Ministry Of Higher Education and Scientific Research

University of Kirkuk

College of Engineering

Mechanical department

3rd Stage evening study

Supervisor:-

By:-
Thermal Boundary Layer:-
A thermal boundary layer develops when a fluid at a specified temperature flows over a
surface of different temperature. The fluid particles that come into contact with the plate
reach thermal equilibrium with the plate's surface and assume the same surface
temperature Ts. These fluid particles then exchange energy with the particles at the
adjoining layer. As a result, a temperature profile develops in the flow field that ranges from
Ts to T∞ (free stream temperature). The flow region over the surface in which the
temperature variation in the direction normal to the surface is significant is the thermal
boundary layer.

Thermal boundary layer development on a flat plate.

The thickness of the thermal boundary layer δt at any location along the surface is defined
as the distance from the surface at which the temperature difference T – Ts = 0.99(T∞ – Ts).
The thickness of the thermal boundary layer increases in the flow direction, since the effects
of heat transfer are felt at greater distances from the surface further downstream.

At any distance x from the leading edge, the local surface heat flux may be obtained by
applying Fourier's law to the fluid at y = 0. The expression used below for calculating surface
heat flux is appropriate, because at the surface, there is no fluid motion and energy transfer
occurs only by conduction.
where qs has been used for surface heat flux.

The thickness of the hydrodynamic boundary layer (velocity boundary layer) is normally
defined as the distance from the solid body at which the viscous flow velocity is 99% of the
free stream velocity. The ratio of the two thicknesses is governed by the Prandtl number. If
the Prandtl number (Pr) is 1, the two boundary layers (hydrodynamic and thermal) are the
same thickness. If the Pr > 1, the thermal boundary layer is thinner than the velocity
boundary layer. If the Pr < 1, which is the case for air at standard conditions, the thermal
boundary layer is thicker than the velocity boundary layer.

Continuity equation

Boundary layer energy equation

Thick thermal boundary layer

From scale analysis :- In this case, the δt layer is thick as compared to hydrodynamic
boundary layer thickness (δ) measured at the same L. The velocity outside the
hydrodynamic boundary layer and inside the thermal boundary layer is U∞. From continuity
eq., the v scale in the same region is v∼U∞δ/L. This means that the second term on the left
side of boundary layer energy equation is of order

in which δ/δt <<< 1. The second term, (v ΔT)/δT, is therefore δ/δT times smaller than the
first,(u ΔT)/L, and the entire left side of boundary layer energy equation is dominated by the
scale U∞ΔT/L. By convection and conduction balance from energy equation is (U∞ΔT)/L∼(α
ΔT)/δT2,

the interesting fact is that the relative size of δT and δ depends on the Prandtl number Pr =
ν/α.
The assumption δ/δt <<< 1 is valid only when Pr1/2 << 1.

The thermal boundary layer is much thicker for liquid metals and much thinner for oils
relative to the velocity boundary layer. Heat diffuses very quickly in liquid metals (Pr << 1)
and very slowly in oils (Pr >> 1) relative to momentum. The Prandtl numbers of gases are
about 1, which indicates that both momentum and heat dissipate through the fluid at about
the same rate.

Plot showing the relative thickness in the Thermal boundary layer versus the Velocity
boundary layer (in blue) for various Prandtl Numbers. For Pr =1, the two are equal.
Thin thermal boundary layer
From scale analysis :- In this case, the thermal boundary layer thickness δT layer is smaller
than the hydrodynamic boundary layer thickness (δ) measured at the same L.Geometrically,
the scale of u in the δT layer is not U∞ but

substituting this scale into the convection ~ conduction balance yields

which means that

Therefore, the thin thermal boundary layer thickness assumption is

valid for Pr(1/3) >> 1 fluids.
Comparison between exact solution and solution obtained using scale analysis

When Pr << 1 (thick boundary layer), exact solution from integral solution gives

when Pr >> 1, i.e. in case of thin boundary layer

 The coefficient in exact solution is order of unity.

 Clearly scaling analysis gives nearly correct result compared to more complicated
and expensive analysis.

99% Thermal Boundary Layer thickness

The thermal boundary layer thickness, δT, is the distance across a boundary layer from the
wall to a point where the flow temperature has essentially reached the 'free stream'
temperature, T0. This distance is defined normal to the wall in the y-direction. The thermal
boundary layer thickness is customarily defined as the point in the boundary layer, y99
where the temperature T(x , y) reaches 99% of the free stream value T0 :

at a position x along the wall. In a real fluid, this quantity can be estimated by measuring the
temperature profile at a position x along the wall. The temperature profile is the
temperature as a function of y at a fixed x position.

For laminar flow over a flat plate at zero incidence, the thermal boundary layer thickness is
given by
where

Pr is the Prandtl Number

δv is the thickness of the velocity boundary layer thickness [3]

uo is the freestream velocity

x is the distance downstream from the start of the boundary layer

v is the kinematic viscosity

For turbulent flow over a flat plate, the thickness of the thermal boundary layer that is
formed is not determined by thermal diffusion, but instead, it is random fluctuations in the
outer region of the boundary layer of the fluid that is the driving force determining thermal
boundary layer thickness. Thus the thermal boundary layer thickness for turbulent flow does
not depend on the Prandtl number but instead on the Reynolds number. Hence, the
turbulent thermal boundary layer thickness is given approximately by the turbulent velocity
boundary layer thickness expression given by:

Where

is the Renold number

This turbulent boundary layer thickness formula assumes 1) the flow is turbulent right from
the start of the boundary layer and 2) the turbulent boundary layer behaves in a
geometrically similar manner (i.e. the velocity profiles are geometrically similar along the
flow in the x-direction, differing only by stretching factors in y and u(x,y). Neither one of
these assumptions is true for the general turbulent boundary layer case so care must be
exercised in applying this formula.

Thermal Displacement Thickness :-

The thermal displacement thickness, β* may be thought of in terms of the difference

between a real fluid and a hypothetical fluid with thermal diffusion turned off but with
velocity uo and temperature To .With no thermal diffusion, the temperature drop is abrupt.
The thermal displacement thickness is the distance by which the hypothetical fluid surface
would have to be moved in the y-direction to give the same integrated temperature as
occurs between the wall and the reference plane at δT in the real fluid. It is a direct analog
to the velocity displacement thickness which is often described in terms of an equivalent
shift of a hypothetical inviscid fluid .
The definition of the thermal displacement thickness for incompressible flow is based on the
integral of the reduced temperature:

where the dimensionless temperature is In a wind

tunnel, the velocity and temperature profiles are obtained by measuring the velocity and
temperature at many discrete y-values at a fixed x-position. The thermal displacement
thickness can then be estimated by numerically integrating the scaled temperature profile.