THERMAL_DIFFUSIVITY

This function calculates thermal diffusivity, which measures how quickly heat spreads through a material relative to its ability to store thermal energy.

Thermal diffusivity is defined as:

\alpha = \frac{k}{\rho C_p}

where k is thermal conductivity, \rho is density, and C_p is specific heat capacity. The result is returned in m^2/s.

Excel Usage

=THERMAL_DIFFUSIVITY(k, rho, Cp)

k (float, required): Thermal conductivity (W/m/K).
rho (float, required): Density (kg/m^3).
Cp (float, required): Heat capacity (J/kg/K).

Returns (float): Thermal diffusivity (m^2/s).

Example 1: Thermal diffusivity example case

Inputs:

k	rho	Cp
0.02	1	1000

Excel formula:

=THERMAL_DIFFUSIVITY(0.02, 1, 1000)

Expected output:

0.00002

Example 2: Thermal diffusivity for water like properties

Inputs:

k	rho	Cp
0.6	1000	4180

Excel formula:

=THERMAL_DIFFUSIVITY(0.6, 1000, 4180)

Expected output:

1.43541e-7

Example 3: Thermal diffusivity for air like properties

Inputs:

k	rho	Cp
0.026	1.2	1005

Excel formula:

=THERMAL_DIFFUSIVITY(0.026, 1.2, 1005)

Expected output:

0.0000215589

Example 4: Thermal diffusivity for oil like properties

Inputs:

k	rho	Cp
0.13	850	2000

Excel formula:

=THERMAL_DIFFUSIVITY(0.13, 850, 2000)

Expected output:

7.64706e-8

Python Code

Show Code

from ht.boiling_plate import thermal_diffusivity as ht_thermal_diffusivity

def thermal_diffusivity(k, rho, Cp):
    """
    Calculate thermal diffusivity for a fluid.

    See: https://ht.readthedocs.io/en/latest/ht.boiling_plate.html

    This example function is provided as-is without any representation of accuracy.

    Args:
        k (float): Thermal conductivity (W/m/K).
        rho (float): Density (kg/m^3).
        Cp (float): Heat capacity (J/kg/K).

    Returns:
        float: Thermal diffusivity (m^2/s).
    """
    try:
        result = ht_thermal_diffusivity(k, rho, Cp)
        return result
    except Exception as e:
        return f"Error: {str(e)}"

Online Calculator

k *

Thermal conductivity (W/m/K).

rho *

Density (kg/m^3).

Cp *

Heat capacity (J/kg/K).