ThermalAnalysis SteadyStateThermalAnalysisLecture SteadyStateThermalAnalysis.

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Steady State Thermal Analysis

In a steady state thermal analysis, the temperature and the heat flow are assumed constant with respect to time.

Steady State Temperature Distribution for an Exhaust Manifold

Steady State Heat Flux for an Exhaust Manifold LectureNotes Steady State Thermal Analysis (Steady State Heat Transfer)

In a steady state thermal analysis, the temperature and the heat flow are assumed constant with respect to time. In order to solve a steady state thermal analysis, appropriate boundary conditions need to be applied to obtain a solution. Boundary conditions such as constant temperature, constant heat flux, or convection at a boundary are used for solving such a thermal problem. This form of analysis does not evaluate changes over time. Best Practices

In heat transfer, energy is transferred across the boundary due to a temperature difference or gradient between two surfaces. There are three modes by which heat transfer is accomplished: conduction, convection, and radiation. A good understanding of the different mechanisms of heat transfer is essential before an analysis is carried out. In practice, a heat transfer problem may involve any combination of these three modes. When running a Steady State analysis, ensure that it is physically possible to reach a steady state. There are situations in which the steady state cannot mathematically be achieved. Steady State analyses are studies in Pro/MECHANICA where more than one constraint set can be used.

SteadyStateThermalAnalysisDemonstration SteadyStateThermalAnalysis_demo.mp4 SteadyStateThermalAnalysisProcedure

Procedure: Steady State Thermal Analysis

Scenario
Define a Steady State Thermal analysis for a model in which the loads and constraints are already defined. CreatingSSThermal impeller_SS.prt

Task 1. Open the Mechanica application and define a new Steady State Thermal Analysis.
1. Click Applications > Mechanica. Thermal loads and boundary conditions are already defined in the model. Examine these simulation features if needed.

2. Click Mechanica Analyses/Studies Thermal.

followed by File > New Steady State

Task 2. Customize the Steady State Thermal Analysis Based on the Input Loads and Constraints.
1. Change the name of the analysis from default Analysis1 to Steady_State_Thermal. It is a good practice to always change the default analysis name for a better handling of stored data.

2. Select the Combine Constraint Sets option. Select both Convection_Cond and Prescribed_Temp_25 as thermal constraints in the model. 3. Ensure Volume_Heat_Load under the loads column is selected. 4. Select Single-Pass Adaptive as the convergence method, if necessary.

Task 3. Customize the Steady State Thermal Analysis Post-processing Options.

1. While in the analysis definition dialog box, select the Output tab and verify that Heat Flux is checked. 2. Click OK in the analysis definition dialog box.

Task 4. Save the model and erase it from memory.

1. Return to the Standard Pro/ENGINEER mode by clicking Applications > Standard. 2. Click Save from the main toolbar and click OK to save the model. 3. Click File > Erase > Current > Yes to erase the model from memory. This completes the procedure. SteadyStateThermalAnalysisExercise

Exercise: Steady State Thermal Analysis

Objectives
After successfully completing this exercise, you will be able to:

Prepare the model for a thermal analysis.

Identify key aspects of Mechanica pre-processing techniques. Understand Steady State Thermal Analysis principles and results interpretation.

Scenario
In this exercise you use Mechanica to evaluate the thermal steady state in an electronic device. The model is made out of three main sub-components: the enclosed heat generating component (made out of AL6061), the enclosure (made out of a less heat conductive material, EPOXY) and the support plate (made out of heat-resistant material, PVC). The model is subjected to a heat load generated by an AL6061 enclosed Pro/ENGINEER part. The heat generated by this component is 10 W. All of the enclosure surfaces are thermally insulated with the exception of the top surface that faces the support plate. Also, all the surfaces of the support plate are thermally insulated with the exception of the top and side surfaces. The heat is transferred from the enclosed part to the enclosure by thermal conduction. Similarly, the enclosure transfers heat to the support plate. Also, the top surfaces of the enclosure and support plate transfer heat by thermal convection (20 and 18 W/m2C, respectively). The side surfaces on the support plate are thermally constrained and maintained to a specific temperature (14C). The entire model is under room temperature, 25C. SSThermal steady_state.asm

Task 1. Open Mechanica Thermal Mode and Investigate the Model.

1. Click Applications > Mechanica. 2. Select Thermal from the Model Type drop-down menu in the Mechanica Model Setup dialog box. Click OK to enter Mechanica Thermal mode. 3. Investigate the model and notice that top surface of the enclosure Pro/ENGINEER part has a surface region already defined as shown in the figure. The purpose of this surface region is to enable for the proper definition of the boundary constraints between the support plate and enclosure itself.

Task 2. Define and Investigate Thermal Properties of the Materials in the model.
1. Click Materials from the Mechanica toolbar. Click AL6061 > Add Material > EPOXY > Add Material > PVC > Add Material to add the materials to the Materials in Model list. Click OK to close the Materials dialog box. 2. Click Material Assignment and select SUPPPORT_PLATE.PRT from the model tree. Select PVC from the drop-down menu for Material and click OK to assign the material to the part. 3. Click Material Assignment and select ENCLOSURE.PRT from the model tree. Select EPOXY from the drop-down menu for Material and click OK to assign the material to the part. 4. Click Material Assignment and select EMBED_COMP.PRT from the model tree. Verify that AL6061 is selected for Material and click OK to assign the material to the part. 5. [Optional] Review the thermal properties for each material in the model. You should find the following:

Material

Specific Heat

Thermal Cond.

AL6061

9.63753e+08 mm2/sec2C

180.073 N/secC

EPOXY

1.0476e+09 mm2/sec2C

0.187599 N/secC

PVC

1.0476e+09 mm2/sec2C

0.144283 N/secC

Task 3. Define the Heat Load.

1. Click Heat Load from the Mechanica toolbar.

2. Select Components from the References drop-down menu and select EMBED_COMP.PRT from the model tree. 3. Verify that Total Load is set in the Distribution field. 4. Verify that Uniform is set in the Spatial Variation field. 5. Verify that Steady is set in the Temporal Variation field. 6. Type 10 in the Value field and set the units field to W. 7. Click OK to complete the definition of the Heat Load.

Task 4. Define the Boundary Conditions (Constraints).

1. Click Convection Condition from the Mechanica toolbar.

2. Select the surface region as shown in figure. 3. Verify that the Spatial Variation field is set to Uniform for both the Convection Coefficient (h) and the Bulk Temperature (Tb) sections of the dialog box. 4. Type 20 in the Value field and set the units field to W / (m^2 K) in the Convection Coefficient (h) section of the dialog box. 5. Type 25 in the Value field and verify that the units field is set to C in the Bulk Temperature (Tb) section of the dialog box.

6. The dialog box should appear as shown in the figure. Click OK to complete the definition of the Convection Condition.

7. Click Convection Condition

from the Mechanica toolbar.

8. Select the top surfaces of the SUPPORT_PLATE.PRT as shown in figure. 9. Verify that the Spatial Variation field is set to Uniform for both the Convection Coefficient (h) and the Bulk Temperature (Tb) sections of the dialog box. 10. Type 18 in the Value field and set the units field to W / (m^2 K) in the Convection Coefficient (h) section of the dialog box. 11. Type 25 in the Value field and verify that the units field is set to C in the Bulk Temperature (Tb) section of the dialog box.

12. The dialog box should appear as shown in the figure. Click OK to complete the definition of the Convection Condition.

13. Click Prescribed Temperature

from the Mechanica toolbar.

14. Press CTRL and select the two surfaces from the outside of the SUPPORT_PLATE.PRT as shown in the figure. Note that the surface reference on the left in the figure is hidden and will need to be query selected.

15. Type 14 in the value field and verify that the units field is set to C. The dialog box should appear as shown in the figure. 16. Click OK to complete the definition of the Prescribed Temperature.

Task 5. Define the Steady State Thermal Analysis.

1. Click Mechanica Analyses/Studies from the main toolbar.

2. Click File > New Steady State Thermal...

3. In the Name field, type EL_STEADY_STATE. 4. Verify that BndryCondSet1 and ThermLoadSet1 are selected in the Constraints and Loads areas of the dialog box. 5. Verify the Single-Pass Adaptive is selected in the Convergence area of the dialog box. 6. Click OK to close complete the Steady State Thermal Analysis Definition.

Task 6. Run the Steady State Thermal Analysis and Create Result Windows.
1. Verify that EL_STEADY_STATE is select and click Start Run analysis. > Yes to start the

2. Click Display Study Status from the Analyses and Design Studies dialog box. Observe and investigate the progress and completion of the analysis. 3. When the analysis is complete, click Close from the analysis Run Status dialog box and click Close from the Diagnostics window to close the dialog boxes. 4. Verify that EL_STEADY_STATE is still selected in the Analyses and Design Studies dialog box and click Results to enter results mode.

5. Type Temperature in the Name field and type Max/Min Temperature in the Title field. Verify that the Display type field is set to Fringe, the Quantity field is set to Temperature, and the units field is set to C. The dialog should appear as shown in the figure. 6. Click OK and Show to create the results window.

Task 7. Interpret the Results.

1. Click Insert > Cutting/Capping Surfs... Select Capping Surface from the Type drop down menu. Click OK to complete the Results Surface Definition. 2. Examine the resulting fringe plot and note the following: Based on the fringe plot results from Mechanica for Temperature we can identify that, since the ENCLOSURE.PRT is made out of a thermally

conductive material, the heat is transferred by conduction from EMBED_COMP.PRT to the ENCLOSURE.PRT. The material assigned to the SUPPORT_PLATE.PRT is less thermally conductive (PVC), and therefore the heat is not completely transferred from ENCLOSURE.PRT. The temperature developed in the SUPPORT_PLATE.PRT is at the prescribed temperature, 14C.

3. When you are through examining the results, click File > Exit Results > No to close the results window.

Task 8. Save the model and erase it from memory.

1. Return to the Standard Pro/ENGINEER mode by clicking Applications > Standard. 2. Click Save from the main toolbar and click OK to save the model. 3. Click File > Close Window > File > Erase > Not Displayed > OK to erase the model from memory. This completes the exercise.