HEAT CONDUCTION EQUATION

Dr. Mohammad Ilias Inam

Professor
Department of Mechanical Engineering & Technology

Khulna University of Engineering & Technology

 INTRODUCTION
• Although heat transfer and temperature are closely related, they are of a different
nature.
• Temperature has only magnitude. It is a scalar quantity.
• Heat transfer has direction as well as magnitude. It is a vector quantity.
• We work with a coordinate system and indicate direction with plus or minus signs.

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• The driving force for any form of heat transfer is the temperature difference.
• The larger the temperature difference, the larger the rate of heat transfer.
• Three prime coordinate systems:
• rectangular T(x, y, z, t)
• cylindrical T(r, , z, t)
• spherical T(r, , , t).

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Steady versus Transient Heat Transfer

• Steady implies no change with

time at any point within the
medium
• Transient implies variation
with time or time dependence
• In the special case of variation
with time but not with
position, the temperature of
the medium changes
uniformly with time. Such
heat transfer systems are
called lumped systems.

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Multidimensional Heat Transfer
• Heat transfer problems are also classified as being:
• one-dimensional
• two dimensional
• three-dimensional
• In the most general case, heat transfer through a medium is three-
dimensional. However, some problems can be classified as two- or one-
dimensional depending on the relative magnitudes of heat transfer rates in
different directions and the level of accuracy desired.

• One-dimensional if the temperature in the medium varies in one direction

only and thus heat is transferred in one direction, and the variation of
temperature and thus heat transfer in other directions are negligible or zero.

• Two-dimensional if the temperature in a medium, in some cases, varies

mainly in two primary directions, and the variation of temperature in the third
direction (and thus heat transfer in that direction) is negligible.

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• The rate of heat conduction through a medium in a specified direction (say, in
the x-direction) is expressed by Fourier’s law of heat conduction for one-
dimensional heat conduction as:

Heat is conducted in the direction of

decreasing temperature, and thus the
temperature gradient is negative
when heat is conducted in the
positive x -direction.

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• The heat flux vector at a point P on the
surface of the figure must be
perpendicular to the surface, and it must
point in the direction of decreasing
temperature
• If n is the normal of the isothermal
surface at point P, the rate of heat
conduction at that point can be expressed
by Fourier’s law as

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• Examples:
• electrical energy being converted to heat at a rate of I2R,
Heat Generation
• fuel elements of nuclear reactors,
• exothermic chemical reactions.
• Heat generation is a volumetric phenomenon.
• The rate of heat generation units : W/m3 or Btu/h·ft3.
• The rate of heat generation in a medium may vary with time as well as position
within the medium.

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ONE-DIMENSIONAL HEAT CONDUCTION
EQUATION
• Consider heat conduction through a large plane wall such as the wall of a
house, the glass of a single pane window, the metal plate at the bottom of a
pressing iron, a cast-iron steam pipe, a cylindrical nuclear fuel element, an
electrical resistance wire, the wall of a spherical container, or a spherical metal
ball that is being quenched or tempered.
• Heat conduction in these and many other geometries can be approximated as
being one-dimensional since heat conduction through these geometries is
dominant in one direction and negligible in other directions.
• Next we develop the one dimensional heat conduction equation in rectangular,
cylindrical, and spherical coordinates.

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 Heat Conduction
Equation in a Large
Plane Wall
(2-6)

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 Heat Conduction
Equation in a Large
Plane Wall
Area A is constant for a plane wall

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 Heat
Conduction
Equation in a
Long Cylinder

Where,
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 Heat
Conduction
Equation in a
Here, 𝑨 = 𝟐𝝅𝒓𝑳
Long Cylinder

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Heat Conduction Equation in a Sphere

Here, 𝑨 = 𝝅𝒓𝟐 𝑳

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Combined One-Dimensional Heat Conduction Equation

An examination of the one-dimensional transient heat conduction

equations for the plane wall, cylinder, and sphere reveals that all three
equations can be expressed in a compact form as

n = 0 for a plane wall

n = 1 for a cylinder
n = 2 for a sphere
In the case of a plane wall, it is customary to replace the variable r by x.
This equation can be simplified for steady-state or no heat generation
cases as described before.

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GENERAL HEAT CONDUCTION EQUATION
• In the last section we considered one-dimensional heat conduction and
assumed heat conduction in other directions to be negligible.
• Most heat transfer problems encountered in practice can be
approximated as being one-dimensional, and we mostly deal with
such problems in this text.
• However, this is not always the case, and sometimes we need to
consider heat transfer in other directions as well.
• In such cases heat conduction is said to be multidimensional, and in
this section we develop the governing differential equation in such
systems in rectangular, cylindrical, and spherical coordinate systems.

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Rectangular Coordinates

Where,

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From the definition of the derivative
and Fourier’s law of heat conduction,

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 Eq. 2–38 is known as General Heat Conduction equation in
rectangular coordinate.
In the case of constant thermal conductivity, it reduces to

Eq. 2–39 is known as the Fourier-Biot equation

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Cylindrical Coordinates
Relations between the coordinates of a point in rectangular and
cylindrical coordinate systems:

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Spherical Coordinates
Relations between the coordinates of a point in rectangular and
spherical coordinate systems:

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BOUNDARY AND INITIAL CONDITIONS
• The description of a heat transfer problem in a medium is not complete without a full
description of the thermal conditions at the bounding surfaces of the medium.
• Boundary conditions: The mathematical expressions of the thermal conditions at the
boundaries.

The temperature at any

point on the wall at a
specified time depends on
the condition of the
geometry at the beginning
of the heat conduction
process.
Such a condition, which is
usually specified at time t
= 0, is called the initial
condition, which is a
mathematical expression
for the temperature
distribution of the medium
initially.

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 Boundary Conditions

• Specified Temperature Boundary Condition

• Specified Heat Flux Boundary Condition
• Convection Boundary Condition
• Radiation Boundary Condition
• Interface Boundary Conditions
• Generalized Boundary Conditions

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1 Specified Temperature Boundary Condition
➢ The temperature of an exposed surface can
usually be measured directly and easily.
➢ Therefore, one of the easiest ways to specify
the thermal conditions on a surface is to
specify the temperature.
➢ For one-dimensional heat transfer through a
plane wall of thickness L, for example, the
specified temperature boundary conditions
can be expressed as

where T1 and T2 are the specified

temperatures at surfaces at x = 0 and x =
L, respectively.
The specified temperatures can be constant,
which is the case for steady heat
conduction, or may vary with time. 27
2 Specified Heat Flux Boundary Condition
The heat flux in the positive x-direction anywhere in the medium,
including the boundaries, can be expressed by

For a plate of thickness L subjected to heat flux

of 50 W/m2 into the medium from both sides,
for example, the specified heat flux boundary
conditions can be expressed as

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Consider an aluminum pan used to cook beef stew on top of an electric range. The
bottom section of the pan is L= 0.3 cm thick and has a diameter of D=20 cm. The electric
heating unit on the range top consumes 800 W of power during cooking, and 90 percent
of the heat generated in the heating element is transferred to the pan. During steady
operation, the temperature of the inner surface of the pan is measured to be 110°C.

➢ Express the boundary conditions for the bottom

section of the pan during this cooking process.

800 × 90%
Where,

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Special Case: Insulated Boundary

A well-insulated surface can be modeled as a

surface with a specified heat flux of zero. Then
the boundary condition on a perfectly insulated
surface (at x = 0, for example) can be
expressed as

On an insulated surface, the first derivative

of temperature with respect to the space
variable (the temperature gradient) in the
direction normal to the insulated surface is
zero.

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Another Special Case: Thermal Symmetry
Some heat transfer problems possess thermal symmetry
as a result of the symmetry in imposed thermal
conditions.
For example, the two surfaces of a large hot plate of
thickness L suspended vertically in air is subjected to the
same thermal conditions, and thus the temperature
distribution in one half of the plate is the same as that in
the other half.
That is, the heat transfer problem in this plate possesses
thermal symmetry about the center plane at x = L/2.
Therefore, the center plane can be viewed as an
insulated surface, and the thermal condition at this plane
of symmetry can be expressed as

which resembles the insulation or zero heat flux

boundary condition.
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3 Convection Boundary Condition
For one-dimensional heat transfer in the x-direction in a
plate of thickness L, the convection boundary conditions
on both surfaces:

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solve 2.67(page 110)

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4 Radiation Boundary Condition
Radiation boundary condition on a surface:

For one-dimensional heat transfer in the x-

direction in a plate of thickness L, the
radiation boundary conditions on both
surfaces can be expressed as

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5 Interface Boundary Conditions
The boundary conditions at an interface are
based on the requirements that
(1) two bodies in contact must have the same
temperature at the area of contact and
(2) an interface (which is a surface) cannot
store any energy, and thus the heat flux on the
two sides of an interface must be the same.
The boundary conditions at the interface of
two bodies A and B in perfect contact at x = x0
can be expressed as

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6 Generalized Boundary Conditions

In general, however, a surface may involve convection,

radiation, and specified heat flux simultaneously.
The boundary condition in such cases is again obtained from a
surface energy balance, expressed as

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SOLUTION OF STEADY ONE-DIMENSIONAL
HEAT CONDUCTION PROBLEMS
In this section we will solve a wide range of heat
conduction problems in rectangular, cylindrical, and
spherical geometries.
We will limit our attention to problems that result in
ordinary differential equations such as the steady one-
dimensional heat conduction problems. We will also
assume constant thermal conductivity.
The solution procedure for solving heat conduction
problems can be summarized as
(1) formulate the problem by obtaining the applicable
differential equation in its simplest form and
specifying the boundary conditions,
(2) Obtain the general solution of the differential
equation, and
(3) apply the boundary conditions and determine the
arbitrary constants in the general solution.

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Boundary Condition

First BC

Second BC 40
 Ans.

(b)

Ans.

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42
First BC

Second BC

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First BC

Second BC

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First BC

Second BC

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Boundary Condition

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 First BC

Second BC

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 First BC

Boundary Condition
Second BC

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Boundary Condition

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Apply BC

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Boundary Condition

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Apply BC

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HEAT GENERATION IN A SOLID
Many practical heat transfer applications involve
the conversion of some form of energy into thermal
energy in the medium.
Such mediums are said to involve internal heat
generation, which manifests itself as a rise in
temperature throughout the medium.
Some examples of heat generation are
- resistance heating in wires,
- exothermic chemical reactions in a solid, and
- nuclear reactions in nuclear fuel rods
where electrical, chemical, and nuclear energies are
converted to heat, respectively.
Heat generation in an electrical wire of outer radius
ro and length L can be expressed as

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• The quantities of major interest in a medium with heat generation are the surface
temperature Ts and
• The maximum temperature Tmax that occurs in the medium in steady operation.
A. Surface temperature Ts in steady state

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 B. Maximum temperature Tmax in steady state
Again the heat generated within this inner cylinder must be
equal to the heat conducted through its outer surface. That
is, from Fourier’s law of heat conduction,
Where,

Similarly can show,

So maximum temperature Tmax in steady state

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 First BC

• The second boundary condition is

the symmetry condition at the
centerline, and states that the
maximum temperature in the wire
occurs at the centerline, and thus the
slope of the temperature at r = 0
must be zero.

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 Apply second BC:

Apply first BC:

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Apply BC:

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VARIABLE THERMAL CONDUCTIVITY, k(T)
• When the variation of thermal conductivity with
temperature in a specified temperature interval is
large, it may be necessary to account for this
variation to minimize the error.
• When the variation of thermal conductivity with
temperature k(T) is known, the average value of the
thermal conductivity in the temperature range
between T1 and T2 can be determined from

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The variation in thermal conductivity of a material with temperature
in the temperature range of interest can often be approximated as a
linear function and expressed as

 temperature coefficient of
thermal conductivity.

The average value of thermal conductivity in

the temperature range T1 to T2 in this case can
be determined from

The average thermal conductivity in this case

is equal to the thermal conductivity value at the
average temperature.

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