Measurement of Thermal Conductivity of Sludge and Liquid Materials

Abstract

The present article describes two various methods of determination of thermal conductivity of semi-solid and liquid materials. One is based on experimental measurements of heat flux through a layer of semi-solid material while using the Heat Flow Plates, and the second one uses Peltier Elements to determine the heat flux density. The first method was used to determine thermal conductivity of sludge taken from natural gas coolers. Its value, identified by measurements, was 0.746 W·m-1·K-1. The second method was applied to determine thermal conductivity for sludge taken from natural gas filtration units. Values thereof were ranging from 0.608 W·m-1·K-1 (at the mean sludge temperature of 22 °C) to 0.652 W·m-1·K-1 (at the sludge temperature of 43 °C).