Numerical methods in heat transfer. Volume 2

A unified approach free from restrictive hypotheses is presented for the computation of time-dependent thermal structural effects by means of influence functions pertaining to 'unit temperature distributions'. Exact finite element solutions for linear steady-state thermal problems are considered along with steep gradient modelling in diffusion problems, the variational formulation and approximate solutions of the thermal diffusion equation, and penalty-finite element methods in conduction and convection heat transfer. Attention is given to predictions of laminar natural convection in heated cavities, the influence of thermal wall conditions on the natural convection in heated cavities, the numerical solution of coupled conduction-convection problems using lumped-parameter methods, and the accuracy of the boundary element method for three-dimensional conduction problems. Other topics explored are related to the prediction of turbulent heat transfer by the finite element method, and the analysis of the transient thermal performances of composite devices by network methods. For individual items see A84-22202 to A84-22205