NUMERICAL METHODS IN

HEAT CONDUCTION

Dr. Mohammad Ilias Inam

Professor
Department of Mechanical Engineering & Technology

Khulna University of Engineering & Technology

Heat conduction problems involving simple geometries with simple
boundary conditions can be solved analytically, however complicated
geometries with complex boundary conditions or variable properties cannot
be solved analytically.

Sufficiently accurate approximate solutions can be obtained by computers

using a numerical method.

In Analytical solution methods the governing differential equation together

with the boundary conditions is solved and get functions for the
temperature at every point in the medium.

Numerical methods are based on replacing the differential equation by a set

of n algebraic equations for the unknown temperatures at n selected points
in the medium, and the simultaneous solution of these equations results in
the temperature values at those discrete points.

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 There are several ways of obtaining the numerical formulation of a heat
conduction problem, such as

• the finite difference method,

• the finite element method,
• the boundary element method, and
• the energy balance (or control volume) method.

Each method has its own advantages and

disadvantages, and each is used in practice.

In this chapter, we use primarily the energy balance approach since it is based
on the familiar energy balances on control volumes instead of heavy
mathematical formulations, and thus it gives a better physical feel for the
problem. Besides, it results in the same set of algebraic equations as the finite
difference method.

In this chapter, the numerical formulation and solution of heat conduction
problems are demonstrated for both steady and transient cases in various
geometries.

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WHY NUMERICAL METHODS?
We solved various heat conduction
problems in various geometries in a
systematic but highly mathematical
manner by
(1) deriving the governing differential
equation by performing an energy
balance on a differential volume element,
(2) expressing the boundary conditions
in the proper mathematical form, and
(3) solving the differential equation and
applying the boundary conditions to
determine the integration constants.

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1 Limitations
 Analytical solution methods are limited to
highly simplified problems in simple
geometries.
 The geometry must be such that its entire
surface can be described mathematically in
a coordinate system by setting the variables
equal to constants.
 That is, it must fit into a coordinate system
perfectly with nothing sticking out or in.
 Even in simple geometries, heat transfer
problems cannot be solved analytically if
the thermal conditions are not sufficiently
simple.
 Analytical solutions are limited to problems
that are simple or can be simplified with
reasonable approximations.

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2 Better Modeling
 When attempting to get an analytical solution to
a physical problem, there is always the tendency
to oversimplify the problem to make the
mathematical model sufficiently simple to
warrant an analytical solution.
 Therefore, it is common practice to ignore any
effects that cause mathematical complications
such as nonlinearities in the differential equation
or the boundary conditions (nonlinearities such
as temperature dependence of thermal
conductivity and the radiation boundary
conditions).
 A mathematical model intended for a numerical
solution is likely to represent the actual problem
better.
 The numerical solution of engineering problems
has now become the norm rather than the
exception even when analytical solutions are
available.
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3 Flexibility

 Engineering problems often require extensive parametric studies to

understand the influence of some variables on the solution in order to
choose the right set of variables and to answer some “what-if”
questions.
 This is an iterative process that is extremely tedious and time-
consuming if done by hand.
 Computers and numerical methods are ideally suited for such
calculations, and a wide range of related problems can be solved by
minor modifications in the code or input variables.
 Today it is almost unthinkable to perform any significant optimization
studies in engineering without the power and flexibility of computers
and numerical methods.

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4 Complications
 Some problems can be solved analytically, but
the solution procedure is so complex and the
resulting solution expressions so complicated
that it is not worth all that effort.
 With the exception of steady one-dimensional
or transient lumped system problems, all heat
conduction problems result in partial
differential equations.
 Solving such equations usually requires
mathematical sophistication beyond that
acquired at the undergraduate level, such as
orthogonality, eigenvalues, Fourier and
Laplace transforms, Bessel and Legendre
functions, and infinite series.
 In such cases, the evaluation of the solution,
which often involves double or triple
summations of infinite series at a specified
point, is a challenge in itself.

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5 Human Nature  Analytical solutions are necessary
because insight to the physical
phenomena and engineering wisdom
is gained primarily through analysis.
 The “feel” that engineers develop
during the analysis of simple but
fundamental problems serves as an
invaluable tool when interpreting a
huge pile of results obtained from a
computer when solving a complex
problem.
 A simple analysis by hand for a
limiting case can be used to check if
the results are in the proper range.
 In this chapter, you will learn how to
formulate and solve heat transfer
problems numerically using one or
more approaches.

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FINITE DIFFERENCE FORMULATION
OF DIFFERENTIAL EQUATIONS
The numerical methods for solving differential equations are based on replacing the
differential equations by algebraic equations.
In the case of the popular finite difference method, this is done by replacing the
derivatives by differences.
Below we demonstrate this with both first- and second-order derivatives.

finite difference
form of the first
derivative

Taylor series expansion of the function f about

the point x,
The smaller the x, the smaller the error, and thus the
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more accurate the approximation.
Consider steady one-dimensional heat conduction in a plane wall of thickness L with heat
generation.

Finite difference representation of

the second derivative at a general
internal node m.

no heat generation

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Finite difference formulation for steady two-
dimensional heat conduction in a region with heat
generation and constant thermal conductivity in
rectangular coordinates

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ONE-DIMENSIONAL STEADY HEAT
CONDUCTION
In this section we develop the finite difference
formulation of heat conduction in a plane wall
using the energy balance approach and discuss
how to solve the resulting equations.
The energy balance method is based on
subdividing the medium into a sufficient number
of volume elements and then applying an energy
balance on each element.

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 This equation is applicable to each of the M
- 1 interior nodes, and its application gives
M - 1 equations for the determination of
temperatures at M + 1 nodes.
 The two additional equations needed to
solve for the M + 1 unknown nodal
temperatures are obtained by applying the
energy balance on the two elements at the
boundaries (unless, of course, the boundary
temperatures are specified).
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15
Boundary Conditions
 Boundary conditions most commonly encountered in practice are the specified
temperature, specified heat flux, convection, and radiation boundary conditions,
and here we develop the finite difference formulations for them for the case of
steady one-dimensional heat conduction in a plane wall of thickness L as an
example.
 The node number at the left surface at x = 0 is 0, and at the right surface at x = L
it is M. Note that the width of the volume element for either boundary node is
x/2.

Specified temperature boundary condition

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When other boundary conditions such as the specified heat flux, convection, radiation, or
combined convection and radiation conditions are specified at a boundary, the finite
difference equation for the node at that boundary is obtained by writing an energy
balance on the volume element at that boundary.

The finite difference form of various

boundary conditions at the left boundary:

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Schematic for the finite
difference formulation of the
interface boundary condition
for two mediums A and B that
are in perfect thermal contact.

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Treating Insulated Boundary Nodes as Interior Nodes: The
Mirror Image Concept

 The mirror image approach can also be

used for problems that possess thermal
symmetry by replacing the plane of
symmetry by a mirror.
 Alternately, we can replace the plane of
symmetry by insulation and consider only
half of the medium in the solution.
 The solution in the other half of the
medium is simply the mirror image of the
solution obtained.

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EXAMPLE

Node 1

Node 2

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Exact solution:

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 The finite difference formulation of
steady heat conduction problems
usually results in a system of N
algebraic equations in N unknown nodal
temperatures that need to be solved
simultaneously.
 There are numerous systematic
approaches available in the literature,
and they are broadly classified as direct
and iterative methods.
 The direct methods are based on a fixed
number of well-defined steps that result
in the solution in a systematic manner.
 The iterative methods are based on an
initial guess for the solution that is
refined by iteration until a specified
convergence criterion is satisfied.

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One of the simplest iterative methods is the Gauss-Seidel iteration.

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TWO-DIMENSIONAL STEADY HEAT
CONDUCTION
 Sometimes we need to consider heat transfer
in other directions as well when the variation
of temperature in other directions is
significant.
 We consider the numerical formulation and
solution of two-dimensional steady heat
conduction in rectangular coordinates using
the finite difference method.

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For square mesh:

no heat
generation 26
Boundary Nodes
The region is partitioned between the
nodes by forming volume elements around
the nodes, and an energy balance is
written for each boundary node.
An energy balance on a volume element is

We assume, for convenience in formulation, all

heat transfer to be into the volume element
from all surfaces except for specified heat flux,
whose direction is already specified.

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 EXAMPLE

Node 1

Node 2

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 Node 3

Node 4

Node 5

Node 6

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 Nodes 7, 8

Node 9

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Irregular Boundaries
Many geometries encountered in practice such
as turbine blades or engine blocks do not have
simple shapes, and it is difficult to fill such
geometries having irregular boundaries with
simple volume elements.
A practical way of dealing with such
geometries is to replace the irregular geometry
by a series of simple volume elements.
This simple approach is often satisfactory for
practical purposes, especially when the nodes
are closely spaced near the boundary.
More sophisticated approaches are available for
handling irregular boundaries, and they are
commonly incorporated into the commercial
software packages.

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Node 0:

Node 8:

Heat transfer rate at the left

boundary:

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Node 0:

Node 4:

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Node 0:

Node 5:

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Node 0:

Node 1:

Node 2:

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Node 1:

Node 2:

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No of Node

Node 0:

Node 3:
𝑇 3=85 ℃

Node m, (1 & 2):

By solving these equations: 𝑇 0=100 ℃ 𝑇 1 =95 ℃

𝑇 2=90 ℃
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No of Node

Node 0:
𝑇 0=60 ℃
Node 0:
𝑇 1 =51.6 ℃

Node m, (1,2,3 & 4):

𝑇 2=43.2℃
𝑇 3=34.8 ℃
𝑇 4=26.4 ℃
𝑇 5 =18 ℃

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 No of Node
Node m, (0,1,2,3 & 4):

For node 0 use mirror

Node 5:
technique.

By solving these equations:

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No of Node

Node m, (1, 2 & 3):

Node 4:

Node 0:
𝑇 0=95 ℃

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 9

A B

Node 1:

A: Node m, (2, 3& 4):

B: Node m, (6,7&8)

Node 9

Interface node 5

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 Center node:

𝛽 2
( 𝑇 𝑚 −1 − 2 𝑇 𝑚 +𝑇 𝑚+1 ) + 2
[ 𝑇 𝑚 − 1+2 𝑇 𝑚+ 𝑇 𝑚 +1 ]=0
2 2

Left node (m = 0):

[
𝑞0 𝐴+ 𝑘 0 1+ 𝛽 ( 𝑇 𝑚 +1+ 𝑇 𝑚
2 )] (
𝐴
𝑇 𝑚+1 − 𝑇 𝑚
∆𝑥 )=0

𝑞0 ∆ 𝑥 𝛽
+ ( 𝑇 1 −𝑇 0 ) + [ 𝑇 21 −𝑇 20 ]= 0
𝑘0 2
Right node (m)

[ (
h𝐴 ( 𝑇 ∞ − 𝑇 𝑚 )+ 𝑘0 1 + 𝛽
𝑇 𝑚 − 1+𝑇 𝑚
2 )] (
𝐴
∆𝑥 )
𝑇 𝑚 −1 − 𝑇 𝑚
=0

h∆ 𝑥 𝛽 2
𝑇 ∞ − 𝑇 𝑚 )+ ( 𝑇 𝑚 − 1 −𝑇 𝑚 ) + [ 𝑇 𝑚 − 1 − 𝑇 𝑚 ] =0
2
𝑘0
( 2
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Node 0
𝑇 0=350 ℃

Node m, (1, 2, 3 & 4):

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Node 5

Variation:
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Node 0
𝑇 0=350 ℃

Node m, (1, 2, 3 & 4):

Node 5

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46
 Node 0
Node m, (1, 2 & 3): 𝑇 0=80 ℃

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Node 4

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49
50
(a)
(symmetry about diagonal) (b)

(Due to symmetry about vertical)

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 Since no heat generation

Node 1

Node 5
Node 4

Node 8

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mirror

Node 1

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57
1

10

11

12

13

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