International Journal of Mechanical And Production Engineering, ISSN: 2320-2092, Volume- 5, Issue-7, Jul.

-2017
http://iraj.in
HEAT TRANSFER ANALYSIS AND OPTIMIZATION OF FINS BY
VARIATION IN GEOMETRY
1
MAYANK JAIN, 2MAHENDRA SANKHALA, 3KANHAIYA PATIDAR, 4LOKESH
AURANGABADKAR
1,2,3
Student, Medicaps University, Indore (M.P.) India
4
Mechanical Engineering Department, Medicaps University, Indore (M.P.) India)

Abstract - The main aim of the project is to analyze the thermal heat dissipation of fins by varying its geometry. Parametric
models of fins have been developed to predict the transient thermal behavior. There after models are created by varying the
geometry such as rectangular, circular, triangular and fins with extension. The modeling software used is CREO Parametric
2.0. The analysis is done using ANSYS 14.5. Presently Material used for manufacturing fin body is generally Aluminum
Alloy 204 which has thermal conductivity of 110-150W/m-⁰C. We are analyzing the fins using material Aluminum Alloy
6061 which has higher thermal conductivity of about 160-170W/m-⁰C. After determining the material the third step is to
increase the heat transfer rate of the system by varying geometrical parameters such as cross sectional area, parameter,
length, thickness, e.t.c. which ultimately leads us to fins of varying shape and geometries.

I. INTRODUCTION modifying certain parameters and geometry of the

same.
A fin is a type of heat exchanger that transfers the
heat generated by an electronic or a mechanical II. LITERATURE REVIEW
device to a fluid medium, often air or a liquid coolant,
where it is dissipated away from the device, thereby S. H. Barhatte[1], 2011, in this paper natural
allowing regulation of the device's temperature at convection heat transfer from vertical rectangular fin
optimal levels. The problem arises when the heat arrays with and without notch and fins with triangular
transferred by these fins are not sufficient enough to notch have been investigated experimentally and
cool the heat generating devices and causes damage theoretically. It was observed that heat transfer
to the components of the device. The basic solution coefficient and in turn the rate of heat transfer can
available is that the shape of fins can be optimized further be increased by increasing the surrounding
such that the heat transfer density is maximum when fluid velocity i.e. by forced convection. It is also
the space and the materials used for the finned observed that heat transfer coefficient is highest for
surfaces are constraints. Aim & Objective: The main the set of fins with triangular notch. Results has been
aim of the project is to analyze the thermal properties shown by the CFD as well as experimental analysis in
of fins by varying geometry and heat transfer rate. table 1 and table 2.
The main objective of the project is to increase the
heat transfer rate of fin which could be achieved by
Table 1. Table showing HTC for different notches at base temp of 600C

Table 2: Comparison of HTC by CFD and HTC by experiment

G. Raju[2], 2012, in this paper maximization of heat generic algorithm technique is used to obtain
transfer thorough fins arrays of an internal maximum heat transfer and corresponding optimum
combustion engine cylinder have been investigated, dimensions of rectangular and triangular profile fin
under one dimensional, steady state conduction and array. This study also includes the effect of spacing
free convection modes. In this study, binary coded between fins on various parameters like total surface

Heat Transfer Analysis and Optimization of Fins by Variation in Geometry

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 International Journal of Mechanical And Production Engineering, ISSN: 2320-2092, Volume- 5, Issue-7, Jul.-2017
http://iraj.in
area, heat transfer coefficient and total heat transfer. 4.1 Rectangular fin
They had derived following observations from
experimental works:

 Heat transfer through triangular fin array per unit

mass is more than that of heat transfer through
rectangular fin array. Therefore, the triangular
fins are preferred for automobiles, central
processing units, aero-planes, space vehicles etc.
where, weight is the main criteria.
 At wider spacing, shorter fins are more preferred
than longer fins.
 The aspect ratio for an optimized fin array is
more than that of a single fin for both rectangular
and triangular profiles 4.2 Rectangular with rectangular extension
III. MATERIAL SELECTION

We began our project by taking a reference fin. The

fin is taken from an Amplifier used in sound
instruments. The chemical composition of fin
material was tested at CHOKSI LABORATERIES
INDORE. The test results were compared with the
standard values of the chemical composition of
Aluminum Alloy tables. The tested composition
reveled the fin material to be ALUMINUM ALLOY
6061.

Table 2.1: Reference table for Aluminum Alloy 6061[3]

4.3Rectangular with trapezoidal extension

Mechanical Properties: The standard values

mechanical and thermal properties of Aluminum
Alloy 6061 are taken from International Alloy
Designations and Chemical Composition Limits for
Wrought Aluminum and Wrought Aluminum Alloys
(Revised 2001)[4]. The values of various properties
are found to be:

1. Melting Point: 582 - 652 °C

2. Thermal Conductivity: 167 W/m-°C
3. Specific Heat Capacity: 0.896 J/g-°C
4. Modulus of Elasticity: 68.9 GPa
4.4 Circular fin
IV. MODELING

By constructing the model of reference fin taken from

4.5 Triangular fin
an amplifier various other models are constructed by
varying its geometry which are as follows:
1. Rectangular fin
2. Rectangular with rectangular extension
3. Rectangular with trapezoidal extension
4. Circular fin
5. Triangular fin

The various views of all the above fins with its

isotropic views are constructed and depicted below.

Heat Transfer Analysis and Optimization of Fins by Variation in Geometry

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 International Journal of Mechanical And Production Engineering, ISSN: 2320-2092, Volume- 5, Issue-7, Jul.-2017
http://iraj.in
5.4 Nusselt Number (Nu)
4.5 Triangular fin Nu = 0.59 * (Ra)0.25
The above formula for ‘Nu’ is applicable for ‘Ra’
4 9
lying in between 10 to 10
We have,
5
Ra = 2.38*10
Substituting the value of Ra in the above formula
We get,
Nu = 13.03

5.5 Convective heat transfer coefficient (h)

k ∗ Nu
h=
L
We have,
Nu = 13.03
V. CALCULATIONS -3
k = 26.38*10 W/m-⁰C
5.1 Grashoff Number (Gr) L = 0.033 m
gβ(Ts − T∞)L3 Substituting the above values we get,
Gr = h = 10 W/⁰C-m2
v2
We have,
g = 9.81 m/s2 5.6 Heat dissipated (Qfin)
L = 0.033 m tanh(ml) +
TS - T∞ = 73oC Q in = √hPkAc ∗ (Ts − T∞) ∗
TS = 27oC 1 + tanh(ml)
T∞ = 100 oC The above formula is applicable for a fin of finite
= 1.601*10-5 m2/s length and uninsulated tip[6].
Substituting all the above values in the above formula Where,
We get,
Gr = 334394.521

5.2 Prandtl Number (Pr) VI. ANALYSIS

c μ
Pr = p
k After creating the 3D model in CREO, we imported
We have, Properties of dry air at atmospheric the part file in ANSYS for the thermal analysis. We
pressure and temperature as[5]: began our analysis by defining the material from
3
ρ = 1.1644 kg/m material library and its properties and the various
-6 constant such as convective heat transfer coefficient
μ = 18.65*10 kg/m-s (as calculated above in Calculations) of the system.
-6 o
k = 26.38*10 W/m- C Next step was to define the base temperature of the
o fin and the ambient temperature. The solution then
c =1.0064 kJ/kg- C generated by the ANSYS gave the total temperature
p
Substituting all the above values in the above formula drop and the temperature gradient over the fins. The
We get, various solutions generated for the various shape fins
Pr = 0.712 are:

5.3 Rayleigh Number (Ra) 6.1 Rectangular fin at 60⁰C: In the very first
Ra = Gr ∗ Pr analysis, the base of the reference fin is kept at 60⁰C
We have, and the ambient temperature is taken as 27⁰C. The
Gr = 334394.521 solution generated by the ANSYS for the above
Pr = 0.712 boundary conditions is depicted below (Figure 6.1).
Substituting all the above values in the above formula The overall temperature drop between the fin base
We get, and tip is found to be 2.852⁰C.
Ra = 2.38*105

Heat Transfer Analysis and Optimization of Fins by Variation in Geometry

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 International Journal of Mechanical And Production Engineering, ISSN: 2320-2092, Volume- 5, Issue-7, Jul.-2017
http://iraj.in

6.2 Rectangular fin at 80⁰C: In the very second analysis, the base of the reference fin is kept at 80⁰C and the
ambient temperature is kept constant as 27⁰C. The solution generated by the ANSYS for the above boundary
conditions is depicted below (Figure 6.2). The overall temperature drop between the fin base and tip in this case
is found to be 4.473⁰C.

6.3 Rectangular fin at 100⁰C: In the very third case, the base of the reference fin is kept at 100⁰C and the
ambient temperature is kept constant as 27⁰C. The solution generated by the ANSYS for the above boundary
conditions is depicted below (Figure 6.3). The overall temperature drop between the fin base and tip is found to
be 6.021⁰C.

6.4 Rectangular fin with rectangular extension: In next case, surface area of the fin is increased by providing
rectangular extensions over the fin. The base of the fin is kept at 100⁰C and the ambient temperature is kept as
27⁰C. The solution generated by the ANSYS is depicted below (Figure 6.4). The overall temperature drop
between the fin base and tip is found to be 5.168⁰C.

Heat Transfer Analysis and Optimization of Fins by Variation in Geometry

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 International Journal of Mechanical And Production Engineering, ISSN: 2320-2092, Volume- 5, Issue-7, Jul.-2017
http://iraj.in

6.5 Rectangular fin with trapezoidal extension: Now,the surface area of the fin is increased by providing
extensions of trapezoidal shapes over the fin. The base is kept at 100⁰C and the ambient temperature is again
kept as 27⁰C. The solution generated by the ANSYS is depicted below (Figure 6.5). The overall temperature
drop between the fin base and tip is found to be 5.208⁰C.

6.6 Circular fin: For the next analysis, shape of the fin is changed completely to circular fins. The base of the
fin is again kept constant at 100⁰C and the ambient temperature is again kept as 27⁰C. The solution generated by
the ANSYS is depicted below (Figure 6.6). The overall temperature drop between the fin base and tip is found
to be 4.075⁰C.

6.7 Triangular fins: For the next case, the cross sectional area of the fin is kept triangular. The base of the fin is
kept at 100⁰C and the ambient temperature 27⁰C. The solution generated by the ANSYS is depicted below
(Figure 6.7). The overall temperature drop between the fin base and tip is found to be 8.795⁰C and is the

Heat Transfer Analysis and Optimization of Fins by Variation in Geometry

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 International Journal of Mechanical And Production Engineering, ISSN: 2320-2092, Volume- 5, Issue-7, Jul.-2017
http://iraj.in
maximum temperature drop among all the above cases. Thus in terms of heat dissipation and cooling purpose
the triangular fins are found to be the best.

VII. RESULTS

The fin obtained from amplifier of a sound system is taken as reference fin and the analysis is done by keeping
the ambient temperature constant as 27⁰C and varying the base temperature as 60⁰C, 80⁰C and 100⁰C. The
results so obtained for the above 3 cases are given below in the Table 7.1.

Table 7.1: Rectangular fin’s efficiency and effectiveness variation at various base temperature

Temperature variation (at 100℃): The heat dissipation if a fin is directly proportional to its surface area. In
order to increase the heat dissipation, the surface area is increased by changing the shape of the fins and the
results so obtained are depicted below in Table 7.2.

Table 7.2: Temperature difference table for various shapes of fin

Effectiveness and Efficiency: Fins of varying shape and geometries can be only compared based on its
effectiveness. Thus, it is very essential to compare the effectiveness of fins with varying shape. Also, the
performance of fin is given by its efficiency. Thus, the effectiveness, efficiency and the amount of heat
dissipated for different fins are compared in the Table 7.3.
Table 7.3: Heat dissipated by rectangular, rectangular fin with rectangular extension and circular fin

Heat Transfer Analysis and Optimization of Fins by Variation in Geometry

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International Journal of Mechanical And Production Engineering, ISSN: 2320-2092, Volume- 5, Issue-7, Jul.-2017
http://iraj.in

Graph 2: Variation of temperature drop with varying cross sectional area

CONCLUSION 3. Currently the complete analysis of fins are based

on a micro level. The fin being analyzed here are
1. The thermal analysis of fins by modifying its of an Amplifier of a sound system.
certain parameters such as geometry has been 4. The results obtained after the completion of this
completed. project, can be generalized and can be applied for
2. By observing the analysis results, we can various large scale applications such as fins for
easily say; using triangular fin with material IC Engines, which can help in considerable
Aluminum alloy 6061 is better since the increase in the it’s efficiency and life.
temperature drop and the heat transfer rate in a
triangular fin is much more compared to REFERENCES
others.
3. The theoretical calculations done to determine [1] S. H. Barhatte, “Experimental and Computational Analysis
and Optimization for Heat Transfer through Fins with
the heat lost, effectiveness and efficiency of Different Types of Notch”, Journal of Engineering
the fins are well supported by the practical Researches and Studies, Vol. II, 133-138, 2011.
results obtained using the software. [2] G. Raju, “Optimal Design of an I.C. Engine Cylinder Fin
Arrays Using a Binary Coded Genetic Algorithms”,
International Journal of Modern Engineering Research,
FUTURE SCOPE Vol.2, Issue.6, pp-4516-4520, 2012.
[3] Wilson Boulevard, (2001). International Alloy
1. The purpose of this project is to take a step Designations and Chemical Composition Limits for
Wrought Aluminum and Wrought Aluminum Alloys
towards a complete analysis of the heat
(Revised 2001), (pp. 16).
dissipation through fins. Ideally it should prevent [4] Metals Handbook, Vol.2, Properties and Selection:
overheating for all its applications. Nonferrous Alloys and Special-Purpose Materials, ASM
2. A gap is seen in the present scenario of fins heat International 10th Ed. 1990, (pp. 163).
dissipation. The gap is seen for more cases, such [5] John M. (Tim) Holt, (1996). Structural Alloys Handbook:
Technical Ed; C. Y. Ho, Ed., CINDAS/Purdue University,
as fins with extension during the run of the West Lafayette, IN, 1996.
project. [6] Domkundwar&Domkundwar, (2011). Heat and Mass
Transfer Data Book:DhanpatRai and Co., (pp. 3.2, 3.5,
3.13)

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