ME731 Heat and Mass Transfer
Assignment Sheet no. 2
Last date for submission: 22.08.2025 (Friday)
Process Identification
1. The number of panes in a window can strongly influence the heat loss from a
heated room to the outside ambient air. Compare the single- and double paned
units shown by identifying relevant heat transfer processes for each case
(Figure 1).
2. A double-glazed, glass fire screen is inserted between a wood-burning fire
place and the interior of a room. The screen consists of two vertical glass
plates that are separated by a space through which room air may flow (the
space is open at the top and bottom). Identify the heat transfer processes
associated with the fire screen. (Figure 2)
Figure 1 Figure 2
3. A thermocouple junction (bead) is used to measure the temperature of a hot gas stream
flowing through a channel by inserting the junction into the mainstream of the gas. The
surface of the channel is cooled such that its temperature is well below that of the gas.
Identify the heat transfer processes associated with the junction surface. Will the junction
sense a temperature that is less than, equal to, or greater than the gas temperature? A
radiation shield is a small, open ended tube that encloses the thermocouple junction, yet
allows for passage of the gas through the tube. How does use of such a shield improve the
accuracy of the temperature measurement? (see Figure 3)
Figure 3
Conduction:
4. A freezer compartment consists of a cubical cavity that is 2 m on a side. Assume the
bottom to be perfectly insulated. What is the minimum thickness of Styrofoam insulation
(k = 0.030 W/m K) that must be applied to the top and side walls to ensure a heat load of
less than 500 W, when the inner and outer surfaces are -10 and 35⁰ C?
5. A square silicon chip (k= 150 W/m K) is of width w = 5 mm on a side and of thickness t
= 1 mm. The chip is mounted in a substrate such that its side and back surfaces are
insulated, while the front surface is exposed to a coolant. If 4 W are being dissipated in
circuits mounted to the back surface of the chip, what is the steady-state temperature
difference between back and front surfaces?
Convection
6. A square isothermal chip is of width w = 5 mm on a side and is mounted in a substrate
such that its side and back surfaces are well insulated; the front surface is exposed to the
flow of a coolant at T =15⁰ C. From reliability considerations, the chip temperature must
not exceed T= 85 ⁰C.
7. The free convection heat transfer coefficient on a thin hot vertical plate suspended in still
air can be determined from observations of the change in plate temperature with time as it
cools. Assuming the plate is isothermal and radiation exchange with its surroundings is
negligible, evaluate the convection coefficient at the instant of time when the plate
temperature is 225 ⁰C and the change in plate temperature with time (dT/dt) is -0.022 K/s.
The ambient air temperature is 25 ⁰C and the plate measures 0.3x0.3 m with a mass of
3.75 kg and a specific heat of 2770 J/kg K
Radiation:
8. A vacuum system, as used in sputtering electrically conducting thin films on microcircuits,
is comprised of a baseplate maintained by an electrical heater at 300 K and a shroud within
the enclosure maintained at 77 K by a liquid-nitrogen coolant loop. The circular baseplate,
insulated on the lower side, is 0.3 m in diameter and has an emissivity of 0.25
9. An instrumentation package has a spherical outer surface of diameter D= 100 mm and
emissivity 0.25. The package is placed in a large space simulation chamber whose walls
are maintained at 77 K. If operation of the electronic components is restricted to the
temperature range 40 ≤ T ≤ 85 ⁰C, what is the range of acceptable power dissipation for
the package? Display your results graphically, showing also the effect of variations in the
emissivity by considering values of 0.20 and 0.30.
Differential Equation
10. Consider a long rectangular bar of length a in the x-direction and width b in the y-direction
that is initially at a uniform temperature of Ti. The surfaces of the bar at x = 0 and y= 0 are
insulated, while heat is lost from the other two surfaces by convection to the surrounding
medium at temperature T∞ with a heat transfer coefficient of h. Assuming constant thermal
conductivity and transient two-dimensional heat transfer with no heat generation, express
the mathematical formulation (the differential equation and the boundary and initial
conditions) of this heat conduction problem. Do not solve.
11. Consider a short cylinder of radius r0 and height H in which heat is generated at a constant
rate of go. Heat is lost from the cylindrical surface at r= r0 by convection to the surrounding
medium at temperature T with a heat transfer coefficient of h. The bottom surface of the
cylinder at =z 0 is insulated, while the top surface at z= H is subjected to uniform heat flux
qh Assuming constant thermal conductivity and steady two-dimensional heat transfer,
express the mathematical formulation (the differential equation and the boundary
conditions) of this heat conduction problem. Do not solve.
12. A spherical metal ball of radius r0 is heated in an oven to a temperature of Ti throughout
and is then taken out of the oven and allowed to cool in ambient air at T by convection
and radiation. The emissivity of the outer surface of the cylinder is ε, and the temperature
of the surrounding surfaces is Tsurr. The average convection heat transfer coefficient is
estimated to be h. Assuming variable thermal conductivity and transient one-dimensional
heat transfer, express the mathematical formulation (the differential equation and the
boundary and initial conditions) of this heat conduction problem. Do not solve
