Transport phenomena

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In engineering, physics and chemistry, the study of transport phenomena concerns the exchange
of mass, energy, and momentumbetween observed and studied systems. While it draws from fields
as diverse as continuum mechanics and thermodynamics, it places a heavy emphasis on the
commonalities between the topics covered. Mass, momentum, and heat transport all share a very
similar mathematical framework, and the parallels between them are exploited in the study of
transport phenomena to draw deep mathematical connections that often provide very useful tools in
the analysis of one field that are directly derived from the others.
While it draws its theoretical foundation from the principles in a number of fields, most of the
fundamental theory on the topic is a simple restatement of basic conservation laws.
The fundamental analyses in all three subfields of mass transport, heat, and momentum are often
grounded in the simple principle that the sum total of the quantities being studied must be conserved
by the system and its environment. Thus, the different phenomena that lead to transport are each
considered individually with the knowledge that the sum of their contributions must equal zero. This
principle is useful for calculating any number of relevant quantities. For example, in fluid mechanics,
a common use of transport analysis is to determine thevelocity profile of a fluid flowing through a
rigid volume.
Transport phenomena are ubiquitous throughout the engineering disciplines. Some of the most
common examples of transport analysis in engineering are seen in the fields of process, chemical,
biological,[1] and mechanical engineering, but the subject is a fundamental component of the
curriculum in all disciplines involved in any way with fluid mechanics, heat transfer, and mass
transfer. It is now considered to be a part of the engineering discipline as much
as thermodynamics, mechanics, and electromagnetism.
Transport phenomena encompasses all agents of physical change in the universe. Moreover, it is
considered to be a fundamental building block which developed the universe, and which is
responsible for the success of all life on earth. However, the scope here limits the transport
phenomena to its relationship to artificial engineered systems.[2]

Contents
[hide]

 1Overview
 2Commonalities among phenomena
o 2.1Diffusion
o 2.2Onsager reciprocal relations
 3Momentum transfer
 4Mass transfer
 5Energy transfer
 6See also
 7References
 8External links

Overview[edit]
In physics, transport phenomena are all irreversible processes of statistical nature stemming from
the random continuous motion of molecules, mostly observed in fluids. Every aspect of transport
phenomena is grounded in two primary concepts : the conservation laws, and the constitutive
equations. The conservation laws, which in the context of transport phenomena are formulated
as continuity equations, describe how the quantity being studied must be conserved.
The constitutive equations describe how the quantity in question responds to various stimuli via
transport. Prominent examples include Fourier's Law of Heat Conduction and the Navier-Stokes
equations, which describe, respectively, the response of heat flux to temperature gradients and the
relationship between fluid flux and the forces applied to the fluid. These equations also demonstrate
the deep connection between transport phenomena and thermodynamics, a connection that explains
why transport phenomena are irreversible. Almost all of these physical phenomena ultimately involve
systems seeking their lowest energy state in keeping with the principle of minimum energy. As they
approach this state, they tend to achieve truethermodynamic equilibrium, at which point there are no
longer any driving forces in the system and transport ceases. The various aspects of such
equilibrium are directly connected to a specific transport: heat transfer is the system's attempt to
achieve thermal equilibrium with its environment, just as mass and momentum transport move the
system towards chemical and mechanical equilibrium.
Examples of transport processes include heat conduction (energy transfer), fluid flow (momentum
transfer), molecular diffusion (mass transfer), radiation and electric chargetransfer in
semiconductors.[3][4][5][6]
Transport phenomena have wide application. For example, in solid state physics, the motion and
interaction of electrons, holes and phonons are studied under "transport phenomena". Another
example is in biomedical engineering, where some transport phenomena of interest
are thermoregulation, perfusion, and microfluidics. In chemical engineering, transport phenomena
are studied in reactor design, analysis of molecular or diffusive transport mechanisms,
and metallurgy.
The transport of mass, energy, and momentum can be affected by the presence of external sources:

 An odor dissipates more slowly (and may intensify) when the source of the odor remains
present.
 The rate of cooling of a solid that is conducting heat depends on whether a heat source is
applied.
 The gravitational force acting on a rain drop counteracts the resistance or drag imparted by the
surrounding air.

Commonalities among phenomena[edit]

An important principle in the study of transport phenomena is analogy between phenomena.
Diffusion[edit]
There are some notable similarities in equations for momentum, energy, and mass transfer[7] which
can all be transported by diffusion, as illustrated by the following examples:

 Mass: the spreading and dissipation of odors in air is an example of mass diffusion.
 Energy: the conduction of heat in a solid material is an example of heat diffusion.
 Momentum: the drag experienced by a rain drop as it falls in the atmosphere is an example
of momentum diffusion (the rain drop loses momentum to the surrounding air through viscous
stresses and decelerates).
The molecular transfer equations of Newton's law for fluid momentum, Fourier's law for heat,
and Fick's law for mass are very similar. One can convert from one transfer coefficient to another in
order to compare all three different transport phenomena.[8]

Comparison of diffusion phenomena

 Transported quantity Physical phenomenon Equation

Viscosity
Momentum
(Newtonian fluid)

Heat conduction
Energy
(Fourier's law)

Molecular diffusion
Mass
(Fick's law)

(Definitions of these formulas are given below).

A great deal of effort has been devoted in the literature to developing analogies among these three
transport processes for turbulent transfer so as to allow prediction of one from any of the others.
The Reynolds analogy assumes that the turbulent diffusivities are all equal and that the molecular
diffusivities of momentum (μ/ρ) and mass (DAB) are negligible compared to the turbulent diffusivities.
When liquids are present and/or drag is present, the analogy is not valid. Other analogies, such
as von Karman's and Prandtl's, usually result in poor relations.
The most successful and most widely used analogy is the Chilton and Colburn J-factor
analogy.[9] This analogy is based on experimental data for gases and liquids in both thelaminar and
turbulent regimes. Although it is based on experimental data, it can be shown to satisfy the exact
solution derived from laminar flow over a flat plate. All of this information is used to predict transfer of
mass.
Onsager reciprocal relations[edit]
Main article: Onsager reciprocal relations
In fluid systems described in terms of temperature, matter density, and pressure, it is known
that temperature differences lead to heat flows from the warmer to the colder parts of the system;
similarly, pressure differences will lead to matter flow from high-pressure to low-pressure regions (a
"reciprocal relation"). What is remarkable is the observation that, when both pressure and
temperature vary, temperature differences at constant pressure can cause matter flow (as
in convection) and pressure differences at constant temperature can cause heat flow. Perhaps
surprisingly, the heat flow per unit of pressure difference and the density (matter) flow per unit of
temperature difference are equal.
This equality was shown to be necessary by Lars Onsager using statistical mechanics as a
consequence of the time reversibility of microscopic dynamics. The theory developed by Onsager is
much more general than this example and capable of treating more than two thermodynamic forces
at once.[10]

Momentum transfer[edit]
In momentum transfer, the fluid is treated as a continuous distribution of matter. The study of
momentum transfer, or fluid mechanics can be divided into two branches: fluid statics (fluids at rest),
and fluid dynamics (fluids in motion). When a fluid is flowing in the x direction parallel to a solid
surface, the fluid has x-directed momentum, and its concentration is υxρ. By random diffusion of
molecules there is an exchange of molecules in the z direction. Hence the x-directed momentum has
been transferred in the z-direction from the faster- to the slower-moving layer. The equation for
momentum transport is Newton's Law of Viscosity written as follows:

where τzx is the flux of x-directed momentum in the z direction, ν is μ/ρ, the momentum
diffusivity z is the distance of transport or diffusion, ρ is the density, and μ is the viscosity.
Newtons Law is the simplest relationship between the flux of momentum and the velocity
gradient.

Mass transfer[edit]
When a system contains two or more components whose concentration vary from point to point,
there is a natural tendency for mass to be transferred, minimizing any concentration difference
within the system. Mass Transfer in a system is governed by Fick's First Law: 'Diffusion flux from
higher concentration to lower concentration is proportional to the gradient of the concentration of
the substance and the diffusivity of the substance in the medium.' Mass transfer can take place
due to different driving forces. Some of them are:[11]

 Mass can be transferred by the action of a pressure gradient(pressure diffusion)

 Forced diffusion occurs because of the action of some external force
 Diffusion can be caused by temperature gradients (thermal diffusion)
 Diffusion can be caused by differences in chemical potential
This can be compared to Fourier's Law for conduction of heat:

where D is the diffusivity constant.

Energy transfer[edit]
All process in engineering involve the transfer of energy. Some examples are the heating
and cooling of process streams, phase changes, distillations, etc. The basic principle is the
first law of thermodynamics which is expressed as follows for a static system:

The net flux of energy through a system equals the conductivity times the rate of
change of temperature with respect to position.
For other systems that involve either turbulent flow, complex geometries or difficult
boundary conditions another equation would be easier to use:

where A is the surface area, : is the temperature driving force, Q is the heat
flow per unit time, and h is the heat transfer coefficient.
Within heat transfer, two types of convection can occur:
Forced convection can occur in both laminar and turbulent flow. In the situation of
laminar flow in circular tubes, several dimensionless numbers are used such as
Nusselt number, Reynolds number, and Prandtl. The commonly used equation is:

Natural or free convection is a function of Grashof and Prandtl numbers. The

complexities of free convection heat transfer make it necessary to mainly use
empirical relations from experimental data.[11]
Heat transfer is analyzed in packed beds, reactors and heat exchangers.