Course Name: Heat Transfer

Course Code: UME 720

Topic: General Heat Conduction Equation

by
Dr. Madhup Kumar Mittal
Associate Professor
Department of Mechanical Engineering
Thapar Institute of Engineering & Technology
General Heat Conduction Equation
𝑑𝑡
General heat conduction Equation overcomes the limitation of Fourier’s conduction equation: 𝑄𝑥 = −𝑘𝐴
𝑑𝑥 𝑥
General heat conduction equation is a partial differential equation that enables us to: y
• Study and analyse heat conduction through the solid medium in multi-dimensions.
• Study and analyse heat conduction in both steady and unsteady state. P

• Study and analyse heat conduction through non-isotropic material. z

• Study and analyse heat transfer phenomenon in case of heat generation within the medium. x
➢ When electric current flows through a electric wire, the heat is generated within the wire
𝑄𝑔 𝐽ൗ
due to the electrical resistance of the wire. 𝑞𝑔 = , 3 𝑜𝑟 𝑊ൗ 3
𝑉 𝑚 𝑚
➢ When chemically reactive substances are mixed, the heat may generate due to exothermic chemical reaction in
the mixture.
General heat conduction equation outside of inside of Hemispherical covers at
may be expressed in: house house
both end of tank
Q
• Rectangular coordinates To
Ti Cylindrical tank
• Cylindrical coordinates filled with hot fluid
• Spherical coordinates Wall of a house
General heat conduction equation in rectangular coordinates
General heat conduction equation in rectangular coordinates can be derived by considering flow of heat through an
infinitesimally small rectangular volume element of a non-isotropic material
Q(y+dy)
Y Qz 𝑄𝑥 = Amount of heat flowing into the element
d h from the left face ‘abcd’ during time
dz
g interval dτ in x-direction
c
Qx Q(x+dx) Fourier’s conduction equation
dy a e
x 𝑑𝑡
y ሶ
𝑄𝑥 = −𝑘𝐴
X b f 𝑑𝑥
Q(z+dz) dx qg (W/m3) 𝜕𝑡
Qy ሶ
𝑄𝑥 = −𝑘𝑥 𝑑𝑦. 𝑑𝑧
Z 𝜕𝑥

Amount of heat flowing into the element from the left face During the same time interval dτ, the heat flowing out
‘abcd’ during time interval dτ in x-direction is given by: of the right face ‘efgh’ in x-direction is given by:
𝑄𝑥 = ℎ𝑒𝑎𝑡 𝑡𝑟𝑎𝑛𝑠𝑓𝑒𝑟 𝑟𝑎𝑡𝑒 × 𝑡𝑖𝑚𝑒 𝑖𝑛𝑡𝑒𝑟𝑣𝑎𝑙 𝑄(𝑥+𝑑𝑥) = 𝑄𝑥 + 𝑑𝑄𝑥
𝑄𝑥 = 𝑄𝑥ሶ × 𝑑𝜏
General heat conduction equation in rectangular coordinates
Y Q(y+dy) 𝜕𝑡 𝜕
Qz 𝑄𝑥 = −𝑘𝑥 𝑑𝑦. 𝑑𝑧 . 𝜕𝜏 & 𝑄(𝑥+𝑑𝑥) = 𝑄𝑥 + 𝑄 𝑑𝑥
d h 𝜕𝑥 𝜕𝑥 𝑥
dz
c g 𝜕𝑡 𝜕
Qx Q(x+dx) 𝑄𝑦 = −𝑘𝑦 𝑑𝑥. 𝑑𝑧 . 𝜕𝜏 & 𝑄(𝑦+𝑑𝑦) = 𝑄𝑦 + 𝑄 𝑑𝑦
x dy a 𝜕𝑦 𝜕𝑦 𝑦
e
y
X f 𝜕𝑡 𝜕
Q(z+dz) b dx qg (W/m3) 𝑄𝑧 = −𝑘𝑧 𝑑𝑥. 𝑑𝑦 𝑄
. 𝜕𝜏 & (𝑧+𝑑𝑧) = 𝑄𝑧 + 𝑄𝑧 𝑑𝑧
𝜕𝑧 𝜕𝑧
Z Qy

Heat accumulation in the element due to heat flow in Similarly, heat accumulation in the element due to heat flow along
x-direction (dQx) y & z-direction in time dτ will be:

Total accumulation of heat in the element = dQx + dQy + dQz

General heat conduction equation in rectangular coordinates
Total heat generated in the element in time dτ is given by: dz

dy
dx qg (W/m3)

(Total heat accumulated in the element) + (Total heat generated in the element) = (Increase in thermal energy of element)

(General heat conduction equation)

For homogenous and isotropic material (i.e., kx = ky = kz = k), above general heat conduction equation is simplified to:

𝑘
,where 𝛼 = is called thermal diffusivity and it is an important thermal
𝜌.𝑐
property of a given material

2 𝜕2 𝜕2 𝜕2
By using Laplacian operator 𝛻 𝜕𝑥 2
+ 𝜕𝑦 2
+ 𝜕𝑧 2
, general heat conduction equation for isotropic material
can also be written as:
Thermal Diffusivity (α)
𝑘 thermal conductivity of material
Thermal diffusivity is expressed as: 𝛼 = = (unit: m2/s)
𝜌 × 𝑐 heat storage capacity of a material per unit volume
Let us consider a body of mass m, volume V and specific heat c. Let some amount of heat (Q) is supplied to Q
the body, which increases the body temperature by Δt. The amount of heat stored (Q) in the body is given by: m = mass
V = volume
𝑄 = 𝑚 × 𝑐 × ∆𝑡 ….(1) Eq. (1) shows that the magnitude of heat stored (Q) in the body depends on Δt = rise of
the value of 𝑚 × 𝑐. Hence 𝑚 × 𝑐 represents heat storage capacity of a temperature
material and 𝜌 × 𝑐 heat storage capacity of a material per unit volume
• Note that the thermal conductivity k represents how well a material conducts heat, and the 𝝆 × 𝒄 represents y
how much energy a material stores per unit volume.
• As thermal diffusivity is a ratio of thermal conductivity to heat storage capacity of the material,
therefore a material that has a high thermal conductivity or a low heat storage capacity will obviously P
have a large thermal diffusivity. z
• A large value of thermal diffusivity means that small amount of heat will be absorbed by the material and x
large amount of heat will be conducted further. Thus, the larger the thermal diffusivity, the faster the
propagation (diffusion) of heat into the medium and, vice versa.
• We know that general heat conduction equation is given by: 𝜕𝑡 𝑞𝑔
or, =𝛼 𝛻 𝑡+2 ….(2)
𝜕𝜏 𝑘
• Eq.(2) shows that larger the thermal diffusivity, the faster the change of temperature at any point (P) within the medium.
General heat conduction equation in cylindrical coordinates
General heat conduction equation in cylindrical coordinates can be derived by considering flow of heat through an
infinitesimally small cylindrical volume element. Q(z+dz)

dϕ
rdϕ
Qr
Q(ϕ+dϕ)

Qϕ
A
r Q(r+dr)

Qz

P'

• Volume of the element = 𝑑𝑉 = 𝑑𝑟. 𝑟𝑑∅. 𝑑𝑧

General heat conduction equation in cylindrical coordinates
dϕ Q(z+dz)
rdϕ
• Volume of the element = 𝑑𝑉 = 𝑑𝑟. 𝑟𝑑∅. 𝑑𝑧
Qr
Q(ϕ+dϕ) • Heat flow in radial direction
during time interval dτ

Qϕ
Q(r+dr)

Qz

Heat accumulation in the element due to flow of heat

in radial direction (dQr)

𝜕 2 𝑡 1 𝜕𝑡
= 𝑘. 𝑑𝑉 2
+ 𝑑𝜏
𝜕𝑟 𝑟 𝜕𝑟
General heat conduction equation in cylindrical coordinates
dϕ rdϕ Q(z+dz) • Heat flow in ϕ direction (tangential
direction) during time dτ
Qr
Q(ϕ+dϕ)

Qϕ
Q(r+dr)

Qz

Heat accumulation in the element due to flow of heat

in tangential direction (dQϕ)

1 𝜕2𝑡
= 𝑘. 𝑑𝑉 2 . 2 𝑑𝜏
𝑟 𝜕ϕ
General heat conduction equation in cylindrical coordinates
Q(z+dz)
• Heat flow in z direction (axial direction)
Qr during time dτ
Q(ϕ+dϕ)

Qϕ
Q(r+dr)

Qz

Heat accumulation in the element due to flow of heat in Total accumulation of heat in the element
axial direction (dQz)

𝜕 2 𝑡 1 𝜕𝑡 1 𝜕 2 𝑡 𝜕 2 𝑡
𝜕2𝑡 = 𝑘. 𝑑𝑉 + + . + 𝑑𝜏
= 𝑘. 𝑑𝑉 𝑑𝜏 𝜕𝑟 2 𝑟 𝜕𝑟 𝑟 2 𝜕ϕ2 𝜕𝑧 2
𝜕𝑧 2
General heat conduction equation in cylindrical coordinates
Q(z+dz)

• Volume of the element = 𝑑𝑟. 𝑟𝑑∅. 𝑑𝑧

Qr
Q(ϕ+dϕ)
Total heat generated in the element in time dτ is given by:

qg (W/m3) = 𝑞𝑔 . 𝑑𝑉. 𝑑𝜏
Qϕ
Q(r+dr)

Qz

(Total heat accumulated in the element) + (Total heat generated in the element) = (Increase in thermal energy of element)
𝜕 2 𝑡 1 𝜕𝑡 1 𝜕 2 𝑡 𝜕 2 𝑡 𝜕𝑡
𝑘. 𝑑𝑉 2 + + 2 . 2 + 2 𝑑𝜏 + 𝑞𝑔 . 𝑑𝑉. 𝑑𝜏 = ρ. 𝑑𝑉 . 𝑐. 𝑑𝜏
𝜕𝑟 𝑟 𝜕𝑟 𝑟 𝜕ϕ 𝜕𝑧 𝜕𝜏

(General heat conduction equation

in cylindrical coordinates)
General heat conduction equation in cylindrical coordinates
General heat conduction equation in cylindrical coordinates is given by:

Special Case Hot water

One-dimensional heat conduction equation in radial direction
of a hollow pipe can be expressed as:
P
𝑑2 𝑡 1 𝑑𝑡 𝑞𝑔 1 𝜕𝑡 ϕ
+ + = . r
𝑑𝑟 2 𝑟 𝑑𝑟 𝑘 𝛼 𝜕𝜏 z
General heat conduction equation in spherical coordinates

General heat conduction equation in spherical coordinates can be derived by considering flow of heat through
an infinitesimally small spherical volume element.

Qθ
r sinθ dφ Q(r+dr)
P' S'
rdθ S
P Q(φ+dφ)
Q' R'
Qφ
r sinθ dφ Q R
Qr dr Q(θ+dθ)
O A
P S
r cosθ r
P'
dθ O D
B Volume of the element
𝑑𝑉 = 𝑑𝑟. 𝑟𝑑θ. 𝑟𝑠𝑖𝑛θ dϕ
r sinθ dφ
General heat conduction equation in spherical coordinates
Qθ
Q(r+dr) Heat accumulation in the element due to flow of heat in
r sinθ dφ
P' S'
rdθ
radial direction (dQr)
P S Q(φ+dφ)

Qφ Q' R'
r sinθ dφ R
Q
Qr dr Q(θ+dθ)
A
P S 𝑑𝑉 = 𝑑𝑟. 𝑟𝑑θ. 𝑟𝑠𝑖𝑛θ dϕ
r cosθ r

dθ O
D
B

r sinθ dφ

• Heat flow in radial direction during time interval dτ 1 𝜕 2 𝜕𝑡

= 𝑘. 𝑑𝑉. 2 . 𝑟 . 𝑑𝜏
𝑟 𝜕𝑟 𝜕𝑟
General heat conduction equation in spherical coordinates

Qθ
Q(r+dr) • Heat flow in ϕ direction during time interval dτ
r sinθ dφ
P' S'
rdθ S Q(φ+dφ)
P
Qφ Q' R'
r sinθ dφ R
Q
Qr dr Q(θ+dθ)
A
P S
r cosθ r

dθ O
D
B

r sinθ dφ

1 𝜕2𝑡
= 𝑘. 𝑑𝑉. 2 2 . 2 𝑑𝜏
𝑟 𝑠𝑖𝑛 θ 𝜕ϕ
General heat conduction equation in spherical coordinates
Qθ • Heat flow in θ direction during time interval dτ
Q(r+dr)
r sinθ dφ
P' S'
rdθ S Q(φ+dφ)
P
Qφ Q' R'
r sinθ dφ R
Q
Qr dr Q(θ+dθ)
A
P S
r cosθ r

dθ O
D
B

r sinθ dφ 1 𝜕 𝜕𝑡
= 𝑘. 𝑑𝑉. . 𝑠𝑖𝑛θ. 𝑑𝜏
𝑟 2 𝑠𝑖𝑛2 θ 𝜕θ 𝜕θ

Total accumulation of heat in the element:

1 𝜕 2
𝜕𝑡 1 𝜕2𝑡 1 𝜕 𝜕𝑡
= 𝑘. 𝑑𝑉 2 . 𝑟 . + 2 2 . 2+ 2 2 . 𝑠𝑖𝑛θ. 𝑑𝜏
𝑟 𝜕𝑟 𝜕𝑟 𝑟 𝑠𝑖𝑛 θ 𝜕ϕ 𝑟 𝑠𝑖𝑛 θ 𝜕θ 𝜕θ
General heat conduction equation in spherical coordinates

r sinθ dφ
rdθ Total heat generated in the element in time dτ is
qg (W/m3) given by: = 𝑞𝑔 . 𝑑𝑉. 𝑑𝜏
dr

(Total heat accumulated in the element) + (Total heat generated in the element) = (Increase in thermal energy of element)

1 𝜕 𝜕𝑡 1 𝜕 2𝑡 1 𝜕 𝜕𝑡 𝜕𝑡
𝑘. 𝑑𝑉 2 . 2
𝑟 . + 2 2 . 2+ 2 2 . 𝑠𝑖𝑛θ. 𝑑𝜏 + 𝑞𝑔 . 𝑑𝑉. 𝑑𝜏 = ρ. 𝑑𝑉 . 𝑐. 𝑑𝜏
𝑟 𝜕𝑟 𝜕𝑟 𝑟 𝑠𝑖𝑛 θ 𝜕ϕ 𝑟 𝑠𝑖𝑛 θ 𝜕θ 𝜕θ 𝜕𝜏

Above equation is a General heat conduction equation in spherical coordinates

General heat conduction equation in cylindrical coordinates
General heat conduction equation in spherical coordinates is given by:

Special Case
One-dimensional heat conduction equation in radial direction
of a hollow sphere can be expressed as:

1 𝑑 2 𝑑𝑡 𝑞𝑔 1 𝜕𝑡
2 𝑟 + = .
𝑟 𝑑𝑟 𝑑𝑟 𝑘 𝛼 𝜕𝜏
END