Please use this identifier to cite or link to this item: https://hdl.handle.net/11681/9028
Title: Thermal instability and heat transfer characteristics in water/ice systems
Authors: Yen, Yin-Chao
Keywords: Density inversion
Natural convection
Heat transfer
Heat conduction
Heat transmission
Thermal instability
Ice
Thermal properties
Thawing
Water
Publisher: Cold Regions Research and Engineering Laboratory (U.S.)
Engineer Research and Development Center (U.S.)
Series/Report no.: CRREL report ; 87-22.
Description: CRREL Report
Abstract: This review discusses problems associated with the anomalous temperature-density relations of water. It covers a) onset of convection, b) temperature structure and natural convective heat transfer, and c) laminar forced convective heat transfer in the water/ice system. The onset of convection in a water/ice system was found to be dependent on thermal boundary conditions, not a constant value as in the classical fluids that have a monotonic temperature-density relationship. The water/ice system also exhibits a unique temperature distribution in the melt layer immediately after the critical Rayleigh number is exceeded and soon after it establishes a more or less constant temperature region progressively deepening as the melt layer grows. The constant temperature is approximately 3.2°C for water layers formed from above but varies for melt layers formed from below. The heat flux across the water/ice interface was found to be a weak power function and to increase linearly with temperature for melted layers from above and below, respectively. Both theoretical and experimental melting studies of ice spheres, cylinders, and vertical plates show a minimum heat flux in the water/ice system due to the density extremum of 4°C. The inversion temperature was from 5.1 to 5.6°C. For the case of laminar forced convection melting heat transfer, the presence of an interfacial velocity (due to phase transition) reduces heat transfer in comparison with the case without phase change.
Rights: Approved for public release; distribution is unlimited.
URI: http://hdl.handle.net/11681/9028
Appears in Collections:CRREL Report

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