Flat Plate Flow

Ref: Incropera & DeWitt, Fundamentals of Heat and Mass Transfer, 3rd ed.

Nusselt Number Correlations

Remember from Ch. 6 that Nu = f ( Re, Pr ) In general, Nu L = C Re m Pr n (1) L C, m, and n vary with geometry & flow type. They are usually determined experimentally, making (1) an empirical correlation. Evaluate properties at the film temperature (ave. boundary layer temp) unless otherwise noted.

Ts + T Tf = 2

Convection Heat Transfer Measurements

Example experiment to find h

Laminar Flat Plate Flow

Assumptions: steady, incompressible, laminar, constant fluid properties, negligible viscous dissipation dp/dx=0 Simplified continuity equation:
u v + =0 x y

Simplified Momentum & Energy Equations

Momentum Equation: 2 u u u u + v = 2 x y y Energy Equation
T T T +v u = 2 x y y
2

Momentum Equation is decoupled from Energy Equation (but not vice versa).

Boundary Conditions
Velocity Boundary Conditions
u ( x,0 ) = v ( x,0 ) = 0 u ( x , ) = u v ( x, ) = 0 no slip at plate surface where y=0 far from the plate, we have the free-stream velocity no y-component of velocity far from plate

Temperature Boundary Conditions

T (0) = 0 T () = 1 T=Tsurface at plate surface T=T far from the plate

Blasius Solution for laminar flow over a flat plate, constant plate surface temp
Solve using a similarity solution.
5x = Re x velocity boundary layer thickness local skin friction coefficient 0.6 Pr 50 local Nusselt number

s,x = 0.664 Re 1 2 C f ,x = x 2 u / 2 hx x = 0.332 Re1 2 Pr1 3 Nu x = x k Pr1 3 t

ratio of velocity to thermal boundary layer thicknesses

Average Results
The results for Cf,x and Nux were local results. To find average results, we must integrate. 12 1 u x dx 1 x k 3 h = hx dx = 0.332 Pr 1 2 x 0 x 0 x 1 2 C f = 1.328Re x
C f = 2C f , x Nu = 0.664 Re Pr
12 x 13

0.6 Pr 50

Nu = 2 Nu x

Why is this true?

Turbulent Flow
These results are determined experimentally.

C f , x = 0.0592 Re 1 5 x Nu x = 0.0296 Re 4 5 Pr1 3 x

5 105 < Re x < 107 0.6 < Pr < 60

= 0.37xRe-1 5 t note that "x" is a variable, x not a multiplication sign

Why doesnt Pr come into play with /t like it does for laminar flow? Do turbulent BLs grow faster or slower than laminar BLs? Are h & Cf greater or smaller?

Mixed Boundary Layer Conditions, cont.

u x Re x =
If Rex reaches 500000, the flow will go turbulent.

If the plate is long enough, the laminar portion can be neglected, and the flow can be treated as all turbulent. Otherwise, see the next slide.

Mixed Boundary Layer Conditions, cont.

Integrate over the plate. L xc 1 hL = hlam dx + hturb dx L 0 xc
Nu L = ( 0.037 Re A ) Pr
45 L 13 5 A = 0.037 Re4 ,c 0.664 Re1x ,2 x c

If Rex,c=5x105,

NuL = ( 0.037 Re 4 5 871) Pr1 3 L

Mixed Boundary Layer Conditions, cont.

For Cf, integrate in the same way.

C f ,L

0.074 1742 = 15 Re L Re L

To check what type of flow you have, calculate Re at the end of the plate. If its below Recr, use laminar equations. If its over Recr, use the mixed boundary layer calculations. For some complicated geometries, the fluid flow will have a high degree of turbulence in the freestream. In this case it may be turbulent over the entire plate. What are some applications where this may be true?

Unheated Starting Length

If only part of the plate is heated, the thermal and velocity boundary layers will start growing at different positions. This will affect Nu.

Unheated Starting Length

For laminar flow
Nu x = Nu x =0 x)

[1 (

3 413

For turbulent flow Nu x =0 Nu x = 9 10 1 9 1 ( x )

Uniform Heat Flux

If a plate has a uniform heat flux instead of a uniform surface temperature, use the following for laminar flow:
Nu x = 0.453 Re1 2 Pr1 3 x

For turbulent flow:

4 5 13 Nu x = 0.0308 Re x Pr

Method to Solve a Convection Problem

1. 2. 3.

4. 5. 6.

Determine the flow geometry. Choose the reference temperature & evaluate fluid properties. Calculate the Reynolds number. Determine if the flow is laminar or turbulent or a combination. This is very important!!! See if a local or surface average coefficient is required. Check the boundary condition constant heat flux or constant surface temperature. Pick the correct correlation.

The most common problem in convection is choosing a correlation for the wrong geometry or Reynolds number.

Example
Air at 27C and 1 atm flows over a flat plate 1 m wide at a speed of 2 m/s. a) Calculate the boundary layer thickness 20 cm from the leading edge of the plate. b) If the plate temperature is 127C, calculate the average heat transfer rate over these first 20 cm.