Chapter 10
Natural (or Free) Convection
10.1 Introduction
In the previous chapter, we studied heat transfer by forced convection, wherein fluid movement was caused by an external agency such as a pump or fan. In this chapter, we shall study about heat transfer in ‘Natural or free convection’; here, fluid movement is caused because of density differences in the fluid due to temperature differences, under the influence of gravity. Density differences cause a ‘buoyancy force’ which in turn, causes the fluid circulation by ‘convection currents’. Buoyancy force is the upward force exerted by a fluid on a completely or partially immersed body and is equal to the weight of the fluid displaced by the body. Obviously, fluid velocity in natural convection ...
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