The transient heat and mass transfer in a moist porous medium adjacent to a cylindrical heat source is analyzed in order to characterize the thermal stability of the medium. In the context of this paper, thermal instability occurs in a moist porous medium as a result of significant drying due to excessive thermally induced moisture movement. A dry zone is created which propagates into the medium and thereby inhibits dissipation of heat from the source. The drying of the porous medium adjacent to the heat source is predicted to occur in two distinct stages. During the first stage the rate of moisture movement initially decreases until a “critical moisture content” is reached. Thereafter the drying rate generally increases until complete drying of the material in the vicinity of the heat source has occurred. The value of the critical moisture content is found to be essentially independent of the strength (heat transfer rate per unit length) of the heat source. The parameters which most significantly influence the transport processes are identified and correlated on the basis of numerical solutions of the governing equations. The critical moisture content and critical heat flux are defined and used to quantify thermal stability limits. The correlations are validated through comparison with experimental measurements made on a native soil. The thermal stability model developed in this work establishes the relationship between the thermal stability limits for large-diameter and small-diameter heat sources. From this relationship the thermal stability associated with large-diameter sources can be accurately predicted from experimental measurements using small-diameter sources and small samples.
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Transient Simultaneous Heat and Mass Transfer in Moist, Unsaturated Soils
J. G. Hartley,
J. G. Hartley
School of Mechanical Engineering, Georgia Institute of Technology, Atlanta, Ga. 30332
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W. Z. Black
W. Z. Black
School of Mechanical Engineering, Georgia Institute of Technology, Atlanta, Ga. 30332
Search for other works by this author on:
J. G. Hartley
School of Mechanical Engineering, Georgia Institute of Technology, Atlanta, Ga. 30332
W. Z. Black
School of Mechanical Engineering, Georgia Institute of Technology, Atlanta, Ga. 30332
J. Heat Transfer. May 1981, 103(2): 376-382 (7 pages)
Published Online: May 1, 1981
Article history
Received:
September 22, 1980
Online:
October 20, 2009
Citation
Hartley, J. G., and Black, W. Z. (May 1, 1981). "Transient Simultaneous Heat and Mass Transfer in Moist, Unsaturated Soils." ASME. J. Heat Transfer. May 1981; 103(2): 376–382. https://doi.org/10.1115/1.3244469
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