Chapter 6: Fundamentals of

Convection
PHYSICAL MECHANISM OF CONVECTION
Conduction and convection both
require the presence of a material
medium but convection requires
fluid motion.
Heat transfer through a solid is
always by conduction.
Heat transfer through a fluid is by
convection in the presence of bulk
fluid motion and by conduction in
the absence of it.
Therefore, conduction in a fluid can
be viewed as the limiting case of
convection, corresponding to the
case of quiescent fluid.
 The fluid motion enhances heat transfer, since it brings
warmer and cooler chunks of fluid into contact, initiating
higher rates of conduction at a greater number of sites in
a fluid.
 The rate of heat transfer through a fluid is much higher
by convection than it is by conduction.
 In fact, the higher the fluid velocity, the higher the rate of
heat transfer.

Heat transfer through a

fluid sandwiched between
two parallel plates.

3
• Experience shows that convection heat transfer strongly depends on
the fluid properties:
– dynamic viscosity m,
– thermal conductivity k,
– density r, and
– specific heat cp, as well as the
– fluid velocity V.
• It also depends on the geometry and the roughness of the solid
surface in addition to the type of flow.
• The rate of convection heat transfer is observed to be proportional to
the temperature difference and is expressed by Newton’s law of
cooling as
qconv  h Ts  T  (W/m2 ) (6-1)

• The convection heat transfer coefficient h depends on the several of

the mentioned variables, and thus is difficult to determine.
Convection heat transfer coefficient, h: The rate of heat
transfer between a solid surface and a fluid per unit surface
area per unit temperature difference.

5
No-slip condition: A fluid in direct contact with a solid “sticks” to the
surface due to viscous effects, and there is no slip.
Boundary layer: The flow region adjacent to the wall in which the viscous
effects (and thus the velocity gradients) are significant.
The fluid property responsible for the no-slip condition and the development
of the boundary layer is viscosity.

A fluid flowing over a stationary surface

comes to a complete stop at the surface
The development of a velocity because of the no-slip condition.
profile due to the no-slip condition
as a fluid flows over a blunt nose. 6
An implication of the no-slip condition is that heat transfer from the solid
surface to the fluid layer adjacent to the surface is by pure conduction,
since the fluid layer is motionless, and can be expressed as

The determination of the convection heat transfer coefficient

when the temperature distribution within the fluid is known

The convection heat transfer coefficient, in general, varies along the flow
(or x-) direction. The average or mean convection heat transfer coefficient
for a surface in such cases is determined by properly averaging the local
convection heat transfer coefficients over the entire surface area As or
length L as

7
 The Nusselt Number
• It is common practice to nondimensionalize the heat transfer
coefficient h with the Nusselt number
hLc
Nu  (6-5)
k
• Heat flux through the fluid layer by convection and by
conduction can be expressed as, respectively:
T
qconv  hT (6-6) qcond  k (6-7)
L
• Taking their ratio gives
qconv hT hL
   Nu (6-8)
qcond k T / L k
• The Nusselt number represents the enhancement of heat transfer
through a fluid layer as a result of convection relative to
conduction across the same fluid layer.
• Nu=1 pure conduction.
CLASSIFICATION OF FLUID FLOWS
Viscous versus Inviscid Regions of Flow
Viscous flows: Flows in which the frictional effects are significant.
Inviscid flow regions: In many flows of practical interest, there are
regions (typically regions not close to solid surfaces) where viscous forces
are negligibly small compared to inertial or pressure forces.

The flow of an originally

uniform fluid stream
over a flat plate, and
the regions of viscous
flow (next to the plate
on both sides) and
inviscid flow (away from
the plate).
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Internal versus External Flow
External flow: The flow of an unbounded fluid over a surface such
as a plate, a wire, or a pipe.
Internal flow: The flow in a pipe or duct if the fluid is completely
bounded by solid surfaces.

• Water flow in a pipe is

internal flow, and
airflow over a ball is
external flow .
• The flow of liquids in a
duct is called open-
channel flow if the duct
is only partially filled
with the liquid and
there is a free surface.
External flow over a tennis ball, and the
turbulent wake region behind.
12
Compressible versus Incompressible Flow
Incompressible flow: If the c is the speed of sound whose
density of flowing fluid remains value is 346 m/s in air at room
nearly constant throughout (e.g., temperature at sea level.
liquid flow).
Gas flows can often be
Compressible flow: If the density approximated as incompressible
of fluid changes during flow (e.g., if the density changes are under
high-speed gas flow) about 5 percent, which is usually
When analyzing rockets, spacecraft, the case when Ma < 0.3.
and other systems that involve high-
Therefore, the compressibility
speed gas flows, the flow speed is
effects of air can be neglected at
often expressed by Mach number
speeds under about 100 m/s.

Ma = 1 Sonic flow
Ma < 1 Subsonic flow
Ma > 1 Supersonic flow
Ma >> 1 Hypersonic flow
13
 Laminar versus Turbulent Flow
Laminar flow: The highly
ordered fluid motion
characterized by smooth layers
of fluid. The flow of high-
viscosity fluids such as oils at
low velocities is typically laminar.
Turbulent flow: The highly
disordered fluid motion that
typically occurs at high velocities
and is characterized by velocity
fluctuations. The flow of low-
viscosity fluids such as air at
high velocities is typically
turbulent.
Transitional flow: A flow that
alternates between being Laminar, transitional, and turbulent flows.
laminar and turbulent.
 Laminar and Turbulent Flows
• Laminar flow ─ the flow is characterized
by smooth streamlines and highly-
ordered motion.
• Turbulent flow ─ the flow is
characterized by velocity
fluctuations and
highly-disordered motion.
• The transition from laminar
to turbulent flow does not
occur suddenly.
Natural (or Unforced)
versus Forced Flow
Forced flow: A fluid is forced
to flow over a surface or in a
pipe by external means such
as a pump or a fan.
Natural flow: Fluid motion is
due to natural means such as
the buoyancy effect, which
manifests itself as the rise of
warmer (and thus lighter) fluid
and the fall of cooler (and thus
denser) fluid. In this schlieren image, the rise of
lighter, warmer air adjacent to her body
indicates that humans and warm-
blooded animals are surrounded by
thermal plumes of rising warm air.

16
Steady versus Unsteady Flow
• The term steady implies no change at a point with time.
• The opposite of steady is unsteady.
• The term uniform implies no change with location over a
specified region.
• The term periodic refers to the kind of unsteady flow in
which the flow oscillates about a steady mean.
• Many devices such as turbines, compressors, boilers,
condensers, and heat exchangers operate for long periods
of time under the same conditions, and they are classified
as steady-flow devices.

17
 One-, Two-, and Three-Dimensional Flows
• A flow field is best characterized by its velocity distribution.
• A flow is said to be one-, two-, or three-dimensional if the flow velocity
varies in one, two, or three dimensions, respectively.
• However, the variation of velocity in certain directions can be small
relative to the variation in other directions and can be ignored.

The development of the velocity profile in a circular pipe. V = V(r, z)

and thus the flow is two-dimensional in the entrance region, and
becomes one-dimensional downstream when the velocity profile fully
develops and remains unchanged in the flow direction, V = V(r).
18
VELOCITY BOUNDARY LAYER
Velocity boundary layer: The region of the flow above
the plate bounded by  in which the effects of the viscous
shearing forces caused by fluid viscosity are felt.
The boundary layer thickness, , is typically defined as the
distance y from the surface at which u = 0.99V.
The hypothetical line of u = 0.99V divides the flow over a
plate into two regions:
Boundary layer region: The viscous effects and the
velocity changes are significant.
Irrotational flow region: The frictional effects are
negligible and the velocity remains essentially constant.

19
Wall Shear Stress Shear stress: Friction force per unit area.
The shear stress for most fluids is
proportional to the velocity gradient, and
the shear stress at the wall surface is
expressed as

m dynamic viscosity
kg/ms or Ns/m2 or Pas
1 poise = 0.1 Pa  s
The fluids that obey the linear relationship
above are called Newtonian Fluids.
Most common fluids such as water, air,
gasoline, and oils are Newtonian fluids.
Blood and liquid plastics are examples of
non-Newtonian fluids. In this text we
consider Newtonian fluids only.
Kinematic viscosity,
m2/s or stoke
1 stoke = 1 cm2/s = 0.0001 m2/s

The viscosity of a fluid is a measure of its resistance to

deformation, and it is a strong function of temperature.

Wall shear stress:

Cf friction coefficient or
skin friction coefficient
Friction force over the entire surface:

The friction coefficient is an important parameter in heat transfer

studies since it is directly related to the heat transfer coefficient and
the power requirements of the pump or fan.
THERMAL BOUNDARY LAYER
A thermal boundary layer develops when a fluid at a specified temperature flows
over a surface that is at a different temperature.
Thermal boundary layer: The flow region over the surface in which the
temperature variation in the direction normal to the surface is significant.
The thickness of the thermal boundary layer t at any location along the surface is
defined as the distance from the surface at which the temperature difference T − Ts
equals 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 down stream.
The shape of the temperature
profile in the thermal boundary
layer dictates the convection
heat transfer between a solid
surface and the fluid flowing
over it.
Thermal boundary layer on a flat plate (the
22
fluid is hotter than the plate surface).
Prandtl Number
The relative thickness of the velocity and the thermal boundary layers
is best described by the dimensionless parameter Prandtl number

The Prandtl numbers of gases are

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

23
 Laminar and Turbulent Flows
• Laminar flow ─ the flow is characterized by
smooth streamlines and highly-ordered
motion.
• Turbulent flow ─ the flow is
characterized by velocity
fluctuations and
highly-disordered motion.
• The transition from laminar
to turbulent flow does not
occur suddenly.
• The velocity profile in turbulent flow is much fuller than that in
laminar flow, with a sharp drop near the surface.
• The turbulent boundary layer can be considered to consist of
four regions:
– Viscous sublayer
– Buffer layer
– Overlap layer
– Turbulent layer
• The intense mixing in turbulent flow enhances heat and
momentum transfer, which increases the friction force on the
surface and the convection heat transfer rate.
Reynolds Number At large Reynolds numbers, the inertial
The transition from laminar to turbulent forces, which are proportional to the
flow depends on the geometry, surface fluid density and the square of the fluid
roughness, flow velocity, surface velocity, are large relative to the viscous
temperature, and type of fluid. forces, and thus the viscous forces
cannot prevent the random and rapid
The flow regime depends mainly on the fluctuations of the fluid (turbulent).
ratio of inertia forces to viscous forces
At small or moderate Reynolds
(Reynolds number).
numbers, the viscous forces are large
enough to suppress these fluctuations
and to keep the fluid “in line” (laminar).

Critical Reynolds number, Recr:

The Reynolds number at which the
flow becomes turbulent.
The value of the critical Reynolds
number is different for different
geometries and flow conditions.

The Reynolds number can be

viewed as the ratio of inertial
forces to viscous forces
26
acting on a fluid element.
 Derivation of Differential Convection
Equations
• Consider the parallel flow of a fluid over a surface.
• Assumptions:
– steady two-dimensional flow,
– Newtonian fluid,
– constant properties, and
– laminar flow.
• The fluid flows over the surface with a uniform free-
stream velocity V, but the velocity within boundary
layer is two-dimensional (u=u(x,y), v=v(x,y)).
• Three fundamental laws:
– conservation of mass  continuity equation
– conservation of momentum  momentum equation
– conservation of energy  energy equation
 The Continuity Equation
• Conservation of mass principle ─ the mass can
not be created or destroyed during a process.
• In steady flow:
Rate of mass flow
Rate of mass flow
into the control volume
= out of the control volume (6-18)

• The mass flow rate is equal to: ruA

ruA
The fluid leaves the control volume from the left surface at a rate of
ru  dy 1
the fluid leaves the control volume from the right surface at a rate of
 u 
r  u  dx   dy 1 (6-19)
 x 
Repeating this for the y direction v+∂v/∂y·dy
and substituting the results into Eq.
6–18, we obtain u dy

r u  dy 1  r v  dx 1  u+∂u/∂x·dx

 u   v 
dx   dy 1  r  v  dy   dx 1
x,y v
r u 
 x   y  (6-20)
dx
Simplifying and dividing by dx·dy
u v
 0 (6-21) The continuity equation
x y
 The Momentum Equation
• The differential forms of the equations of motion in
the velocity boundary layer are obtained by applying
Newton’s second law of motion to a differential
control volume element in the boundary layer.
• Two type of forces:
– body forces,
– surface forces.
• Newton’s second law of motion for the control
volume
Acceleration Net force (body and surface)
(Mass) X
in a specified direction = acting in that direction
(6-22)
or
 m  ax  Fsurface, x  Fbody , x (6-23)
• where the mass of the fluid element within the control
volume is
 m  r  dx  dy 1 (6-24)
• The flow is steady and two-dimensional and thus
u=u(x, y), the total differential of u is
u u
du  dx  dy (6-25)
x y
• Then the acceleration of the fluid element in the x
direction becomes
du u dx u dy u u
ax    u v
dt x dt y dt x y
(6-26)
• The forces acting on a surface are due to pressure and
viscous effects.
• Viscous stress can be resolved into
two perpendicular components:
– normal stress,
– shear stress.
• Normal stress is much smaller, so it can be neglected.
• Neglecting the normal stresses the net surface force
acting in the x-direction is
    P    P 
Fsurface, x   dy   dx 1   dx   dy 1      dx  dy 1
 y   x   y x 
  2u P 
 m 2    dx  dy 1 Since τ = μ(ծu/ծy) (6-27)
 y x 
• Substituting Eqs. 6–21, 6–23, and 6–24 into Eq. 6–20 and
dividing by dx·dy·1 gives
The x-momentum  u u   2u P
r u  v   m 2  (6-28)
equation  x y  y x
Boundary Layer Approximation
Assumptions:
1) Velocity components:
u>>v
2) Velocity gradients:
∂v/∂x≈0 and ∂v/∂y≈0
∂u/∂y >> ∂u/∂x
3) Temperature gradients:
∂T/∂y >> ∂T/∂x
• When gravity effects and other body forces are negligible the
y-momentum equation P  0 (6-29)
y
 Analogies Between Momentum and
Heat Transfer
• In forced convection analysis, we are interested
in determination of the quantities Cf (to calculate
shear stress at the wall) and Nu (to calculate
heat transfer rates). Therefore, it is very
desirable to have a relation between Cf and Nu
so that we can calculate one when the other is
available.
• Such relations are developed on the basis of the
similarity between momentum and heat
transfers in boundary layers, and are known as
Reynolds analogy and Chilton–Colburn
analogy.
 Re L
Reynolds analogy C f ,x  Nu (Pr=1)
2

This is an important analogy since it allows us to

determine the heat transfer coefficient for fluids with Pr
=1 from a knowledge of friction coefficient which is easier
to measure. Reynolds analogy is also expressed alternately
as

where

which is the Stanton number, which is also a dimensionless

heat transfer coefficient.
• The Reynolds analogy can be extended to a wide range of
Pr number by adding a Prandtl number correction.

C f , x  0.664Rex1/ 2 Nu x  0.332 Pr1/ 3 Re1/ 2 Pr>0.6

Re
C f ,x  Nu x Pr1 3 0.6  Pr  60
2