Solar Energy Vol. 36, No. 5, p p 443-450, 1986 0038-092X/86 $3.00 + .

00
Printed in the U.S,A. ~' 1986 Pergamon Press Ltd.

GENERAL THERMAL ANALYSIS OF PARALLEL-FLOW

FLAT-PLATE SOLAR COLLECTOR ABSORBERS

KURT O'FERRALL LUND

Department of Mechanical Engineering, College of Engineering, San Diego State University,
San Diego, CA 92182-0191

(Received 26 October 1984; revision received 23 September 1985; accepted 17 October 1985)

Abstract--Improved equations are formulated for the transfer of heat in flat-plate solar collector ab-
sorbers, including a shape factor accounting for details of flow duct designs, and developing heat
transport in the ducts. Approximate, analytical solutions are obtained in terms of perturbation series,
which are applicable to practical collectors with lengths much greater than the distance between flow
ducts.
The primary result of the analysis is a universal-type design equation, or chart, which determines
the collector efficiency factor for any duct design, heat transfer development, or other absorber-plate
parameter. Collector performance is stated in terms of an effectiveness/number-of-transfer-unit rela-
tionship. Ease of use and utility of the design chart is illustrated by examples.

1. I N T R O D U C T I O N In similarity to heat exchanger theory, the re-

suits presented here relate the absorber thermal ef-
The flat-plate solar collector is widely used today
fectiveness (and the heat removal factor) to the
for the collection of low-temperature solar thermal
number of transfer units and the collector efficiency
energy. Although these collectors have been avail-
factor[6, 7]. It is shown that the latter (divided by
able for many years, there is continuing interest in
the fin efficiency factor) can be described in terms
their development and optimization using mathe-
of two dimensionless parameters; a universal-type
matical analysis.
equation and chart are presented for determination
Conventionally, the thermal analysis of a flat-
of the collector efficiency factor.
plate collector is a two-step procedure in which a
fin-efficiency factor is used to describe the con-
duction of heat from the plate to the flow-duct, and 2. P R O B L E M F O R M U L A T I O N
a heat-removal factor is used to describe the trans-
Consider the typical collector absorber plate de-
port of heat in the duct[l, 2]. In these conventional
picted in Fig. 1. The heat loss from the plate to the
analyses an assumption of a specific duct design is
ambient is qL = UL(Tp - T~), where UL is the over-
always made, such that the results obtained are
all collector heat loss coefficient, Tp(X, Y) is the
valid for that design only. In this work, a shape
plate temperatue, and T~ is the ambient tempera-
factor is introduced that accounts for the details of
ture. Here, the usual assumption is made that the
various duct designs, such that the results achieved
here have general applicability. Moreover, the flow heat losses from the collector occur, approxi-
mately, to the one ambient temperature. The solar
or heat transfer in the ducts is usually assumed to
irradiance absorbed in the plate is qs. Under stag-
be fully developed, and the two-step approach con-
nation conditions, qL = qs and Tp = Tpm, the plate
sists of superposed one-dimensional processes.
maximum (constant), or stagnation, temperature;
Here, the two-dimensional conduction equations
thus, the source term is written in terms of Tpm as
are employed along with heat transfer development
qs = UL(Tpm -- Ta), which serves to define Tpm.
in the duct. The shape factor simplifies the math-
ematical description such that, with normalization With these defintions, a heat balance on a dif-
of the equations and the use of perturbation tech- ferential volume of the absorber plate yields the
two-dimensional, steady-state heat conduction
niques, simple analytical solutions of the equations
are obtained; the perturbation analysis shows axial equation
conduction to be a negligible, high-order effect for
most practical collectors where the length is much {~2T. O2T.)
k~t \ - g Z + -o-~] + U~(T~,. - r~) = o, (1)
greater than the duct half-pitch (except where the
thickness-conductivity product is very high and the
flow rate extremely low). Others have obtained nu- with adiabatic boundary conditions,
merical and analytical solutions[3, 4] (but without
the present generality and simplicity of results), and
-~-
OTp X=O,L
= O, (2)
considered axial conduction[5] (but without duct
heat transfer development). Although the effect of
developing heat transfer is not large, it should be ~-~eT[ = 0, (3)
included where axial conduction is considered. OY r=o

443
444 K. O. LUND

qs qL
I

Fig. 1. Typical collector absorber plate.

where kp is the plate thermal conductivity. The con- hydraulic diameter, and the factor Dh/t is intro-
vective boundary condition at y = b is complicated duced to render S = 1. By comparison of the heat
by the geometry surrounding the flow duct, and transfer process of the actual duct geometry with
would also be limited to the particular duct design that of the idealized geometry (matching the heat
in Fig. 1. Hence, for generality and mathematical fluxes and temperatures at points A and B in Fig.
simplicity, the plate of thickness t is imagined to 2) the shape factor can be determined. The axial
extend to the duct centerline, as indicated in Fig. variation of h s is conveniently expressed in terms
2, and the boundary condition for y = b is written of the Nusselt number ratio R(X) = N u ( X ) / N u ' ;
in terms of an effective heat transfer coefficient, hs(X) = h'sR(X) = (ks/Dh)Nu'R(X), where the
hse(X): prime denotes the fully developed condition, and
ks is the fluid conductivity.
or, With these definitions, the equations can now be
qse = - k p - ~ = hse(Tp - TS) (4) stated in scaled, nondimensional form. The largest
temperature potential in this analysis is Tpm - Tsi.
where Ts(X) is the fluid temperature. Using this as reference, the nondimensional plate
In eqn (1), UL represents a linearization of com-
plex radiative and convective heat-transfer pro-
cesses, and depends on the average plate temper-
ature; it can be determined iteratively by standard
methods[l, 2]. The absorbed flux, qs, is obtained
from the incident irradiance at the particular time
and location, and from the effective transmittance/
absorptance product of the collector cover and
plate surface.
Useful heat is removed from the absorber plate
at y = b by the fluid with inlet enthalpy CsTsi,
where Cs = (rhCp)s is the half-duct fluid heat ca-
t ~.K~'~"~qA'~-~, DdDO
pacity rate, and Ts,. is the fluid inlet temperature.
Thus, the steady-state convective heat transport TI
equation for the idealized flow duct is

d~s
C s --~ = hsd(Tpb TS) (5)
-

(qs'-'qL)e
where Tpb(X) = Tp(X, b), and Ts(X ) = Tsi; at X _t_
= 0.
In order for this formulation to have practical
t ,~'~.B~ B~-.~'~''~," qfe
validity, it is necessary to relate hse(X) to hs(X), T I I.<_Do/2_..,.
the heat transfer coefficient for the actual duct de-
sign. To this end a shape factor, S, is introduced I
such that hse = S(Dh/t)hs, where Dh is the duct Fig. 2. Shape factor determination.
 Parallel-flow flat-plate solar collector absorbers 445

and fluid temperatures are defined by seen from eqn (7) that % = 0(1); moreover, from
eqns (A.33) and (A.35) of the Appendix, % - N
O(x, y) - Tpm - - Tp (6) relationship is seen to be, to an excellent approx-
Tpm - Tf i ' imation,

Ty- Tsi % = 1 - e F'N, (15)

+(x) - (7)
T~ - Ts,'
F ' = ~qP(1), (16)
with the scaled coordinates given by x = X / L and
y = Y / b . Thus, the descriptive equations take the
where F ' is the collector efficiency factor, ~q is the
form of the following boundary-value problem: usual fin efficiency, and P ( x ) is defined by eqn
(A. 14) in the Appendix. The conventional heat re-
moval factor, FR, and the average plate tempera-
82 020 020
C3X--"
~ + --Oy2 -- IX20 = 0, 0 < X, y < 1 (8) ture, 0 from eqn (A.36) are given by

FR = -0 = % / N . (17)
with
Equations (14)-(17) show that the performance
0O (9) of a collector depends directly upon F ' for a given
-- = 0atx = 0, 1,
Ox number of transfer units, N (i.e., a given size of
oO collector); in fact, collectors are frequently de-
-- = 0aty = 0, (10) signed for small N where, from eqns (15)-(17), F n
Oy
F ' as N --~ 0, thus emphasizing the importance
O0 ~2 (11) of accurate determination of F ' .
- - = - - SR[1 - (~b + O ) ] a t y = 1;
Oy K Because developing flow and heat-transfer pro-
cesses are described in terms of the Graetz number,
and Gz = C s / k s X = h N u ' / x , where X = K / N = Cs/
h} ZDh, the development function, R ( x ) , will also
d0 N depend on parameter k; hence, from eqns (A.12),
- - - -- SR[1 - (tb + 0)] = 0 , 0 < x < 1, (12) (A.14) and (16), F'/rl = P(1) depends only on the
dx K
parameters, h and [3, where 13 = ~lv,/S. In other
with words, F'/.q = f c n ( k , 13) constitutes a universal de-
sign function for the thermal performance of the
0 = 0 at x = 0, and ~b(x) = 0(x, 1). (13) class of collector absorber plates considered.
To illustrate application to a specific develop-
ment, the form reported by Kays[8] for a Langhaar-
Here, ~ = b / L is the plate width/length ratio (see
type developing laminar velocity profile and con-
Fig. 1), ix2 = ( b / t ) U L b / k p is a Biot-type modulus,
stant heat flux in a circular duct is considered:
K = U L b / h } Dh is a measure of the relative mag-
nitudes of heat loss and useful heat removal for the
plate, and N = U L b L / C s represents the number of (4/'rr)K1Gz
Nu = Nu' + (18)
transfer units for the collector. As in heat exchanger 1 + (4hr)K2Gz'
theory, N is here a measure of the size of the equip-
ment required to effect the heat transfer; this is seen or, equivalently,
by writing N = U L A c / C s c , where Ac and Cs¢ are
the area and heat capacity rate for the entire col- Clh x + C3k
R = 1 + - - - - - (19)
lector, respectively[6, 7]. X + Czk x + C2k'

3. RESULTS w h e r e C 1 = (4hr)Kl ~ 0.0458, C2 = (4/~r)Nu'K2 -~

0.0061, and C3 = C~ + Ca.
The result of primary interest is the fluid outlet Now, with this form of developing heat transfer,
temperature, Tso = T s ( L ) , which determines the the integrated form for F'/'q = f c n ( k , 13) is obtained:
rate of useful heat removal from the collector, Q.,
defined by F' 1
1+13
Q . = Cy(Tso - Ts,) = % C s ( T s m - Tsi). (14)

Here, Tsm = Tp,, is the maximum possible fluid out- × 1 + C1 In 1 + kC3 + 13 " (20)
let temperature, and % = (Tso - Tsi)/(Ts,,, - Tsi)
is the collector thermal effectiveness (i.e., the ratio Equation (20) is the universal-type design function
of the actual rate of heat removal to the rate for sought; it is shown in Fig. 3. Although eqn (20) was
maximum possible temperature change)[6, 7]. It is obtained using the result of eqns (18) and (19) from
446 K.O. LUND

1.0

0.8
• 20

F"

0.6
I"00 ~ ~ ~ : ~ ~ : ~ Z ~ ® o

0.4

'o
0 9 0 ~
• 0 0.02 0.04 0.06 0.08 0.0

0.2 t I n I , I I I ,
0 0.2 0.4 0.6 0.8 1.0
xS'
Fig. 3. Design chart for determination of the collector efficiency factor, F'.

a circular duct with constant heat flux and flat inlet- is distributed throughout the duct and the surround-
velocity profile, it is likely to be applicable to other ing plate materials. The heat flux entering the flow
geometries and conditions with slightly different duct is
values of constants CI and C2, the main effect of
non-circular geometry being included in shape fac- q s = h s ( T a - Ts), (21)
tor S. In any event, results are obtained in this work
for a n y heat transfer development, R ( x ) , and duct where Td is the local surface temperature of the
shape, S, as shown in eqns (A.35), (A.14), and duct. In the idealized system, the heat flux at point
(A.12). It is noted that k ~ 0 in eqn (20) is equiv- B (i.e., the location equivalent to point A) is qB,
alent to the fully developed condition throughout and the flux entering the idealized duct is
the ducts (R = 1), which would be approximated
in turbulent flow. In laminar flow, the fully devel- q¢e = hse(Tpb - TS) = S ( D h / t ) h s ( T p b - TS).
oped condition is approximated only for xe ~ 1 (22)
where, from X f l D h -~ 0.05 Re Pr, the nondimen-
sional heat transfer entrance length is Xe ~ 0.3h. Consider now the remainder of the plate (to the
Although eqn (20) and Fig. 3 were obtained for a left of point A and point B, in Fig. 2). The temper-
constant plate thickness, they are applicable to ature and heat-flux fields in the plate of the equiv-
variable thickness plates provided the appropriate alent system will be precisely the same as those of
fin efficiency, 0, is used. the actual system, provided
Utilization ofeqn (20) or Fig. 3 requires the eval-
uation of the shape factor, S, which is introduced qB = qA (23)
in the problem formulation to render the i d e a l i z e d
plate/duct system equivalent to the a c t u a l design and
under consideration. One such design and its ideal-
ized equivalent are shown in Fig. 2, where the flow- TB = Ta, (24)
duct material is surrounded by the plate material.
At point A the heat flux from the plate is qa; this where TA and TB are the temperatures at points A
flux, along with the net irradiance flux, ( q s - qL), and B, respectively.
 Parallel-flow flat-plate solar collector absorbers 447

To determine S from eqns (21)-(24), it is nec- 2 I I I I

essary to relate qs to qA and TA, and qfe to qB and
TB. Thus, for the idealized geometry, a heat balance
yields

qBt + ~1D o(qs - qL)e = q:et

(25)
= SDhhy(Tpb - 7"/).

For the actual geometry, a numerical or other ap-

proximate technique may be required to determine
the necessary relationships. However, for present
purposes, by considering metals with good con-
ductivity, the material temperatures can be taken
as approximately constant. In this case, a heat bal-
ance for the actual geometry yields

1 "iT
qAt + ~ Do(qs - qL) = -~ Ddqa
~r Ddhc(Ta
2 I
where qd is the heat flux at the outer duct diameter,
and hc is the unit contact conductance between the
plate and duct materials. Similarly, it also follows
that
Ddqa = Dhqf = Dhhs(Td - 7/':).
Now, condition (24) implies that (qs - q L ) e
(qs - q L ) . Thus, taking :In = TA ~ Tpb, eliminating
Ta between eqns (26) and (27), and substituting eqn
(23) into eqn (25), the combination of eqns (25)-(27)
yields
"IT ¢ display F ' versus b, with kpt as a parameter, such
S- 2 1 + c'
where c = D d h c / D h h s is a nondimensional contact-
conductance factor. For S to be as large as possible,
c must not be a small number (i.e., hc should be of
the same order as hy); furthermore, S ---> rr/2 as c
For a circular duct below the plate, the shape
factor is also given by eqn (28), except that, in this
case, c = w h c / D h h f , where w is the width of the
contact area between the plate and the duct; for a
half-circular duct below the plate, the result for the
shape factor is
('tr + 2) 2 2 + 4c
S =
- -
(26)
Td),
I
2 4 6 I0
c
Fig. 4. Plate/duct shape factors.
4. DISCUSSION
(27)
Equations (15)-(17), (20) and Fig. 3 stand as the
primary result of this analysis. Their importance to
collector design can be realized by comparison with
conventional methods for the determination of F',
which usually are valid for only one duct design,
and without consideration for flow development[l,
2]. For example, customary charts for illustration
(28) that a separate chart is used for illustrating each
value of UL and hy[l, pp. 219-221]; by contrast, the
present results can be summarized as one universal
design equation [eqn (20)] or chart (Fig. 3), includ-
ing the effects of flow development, duct design and
contact conductance.
The key to obtaining a result of this generality
lies with the nondimensional formulation of the
problem, with the introduction of the shape factor,
S, and with the analytical perturbation-type solu-
tion of the equations (cf. the Appendix). Thus, the
descriptive differential equations (8)-(13) contain
the shape factor and relevant nondimensional pa-
rameters; the approximate analytical solutions are
obtained for any heat transfer development, R(x).

4~ ~r + 2 + 4c
.

(29) The perturbation solution of the equations was

The above results are shown in Fig. 4. It is seen
that S is approximately a constant for large values
of c (good contact conductance). Although S would
tend to vary axially, as does hs, this variation is not
strong; thus, S is treated as a parameter in this anal-
ysis.
made possible by limiting investigation to practical
absorbers where L >> b (and to absorbers for which
~. la./N 3/2, as shown in eqn (A.37) of the Appen-
dix); under these conditions the effects of axial con-
duction are negligible in determining F' and 0.
As an example of the application of the present
results, consider a copper plate with dimensions L
= 1 m, b = 8 cm, Dh = 1 cm, t = 1 mm, a flow
448
rate of rh = 7 kg/hr (per half duct), a shape factor
of S = ~r/2, and an overall loss coefficient of UL =
8 W/m2C; with water at 60°C, the fluid properties
a r e Cps = 4.18 kJ/kgC and ks = 0.65 W/mC, and
the plate conductivity is kp = 385 W/mC. In this
case we have:
p~ = bV/--UL/kpt = 0.08 8N/~-~-.385 = 0.365,
-q = (tanh p.)/Ix = 0.350/0.365 = 0.958,
K = ULb/Nu'k s = 8
× 0.08/(4.36 × 0.65) = 0.226,
13 = -qv,/S = 0.958 × 0.226/0r/2) = 0.138.
Assuming fully developed heat transfer (h = 0),
Fig. 3 or eqn (20), yields:
F ' = ~qP(1) = ~q(1 + 13)-1
= 0.958 x 0.879 = 0.842.
Including heat transfer development,
Cs = (Cprh)s = 4.18 x 103
x 7/3600 = 8.13 W/C,
N = U L b L / C s = 8 x 0.08 x 1/8.13 = 0.0787,
h = v./N = 0.226/0.0787 = 2.87,
F ' = "qP(1) = 0.958 x 0.909 = 0.871.
Although the heat transfer becomes fully developed
only near the exit (Xe ~-" 0.3 h = 0.86), there is only
a small increase in F ' . Interpolation between con-
ventional charts yields F ' = 0.84 for this case[l,
pp. 219-221]. Thus, there is agreement for fully de-
veloped heat transfer in circular ducts with large
contact conductance; for developing flow and other
geometries the conventional charts and equations
would be less accurate. (In the above calculations
the fully developed Nusselt number was taken as
N u ' = 4.36, which may be optimistic; the value N u '
= 3.66 would yield slightly different results.)
As a further example, consider the same prob-
lem as above, but with different duct geometry or
conditions such that S = 1.0 (e.g., duct fouling or
reduced contact conductance). In this case 13 is in-
creased to 0.217, and F ' = 0.828, a 5% reduction.
The simplicity and generality of these calculations
are not available with conventional methods.
It is seen in these examples that N and h tend
to be small so that, in this case, the heat removal
factor from eqns (15)-(17) is given approximately
by
% [3 shape-factor design parameter, 13 = "qK/S
FR = ~ ' q P ( 1 ) ~ - O / ( 1 ÷ 13)~-x1(1 - 13),
and is, thus, proportional to the fin efficiency, ",1.
K. O. LUND
5. CONCLUSION
By introduction of a shape factor, to account for
various duct designs, the descriptive equations for
heat transfer in fiat plate absorbers are formulated
in a general, nondimensional way. For practical col-
lectors, where e ~ 1, solutions to the equations are
obtained as perturbation series, including general
axial variation of the duct heat transfer coefficient.
For a specific flow and heat transfer develop-
ment in the duct, the result of the analysis is a gen-
eral design equation and chart for obtaining the col-
lector efficiency factor, F ' . In contrast to previous
methods, this design method is applicable to all duct
designs, heat transfer developments, and variables
affecting the plate thermal design. Use of the uni-
versal chart is illustrated by example, and there is
agreement with previous methods for the special
case considered.
Acknowledgements--The author wishes to express his
sincere appreciation to Dr. W. B. Bush, of King, Buck
and Associates, San Diego, for his mathematical contri-
butions and interest in this work.
NOMENCLATURE
Ac collector area, (m 2)
Cs fluid heat capacity rate, (W/K), Cs = (rhCp)s
Cs~. collector fluid capacity rate (W/K)
Cps fluid specific heat, (J/kgK)
Dh duct hydraulic diameter (m)
% absorbereffectiveness, % = (Tso - T f i ) / ( T p m - T f i )
F' collector efficiency factor, F' = aqP(1)
FR collector heat removal factor, Fn = % / N
L length of absorber in flow direction, (m)
N collector number of transfer units, N = ULbL/Cs
P function, eqns (A.13) and (A.14)
Qu useful heat removed, (W)
R ratio of local to fully-developed Nusselt number,
R = Nu/Nu'
S plate/duct heat-transfer shape factor
T~ ambient temperature, (K)
Ts fluid temperature function, (K)
Ts~fluid inlet temperature, (K)
Tso fluid outlet temperature, (K)
Tpm plate maximum, or stagnation, temperature, (K),
T~,m = T . + q s / U L
UL overall heat loss coefficient, (W/m2),
qt. = U L ( T p - Ta)
X, Y coordinates, (m)
b half-pitch distance between flow ducts, (m)
h~ fully-developed duct heat transfer coefficient (W/
m2K)
hse equivalent duct heat transfer coefficient, (W/m2K)
ks fluid thermal conductivity, (W/mK)
kp plate thermal conductivity, (W/mK)
ins fluid mass flow rate, (kg/s)
qse equivalent duct-to-fluid heat flux, (W/mE)
qL heat loss from absorber, (W/mE),
qL = U L ( T p - T~)
qs solar irradiance absorbed, (W/mz)
t thickness of absorber plate, (m)
x, y non-dimensionalcoordinates, x = X / L , y = Y/b
(30) ratio of duct half-pitch to duct length, ~ = b/L
"q fin efficiency, "q = (tanh ~)/Ix
0 plate nondimensionaltemperature, 0 = (Tpm - Tp)/
(Tpm - TSi)
 Parallel-flow flat-plate solar collector absorbers 449

K heat-loss/heat-removal ratio parameter, K = Ut.b/
h 'yDh
h duct flow development parameter, h = K/N = C r~
h'sDhL
txz Biot-type parameter, i~z = UcbZ/kpt
0(x, y) evaluated at y = 1
q~ fluid nondimensional temperature, + = (T~ - T r Y
(T,,. - T,)
REFERENCES
I. J. A. Duffle and W. A. Beckman, Solar Engineering
o f Thermal Processes. Wiley & Sons, New York
(1980).
2. J. Howell, R. B. Bannerot and G. Vliet, Solar Thermal
S y s t e m s . McGraw-Hill, New York (1982).
3. P. P. Rao et al., Two-dimensional analysis (~f a fiat-
plate solar collector. J. Energy 1, 324 (1977).
4. N. E. Wijeysundera, Foreed convection in absorber
ducts subjeeted to uniform and nonuntlfbrm wall ir-
radiation and external heat losses. Proc. A S M E Solar
Energy Conf., pp. 201-208 Las Vegas, Nevada (April
1984).
5. W. F. Phillips, The effects o f axial conduction on col-
lector heat removal factor. Solar Energy 23, 187
(1979).
6. W. M. Kays and A. L. London, C o m p a c t Heat l£~--
changers, McGraw-Hill, New York (1964).
7. D. K. Edwards, Solar Collector Design. Franklin In-
stitute Press, Phila., Pa. (1977).
8. W. M. Kays, Numerical solutions for laminar-flow
heat transfer in circular tubes. Trans. ASME 77, 1265
(1955).
9. K. O. Lund and W. B. Bush, Two-dimensional ther-
mal analysis o f parallel-flow fiat-plate solar collec-
tors. Proe. A S M E Solar Energy Conf., pp. 289-296,
Las Vegas, Nevada (April 1984).
10. J. D. Cole, Perturbation Methods in Applied Math-
ematics. Blaisdell, Waltham, Mass. (1968).
I 1. A. H. Nayfeh, Perturbation Methods. John Wiley and
Sons, New York (1973).

APPENDIX

Equations (8)-(13) represent a conjugate heat transfer i=0,1,

problem that requires the simultaneous solution of the
plate and fluid temperatures. A closed-form analytical so- a2Fi
lution is not available; however, because in all practical 03,2 t~2F,• = 0, (A.6)
designs fi ~ I (L -> b), it is possible to treat B as a per-
turbation parameter and obtain an accurate approximate aFi
-- = 0aty = 0, (A.7)
solution of the equations in the limit a --~ 0 (and for a Oy
~/N3/Z; see eqn (A.37). To this end the following com-
OFi p2
posite expansion series are assumed[9, 10, 11]: - SR[(Gi + Ji) - A,] at y - 1, (A.8)
i~y K
O(x, y; 8) = Fo(x, y) + fo(~, Y) + B{Fl(x, y)
and
+ fl(~, Y)} ~ (9(e), (A.I)
__ N
qb(x; ~) = Jo(x) + Jo(O + 8{J~(x) + Jl(0} + 0(e), dGi + _ SR[(Gi + Ji) - Ai] = 0. (A.9)
dx K
(A.2)
tb(x; 8) = Go(x) + go(O + 8{Gffx) + gdO} + G(e), Here, A~ = 1 for i = 0, and Ai = 0 for i = 1. It is noted
(A.3) that the edge boundary conditions of eqns (9) and (13)
are applicable to the analysis of the edge regions, not to
where ~ = x/~ is the so-called stretched variable near the that of the central region.
inlet edge (~ = (1 - x)/a near the outlet edge), and O(e) The solutions of eqn (A.6), for i = 0, 1, satisfying eqn
denotes the order-of-magnitude of e, a small parameter (A.7), are obtained by assuming the separable form Fi(x,
depending on 8 and the other parameters. In the central y) = Ai(x)Bi(y). This results in solutions of the form Bi(y)
region of the plate (defined by ~ ~ 0, x fixed, such that = cosh ~y. Introduction of this result into (A.8) produces
--* ~), the expansion for tb(x; 8), for example, is
SR
Ji = Ai cosh ~ - - - (Gi - Ai), (A.10)
~(x; 8) = Go(x) + 8Gl(x) + .'.. (A.4) ~K + SR

i.e., go(O ---* 0 as ~ ~ ~, and similarly for the higher-order

edge-region terms. In the inlet edge-region of the plate where "q = (tanh p~)l~ is the usual fin-efficiency factor. In
(defined by 8 --, 0, ~ fixed, such that x---, 0), the expansion turn, (A.9), subject to (A.10), becomes, for i = 0, 1,
for +(x; 8) takes the form
dGi
O(x; 8) = Go(0) + go(O - - + ~ N Q ( G i - As) = 0, (A.11)
dx
+ 8{~G6(0) + Gl(0) + g~(O} + "", (A.5) R(x)
Q(x) - R(x) + "oK/S" (A.12)
i.e., Go(x) ~ Go(0) + xG~(O) + ... as x ~ 0. A similar
expansion holds for the outlet edge-region.
Finite perturbation series, such as the above with only The solutions of these equations for the fluid-temperature
a few terms (also known as asymptotic series), can be functions are
shown to converge to the exact solution as the pertur-
bation parameter approaches zero, even though the series Gi(x) = Ai - Die ,Nm~) (A.13)
may be divergent as the number of terms becomes large.
In the following, solutions are presented for the central P(x) = fox Q(z) dz, (A. 14)
and inlet-edge regions of the plate.

Central-region solutions where the Di's are constants of integration (to be deter-
For the central region (B ---, 0, x fixed: ~ --~ ~), mined). Hence, to these orders of approximation, the cen-
substitution of eqn (A.1) into eqns (8)-(13) yields, for tral-region solutions for the plate-temperature functions
450 K. O. LUND

can be written as from eqns (A.26) and (A.13) that DI = 0. T h u s , with re-
spect to the first-order approximations in 8, F~ (x, y), J~ (x),
Fi(x, y) = DiQ(x)e -'Ne(x) cosh ~y (A.15) Gdx), and g d O are zero, but f~(~, y) is not. To determine
cosh tx this function it is written as a Fourier series:

Edge-region solutions
fl(~, y) = ~ klne -°'"~ cos vny. (A.28)
For the inlet edge region (8 ~ 0, ~ fixed: x ~ 0, with n=l
O/Ox = (1/~) O/d~, etc.), the boundary-value problem takes
the form, for i = 0, 1, Now, with gl(O = 0, application of the convective bound-
ary condition, eqn (A.22) to eqn (A.28) yields the following
t92fi 02fi relations for determining the eigenvalues, v,, ton:
O~--T + --Oy2 - la,2fl = 0, (A.16)

fi --~ 0 as ~ ~ ~c, (A.17) vn tan v, = - - Roo, (A.29)

K
Ofo
-- = 0, at ~ = 0 , (A.18) ton = (Ix2 + v2) 1/2. (A.30)

Of~ OFo Application of eqn (A.19) determines the Fourier coeffi-

- (0, y ) at ~ = 0 , (A.19) cients, k~n:
o~ Ox

-- = 0 at y = 0, (A.20) 2Roo Rol - -- SRoo

0y
K Ix2,q COS 1)n
kin =
Ofo IX2 (Roo + rlK) 2 (~2 + 1)2)3/2
- Roo(jo + go) at y = l, (A.21)
ay K
v . tan vn + ~2.q
Ofl ~2 [ vn tan vn + sin 2 vn " (A.31)
- Roo (j~ + g~)
Oy K
The above edge-region solution is obtained for the inlet
R°-"2 edge region, where ~ = x/& A similar result would be
+ Roo~(J° + go) 1 a t y = 1, (A.22)
obtained for the outlet-edge region where ~ = (l - x)/8.
H e n c e , in s u m m a r y , the result is
and
0(x, y; 8) = Fo(x, y) + 8fl(x/8, y) + ~(~), (A.32)
dg0
- 0, (A.23) O(x; 8) = Go(x) + (3(e), (A.33)
d~
with
dgl N
- SRoo(jo + go), (A.24)
d~ K Fo(x, y) = Q(x)e nNmx) c o s h Ixy , (A.34)
cosh Ix
with
Go(x) = 1 - e -~Ne(x), (A.35)
gi ~ 0 as ~ ~ ~, (A.25)
and the average plate temperature given by
g~ = - Gi(O) at ~ = 0. (A.26)
fo 1 fo I 0(x, y; 8 ) d x d r
Here, R(x) = R ( 8 0 = R(0) + 8R'(0)~ + . . . . Roo +
8 R o ~ + .... The solutions of eqn (A.16), for i = 0, 1,
satisfying eqns (A.17)-(A.19), are obtained by a s s u m i n g
the separable form f~(~, y) = a~(Obi(y). This results in
1
= ~ (1 - e -~Ne°)) + (~(O. (A.36)

a7 _ Ix2 _ b T _ v2 '
ai bi
w h e r e v is the separation constant. T h u s , with to = (ix2
+ v2) n/2, the solutions of a7 , to2a~ = 0, and b" + v2b~
= 0, subject to al---* 0 as ~ ~ ~, bS = 0 at y = 0, are
fi(f~, y) = kle ~ cos vy,
w h e r e the k f s are constants.
F o r i = 0, eqn (A.18) requires that ko = 0, such that
fo(~, Y) = 0 and Jo(0 = 0; furthermore, the solution of
eqn (A.23) that satisfies eqn (A.25) is go(~) = 0. T h u s , to
lowest order, there are no edge-region correction t e r m s
for either the plate or the fluid temperatures• Also, for go
= 0, it follows from eqn (A.26) that Do = 1; thus, the
integration c o n s t a n t in e q n s (A. 13) and (A. 15) is evaluated.
For i = 1, the solution of eqn (A.24), withjo, go = 0,
subject to eqn (A.25), yields g~(~) = 0. In turn, it follows
The parameter, ~, is evaluated by considering the second-
order t e r m s in the series (i = 2). In particular, for a con-
stant fluid heat transfer coefficient (R(x) = 1), the inte-
grated result is
82 { ll+'q}
(A.27) = ~- ( F ' N ) 3 e -F'N 1 IX2 .q2 , (A.37)
w h e r e F ' = "q/(l + -q~S).
T h e above solution has general validity w h e n e v e r the
t e r m s of 0(~) are negligible (i.e. for ~ ,~ 1); since • d e p e n d s
primarily on 82, as s e e n in e q n (A.37), this is true for m o s t
applications. U n d e r s o m e conditions where O, is as small
as 8 (e.g., the case of infinite thermal conductivity), ~ =
(~(N) 3 is small only i f N is also small (F', "q ~ 1); if, in this
case, N = (~(1), the effect o f axial conduction in the plate
would have to be included.