2.

An annular chemical reactor consists of a packed bed of catalyst between two coaxial
cylinders. The inner and outer cylinders have radii of r0 and r1, respectively. It is
reasonable to assume that there is no heat transfer through the surface of the inner
cylinder, which is at a constant temperature T0. The catalytic reaction releases heat at a
uniform volumetric rate S throughout the reactor, whose effective thermal
conductivity k may be considered constant. Neglect the temperature gradients in the
axial direction.
a) Derive a second-order differential equation to describe the radial temperature
distribution in the annular reactor starting with a shell thermal energy balance.
b) Establish the radial temperature distribution by solving the differential equation.
c) What viscous flow problem is analogous to this heat conduction problem?
d) Derive an expression for the volumetric average temperature in the reactor.
e) Develop an expression for the temperature at the outer cylindrical wall of the reactor.
What will be the outer wall temperature if both the inner and outer radii are tripled?

a)

Step. Differential equation from thermal energy balance

From a thermal energy balance over a thin cylindrical shell of thickness r in the annular
reactor, we get
Rate of Heat

In - Out + Generation = Accumulation

At steady-state, the accumulation term will be zero. So,

(1)

where S is the rate of generation of heat by chemical reaction per unit volume and qr is
the heat flux in the radial direction.
Dividing by 2 r L and taking the limit as r tends to zero,
(2)

(3)

Since the effective thermal conductivity k of the reactor bed may be considered
constant, on substituting Fourier's law (

) we get
(4)

b)
Step. Radial temperature profile by solving differential equation
On integrating,
(5)

The integration constants are determined using the boundary conditions:

(6)

(7)

The first boundary condition suggests no heat transfer through the inner cylindrical wall
of the annulus.
On substituting the integration constants, the temperature profile is
(8)

c)
Step. Analogous problem in fluid mechanics

Figure. Velocity profile in falling film on circular tube is analogous to temperature profile
in annular chemical reactor.
The velocity profile for the falling film on the outside of a circular tube (see Figure) is
given by:
(9)

Substituting aR = r0 and R = r1,

(10)

The maximum velocity (which occurs at r = r0) is

(11)

The difference between the above two equations yields

(12)

Equations (8) and (12) are identical in form. Thus, the analogous viscous flow problem
is the laminar flow of a falling film on theinside of a circular tube. The equivalent
quantities are
(13)

d)
Step. Expression for volumetric average temperature
The volumetric average temperature in the reactor may be defined as
(14)

On substituting the temperature profile in the above expression and integrating

[using

], we get
(15)

e)
Step. Expression for outer wall temperature
The temperature at the outer cylindrical wall (r = r1) of the reactor is given by
(16)

When both the inner and outer radii are n times their original values, the term in square
brackets gets multiplied by n2 and the outer wall temperature is thus given by
(17)

For the case when both the radii are tripled, n = 3 in the above expression.
1. An electric wire with radius r0 of 0.50 mm is made of copper [electrical
conductivity = 5.1 x 107 ohm-1 m-1 and thermal conductivity = 380 W/(m K)]. It is
insulated (see figure) to an outer radius r1 of 1.50 mm with plastic [thermal
conductivity = 0.350 W/(m K)].

Figure. Heating of an insulated electric wire.

The ambient air is at 38.0oC and the heat transfer coefficient from the outer insulated
surface to the surrounding air is 8.500 W/(m2 K). Determine the maximum current in
amperes that can flow at steady-state in the wire without any portion of the insulation
getting heated above its maximum allowable temperature of 93.0 oC.

Step. Thermal resistance representation for insulation and air

In general, the heat flow is given by Q = T/Rth, where T is the temperature driving
force (thermal potential difference). The thermal resistance for a cylindrical annulus
is Rth = ln (r1/r0)/(2 kL) and the thermal resistance for a fluid film at a solid-fluid
interface is Rth = 1/(hA). Here, k is the thermal conductivity, h is the heat transfer
coefficient and A is the surface area for convection.
The thermal resistances for the insulation and air film are in series as shown in the
figure below.

Figure. Thermal resistance representation of insulation and air film.

Based on the above thermal resistance representation, the heat flow is
(1)

where k is the thermal conductivity of the plastic insulation.

Step. Heat flow due to current in wire
The flow of an electric current results in some electrical energy getting converted to
thermal energy irreversibly. The heat generation by electrical dissipation per unit volume
is given by S = I 2/ke where I is the current density (in amp/m2) and ke is the electrical
conductivity (in ohm-1 m-1).
The total heat generated within the wire is simply the product of S and the volume of the
wire. At steady-state, all this heat generated within the wire by electrical dissipation
must leave through the wire surface and therefore the heat flow is given by
(2)

Step. Expression for current

On eliminating Q from the above two equations, the current density is
(3)

On multiplying the current density by the cross-sectional area of the wire, the current is
obtained from
(4)

For the maximum current, the temperature T0 must be maximized.

Step. Substitution of numerical values
On setting the temperature T0 to 93.0oC (i.e., the maximum allowable temperature for
the insulation), the maximum current that can flow through the wire may be calculated
as 13.027 amp.
The numerical values substituted in the equation are given below.
The values below may be changed and the problem solution recalculated with the new
values provided in consistent units.
Variable name

Symbol Value

Unit

electrical conductivity

ke

5100000

ohm-1 m-1

maximum temperature

T0

93.0000

ambient temperature

T2

38.0000

outer radius

r1

0.001500

wire radius

r0

0.000500

plastic thermal conductivity

0.35000

W/(m K)

heat transfer coefficient

8.50000

W/(m2 K)

Calculated Variable
Maximum current

Symbol Value
13.027

C
C

Unit
amp