On Effect of Volume Expansivity on Transient Heat Conduction

Abstract

With the consideration of the thermal volume expansivity of material, a revised equation set describing one-dimensional transient conduction is established. Different from the conventional mathematical description, the revised equation set consists of three equations: energy, continuity and expansivity equation. When the kinetic term is omitted, the equation set degrades into one differential- integral equation. Both the equation itself and its solving become more complicated than the conventional transient conduction equation. A one -dimensional fin of aluminum alloy with the involvement of the expansivity has been numerically computed to verify its effect on both thermal and mechanical characteristics. The numerical results reveal that the volume expansivity plays a more significant role in strength design than in heat transfer.