Problem.

A heated sphere of diameter D is placed in a large amount of stagnant fluid.

Consider the heat conduction in the fluid surrounding the sphere in the
absence of convection. The thermal conductivity k of the fluid may be
considered constant. The temperature at the sphere surface is TR and the
temperature far away from the sphere is Ta.

Figure. Heated sphere in a

large amount of stagnant fluid.
a) Establish an expression for the temperature T in the surrounding fluid as a
function of r, the distance from the center of the sphere.
b) If h is the heat transfer coefficient, then show that the Nusselt number
(dimensionless heat transfer coefficient) is given by
Nu =

hD
k

= 2

Hint: Equate the heat flux at the sphere surface to the heat flux given by
Newton's law of cooling.
From a heat balance over a thin spherical shell in the surrounding fluid,
d
dr

(r2qr) = S r2

(1)

where S is the rate of generation of heat per unit volume. In this case, S = 0 in
the fluid.
Since the thermal conductivity k for the fluid is constant, on substituting
Fourier's law

dT
dr

(qr = k

we get
d
dr

dT
dr

(r2

) = 0

(2)

On integrating,
r2

dT
dr

C1
r

= C1 or T =

+ C2

(3)

The integration constants are determined using the boundary conditions:

BC 1: r , T = Ta or C2 = Ta
BC 2: r = R, T = TR or C1 = (TR Ta) R

(4)
(5)

where R is the radius of the sphere.

On substituting the integration constants, the temperature profile is
R
r

T = (TR Ta)

+ Ta

or

T Ta
TR Ta

R
r

(6)

Using Fourier's law and differentiating the temperature profile, the heat flux is
qr = k

dT
dr

R
r2

= k(TR Ta)

(7)

Equating the heat flux at the sphere surface (r = R) to the heat flux as per
Newton's law of cooling, we get
k

TR Ta
R

= h(TR Ta)

or

hR
k

=1

The Nusselt number (which is the dimensionless heat transfer coefficient) is

(8)

hD
k

Nu =

= 2

(9)

where D is the diameter of the sphere.

Note:
This is a well-known result that is worth remembering. It provides the
limiting value of the Nusselt number for heat transfer from a sphere in
the presence of convection at low Reynolds and Grashof numbers.
The Nusselt number Nu must not be confused with the Biot number Bi.
Though the two dimensionless groups are similar-looking, they differ as
given below.
Nu =
Bi =

hD
kfluid
hD
ksolid

or
or

Nu =

Bi =

convection
conduction in fluid
convection
(internal) conduction in solid

(10)
(11)

An annular chemical reactor consists of a packed bed of catalyst between two

coaxial cylinders. The inner and outer cylinders have radii of r0 and r1,
respectively. It is reasonable to assume that there is no heat transfer through
the surface of the inner cylinder, which is at a constant temperature T0. The

catalytic reaction releases heat at a uniform volumetric rate S throughout the

reactor, whose effective thermal conductivity k may be considered constant.
Neglect the temperature gradients in the axial direction.
a) Derive a second-order differential equation to describe the radial
temperature distribution in the annular reactor starting with a shell thermal
energy balance.
b) Establish the radial temperature distribution by solving the differential
equation.
c) What viscous flow problem is analogous to this heat conduction problem?
d) Derive an expression for the volumetric average temperature in the reactor.
e) Develop an expression for the temperature at the outer cylindrical wall of
the reactor. What will be the outer wall temperature if both the inner and outer
radii are tripled?

From a thermal energy balance over a thin cylindrical shell of thickness r in

the annular reactor, we get
Rate of Heat

In - Out + Generation = Accumulation

At steady-state, the accumulation term will be zero. So,

(1)

where S is the rate of generation of heat by chemical reaction per unit volume
and qr is the heat flux in the radial direction.
Dividing by 2 r L and taking the limit as r tends to zero,
(2)

(3)

Since the effective thermal conductivity k of the reactor bed may be

considered constant, on substituting Fourier's law (

) we get
(4)

On integrating,
(5)

The integration constants are determined using the boundary conditions:

(6)

(7)

The first boundary condition suggests no heat transfer through the inner
cylindrical wall of the annulus.
On substituting the integration constants, the temperature profile is
(8)

Figure. Velocity profile in falling film on circular tube is analogous to

temperature profile in annular chemical reactor.
The velocity profile for the falling film on the outside of a circular tube (see
Figure) is given by:
(9)

Substituting aR = r0 and R = r1,

(10)

The maximum velocity (which occurs at r = r0) is

(11)

The difference between the above two equations yields

(12)

Equations (8) and (12) are identical in form. Thus, the analogous viscous flow
problem is the laminar flow of a falling film on the inside of a circular tube. The
equivalent quantities are
(13)

The volumetric average temperature in the reactor may be defined as

(14)

On substituting the temperature profile in the above expression and

integrating [using

], we get
(15)

The temperature at the outer cylindrical wall (r = r1) of the reactor is given by
(16)

When both the inner and outer radii are n times their original values, the term
in square brackets gets multiplied by n2 and the outer wall temperature is thus
given by
(17)

The wall of a furnace comprises three layers as shown in the figure. The first
layer is refractory (whose maximum allowable temperature is 1400oC) while
the second layer is insulation (whose maximum allowable temperature is
1093oC). The third layer is a plate of 6.35 mm thickness of steel [thermal
conductivity = 45 W/(m K)]. Assume the layers to be in very good thermal
contact.

Figure. Layers in a composite furnace wall.

The temperature T0 on the inside of the refractory is 1370oC, while the
temperature T3 on the outside of the steel plate is 37.8oC. The heat loss
through the furnace wall is expected to be 15800 W/m2. Determine the
thickness of refractory and insulation that results in the minimum total
thickness of the wall.
Given thermal conductivities in W/(m K):
Layer

k at 37.8oC

k at 1093oC

Refractory

3.12

6.23

Insulation

1.56

3.12

Step. Thermal resistance representation for composite furnace wall

In general, the heat flow is given by Q = T/Rth and the thermal resistance for
a rectangular slab is Rth = x/(kA), where T is the temperature driving force
(thermal potential difference), x is the slab thickness, k is the thermal
conductivity, and A is the cross-sectional area of the slab.
The thermal resistances for the three layers are in series as shown in the
figure below.

Figure. Thermal resistance representation of composite furnace wall.

Based on the thermal resistance representation for the composite furnace
wall, the heat flux q is
(1)

In the refractory and insulation, the thermal conductivity k varies with

temperature. If a linear variation is assumed, then the arithmetic mean is to be
used for the thermal conductivity.
Step. Temperature at insulation - steel interface
The temperature T2 at the interface between the insulation and steel layers is
given by
(2)

The above expression can be used to calculate temperature T2 (as done

later).
Step. Thickness of refractory and insulation
The thickness of the refractory (x1 - x0) and insulation (x2 - x1) are
(3)

On adding the above two equations, we get

(4)

Since q, T0 and T2 are known in the above expression, the first two terms on
the right-hand side are nearly fixed. The last term is negative as k12 is less
than k01 (i.e., thermal conductivity of insulation is less than that of refractory).
Since the aim is to minimize (x2 - x0), the temperature T1 must be maximized.
Step. Substitution of numerical values
The temperature at the insulation - steel interface is
(5)

Next, the temperature T1 is set to 1093oC (i.e., the maximum allowable

temperature for the insulation). By linear extrapolation, the thermal
conductivity of the refractory at 1370oC is 7.05 W/(m K). Substitution of
numerical values gives the thickness of refractory as
(6)

and the thickness of insulation as

(7)

An annular chemical reactor consists of a packed bed of catalyst between two

coaxial cylinders. The inner and outer cylinders have radii of r0 and r1,
respectively. It is reasonable to assume that there is no heat transfer through
the surface of the inner cylinder, which is at a constant temperature T0. The
catalytic reaction releases heat at a uniform volumetric rate S throughout the
reactor, whose effective thermal conductivity k may be considered constant.
Neglect the temperature gradients in the axial direction.
a) Derive a second-order differential equation to describe the radial
temperature distribution in the annular reactor starting with a shell thermal
energy balance.
b) Establish the radial temperature distribution by solving the differential
equation.
c) What viscous flow problem is analogous to this heat conduction problem?
d) Derive an expression for the volumetric average temperature in the reactor.
e) Develop an expression for the temperature at the outer cylindrical wall of
the reactor. What will be the outer wall temperature if both the inner and outer
radii are tripled?

From a thermal energy balance over a thin cylindrical shell of thickness r in

the annular reactor, we get
Rate of Heat

In - Out + Generation = Accumulation

At steady-state, the accumulation term will be zero. So,

(1)

where S is the rate of generation of heat by chemical reaction per unit volume
and qr is the heat flux in the radial direction.
Dividing by 2 r L and taking the limit as r tends to zero,

(2)

(3)

Since the effective thermal conductivity k of the reactor bed may be

considered constant, on substituting Fourier's law (

) we get
(4)

b)
Step. Radial temperature profile by solving differential equation
On integrating,
(5)

The integration constants are determined using the boundary conditions:

(6)

(7)

The first boundary condition suggests no heat transfer through the inner
cylindrical wall of the annulus.
On substituting the integration constants, the temperature profile is

(8)

c)
Step. Analogous problem in fluid mechanics

Figure. Velocity profile in falling film on circular tube is analogous to

temperature profile in annular chemical reactor.
The velocity profile for the falling film on the outside of a circular tube (see
Figure) is given by:
(9)

Substituting aR = r0 and R = r1,

(10)

The maximum velocity (which occurs at r = r0) is

(11)

The difference between the above two equations yields

(12)

Equations (8) and (12) are identical in form. Thus, the analogous viscous flow
problem is the laminar flow of a falling film on the inside of a circular tube. The
equivalent quantities are
(13)

d)
Step. Expression for volumetric average temperature
The volumetric average temperature in the reactor may be defined as
(14)

On substituting the temperature profile in the above expression and

integrating [using

], we get
(15)

e)

Step. Expression for outer wall temperature

The temperature at the outer cylindrical wall (r = r1) of the reactor is given by
(16)

When both the inner and outer radii are n times their original values, the term
in square brackets gets multiplied by n2 and the outer wall temperature is thus
given by
(17)

For the case when both the radii are tripled, n = 3 in the above expression.

An electric wire with radius r0 of 0.50 mm is made of copper [electrical

conductivity = 5.1 x 107 ohm-1 m-1 and thermal conductivity = 380 W/(m K)]. It
is insulated (see figure) to an outer radius r1 of 1.50 mm with plastic [thermal
conductivity = 0.350 W/(m K)].

Figure. Heating of an insulated electric wire.

The ambient air is at 38.0oC and the heat transfer coefficient from the outer
insulated surface to the surrounding air is 8.500 W/(m2 K). Determine the
maximum current in amperes that can flow at steady-state in the wire without
any portion of the insulation getting heated above its maximum allowable
temperature of 93.0oC.

Solution.
Click here for stepwise solution
Step. Thermal resistance representation for insulation and air
In general, the heat flow is given by Q = T/Rth, where T is the temperature
driving force (thermal potential difference). The thermal resistance for a
cylindrical annulus is Rth = ln (r1/r0)/(2 kL) and the thermal resistance for a
fluid film at a solid-fluid interface is Rth = 1/(hA). Here, k is the thermal
conductivity, h is the heat transfer coefficient and A is the surface area for
convection.
The thermal resistances for the insulation and air film are in series as shown
in the figure below.

Figure. Thermal resistance representation of insulation and air film.

Based on the above thermal resistance representation, the heat flow is
(1)

where k is the thermal conductivity of the plastic insulation.

Step. Heat flow due to current in wire
The flow of an electric current results in some electrical energy getting
converted to thermal energy irreversibly. The heat generation by electrical
dissipation per unit volume is given by S = I 2/ke where I is the current density
(in amp/m2) and keis the electrical conductivity (in ohm-1 m-1).
The total heat generated within the wire is simply the product of S and the
volume of the wire. At steady-state, all this heat generated within the wire by
electrical dissipation must leave through the wire surface and therefore the
heat flow is given by
(2)

Step. Expression for current

On eliminating Q from the above two equations, the current density is
(3)

On multiplying the current density by the cross-sectional area of the wire, the
current is obtained from
(4)

For the maximum current, the temperature T0 must be maximized.

Step. Substitution of numerical values

On setting the temperature T0 to 93.0oC (i.e., the maximum allowable

temperature for the insulation), the maximum current that can flow through the
wire may be calculated as 13.027 amp.
The numerical values substituted in the equation are given below.
The values below may be changed and the problem solution recalculated with
the new values provided in consistent units.
Variable name

Symbol

Value

Unit

electrical conductivity

ke

5100000

ohm-1 m-1

maximum temperature

T0

93.0000

ambient temperature

T2

38.0000

outer radius

r1

0.001500

wire radius

r0

0.000500

plastic thermal conductivity

0.35000

W/(m K)

heat transfer coefficient

8.50000

W/(m2 K)

Calculated Variable

Symbol

Maximum current

Recalculate

C
C

Value

Unit

13.027

amp