Chapter 4

Two dimensional heat transfer

(Conduction shape factors)
 Conduction shape factor, S
T 1
q  kST  R
R Sk
Sphere
Plane wall Cylinder

A 2L 4
qcond  k T qcond  k T qcond  k T
L ln( ro / ri ) 1 / ri  1 / ro

A 2L 4
S plane  S cylinder  S sphere 
L ln( ro / ri ) 1 / ri  1 / ro

ro ro
A
ri
ri

L
Case 1: Isothermal sphere buried in a semi infinite medium

• Conduction between Earth surface T2

 Outer surface of sphere (T1)
 and Surface of earth (T2) Soil q
T1 z
• Shape factor for this case:

where,
S = Conduction shape factor (m) D
D = Outer diameter of sphere (m)
z = Distance between earth’s surface and Outer surface of sphere
center of sphere (m)
T1 T2
• Restriction
z > D/2
A fluid is stored in a 20 mm thick spherical container with an inner diameter of
460mm. The outer surface temperature of the sphere is maintained -10 oC.

a) Suppose the container is housed in a laboratory whose air and walls are at 25 oC.
The free convection coefficient is 10 W/m2.K and the surface emissivity is 0.20.
Determine the rate of heat gained.
Wall
t = 20 mm Di = 460 mm Tsurr
Do = Di + 2t = 500 mm = 0.5 m
To = -10oC = 263.15 K
T∞ = Tsurr = 25oC = 298.15 K Fluid
Air
h = 10 W/m .K
2
T∞, h
ε = 0.20
Di, Ti
D O, T O

qgain = 302.4 W
A fluid is stored in a 20 mm thick spherical container with an inner diameter of
460mm. The outer surface temperature of the sphere is maintained -10 oC.
b) Suppose the container is buried 3 meters under the surface of the earth which is
at 25oC. The soil conductivity is 0.52 W/m.K. Determine the heat gained and the
conduction resistance.
Do = 0.5 m Earth surface (Ts)
To = -10oC
Ts = 25oC Soil
k = 0.52 W/m.K z
z=3m

Sphere buried underground  Case 1 Fluid

Di, Ti

D O, T O
Case 2: Horizontal isothermal cylinder buried in semi infinite medium
• Conduction between
 Outer surface of horizontal cylinder (T1) T2 Earth surface
 and Surface of earth (T2)
Soil
• Shape factor for this case: q
z
 If L >> D T1

 If L >> D and z > 3D/2 D

L
where, Outer surface of cylinder
S = Conduction shape factor (m)
D = Outer diameter of cylinder (m)
z = Distance between earth’s surface and center of T1 T2
cylinder (m)
L = Length of the cylinder
A 20 m long and 8 cm diameter hot water pipe of a district heating system is buried in the soil
80 cm below the ground surface. The outer surface temperature of the pipe is 60 oC. Taking the
surface temperature of the earth to be 5oC and the thermal conductivity of the soil at that
location to be 0.9 W/m.oC, determine the rate of heat lost from the pipe.
L = 20 m
Outer diameter = D = 8cm = 0.08m
z= 80cm = 0.80m earth surface
T1 = 60oC T2 = 5oC
T2=5oC
k = 0.9 W/m.K Soil
3D/2 = 0.12
z=80cm k=0.8W/m.K
T1=60oC

D=8cm

pipe

Since z>3D/2, we can also use

Steam at 450oF is flowing through a 10 ft long steel pipe (ksteel = 8.7 BTU/h.ft.oF) whose inner
and outer diameters are 3.5 in and 4.0 in respectively. The pipe is insulated with 2 in thick
fiberglass insulation (kins=0.02 BTU/h.ft.oF). The heat transfer coefficient on the inside is 30
BTU/h.ft2.oF.
a) If the pipe is exposed to air at 55oF with an outer convection coefficient of 5 BTU/h.ft2.oF,
determine the heat loss from the pipe.
T∞i = 450oF hi = 30 BTU/h.ft2.oF Air
T∞o = 55oFho = 5 BTU/h.ft2.oF T∞o, ho
Steam
D1 = 3.5 in = 0.292 ft
T∞i, hi
D2 = 4.0 in = 0.333 ft
tins = 2 in = 0.167 ft
steel
D3 = D2 + 2 tins = 0.667 ft Insulation
L = 10 ft
D1 D2 D3
T1 T2 T3
q = 687.5 BTU/h
T ∞i T1 T2 T3 T∞o
b) If the pipe is horizontally buried 6 ft below the surface of the earth which is at 55 oF,
determine the heat loss from the pipe. Assume the soil’s conductivity is 0.3 BTU/h.ft. oF.
T∞i = 450oF hi = 30 BTU/h.ft2.oF Earth’s surface (T4)
D1 = 3.5 in = 0.292 ft
D2 = 4.0 in = 0.333 ft
tins = 2 in = 0.167 ft z
D3 = D2 + 2 tins = 0.667 ft
L = 10 m
Steam
z = 6 ft
T∞i, hi
ksoil = 0.3 BTU/h.ft.oF
T4 = 55oF
Horizontal pipe buried underground  Case 2 steel
Insulation
D1 D2 D3
T1 T2 T3

T ∞i T1 T2 T3 T4
q = 530.0 BTU/h
Case 3: Vertical cylinder in a semi-infinite medium
• Conduction between
 Outer surface of vertical cylinder and T2 Earth surface
 Surface of earth

• Shape factor for this case: Soil

T1
L
 If L >> D

where, D
S = Conduction shape factor (m)
D = Outer diameter of cylinder (m)
L = Length of the cylinder
T1 T2
Hot water at an average temperature of 80oC and an
average velocity of 1.5 m/s is flowing through a 25 m
section of a pipe that has an outer dimeter of 5 cm.
The pipe extends 2 m in the ambient air above the
ground, dips into the ground (k = 1.5 W/m.oC)
vertically for 3 m, and continues horizontally at this
depth for 20 m more before it enters the next building.
The first section of the pipe is exposed to the ambient
air at 8oC with a heat transfer coefficient of 22
W/m2.oC. The surface of the ground is covered with
snow at 0oC.

Tair=8oC Section 2: Conduction Section 3: Conduction

h=22W/m2.K between vertical pipe and between horizontal pipe and
ground surface (case 3) ground surface (Case 2)
D=0.05m

Tpipe=80oC
Tground=0oC Tground=0oC
L1=2m kground=1.5W/m.K
kground=1.5W/m.K
L2=3m

z=3m
Section 1: Convection

D=0.05m
between pipe and air Tpipe=80oC Tpipe=80oC
D=0.05m
L3=20m
a) Determine the total heat loss from the pipe.
Tair=8oC
h=22W/m2.K Section 1 (Convection)
D=0.05m

Tpipe=80oC

L1=2m
Tground=0oC
Section 2 (Case 3)
kground=1.5W/m.K
L2=3m

Tpipe=80oC

D=0.05m

Tground=0oC Section 3 (Case 2)

kground=1.5W/m.K
z=3m

D=0.05m

qloss = q1 + q2 + q3 = 3661.8 W
Tpipe=80 Co

L3=20m
 For pipe:
D = 0.25m
Hot water Ltotal = 25m
Tin = 80oC
u=1.5m/s
Hot water
Tout

b) Determine the temperature drop of the hot water (Cp = 4.18 kJ/kg. oC) as it flows through
this 25 m long section of pipe.

c) Can we assume the pipe is isothermal?

Yes. Because the pipe is not very long and thus the temperature drop of the pipe (or hot water)
will be negligible.
Case 4: Conduction between two cylinders of length L in infinite medium.

• Conduction between two parallel pipes that are solid

buried very deep inside a solid medium. medium
• Shape factor for this case: D1 D2
 If L >> D1, L >> D2, L >> w
T1 T2
q
where, w
S = Conduction shape factor (m)
D1 = Outer diameter of cylinder 1 (m)
D2 = Outer diameter of cylinder 2 (m)
L = Length of the cylinder (m)
w = Distance between the centers of both pipes
T1 T2
A 5 m long section of hot and cold water pipes run parallel to each other in a thick concrete
layer (kconcrete = 0.75 W/m.K). The diameters of both pipes are 5 cm and the distance between
the centerline of the pipes is 30 cm. The surface temperatures of the hot and cold pipes are
70oC and 15oC respectively. Determine the heat transfer between the pipes.

L=5m
D1 = D2 = 5 cm = 0.05 m Concrete
w = 30 cm = 0.30 m
T1 = 70 oC T1 T2
T2 = 15 oC
D1 Hot Cold D2
Heat transfer between two parallel pipes in water water
solid medium (concrete)  Case 4
w
Case 5: Horizontal circular cylinder (red) of length L midway between parallel planes (blue) of
equal length and infinite width.
w=∞
• Conduction between cylinder and
two parallel planes in a solid
medium (wall). D

• Shape factor for this case: T2

thickness
z
 If z >> D/2, L >> z T1 L
z
T2
where,
S = Conduction shape factor (m)
D = Outer diameter of cylinder (m)
L = Length of the cylinder/plane (m) T1 T2
z = (wall thickness)/2
As shown in the figure, hot water at an average temperature of 60oC and an average velocity
of 0.6 m/s is flowing through a 5 m section of thin walled hot water pipe that has an outer
diameter of 2.5 cm. The pipe passes through the center of a 14 cm thick wall filled with fiber
glass insulation (kwall = 0.035 W/m.K). The surfaces of the wall are at 18oC.

a) Determine the rate of heat transfer from

the pipe to the air in the rooms.

Tpipe=60oC

Twall=18oC
Twall=18oC
Pipe inside a wall  Case 5
z = thickness/2 = 0.14/2 = 0.07 m

D=0.025m

L = 5m
b) Determine the temperature drop of hot
water (Cp = 4180 J/kg.oC)
0.14m u = 0.6 m/s
Ac = πD2/4 = 4.909x10-4 m2
z z
Case 6: Circular cylinder of length L centered in a square solid of equal length.
• Conduction between a pipe and a block
with square cross section.

• Shape factor for this case:

 If w > D, L >> w T2

where, w T1 D L
S = Conduction shape factor (m)
D = Outer diameter of cylinder (m)
w = Width/Thickness of square solid w
L = Length of the cylinder (m)

Note: Surface areas:

T1 T2
For cylinder, As = P L = (πD) L
For square block, As = P L = (4w) L
A hole of diameter D = 0.25 m is drilled through the center of a solid block of a square cross
section with w = 1m on a side. The hole is drilled along the length, L = 2m, of the block which
has a thermal conductivity of kblock = 150 W/m.K. The four outer surfaces are exposed to
ambient air with T∞2 = 25oC and h2 = 4 W/m2.K. Hot oil flowing through the hole is characterized
by T∞1 = 300oC and h1 = 50 W/m2.K.
a) Determine the heat rate and the surface temperatures.
w Pipe inside square block  case 6

w oil Air
D
T∞1,h1 T∞2,h2

T1 T2

T ∞i T1 T2 T ∞o
A hole of diameter D = 0.25 m is drilled through the center of a solid block of a square cross
section with w = 1m on a side. The hole is drilled along the length, L = 2m, of the block which
has a thermal conductivity of kblock = 150 W/m.K. The four outer surfaces are exposed to
ambient air with T∞2 = 25oC and h2 = 4 W/m2.K. Hot oil flowing through the hole is characterized
by T∞1 = 300oC and h1 = 50 W/m2.K.
b) What is the minimum mass flow rate of oil
w (Cp=2000 J/kg.oC, ρ=900kg/m3) required so that the
temperature drop of the oil doesn’t exceed 5oC.

w oil Air
D
T∞1,h1 T∞2,h2

c) Determine the oil velocity in part b.

T1 T2

T ∞i T1 T2 T ∞i
Case 7: Eccentric circular cylinder of length L in a cylinder of equal length.

Concentric cylinder
• Conduction between inner and outer
cylinders that don’t have the same centers

• Shape factor for this case: d D

 If D>d, L >> D

where, L
S = Conduction shape factor (m)
D = Diameter of outer cylinder (m) Eccentric cylinder
d = Diameter of inner cylinder (m)
z = Eccentricity (distance between centers of
both cylinders) D
L = Length of the cylinder (m) z
d

L
A long cylindrical rod (k=0.5W/m.K) of diameter 200 mm experiences volumetric heat
generation of 24,000 W/m3. The rod is encapsulated by a circular sleeve (k = 4 W/m.K) having
an thickness of 100 mm. The outer surface of the sleeve is exposed to cross flow of air at 27 oC
with a convection coefficient of 25 W/m2.K.
a) Determine the interface temperature.
Assume L = 1m
Sleeve
D1 = 200 mm = 0.200 m
Air
T∞, h krod = 0.5 W/m.K
𝑅𝑜𝑑 , 𝑞˙

D1,T1 D2,T2
tsleeve = 100 mm = 0.100 m

T1 T2 T∞ D2 = D1 + 2tsleeve = 0.400 m

T∞ = 27oC h = 25 W/m2.K

T1 = 71.8oC
A long cylindrical rod (k=0.5W/m.K) of diameter 200 mm experiences volumetric heat
generation of 24,000 W/m3. The rod is encapsulated by a circular sleeve (k = 4 W/m.K) having
an thickness of 100 mm. The outer surface of the sleeve is exposed to cross flow of air at 27 oC
with a convection coefficient of 25 W/m2.K.
b) Determine the interface temperature if an eccentricity of 5 mm exists.

Eccentric cylinders  Case 7

Sleeve

Air
T∞, h
z T1 = 71.77oC

𝑅𝑜𝑑 , 𝑞˙
D1,T1 D2,T2

T1 T2 T∞
 Cubes consists of Case 8: Shape
• 6 faces (yellow) L factor of an edge

• 8 corners (blue) S edge  0.54D

• 12 edges (red) D
L
Case 9: Shape
factor of a corner
L
S corner  0.15 L
L
L

Shape factor of a
face (plane wall)
Thickness internal width Thickness D 2
L L A D
D S face  
L L

external width D
W = D + 2L
L
 W
Aright = W2
W
Atop=W2 Aleft = W2
W
Aright Afront = W2
W Afront=W2 =W2
Aback = W2

Atop = W2
W
W Abottom = W2
Total cube area = 6 W2
2D/sliced view of a cube

L = Wall thickness
W = External width
D = Internal width = W – 2L

T1 Outer cube area = AO = 6W2

T2
Inner cube area = Ai = 6D2

T1 T2
L D L

W = D + 2L
A furnace of cubical shape with external dimensions of 0.35 m is constructed of refractory
brick, fireclay (k = 1.1 W/m.K). If the wall thickness is 50 mm, the inner surface temperature is
600oC and the outer surface temperature is 75oC, calculate the heat loss from the furnace.

kfireclay= 1.1 W/m.K T1=600oC

W=0.35m
fireclay
L = 50mm = 0.05 m
D = W – 2L = 0.25 m T2=75oC
Cubical furnace  Case 8, 9
Sedge = 0.54 D = 0.135 m L D L
Scorner = 0.15L = 0.0075 m
W
Sface = A/L = D2/L = 1.25 m

S = 8 Scorner + 12 Sedge + 6 Sface = 9.18m

q = k S (T1-T2) = 5301 W
A cubical furnace with external dimensions of 5 m consists of combustion gases at 400 oC and a
convection coefficient of 200 W/m2.K. The walls of the furnace are 100 mm thick and are made
of refractory brick (k = 1.4 W/m.K). The furnace is surround by ambient air at 25 oC with a
convection coefficient of 30 W/m2.K.
a) Determine the rate of heat loss from the furnace.
b) Is the outer surface temperature safe to touch?
part a
brick (k=1.4W/m.K)
D = W – 2L = 4.8 m
Sedge = 0.54 D = 2.592 m
Combustion Air
Scorner = 0.15 L = 0.015 m
gases T∞o = 25oC
Sface = A/L = D2/L = 230.4 m
T∞i=400oC

L=0.1m
S = 12 Sedge + 8 Scorner + 6 Sface = 1413.62m ho = 30 W/m2.K
hi=200W/m2.K
Inner surface area, Ai = 6D D
Outer surface area, Ao = 6W
W=5m
T1 T2
part b
T∞i T1 T2 T∞o
Case 10: Disk of Diameter D and temperature T1 on a semi infinite medium of thermal
conductivity k and temperature T2.

• Conduction between flat circular disc and D

the solid surface.
T1
• Shape factor for this case:

T2, k
where,
S = Conduction shape factor (m)
D = Diameter of disc (m)

T1 T2
 Surface areas for pipes and ducts
Surface area = AS = Perimeter * Length

H
W
D

W W
L L
L

Pipe (cylinder) Rectangular duct Square duct

P = 2πr = πD P=2(W+H) P=4W
As = P L As = P L As = P L
AC = πr2 = πD2/4 AC = WH A C = W2
Case 11: Square channel with length L.

• Conduction between inner and outer

surfaces that has square cross sections

• Shape factor for this case (L>>W):

 if W/w < 1.4
t
 if W/w > 1.4

where,
S = Conduction shape factor (m)
t = wall thickness
w = internal width
W = external width = w + 2t T1 T2
L = Length of the channel

Inner surface area = P L = 4w L

Outer surface area = P L = 4W L
Consider a 10 m long thick walled concrete duct (k = 0.75 W/m. oC) of square cross section. The
outer dimensions of the duct are 20cm x 20cm and the thickness of the duct wall is 2 cm. If the
inner and outer surfaces of the duct are at 100oC and 15oC, respectively, determine the rate of
heat transfer through the walls of the duct (in kW).

T2=150oC L = 10 m
concrete Outer dimension = W = 20 cm = 0.20 m
T1=100oC thickness = t = 2 cm = 0.02 m
Inner dimension = w = W – 2t = 0.16 m
t W/w = 1.25

w
W=0.20m
W/w < 1.4
Water (Cp = 4180J/kg.oC) at 35oC flows through a square channel at with a velocity of 0.05 m/s.
The channel is made of concrete (k=1.4 W/m.K) with an inner and outer width of 0.3m and
0.5m respectively. The channel is exposed to air at 25 oC. The inner and outer convection
coefficients are 80 and 27 W/m2.oC respectively.
a) Determine the rate of heat loss from a 4 m section of the channel.
T1 T2
L = 4m
k=1.4W/m.K
Square channel  Case 12
water Air
W/w = 1.667
T∞i=35oC T∞o=25oC
W/w > 1.4 hi=80W/m2.K ho=27W/m2.K
Thus the shape factor is:
w=0.3m
W=0.5m

T∞i T1 T2 T∞o
Water (Cp = 4180J/kg.oC) at 35oC flows through a square channel at with a velocity of 0.05 m/s.
The channel is made of concrete (k=1.4 W/m.K) with an inner and outer width of 0.3m and
0.5m respectively. The channel is exposed to air at 25 oC. The inner and outer convection
coefficients are 80 and 27 W/m2.oC respectively.
b) Determine the temperature drop of water.
T1 T2
u = 0.05 m/s
Ac = w2 = 0.09 m2 k=1.4W/m.K

water Air
T∞i=35oC T∞o=25oC
hi=80W/m2.K ho=27W/m2.K

w=0.3m
W=0.5m

T∞i T1 T2 T∞o
c) Can we assume the water temperature to be
constant for the 4 meter square channel section?

Yes. Because the temperature drop of water is

negligible.
 T1 = 85oC
d=30mm
For eccentric arrangement
2L Hot T2 = 35oC
S  4.988L
1  D  d  4 z 
2 2 2 water
cosh  
 2 Dd  z=20mm
q  kS (T1  T2 )

q  12.471L shell
k=0.05W/mK
q '  12.471W / m

D=120mm
For concentric arrangement, z=0 T1 = 85oC
d=30mm
2L
S  4.53L T2 = 35oC
 D  d  4z 
2 2 2
cosh 1  
 2 Dd  Hot
q  kS (T1  T2 ) water

q  11.325L
shell
q '  11 .325W / m k=0.05W/mK

You can also use rules of chapter 3 D=120mm

ln(D / d )  4.415mK / W
R' 
2k

(T1  T2 )
q'   11 .325W / m
R'
 T3 = 0oC

soil/earth
T1 = 120oC
t T2
kglass = 1.4 W/m.K, ksoil = 0.52 W/m.K
oil pipe
T1 T2 T3 Insulation

𝑅𝑖𝑛𝑠
Rsoil D1=0.5m
1 D2
Sk
t= 100 mm = 0.1 m 1 0.759
Rsoil  
D2 = D1 + 2t = 0.7 m Sk soil L
(¿ 𝐷 2 /𝐷 1) 0 . 0581 (𝑇 1 −𝑇 3 )
𝑅𝑖𝑛𝑠 =ln = ¿ 𝑞= =147 𝐿
2 𝜋 𝑘𝑖𝑛𝑠 𝐿 𝐿 𝑅𝑖𝑛𝑠 + 𝑅𝑠𝑜𝑖𝑙
2L
S  2.534 L q '  147W / m
cosh 1
2 z / D 
 T1=1100oC

brick
T=25oC
h=5W/m2K
T2

D L

W
W=5m
Rwall=1/(kwall.S) T1 T2 T
L=0.35m
k =1.4W/mK Rwall = 0.0021K/W
D=W-2L = 4.3m
A = 6 W2 = 150m2 Rwall Rconv
Scorner=0.54D = 0.0525m
Sedge = 0.15L = 2.322m Rconv = 1/(hA) = 0.00133K/W 1 /( Sk ) 1 /(hA)
Sface = D2/L = 52.84 m
S = 8Scorner + 12 Sedge + 6 Sface q= (T1-T)/(Rwall+Rconv)
S = 345.3m q=315972 W
Note:
 Case 2 is valid for isothermal pipes
 A pipe can be assume to be isothermal if the length is short
 If the length is too large (example: 1km), then case 2 is invalid.
 Deriving T(x) and q for a pipe buried underground with a very large length
Pipe buried under ground Differential section the pipe
Ts Ts

q dq
z z

Ti T Tf T

x=0 x x=L dx

eq(1) eq(1)
eq(2) eq(2)
eq(3) eq(3)
eq(4) eq(4)
if z > 3D/2 if z > 3D/2
eq(5) eq(5)
 eq(1)
eq(2)
eq(3)
eq(4)
if z > 3D/2 Integrating both sides of eq(2)
eq(5)

eq(2) = eq(3)

substitute eq(4) or eq(5)

Rearrange:
An oil pipeline of BAPCO has an outside diameter of 30cm and is buried with its
centreline 1 m below ground level in damp soil. The line is 5 km long and the oil
flows at 2.5 kg/s. The soil conductivity and specific heat are 1.5 W/m.K and 2000
J/kg.K. If the inlet oil temperature is 120oC and the ground level soil is at 23oC,
a) draw a schematic of this problem
b) The oil outlet temperature
c) The heat loss
Derive all necessary equations.

Ts=23oC
soil
k=1.5W/mK
z=1m

D=30cm=0.3m Tf
Oil
m=2.5kg/s
Ti=120oC
Cp=2000J/kgK L=5km = 5000m
 eq(2) = eq(3)
Differential section the pipe
substitute eq(4)
Ts
Rearrange:
dq
z

dx

eq(1)
eq(2)
eq(3)
eq(4)
 Ts=23oC
soil
k=1.5W/mK
z=1m

D=30cm=0.3m Tf
Oil
m=2.5kg/s
Ti=120oC
Cp=2000J/kgK L=5km = 5000m

Note: In this question, we can’t assume that the pipe is isothermal since the length is very
large (5 km). Notice that there’s a large temperature drop from 120 oC to 25.55oC.
 140

120

100
Final temperature (oC)

80

60

40

20

0
1 10 100 1000 10000
Pipe length, L (m)

• Pipes can be assumed to be isothermal when the lengths are small.

• If the length is too large, we shouldn’t assume isothermal conditions.