Dr. Senthilmurugan S.

Department of Chemical Engineering IIT Guwahati - CL204 - Part 16

Thermal Radiation
Shape factor; Kirchhoff's law

Basic Definition
Thermal Radiation

Irradiation (H)
Rate at which radiation is incident on a
surface from all directions per unit area
(w/m2)
Reflectivity ()
The fraction of the radiation falling on a
body that is reflected is called the reflectivity
= reflected flux
Absorptivity ()
The fraction that is absorbed is called the
absorptivity
= absorbed flux
= 1 for black body
Transmissivity ()
The fraction that is transmitted is called the
transmissivity
=0 for opaque body ( e.g. metallic)
The sum of these fractions must be unity

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For monochromatic irradiation

Radiosity
Rate at which radiation leaves a surface due to
emission and reflection in all directions per unit
area of the surface.

Absorption of Radiation by Opaque Solids

When radiation falls on a solid body, a definite fraction may be reflected and the
remaining fraction 1 - enters the solid to be either transmitted or absorbed
Most solids (other than glasses, certain plastics, quartz, and some minerals) absorb
radiation of all wavelengths
Except in thin sheets, all others the transmissivity is zero
All nonreflected radiation is completely absorbed in a thin surface layer of the solid
The absorption of radiation by an opaque solid is therefore a surface phenomenon,
not a volume phenomenon, and the interior of the solid is not of interest in the
absorption of radiation.
The heat generated by the absorption can flow into or through the mass of an
opaque solid only by conduction

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Reflectivity and Absorptivity of Opaque Solids

Since the transmissivity of an opaque solid is zero,

The sum of the reflectivity and the absorptivity is unity,
The factors that influence reflectivity affect absorptivity
in the opposite sense.
In general, the reflectivity of an opaque solid depends on
surface temperature, surface characteristic, the material of which the surface is made,
wavelength of the incident radiation and angle of incidence
Two main types of reflection are encountered,
(i) Specular reflection from smooth surfaces such as polished metals
In specular reflection, the reflected beam makes a definite angle with the surface,
and the angle of incidence equals the angle of reflection. The reflectivity from these
surfaces approaches unity, and the absorptivity approaches zero.
(ii) Diffuse - reflection from rough surfaces or from dull, or matte, surfaces
There is no definite angle of reflection (surfaces reflect diffusely in all directions), and
the absorptivity can approach unity. Rough surfaces, in which the scale of roughness
is large in comparison with the wavelength of the incident radiation, will reflect
diffusely even if the radiation from the individual units of roughness is specular.

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Reflectivity and Absorptivity of Opaque Solids

Reflectivities of rough surfaces may be either large or small, depending upon the reflective
characteristic of the material itself.
Most industrial surfaces of interest to the chemical engineer give diffuse reflection, and in
treating practical cases, the important simplifying assumption can usually be made that
reflectivity and absorptivity are independent of angle of incidence.
This assumption is equivalent to the cosine law, which states that for a perfectly diffusing
surface the intensity (or brightness, in the case of visible light) of the radiation leaving the
surface is independent of the angle from which the surface is viewed. This is true whether
the radiation is emitted by the surface, giving diffuse radiation, or is reflected by it, giving
diffuse reflection.
The reflectivity may vary with the wavelength of the incident radiation, and the absorptivity
of the entire beam is then a weighted average of the monochromatic absorptivities and
depends upon the entire spectrum of the incident radiation
The absorptivity of a gray body, like the emissivity, is the same for all wavelengths. If the
surface of the gray body gives diffuse radiation or reflection, its monochromatic absorptivity
is also independent of the angle of incidence of the radiant beam. The total absorptivity
equals the monochromatic absorptivity and is also independent of the angle of incidence

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Reflectivity and Absorptivity industrial surfaces

The majority of industrial surfaces,

unfortunately, are not gray, and their
absorptivities vary strongly with the
nature of the incident radiation
The absorptivity of various solids varies
with the peak wavelength of the incident
radiation and thus with the temperature
of the source
A few solids, such as slate, are almost
truly gray, and their absorptivities are
almost constant.
For polished metallic surfaces the
absorptivity 2 rises with the absolute
temperature of the source T1 and also
that of surface T2 according to the
equation

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Kirchhoff's law

Relation between emission and absorption characteristics

At temperature equilibrium, the ratio of the total radiating power of any body to its
absorptivity depends only upon the temperature of the body.
Thus, consider any two bodies in temperature equilibrium with common
surroundings. Kirchhoff's law states that

Where,
W1, W2 = total radiating powers of two bodies
1, 2= absorptivities of two bodies
If the first body is a blackbody, then 1 = 1 and
(1)
This law applies to both monochromatic and total radiation.

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Kirchhoff's law

Relation between emission and absorption characteristics

(2)
when surface is gray and diffusive
Proof
=
Similarly it can be shown that
Surface which hold for both equation (1) & (2) called as diffuse-gray-surface
Kirchhoffs law applies to volumes as well as to surfaces. Since absorption
by an opaque solid is effectively confined to a thin layer at the surface, the
radiation emitted from the surface of the body originates in this same
surface layer. Radiating substances absorb their own radiation, and
radiation emitted by the material in the interior of the solid is also absorbed
in the interior and does not reach the surface.

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Radiation Between Two Surfaces

Surfaces are very
large parallel planes

(1) One or both of the surfaces of interest see other surfaces. In fact, an
element of surface in a concave area sees a portion of its own surface.
(2) No actual surface is exactly black, and the emissivities of the surfaces
must often be considered.
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Directional Nature of radiation

Solid angle and intensity of radiation

Qualitatively, the interception of radiation

from an area element of a surface by
another surface of finite size can be
visualized in terms of the angle of vision,
which is the solid angle subtended by
the finite surface at the radiating
element
Solid angle: Construct a conical surface
with vertex at dA1 and passing through
the perimeter of A2 the solid angle
subtended by area A2 at the differential
area dA1 is numerically equal to the area
A of the portion of the surface of the
sphere of unit radius, center at dA1
which is cut out by the conical surface
Unit : steradian (sr) (Three dimension)

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The solid angle subtended by a

hemisphere is 2 steradians (4r2/2
where r =1)
A2

A
r=1
dA1

Solid angle subtended by area dAn at the differential

area dA1 (spherical coordinate)

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Total intensity of radiation

Radiant flux passing in the specified direction per unit solid angle
integration all direction

Cosine of law of diffuse radiation (applicable for many surfaces i.e. diffusive
surfaces)

( for diffusive surface)

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Irradiation with respect to source distance

Square of the distance effect

The energy from a small surface that is intercepted by a large one depends only
upon the angle of vision. It is independent of the distance between the surfaces.
The energy received per unit area of the receiving surface, however, is inversely
proportional to the square of the distance between the surfaces
The rate of energy reception by the element of area dA2
Where,

The rate of emission from area dA1 must equal

the rate at which energy is received by
the total area A2,

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Radiation between black surfaces

The rate of energy reception by element dA2 of radiation originating at dA1 is

Similarly

The net rate of transfer dq12 between the two

area elements

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Radiation between black surfaces

A = area of either of two surfaces, chosen arbitrarily

F = dimensionless geometric factor
The factor F is called the view factor or angle factor; it depends upon the geometry
of the two surfaces, their spatial relationship with each other, and the surface chosen
for A
If A is chosen as A1
If A is chosen as A2

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View factor / Angle factor

Factor F1-2 may be regarded as the fraction of

the radiation leaving area A1 that is intercepted
by area A2
If surface A1 can see only surface A2 , the view
factor F1-2 is unity
If surface A1 sees a number of other surfaces
and if its entire hemispherical angle of vision is
filled by these surfaces
F1-1+ F1-2 + F1-3 + ... F1-n = 1.0
The factor F1-1 covers the portion of the angle
of vision subtended by other portions of body
A1.
If the surface of A1 cannot see any portion of
itself, F1-1 is zero. The net radiation associated
with an F1-1 factor is, of course, zero.
The factor F2-1 is unity, as area A2 can see
nothing but area A1-1, The factor F1-2 is,

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The superposition rule

The view factor from surface 1 to the

combined surfaces of 2 and 3 is:

F1 (2, 3) = F1 2 + F1 3

One can obtain F1 (2, 3) and F1 2 and

hence from equation (6), one can obtain F1
3 as:

F1 3 = F1 (2, 3) - F1 2

Also, one can obtain F (2, 3) 1 by applying

both reciprocity and superposition rules.
The result is:

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(8)

(6)

(7)

View factor / Angle factor

Long Triangular duct

Triangular in cross section, with its three walls at different temperatures. The walls
need not be flat, but they must have no concavities; i.e., each wall must see no
portion of itself. Under these conditions the view factors are given by

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View factor / Angle factor

Long Triangular duct

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View factor / Angle factor

Long Triangular duct
This
enclosure involves N 2 = 32 = 9 view factors, and we need to determine:

of these view factors directly. Fortunately, we can determine all three of them by inspection to be:
F11 = F22 = F33 = 0
since all three surfaces are flat. The remaining six view factors can be determined by the application of the
summation and reciprocity rules.
Applying the summation rule to each of the three surfaces gives:

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View factor / Angle factor

Long Triangular duct
Noting

that F11 = F22 = F33 = 0 and multiplying the first equation by A1, the second by A2, and
the third by A3 gives:

Finally, applying the three reciprocity relations A1F12 = A2F21, A1F13 = A3F31, and A2F23 = A3F32
gives:

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View factor / Angle factor

Long Triangular duct
This

is a set of three algebraic equations with three unknowns, which can be solved to
obtain:

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Radiation shape factor relations

Other geometries

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Shape factor for radiation between parallel rectangles

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shape factor for radiation between perpendicular

rectangles with a common edge.

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Radiation shields
Interchange Factor ()

When the source and sink are

connected by factory walls in the
manner the factor (F) can be replaced
by an analogous factor, called the
interchange factor ()

The interchange factor () has been

determined accurately for some simple
situations
An approximate equation for () in terms
of F is

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Interchange Factor ()

where there is but one source and one

sink, where neither area A1 nor A2 can
see any part of itself. It is based on the
assumption that the temperature of the
refractory surface is constant. This last
is a simplifying assumption, as the local
temperature of the refractory usually
varies between those of the source and
the sink.

Example: Lines 5 to 8 give values of F

for directly opposed parallel planes
connected by refractory walls.
Line 5 applies to disks, line 6 to
squares, line 7 to 2:1 rectangles, and
line 8 to long, narrow rectangles.

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Radiation Between block and Non Block Bodies

A small body that is not black and surrounded by a black

surface.
Let the areas of the enclosed and surrounding surfaces be
A1 and A2, respectively, and let their temperatures be T1,
and T2, respectively.
The radiation from surface A2 falling on surface A1, is
The fraction 1 the absorbtivity of area A1, for radiation
from surface A2, is absorbed by surface A1.
The remainder is reflected back to the black surroundings
and completely reabsorbed by the area A2.
Surface A1 emits radiation in amount ,
where 1 is the emissivity of surface A1.
All this radiation is absorbed by the surface A2, and none is
returned by another reflection.

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Non Block A1

Block A2

Radiation Between Non Block Bodies

The emissivity , and absorptivity , are not in general

equal, because the two surfaces are not at the same
temperature. The net energy loss by surface A, is

Non Block A1

If A1 is gray then

Also defined as

Block A2

where and are the overall interchange factors and are

functions of and

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Radiation Between Two Parallel Gray Planes

Consider two large gray parallel planes

at absolute temperatures T1 and T2 , as
indicated, with emissivities 1, and 2

The energy radiated from a unit area of

surface 1 equals ,. Part of this energy is
absorbed by surface 2, and part is
reflected
The amount absorbed equals
Part of the reflected beam is reabsorbed
by surface 1 and part is re-reflected
back to surface 2.
Of this re-reflected beam an amount is
absorbed

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Energy originating at surface 1, which is

absorbed by unit area of surface 2;

Energy originating at surface 2, which is

reabsorbed by surface 2

Radiation Between Two Parallel Gray Planes

Successive reflections and absorptions lead to the following equation for the total
amount of radiation originating at surface 1 that is absorbed by surface 2:

Some of the energy originating at surface 2, is reflected by surface 1 and returns to

surface 2, where part of it is absorbed. The amount of this energy, per unit area, is

The total amount of energy absorbed by a unit area of surface 2 is therefore

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Radiation Between Two Parallel Gray Planes

Let

Then

But, since y<1,

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One gray surface completely surrounded by another

gray

Let the area of the enclosed body be A1 and that of the enclosure be A2. The overall
interchange factor for this case is given by

Gray A1

Applicable for concentric spheres or concentric cylinders,

But it can be used without serious error for other shapes

Gray A2

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Radiation from gases

Mono-atomic and di-amtomic gases

hydrogen, oxygen, helium, argon, and nitrogen, are virtually transparent to infrared
radiation.
Transparent to radiation neither emit nor absorbs
More complex polyatomic molecules (tri-atomic gases)
water vapor, carbon dioxide, and organic vapors,
absorb radiation fairly strongly, especially radiation of specific wavelengths.
The fraction of the incident radiation absorbed by a given amount of a gas or vapor depends
on the length of the radiation path and on the number of molecules encountered by the
radiation during its passage, i.e., on the density of the gas or vapor.
Thus the absorptivity of a given gas is a strong function of its partial pressure and a weaker
function of its temperature.
If an absorbing gas is heated, it radiates to the cooler surroundings, at the same wavelengths
favored for absorption.
The emissivity of the gas is also a function of temperature and pressure.
Because of the effect of path length, the emissivity and absorptivity of gases are defined
arbitrarily in terms of a specific geometry.

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Radiation from gases

Absorption and emission of gases differ

from liquids and solids in the following ways
Gases emit and absorb radiation within
a narrow band of wavelength.
Emission and absorption take place
through the body of the gas. No. of
modules of a gas is important for
radiation. No. of molecules of gas at a
given temperature is proportional to
partial pressure of gas and size of the
body (L) of the gas
Emissivity is therefore the ratio of the rate
of energy transfer from the gas to the
surface element to the rate of transfer from
a black hemispherical surface of radius L
and temperature TG to the same surface
element.

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Radiation from gases

Consider a hemisphere of radiating gas of radius L,

with a black element of receiving surface dA2
located on the base of the hemisphere at its center.
The rate of energy transfer dq12 from the gas to the
element of area is then

where TG = absolute temperature of gas

G = emissivity of gas (by definition)
When the gas temperature TG and the surface
temperature Ts are the same,
the gas absorptivity = the emissivity
When these temperatures differ, both are not
equal;
The gas absorptivity at a total pressure of 1 atm by
evaluating G as the emissivity at T2 and at
PGL(T2/TG) instead of at PGL, and multiplying the
result by (TG/T2 )0.65

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Effect of geometry on gas radiation

The rate of transfer from a radiating gas

to the surface of an enclosure depends
on the geometry of the system and on
the partial pressure of the gas, PG
In general, the emissivity of a given
quantity of gas must be evaluated using
a mean beam length L, which is a
characteristic of the particular geometry.
Length L has been computed for several
special cases.
For low values of the product PG it may
be shown that L equals 4V / A, where V
is the volume of radiating gas and A is
the total surface area of the enclosure.

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