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Mechanisms of Heat Transfer II

Mechanisms of Heat Transfer II

In convection, thermal energy is carried by the large-scale flow of matter. Ocean currents and large-scale atmospheric circulation, which result from the buoyancy of warm air and water, transfer hot air from the tropics toward the poles and cold air from the poles toward the tropics. The Earth’s rotation interacts with those flows, causing the observed eastward flow of air in the temperate zones. Convection dominates heat transfer by air, and the amount of available space for the airflow...

Mechanisms of Heat Transfer

Mechanisms of Heat Transfer

Heat transfer between the human body and its environment occurs through four main mechanisms: conduction, convection, radiation, and evaporation.
Conduction, accounting for approximately 3% of body heat loss at rest, is the process of exchanging heat between molecules of two materials in direct contact. This can result in both heat loss and gain. For instance, when the body is submerged in water, which conducts heat 20 times more effectively than air, it can either lose or gain significant heat.

Mechanism of heat transfer

Mechanism of heat transfer

Understanding heat transfer mechanisms is essential for understanding how our bodies maintain balance in different environmental conditions. When the environment is thermoneutral, the body is in a state of balance, neither using nor releasing energy to maintain its core temperature. However, when the environment is not thermoneutral, the body employs four heat transfer mechanisms to maintain homeostasis: conduction, convection, evaporation, and radiation. These mechanisms facilitate heat...

Mechanisms of Heat Transfer I

Mechanisms of Heat Transfer I

Just as interesting as the effects of heat transfer on a system are the methods by which the heat transfer occur. Whenever there is a temperature difference, heat transfer occurs. It may occur rapidly, such as through a cooking pan, or slowly, such as through the walls of a picnic ice box. So many processes involve heat transfer that it is hard to imagine a situation where no heat transfer occurs. Yet, every heat transfer takes place by only three methods: conduction, convection, and radiation.

Joule-Thomson Effect

Joule-Thomson Effect

The Joule-Thomson effect, also known as the Joule-Kelvin effect, describes the temperature change of a fluid when it is forced through a valve or porous plug while keeping it in a thermally insulated environment. This experiment is called a throttling process. This is an important effect widely used in refrigeration and the liquefaction of gases.
This experiment forces high-pressure gas through a throttle valve or a porous plug to a lower-pressure region. The gas expands as it passes through to...

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Related Experiment Video

Updated: Jun 26, 2026

Pool-Boiling Heat-Transfer Enhancement on Cylindrical Surfaces with Hybrid Wettable Patterns

Pool-Boiling Heat-Transfer Enhancement on Cylindrical Surfaces with Hybrid Wettable Patterns

Published on: April 10, 2017

Nanowires for enhanced boiling heat transfer.

Renkun Chen¹, Ming-Chang Lu, Vinod Srinivasan

¹Department of Mechanical Engineering, University of California, Berkeley, California 94720, USA.

|January 20, 2009

Summary

Researchers enhanced boiling heat transfer by over 100% using nanowire arrays. This breakthrough significantly boosts critical heat flux (CHF) and heat transfer coefficient (HTC) for improved energy efficiency and safety.

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Area of Science:

Materials Science
Thermodynamics
Nanotechnology

Background:

Boiling is a crucial liquid-vapor phase transition process in energy systems.
Heat transfer coefficient (HTC) and critical heat flux (CHF) are key performance metrics for boiling.
Current HTC and CHF values for common fluids have stagnated for decades, limiting system efficiency and safety.

Purpose of the Study:

To investigate methods for significantly increasing both HTC and CHF.
To explore the potential of nanostructured surfaces in enhancing boiling performance.
To overcome the limitations of conventional heat transfer fluids and surfaces.

Main Methods:

Fabrication of silicon (Si) and copper (Cu) nanowire arrays.
Experimental investigation of boiling heat transfer in these nanowire arrays.
Analysis of the role of surface tension forces in nanostructured environments.

Main Results:

Achieved over 100% increase in both CHF and HTC compared to conventional surfaces.
Demonstrated that high surface tension forces in nanowire arrays enhance boiling performance.
Identified nanowire arrays as a promising platform for advanced heat transfer fluids.

Conclusions:

Nanowire arrays can dramatically improve boiling heat transfer efficiency and CHF.
This advancement has significant implications for energy generation, refrigeration, and thermal management systems.
The findings offer a new pathway to enhance the performance and safety of various thermal devices.