Why do we call them radiators

"Decay buys too many beaters" (decay) 01/31/2015 at 14:18 • Filed to: None

4

17

instead of convectors?

TheHondaBro > Decay buys too many beaters 01/31/2015 at 14:19

1

Reasons.

norskracer98-ExploringTheOutback > Decay buys too many beaters 01/31/2015 at 14:20

0

Maybe because they look like those old radiator heaters.

Tipo Stradale Fever > Decay buys too many beaters 01/31/2015 at 14:24

1

Because they radiate heat...Both radiation and convection take place. Search thermal radiation.

WRXforScience > Decay buys too many beaters 01/31/2015 at 14:25

0

Because they transfer heat through radiation (that's what the fins do). To actually get heat out of through convection you'd need an open system or a much larger heat sink reservoir.

Birddog > Decay buys too many beaters 01/31/2015 at 14:26

0

A Radiator is a type of Convector.

Decay buys too many beaters > Tipo Stradale Fever 01/31/2015 at 14:27

0

That's the thing, they don't. The primary mode of heat transfer is convection, not radiation.

ADabOfOppo; Gone Plaid (Instructables Can Be Confusable) > Decay buys too many beaters 01/31/2015 at 14:27

0

Probably because they reminded people of the hot-water radiant heaters installed in their homes for heating...???

Reasons also works.

Decay buys too many beaters > WRXforScience 01/31/2015 at 14:29

0

But it's not radiation, it's conduction/convection to transfer heat from the fluid to the aluminum, then convection to transfer the heat from the aluminum to air.

Ever let a car idle without a working fan? That's radiation, and the car overheats.

Decay buys too many beaters > Birddog 01/31/2015 at 14:31

1

I'm saying from a theoretical thermal engineering standpoint, classifying a convection device as a radiator is awfully silly.

Tipo Stradale Fever > Decay buys too many beaters 01/31/2015 at 14:34

0

Could you explain to me how heat transfer occurs?

WRXforScience > Decay buys too many beaters 01/31/2015 at 14:43

1

The fans/moving car provides the convective heat transfer while the radiator radiates the heat energy. You have answered your own question.

The "convector" is the fan and the "radiator" is the radiator.

Decay buys too many beaters > Tipo Stradale Fever 01/31/2015 at 14:59

1

Convection is the removal of heat from a system by moving liquids or gasses. Radiation is the removal of energy from a system via electromagnetic waves.

The equation for radiation heat transfer is

Heat is equivalent to the emissivity of the object (which on a silver/bare aluminum radiator is going to be really low) times the Stefan Boltzmann constant (5.67 *10^-8) times the difference between the two temperatures to the fourth power.

Since the difference between a radiator and ambient is only about 70K and the emissivity is low, I would guess it contributes a very small portion to the overall heat transfer of the system.

Decay buys too many beaters > WRXforScience 01/31/2015 at 15:10

0

But the heat transfer from the fins to the air (that then get moved by the fan) is still free convection (and a little bit of conduction)

desertdog5051 > Decay buys too many beaters 01/31/2015 at 15:48

0

Because radiator.

Decay buys too many beaters > desertdog5051 01/31/2015 at 15:55

1

^also a convector

mr2gud2u > Decay buys too many beaters 01/31/2015 at 16:39

2

That is kind of odd. In an industrial application it would probably be called a heat exchanger.

WRXforScience > Decay buys too many beaters 01/31/2015 at 16:40

2

You're right, we should just call them heat exchangers. The name seems to be an anachronism related to the description of the way heat eminates out from the device.