Natural convection and radiation heat transfer from staggered vertical fins

Abstract The heat transfer by natural convection and radiation between an isothermal vertical surface, having a staggered array of discrete vertical plates of finite thickness, and the surroundings is investigated. The natural convection contribution has been measured for several geometric configurations with low emittance surfaces, analysing the influence of the most significant parameters. The radiant component has been evaluated by applying the configuration factor algebra to all the surfaces of the system, assumed isothermal, diffuse and gray. The theoretical results have been experimentally verified by measuring the exchanged heat flux through surfaces of known emissivity. For the particular geometry taken into account, the convective and radiant components yield a more efficient heat transfer than that obtained from fins made up of U-shaped vertical channels of the same bulk volume.