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all the coordinate directions
(ii) heat is generated uniformly all over the volume and(iii) the
temperature at any location in the body changes with time. In addition,
the
properties also vary with the coordinate directions.
In solids heat is conducted in two modes. 1. The flow of thermally
activated electrons and 2. Lattice waves generated by thermally induced
atomic activity. In conductors the predominant mode is by electron flow. In
alloys it is equal between the two modes. In insulators, the lattice wave
mode is the main one. In liquids , conduction is by atomic or molecular
diffusion. In gases conduction is by diffusion of molecules from higher
energy level to the lower level.
Thermal conductivity is formed to vary with temperature. In good
conductors, thermal conductivity decreases with temperature due to
impedance to electron flow of higher electron densities. In insulators, as
temperature increases, thermal atomic activity also increases and hence
thermal conductivity increases with temperature. In the case of
gases, thermal conductivity increases with temperature due to
increased random activity of atoms and molecules.