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Copper Tubes Heat Capacity

Reference data and engineering information about copper tubes heat capacity for piping systems applications.

coppertubesheatcapacityCalculator

Overview

Copper tubes are often used in hot water heating systems, especially to connect heating elements like radiators, fan units and similar to the main pipe lines. The table below can be used to estimate hot water heat carrying capacity in copper tubes type L.

Note: The table is designed for temperature drop 20°F (11°C) in radiators and heating elements. For other temperature drops, multiply the capacities accordingly. For temperature drop 10°F (5.5°C), multiply by 0.5.

Data Table

11 rows
Hot water heat carrying capacity in Type L copper tube (temperature drop 20°F/11°C)
tubeSize
3/8
1/2
5/8
3/4
1
1-1/4
1-1/2
2
2-1/2
3
3-1/2

Source: engineeringtoolbox.com

Key Formulas

Continuity

A1v1=A2v2A_1 v_1 = A_2 v_2

Mass conservation in pipe flow.

Pressure Drop

ΔP=fLDρv22\Delta P = f \frac{L}{D} \frac{\rho v^2}{2}

Darcy-Weisbach equation.

Pipe Area

A=πD24A = \frac{\pi D^2}{4}

Cross-sectional area of a pipe.

Variables

SymbolDescriptionUnit
DDPipe diameterm
vvFlow velocitym/s
ΔP\Delta PPressure dropPa
ffFriction factor

References