Transport phenomena (engineering & physics)

Transport phenomena include fluid mechanics, heat transfer, and mass transfer, all of which are fundamental to an understanding of both single and multiphase systems.

Fluid Mechanics

A fluid at rest can resist a normal force but not a shear force, while fluid in motion can also resist a shear force. The fluid continuously deforms under the action of shear force. A fluid’s resistance to shear or angular deformation is measured by viscosity, which can be thought of as the internal “stickiness” of the fluid. The force and the rate of strain (i.e., rate of deformation) produced by the force are related by a constitutive equation.

See Main Article - Fluid mechanics.

Heat Transfer

Heat transfer is a process whereby thermal energy is transferred in response to a temperature difference. There are three modes of heat transfer: conduction, convection, and radiation. Conduction is heat transfer across a stationary medium, either solid or fluid. Convection occurs between a wall at one temperature and a moving fluid at another temperature. The transmission of thermal radiation does not require the presence of a propagating medium and, therefore can occur in a vacuum. Thermal radiation is a form of energy emitted by matter at a nonzero temperature and its wavelength is primarily in the range between 0.1 to 10 μm.

See Main Article - Heat transfer.

Mass Transfer

When there is a species concentration difference in a multicomponent mixture, mass transfer occurs. There are two modes of mass transfer: diffusion and convection. Diffusion results from random molecular motion at the microscopic level, and it can occur in a solid, liquid or gas. Similar to convective heat transfer, convective mass transfer is due to a combination of random molecular motion at the microscopic level and bulk motion at the macroscopic level. It can occur only in a liquid or gas.

See Main Article - Mass transfer.

External Links

Introduction to transport phenomena at Thermal-Fluids Central.