Fundamentals of Heat Transfer
The purpose of this web page is to educate the user in the basic principles
of heat transfer. As engineers, it
is important that we understand the physical concepts of heat transfer.
From the study of thermodynamics we learned that energy can be transferred by
interactions of a system with its surroundings through work and heat. However,
thermodynamics deals with a system in equilibriumand provides no information regarding
the nature of the interactions or rate at which a system energy changes. Through
reviewing and applying the theories, we will try to build a technical foundation
and reference for those engineers with an interest in heat transfer.
By answering the following questions, one will appreciate the importance and relevance
of the heat transfer process to our engineering problem.In the tutorial, an example
applying the modes of heat transfer will be presented. The basic underlying equations
and the transport coefficients will be emphasized.There are basically three modes
of heat transfer which are enumerated below
Why
is Heat Transfer important??
The phenomena of
heat transfer plays an important role in many industrial applications. The design
of virtually all systems require the of application heat transfer principles.
This includes applications in the automotive, computer, and aerospace industries.
Automotive engineers are constantly being challenged in designing our vehicles
that may involve increasing the heat rejection of the radiator, shielding components
from the hot exhaust manifold and pipes, or to increase cooling around the brake
rotors. Cooling of sensitive electronic components in computers, the internal
combustion of rockets, satellites, HVAC systems, microwaves, power plants, housing
insulation, underground water pipes, etc. are several other areas where heat transfer
must be addressed. Clearly, the list of applications can be extended considerably.
It is a subject with a widespread of importance in our everyday life. Through
understanding this knowledge and how to apply it, one can strongly influence the
design of a broad range of engineering problems.