FINAL LABORATORY REPORT

AUTOMOTIVE ENGINEERING LAB 1 (MECH 2118)

SECTION 1

EXPERIMENT #3
HEAT INSULATION/CONDUCTION

GROUP MEMBERS
1. MUHAMMAD HANAFI BIN ISHAK (1624043)
2. MOHAMMAD AFIQ AZIM BIN MOHD KHELMEE (1627685)
3. FARIS HAZIQ BIN ABDUL MALEK (1624957)

EXPERIMENTERS
1. SYED NOH SYED ABU BAKAR, 044856, AEROSPACE

DATE OF EXPERIMENTS
Thursday, 1st March 2018 (2:00 p.m. to 5:00 p.m.)

DATE OF SUBMISSION
Thursday, 8th March 2018
TABLE OF CONTENTS

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OBJECTIVES
In each experiment, objectives should be focused so the experiment can work well.
Therefore, in this experiment, the objectives have been justified as below:

1. To determine the thermal conductivity and its effect.

2. To find and calculate thermal transmission coefficient.
3. To differentiate between thermal conduction and thermal insulation.
4. To find factor that affect the thermal conductivity.
5. To determine the concept of thermal resistance.

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INTRODUCTION

Thermal conductivity is the property of a material to conduct heat through a

material. Heat transfer occurs at a higher rate across materials of high thermal conductivity
than those of low thermal conductivity. Thermal conduction is the process of transferring
thermal energy (heat) from one place to another due to a temperature gradient. For a
thermal energy transfer, there must be a temperature gradient between the two points. The
energy transfer is done until the temperatures are equal. The differences between thermal
insulation and thermal conductor is that thermal insulators do not transfer energy, but
thermal conductors do. Thermal insulators are mostly made up of large chains of
molecules, which are unable to vibrate due to thermal energy, but most of the thermal
conductors are made of single atoms or lattice shaped compounds, which are able to
vibrate. Cooking utensils are made from good conductors of heat. Such utensils get heated
up quickly. Food can be cooked efficiently in shorter time. The utensils are generally made
of copper, brass, steel, and aluminium. Woolen clothes are bad conductors. Woolen clothes
are not actually warm. They do not allow heat to conduct away or to escape out and thus
keep our body warm. Building materials like brick, asbestos, mud, are grass are bad
conductors of heat. They do not permit heat and cold to pass through the walls of bricks.
They keep the houses warm in winter and cool in summer. Roof sheds are made of asbestos
for the same reason. Hair and the fur of animals are bad conductors of heat. They protect
them from cold. Vehicles carrying inflammable materials such as petrol are covered with
materials of bad conductors of heat. Otherwise, the petrol can get heated up and catch fire.

Therefore, thermal conductivity material depends on the following factors which

are conductivity of the material, temperature difference across the material, thickness of
the material, and area of the material. The thermal transmission coefficient has SI units in
watts per squared meter kelvin, W/(m2K). The thermal transmission coefficient is the
reciprocal of thermal insulance. This is used for building materials and for clothing
insulation. The law that govern heat conduction is Fourier Law, stating proportionality
between heat flux and temperature gradient while heat convection is no single law. A
common one attributed to Newton is that the convective heat flux is proportional to the

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temperature difference between the bulk of the fluid (average) and a boundary.

Thermal resistance is the measure of a material’s capability to resist the heat flow.
The formula for thermal resistance is usually expressed as R, which is computed value as
R=L/k, where L stands for thickness of the material and k stands for the thermal
conductivity constant. The value of R determines the insulation capacity of the material.
The higher the value of R, the smaller the heat transfer and the lower the value of R, the
greater the heat to go by the material. The SI units of thermal resistance is Kelvin’s per
Watt. Thermal resistance is also defined as the difference in the temperature from corner to
corner of a structure when a unit of heat energy flows through it in unit time. The heat flow
through a building construction depends on the temperature difference across it, the
conductivity of the materials used and the thickness of the materials. The temperature
difference is an external factor. The thickness and the conductivity are properties of the
material. A greater thickness means less heat flow and so does a lower conductivity.
Together these parameters form the thermal resistance of the construction. The thermal
resistance is proportional to the thickness of a layer of the construction and inversely
proportional to its conductivity. A construction layer with a high thermal resistance (e.g.
rock wool), is a good insulator, one with a low thermal resistance (e.g. concrete) is a bad
insulator.

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RESULT
PART A – FIRST 30 MINUTES

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DISCUSSION

Our experiment this week is the experiment regarding heat insulation and
conduction. This experiment are being done by finding the value of heat transfer through
the wall, Q, the heat per unit area, Q/A, heat transmission coefficient and 1/U which is the
thermal resistance. The value of k, the thermal conductivity are being done by referring to
the info that can be get through internet. The thermal conductivity for Wooden (2cm),
Styropor (2cm), Wooden (1cm) and Glass are 0.16W/mK, 0.033W/mK, 0.16W/mK and
0.16W/mK respectively.

Not complete!!

Based on the tables, for part A which involves wooden of 2cm styropor that
being held within 30 minutes, the heat transfer through the wall is positive and
increasing within time. But in part B which happened in the next 30 minutes, the heat
transfer through wall for both wooden and styropor decreasing directly proportional
with time but it was different with glass that undergoes increasing in the same period
of time. As part C, the heat transfer through the wall of wooden (2cm) and styropor
were decreasing while the heat transfer for wooden (1cm) and glass wall are having
consistent reading at around -12W and 8W respectively.

Regarding the heat transmission coefficient for wooden (2cm), styropor, glass
and wooden (1cm), the table show a constant for all subjects whereas 8.00W/m²K,
1.65 W/m²K, 40.00 W/m²K and 16.00 W/m²K respectively. Based on the number, it
can be said that glass has the highest number of heat transmission coefficient of 40.00
W/m²K while the lowest heat transmission coefficient is styropor at 1.65 W/m²K. This
was due to the factor that influence the efficiency of heat transfer. Heat transmission
coefficient for wooden (2cm) is double the number for wooden of 1cm. The number
prove that thickness also play role in heat transmission as we had discussed it.

Errors happened everywhere, every time without knowing it.

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CONCLUSION

In conclusion, the heat transmission coefficient and thermal conductivity for Glass are the
highest among other three materials, whereas the heat transmission coefficient and thermal
conductivity for styropor are the lowest among other three materials. It proven that
thickness is a factor that influence thermal conductivity.

REFERENCES

Factors- https://concord.org/wp-content/uploads/2016/12/projects/eee/solar-house/EEE-
Ch2.2-sim-teacher.pdf
Thermalresistance-
https://www.newlearn.info/packages/clear/thermal/buildings/building_fabric/properties/re
sistance.html
- http://www.innovateus.net/innopedia/what-thermal-resistance
Law - https://www.quora.com/Which-law-of-thermodynamics-governs-heat-transfer
Good bad condcutors- http://www.preservearticles.com/201012261697/uses-of-good-and-
bad-conductors-of-heat.html