Heat Transfer Applications for the Practicing Engineer

Louis Theodore

• Publisher: Wiley
• Year: 2011
• Print ISBN: 9780470643723
• eBook ISBN: 9781118002100
• Edition: 1
• Topic: Technology & Engineering
• Subtopic: Chemical & Biochemical Engineering
• Index: Technology & Engineering

This book serves as a training tool for individuals in industry and academia involved with heat transfer applications. Although the literature is inundated with texts emphasizing theory and theoretical derivations, the goal of this book is to present the subject of heat transfer from a strictly pragmatic point of view.

The book is divided into four Parts: Introduction, Principles, Equipment Design Procedures and Applications, and ABET-related Topics. The first Part provides a series of chapters concerned with introductory topics that are required when solving most engineering problems, including those in heat transfer. The second Part of the book is concerned with heat transfer principles. Topics that receive treatment include Steady-state Heat Conduction, Unsteady-state Heat Conduction, Forced Convection, Free Convection, Radiation, Boiling and Condensation, and Cryogenics. Part three (considered the heart of the book) addresses heat transfer equipment design procedures and applications. In addition to providing a detailed treatment of the various types of heat exchangers, this part also examines the impact of entropy calculations on exchanger design, and operation, maintenance and inspection (OM&I), plus refractory and insulation effects. The concluding Part of the text examines ABET (Accreditation Board for Engineering and Technology) related topics of concern, including economies and finance, numerical methods, open-ended problems, ethics, environmental management, and safety and accident management.

Part One

Introduction

Part One serves as the introductory section to this book. It reviews engineering and science fundamentals that are an integral part of the field of heat transfer. It consists of six chapters, as noted below:

1. History of Heat Transfer

2. History of Chemical Engineering: Transport Phenomena vs Unit Operations

3. Process Variables

4. Conservation Laws

5. Gas Laws

6. Heat Exchanger Pipes and Tubes

Those individuals with a strong background in the above area(s) may choose to bypass all or some of this Part.

Chapter 1

History of Heat Transfer*

INTRODUCTION

After a review of the literature, the author has concluded that the concept of heat transfer was first introduced by the English scientist Sir Isaac Newton in his 1701 paper entitled “Scala Graduum Caloris.”(1) The specific ideas of heat convection and Newton’s Law of Cooling were developed from that paper.

Before the development of kinetic theory in the middle of the 19th century, the transfer of heat was explained by the “caloric” theory. This theory was introduced by the French chemist Antoine Lavoisier (1743–1794) in 1789. In his paper, Lavoisier proposed that caloric was a tasteless, odorless, massless, and colorless substance that could be transferred from one body to another and that the transfer of caloric to a body increased the temperature, and the loss of calorics correspondingly decreased the temperature. Lavoisier also stated that if a body cannot absorb/accept any additional caloric, then it should be considered saturated and, hence, the idea of a saturated liquid and vapor was developed.(2)

Lavoisier’s caloric theory was never fully accepted because the theory essentially stated that heat could not be created or destroyed, even though it was well known that heat could be generated by the simple act of rubbing hands together. In 1798, an American physicist, Benjamin Thompson (1753–1814), reported in his paper that heat was generated by friction, a form of motion, and not by caloric flow. Although his idea was also not readily accepted, it did help establish the law of conservation of energy in the 19th century.(3)

In 1843, the caloric theory was proven wrong by the English physicist James P. Joule (1818–1889). His experiments provided the relationship between mechanical work and the nature of heat, and led to the development of the first law of thermodynamics of the conservation of energy.(4)

The development of kinetic theory in the 19th century put to rest all other theories. Kinetic theory states that energy or heat is created by the random motion of atoms and molecules. The introduction of kinetic theory helped to develop the concept of the conduction of heat.(5)

The earlier developments in heat transfer helped set the stage for the French mathematician and physicist Joseph Fourier (1768–1830) to reconcile Newton’s Law of Cooling, which in turn led to the development of Fourier’s Law of Conduction. Newton’s Law of Cooling suggested that there was a relationship between the temperature difference and the amount of heat transferred. Fourier took Newton’s Law of Cooling and arrived at a convection heat equation.(6) Fourier also developed the concepts of heat flux and temperature gradient. Using the same process as he used to develop the equation of heat convection, Fourier subsequently developed the classic equation for heat conduction that has come to be defined as Fourier’s law.(7)

Two additional sections complement the historical contents of this chapter. These are:

Peripheral Equipment

Recent History

PERIPHERAL EQUIPMENT

With respect to heat transfer equipment, the bulk of early equipment involved the transfer of heat across pipes. The history of pipes dates back to the Roman Empire. The ingenious “engineers” of that time came up with a solution to supply the never-ending demand of a city for fresh water and then for disposing of the wastewater produced. Their system was based on pipes made out of wood and stone, and the driving force of the water was gravity.(8) Over time, many improvements have been made to the piping system. These improvements include material choice, shape, ...

Table of contents

• Cover
• Half Title page
• Title page
• Copyright page
• Dedication
• Preface
• Introductory Comments
• Part One: Introduction
• Part Two: Principles
• Part Three: Heat Transfer Equipment Design Procedures and Applications
• Appendix A: Units
• Appendix B: Tables
• Appendix C: Figures
• Appendix D: Steam Tables
• Index