TRANSIENT HEAT CONDUCTION (Unsteady)

In a system if the temperature distribution at any point changes continuously with time
then it is termed as transient heat conduction.

Some time must elapse after the heat transfer process is initiated before steady-state
conditions are reached. During this transient period the temperature changes, the analysis
has to be carried out to account changes in the internal energy.

When the heat energy is being added or removed to or from a body, its internal energy
changes resulting into change in its temperature at each point within the body over the
time. During this period, the temperature becomes function of time as well as direction in
the body. The conduction occurred during this period is called transient conduction.

Therefore, in transient or unsteady state T = f(x, t) for 1-D problem

In transient heat conduction, the energy balance on a body is given by

Net rate of heat transfer with the body = Net rate of internal energy change of the body

 Transient Heat Conduction occurs in

1) Heating or cooling of Metal Billets
2) Cooling of I.C Engines
3) Starting and Stopping of various heat exchange units in power plants.

Analysis of Transient Heat Conduction can be carried out

 Lumped capacity method or Approximation

 Analytical Method
 Use of Time - Temperature charts (Transient temp Charts)
 Product solution
 Graphical solution
 Numerical technique

Summary: In general, the temperature of a body varies with time as well as position. In
previous studies/sections we have discussed conduction in solids under steady state
conditions for which the temperature at any location in the body do not vary with time. But
there are many practical situations where in the surface temperature of the body is
suddenly altered or the surface may be subjected to a prescribed heat flux all of a sudden.
Under such circumstances the temperature at any location within the body varies with time
until steady state conditions are reached. In this chapter, we take into account the variation
of temperature with time as well as with position. However there are many practical
applications where in the temperature variation with respect to the location in the body at
any instant of time is negligible. The analysis of such heat transfer problems is called the
“lumped system analysis”. Therefore in lumped system analysis we assume that the
temperature of the body is a function of time only.

Note: The above literature in the flower bracket is just for understanding the concept.

LUMPED SYSTEM ANALYSIS

In heat transfer analysis, some bodies are observed to behave like a “lump” whose interior
temperature remains essentially uniform at all times during a heat transfer process. The
temperature of such bodies can be taken to be a function of time only, T(t). Heat transfer
analysis that utilizes this idealization is known as lumped system analysis, which provides
great simplification in certain classes of heat transfer problems without much sacrifice
from accuracy.

Copper Ball

Roasted material
A small copper ball can be modeled as a lumped system, but a roast material
cannot. From figure it is clear that, in a copper ball at all points the temperature is
same, whereas it is not so in roasted material .

Even though the temperature may change with time in a copper ball, but it may not vary
with position hence it may be treated as lumped system where the temperature is a
function of time only, T= f (t). For roast it is not so therefore it is not considered as lumped
system and temperature is function of both time and position, T = f(x, t).
Expression for Lumped system Analysis
Consider a solid (system) of volume V, surface area A, density ρ, Specific heat C p and thermal
conductivity k; let the solid be initially at a uniform temperature T i. Suddenly the body is
immersed in a fluid which is maintained at a uniform temperature T∞, which is different from Ti

Surface in contact with fluid at

T∞ with surface heat transfer
Coefficient h

Figure representing the geometry and parameters involved in the lumped system
analysis

Now if T (t) is the temperature of the solid at any time t, then the energy balance equation
for the solid at time ‘t’ can be written as

Rate of increase of energy of the solid = Rate of heat transfer from the fluid to the solid

dT
i.e., ρVCp = hA [T∞ - T (t)]
dt