Scattering of radiation by a fiber with a rough surface

We present a new theory on scattering of radiation by real fibers in engineering systems. The theory covers the scattering by fibers consistently over an entire range of fiber sizes from smaller to larger than the wavelength of radiation. A geometrical technique is presented for modeling a fiber with a rough surface of a three-dimensional homogeneous microstructure. Scattering characteristics of the fiber are described based on the electromagnetic wave theory of diffraction to investigate the relationship among three main factors of scattering: wavelength of radiation, fiber diameter, and fiber microstructure. With an increase in fiber diameter and a corresponding magnification of a rough fiber surface microstructure, the scattering changes from particle scattering to surface scattering. The transition occurs in a size parameter range of P = 100–300. © 1999 Scripta Technica, Heat Trans Asian Res, 28(4): 322–335, 1999     

Measurement of spectra of normal incidence absorptance of surfaces in life space

The thermal and radiative environment of human life space is characterized strongly by solar radiation and by the radiation from surrounding walls as well as by air temperature and humidity. To consider the environmental radiation quantitatively, absorptance spectra and total emittance of the surfaces should be measured properly. In this work we measure spectra of normal incidence absorptance of such surfaces in a near‐ultraviolet through infrared region of wavelength of 0.30–11 μm. On the basis of measured spectra we evaluate solar absorptance of the surfaces to respond to the needs of radiation characteristics of the surfaces in the fields of architecture, life science, and solar engineering. Objective surfaces of the measurement are surfaces of indoor and outdoor environments: cloths, indoor wall materials, painted surfaces, ceramics, bricks, outdoor wall materials, road materials, leaves, etc. We also observe the transition of the absorptance spectra of a water–wet cement surface in a drying process. © 2011 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. Heat Trans Asian Res; Published online in Wiley Online Library ( wileyonlinelibrary.com/journal/htj ). DOI 10.1002/htj.20356     

A brief review of models for computing solar radiation on inclined surfaces

Modelling of solar energy systems requires estimation of the hourly radiation incident on surfaces of different tilts and orientations. Most meteorological stations report radiation values on a daily rather than hourly basis. Again, the value of the diffuse component may or may not be reported. Hence, different strategies may be encountered, for each location, with the common goal of computing hourly radiation on inclined surfaces.

In this study, five different schemes are presented to achieve this goal. In each scheme, certain correlations are required which are discussed in detail. The study is divided into five sections, each dealing with a specific type of correlation. These sections are: (i) correlations between daily diffuse and global radiation; (ii) correlations between hourly/daily global radiation; (iii) correlations between hourly/daily diffuse radiation; (iv) correlations between hourly diffuse and global radiation; and (v) models for computing diffuse sky radiation on inclined surfaces. The last section deals extensively with the anisotropic nature of sky diffuse radiation.

The important aspects of all correlation studies are highlighted, and the relative merits and demerits of their results are brought to light.

Mathematical expressions, where available, for models/correlations are provided so that the reader will have access to a comprehensive study. This information should be useful for modelling purposes in which computation of radiation on surfaces of different orientations and tilts is required.     

Note on the effect of thermal radiation in the linearized Rosseland approximation on the heat transfer characteristics of various boundary layer flows

In the latter years the title problem has been examined in a large number of research papers. The present Note emphasizes, however, that the effect of thermal radiation in the linearized Rosseland approximation is quite trivial, both physically and computationally. Namely, it always reduces to a simple rescaling of the Prandtl number by a factor involving the radiation parameter. This implies that a comprehensive study of the Prandtl-number dependence without thermal radiation effects represents per se a detailed study of the radiation effects, too. In other words, the solution of the radiation problem for optically thick media in the linearized Rosseland approximation does not require any additional numerical or analytical effort compared to the same problem without radiation, making in this respect dozens of papers superfluous.     

Numerical study of PEMFC heat and mass transfer characteristics based on roughness interface thermal resistance model

The thermal contact resistance (TCR) is the main component of proton exchange membrane fuel cell (PEMFC) thermal resistance due to the existence of surface roughness between the components of PEMFC, and the influence of TCR is often ignored in traditional three dimensional PEMFC simulations. In this paper, the heat and mass transfer characteristics including polarization curve, power density curve, temperature distribution, membrane water content distribution, membrane current density are studied under different component surface roughness conditions, and finally the effect of each TCR on the PEMFC performance is studied. It is found that under the same operating conditions, the TCR makes the radial heat transfer of the PEMFC decrease, and the temperature of the membrane electrode and the temperature difference of each component of the PEMFC is higher than that of the model without TCR. When the surface roughness of components in the PEMFC equals 1 μm, 2 μm, 3 μm, the cell current density decreases by 6.56%, 12.46% and 17.17% respectively when the output cell voltage equals 0.3 V, and the cell power density decreases by 3.64%, 7.54%, 13.14% respectively when the cell current density equals 1.2 A·cm^?2. When the TCR between the CL and PEM equals 0.003 K·m²·W^?1, 0.005 K·m²·W^?1, 0.01 K·m²·W^?1, the cell current density is increased by 2.30%, 3.65%, 6.74% respectively under the condition that the output cell voltage equals 0.3 V, and the cell power density is increased by 1.24%, 1.85%, 3.10% respectively when the cell current density equals 1.2 A·cm^?2. The results show that the numerical simulation of PEMFC cannot ignore the effect of TCR.     

The effect of geometrical parameters on heat transfer characteristics of microchannels heat sink with different shapes

The effect of geometrical parameters on water flow and heat transfer characteristics in microchannels is numerically investigated for Reynolds number range of 100–1000. The three-dimensional steady, laminar flow and heat transfer governing equations are solved using finite volume method. The computational domain is taken as the entire heat sink including the inlet/outlet ports, wall plenums, and microchannels. Three different shapes of microchannel heat sinks are investigated in this study which are rectangular, trapezoidal, and triangular. The water flow field and heat transfer phenomena inside each shape of heated microchannels are examined with three different geometrical dimensions. Using the averaged fluid temperature and heat transfer coefficient in each shape of the heat sink to quantify the fluid flow and temperature distributions, it is found that better uniformities in heat transfer coefficient and temperature can be obtained in heat sinks having the smallest hydraulic diameter. It is also inferred that the heat sink having the smallest hydraulic diameter has better performance in terms of pressure drop and friction factor among other heat sinks studied.     

Effects of pressure work and radiation on natural convection flow around a sphere with heat generation

The effects of pressure work and radiation on natural convection flow around a sphere in presence of heat generation have been investigated in this paper. The governing equations are transformed into dimensionless non-similar equations by using set of suitable transformations and solved numerically by the finite difference method along with Newton's linearization approximation. Attention has been focused on the evaluation of shear stress in terms of local skin friction and rate of heat transfer in terms of local Nusselt number, velocity as well as temperature profiles. Numerical results have been shown graphically and also in tabular form for some selected values of parameter set consisting of heat generation parameter Q, radiation parameter Rd, pressure work parameter Ge and the Prandtl number Pr.     

The importance of rib shape effects on the local heat transfer and flow friction characteristics of square ducts with ribbed internal surfaces

Accurate prediction of ribbed duct flow and heat transfer is of importance to the gas turbine industry. In the present work, a computer code has been developed to study the turbulent heat transfer and friction in a square duct with various-shaped ribs mounted on one wall. The simulations were performed for four rib shapes, i.e., square, triangular, trapezoidal with decreasing height in the flow direction, and trapezoidal with increasing height in the flow direction. The prepared algorithm and the computer code are applied to demonstrate distribution of the heat transfer coefficient between a pair of ribs. The results show that features of the inter-rib distribution of the heat transfer coefficient are strongly affected by the rib shape and trapezoidal ribs with decreasing height in the flow direction provide higher heat transfer enhancement and pressure drop than other shapes.