MAE 655 Advanced Heat Transfer

HW # 1
Due by 8:15 AM on September 20, 2017

1. In a pharmaceutical plant, a copper pipe (kc = 400 W/mK) with inner diameter of 20 mm
and wall thickness of 2.5 mm is used for carrying liquid oxygen to a storage tank. The
liquid oxygen flowing in the pipe has an average temperature of -200C and a convection
heat transfer coefficient of 120 W/m2K. The condition surrounding the pipe has an
ambient air temperature of 20C and a combined heat transfer coefficient of 20 W/m2K.
If the dew point is 10C, determine the thickness of the insulation (ki = 0.05 W/mK)
around the copper pipe to avoid condensation on the outer surface. Assume thermal
contact resistance is negligible.

2. The composition of the wall of a house is shown in the figure below, and is located in a
hot climate. The wall extends into the page by 10 m. The inside air is maintained at a
temperature of 15oC and the heat transfer coefficient on the inside surface is 10 W/m2K.
The outside air is at 20oC and the heat transfer coefficient on the outside surface is 20
W/m2K. Solar radiation flux of 750 W/m2 is incident on the outside surface. The thermal
conductivity of gypsum is 1 W/mK, and the thermal conductivity of brick composite is 5
W/mK. Determine the thermal conductivity of wood in the wall so that the inside surface
temperature Ts,in is 25oC. Assume this is a one-dimension problem (in x only).

3. You have a hot cup of coffee at temperature Thot, and a packet of coffee creamer at room
temperature Troom. You have decided to wait for 10 mins before you drink the coffee. You
can mix the creamer in coffee. Do you mix the creamer at the start of 10 mins or towards
the end of 10 mins so that you get the lowest coffee temperature after 10 mins?
Mathematically prove your decision. Assume the walls of the cup are a perfect insulator.

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4. The wall of a chemical reactor is made of steel. The inner surface of the wall is coated
with a thin ceramic film that, for a unit surface area, has a thermal resistance of 0.01
m2K/W. The outer surface of the wall is well insulated. At the start of the reactor, the
wall is at a temperature of 300 K. Reactive gases at 1500 K enter the furnace, providing a
convection heat transfer coefficient of 25 W/m2K at the ceramic film. Assuming the film
to have negligible thermal capacitance, how long will it take for the inner surface of the
steel to achieve a temperature of 1300 K? What is the temperature of the exposed surface
of ceramic film at this time? Properties of steel: thermal conductivity = 60 W/mK,
density = 7850 kg/m3, specific heat = 430 J/kgK).

5. A country is interested in exploring the possibility of using a huge iceberg as a source of

fresh water. The iceberg can be approximated as a body of 750 m width, 1500 m length
and 300 m height (above the water surface). The iceberg would be towed over a distance
of 15000 km at an average speed of 2.5 m/s. The average temperature of the water is 8oC,
and of air is 15oC. Estimate the quantity of ice that would be lost from the iceberg.
Assume latent heat of ice is 3.35 kJ/kg. Assume the heat transfer coefficient on all sides
exposed to air is same as that on the top of the iceberg.

6. An average person generates heat at a rate of 84 W while resting. Assuming one-quarter

of this heat is lost from the head and disregarding radiation, determine the average
surface temperature of the head when it is not covered and is subjected to winds at 10C
and 30 km/h. The head can be approximated as a 0.175-m-diameter sphere. Assume a
surface temperature of 15C for evaluation of s.

7. An incandescent lightbulb is an inexpensive but highly inefficient device that converts

electrical energy into light. It converts about 10 percent of the electrical energy it
consumes into light while converting the remaining 90 percent into heat. The glass bulb
of the lamp heats up very quickly as a result of absorbing all that heat and dissipating it to
the surroundings by convection and radiation. Consider an 8-cm-diameter 60-W lightbulb
in a room at 25C. The emissivity of the glass is 0.9. Assume that 10 percent of the
energy passes through the glass bulb as light with negligible absorption and the rest of the
energy is absorbed and dissipated by the bulb itself by natural convection and radiation.
Also assume the interior surfaces of the room to be at room temperature. Determine the
equilibrium temperature of the glass bulb.