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Heat Exchanger Material Thermal Conductivities

Reference data and engineering information about heat exchanger material thermal conductivities for thermodynamics applications.

heatexchangermaterialthermal

Overview

Engineering reference data for Heat Exchanger Material Thermal Conductivities in thermodynamics.

Key Formulas

First Law

ΔU=QW\Delta U = Q - W

Energy is conserved — heat added minus work done.

Ideal Gas Law

PV=nRTPV = nRT

Relates pressure, volume, and temperature of an ideal gas.

Heat Transfer

Q=mcΔTQ = mc\Delta T

Sensible heat transfer.

Carnot Efficiency

η=1TC/TH\eta = 1 - T_C/T_H

Maximum efficiency between two temperatures.

Variables

SymbolDescriptionUnit
UUInternal energyJ
QQHeatJ
WWWorkJ
PPPressurePa
VVVolume
TTTemperatureK

Material Properties

The thermal conductivity of materials is a critical factor in heat Exchanger design, as it directly influences the rate of heat transfer through the tube walls. Materials with higher thermal conductivity generally allow for more efficient heat exchange. The following table summarizes the thermal conductivities for commonly used materials, as extracted from the source data.

22 rows
Typical Thermal Conductivities of Common Heat Exchanger Materials
Material
Thermal Conductivity(W/m·°C)
Notes
Admiralty (71 Cu - 28 Zn - 1 Sn)111
AluminumRange: 205 - 250
Aluminum brass (76 Cu - 22 Zn - 2 Al)100
Brass (70 Cu - 30 Zn)99
Carbon Steel45
Carbon-moly (0.5 Mo)43
Chrome-moly steel (1 Cr - 0.5 Mo)42
Chrome-moly steel (2 1/4 Cr - 0.5 Mo)38
Chrome-moly steel (5 Cr - 0.5 Mo)35
Chrome-moly steel (12 Cr - 1 Mo)28
Copper386
Cupro-nickel (90 Cu - 10 Ni)71
Cupro-nickel (70 Cu - 30 Ni)29
Inconel19
Lead35
Monel (67 Ni - 30 Cu - 1.4 Fe)26
Nickel62
PolypropyleneRange: 0.1 - 0.22
Red Brass (85 Cu - 15 Zn)159
Stainless Steel, type 316 (17 Cr - 12 Ni - 2 Mo)16
Stainless Steel, type 304 (18 Cr - 8 Ni)16
Titanium19

Source: engineeringtoolbox.com

References