 8
6 . 355 39 . 9 309 288
1
1 1 1 1
1
5 4 3 2
Btu
F h
Btu
F h
Btu
F h
Btu
F h
Btu
F h
Btu
F h
R R R R R R
o o o o o o
o inner i total

+ + + +
10 . 13 640 . 0 0607 . 1 62 . 8 0607 . 1 707 . 1
5 1
h
Btu
Btu
F h
F F
R
T T
Q
o
o o
total
tion
817 . 3
10 . 13
30 80
2 1
sec

We have the previous equation for the assumption that the heat flux through this typical section
applies to the entire wall.
( )( )
h
Btu
ft ft
ft
h
Btu
A
A
Q
Q
wall
tion
tion
wall
2932
10 30
3906 . 0
817 . 3
2
sec
sec

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E-mail: lcaretto@csun.edu 8348 Fax: 818.677.7062
4. The roof of a house consists of a 15-cm-
thick concrete slab (k = 2 W/mC) that is
15 m wide and 20 m long. The
convection heat transfer coefficients on
the inner and outer surfaces of the roof
are 5 and 12 W/m
2
C, respectively. On a
clear winter night, the ambient air is
reported to be at 10C, while the night
sky temperature is 100 K. The air inside
the house and the interior surfaces
(walls and floors) of the house are
maintained at a constant temperature of
20C. The emissivity of both the upper
and lower surfaces of the concrete roof
is 0.9. Considering both radiation and
convection heat transfers, determine the
rate of heat transfer through the roof, and the inner surface temperature of the roof.
(Problem 3-30 in text.)
In this problem we have convection from the inside air at 20
o
C (293.15 K)and radiation from the
inside walls, also at 20
o
C to the roof. This combined inside heat transfer is than transferred
through the roof by conduction and the heat leaving the roof is then transferred by convection to
air at 10
o
C (283.15 K) and radiation to 100 K. The unknowns in this problem are the inner and
outer surface temperatures of the roof, Ts,i, and Ts,o. Because of the radiation equations we will
use the temperatures in kelvins.
For these calculations we will assume that the radiation heat transfer for both the inside and the
outside of the house can be modeled as a small object in a large enclosure. The area of the roof
is actually (15 m)(20 m) = 300 m
2
, but it is certainly smaller than the night sky and it is reasonable
to assume that is small compared to the area of all the walls and floors in the house.
The insider heat transfer is
( ) ( ) [ ]
( ) ( ) ( ) [ ]
4
,
4
4 2
8
,
2
2
4
,
4
, , ,
15 . 293
10 670 . 5
9 . 0 15 . 293
5
300
i s i s
o
i s i i s i
T K
K m
W x
T K
C m
W
m
T T T T h A Q

This same heat transfer is maintained by conduction through the roof.

( )
m
m
C m
W
L
T T kA
Q
o
o s i s
15 . 0
300 2
2
, ,

Finally, this same heat is transferred to the air and sky by convection and radiation.
( ) ( ) [ ]
( ) ( ) ( ) [ ]
4 4
,
4 2
8
,
2
2
4 4
, , ,
100
10 670 . 5
9 . 0 15 . 283
12
300 K T
K m
W x
K T
C m
W
m
T T T T h A Q
i s o s
o
sky oi s i o s

We now have three equations with two unknown temperatures and an unknown heat flux. We
have to solve by iteration or calculator/computer approach. Using the goal seek tool of Excel, I
found the following results.
C K T C K T W x Q
o
o s
o
i s
10 . 2 05 . 271 25 . 7 40 . 280 10 754 . 3
, ,
4

Note that the very cold sky temperature leaves the outer wall temperature less than the air
temperature. The convection heat transfer on the outside is actually going into the roof.
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E-mail: lcaretto@csun.edu 8348 Fax: 818.677.7062