In heat transfer, conduction (or heat conduction) is the transfer of heat energy by microscopic diffusion and collisions of particles

or quasi-particles within a body due to atemperature gradient. The microscopically diffusing and colliding objects include molecules, electrons, atoms, and phonons. They transfer microscopically disorganized kinetic and potential energy, which are jointly known as internal energy. Conduction takes place in all forms of ponderable matter, such as solids, liquids, gases and plasmas. On a microscopic scale, conduction occurs within a body considered as being stationary; this means that the kinetic and potential energies of the bulk motion of the body are separately accounted for. Internal energy diffuses as rapidly moving or vibrating atoms and molecules interact with neighboring particles, transferring some of their microscopic kinetic and potential energies, these quantities being defined relative to the bulk of the body considered as being stationary. Heat is transferred by conduction when adjacent atoms or molecules collide, or as several electrons move backwards and forwards from atom to atom in a disorganized way so as not to form a macroscopic electric current, or as phonons collide and scatter. Conduction is the most significant means of heat transfer within a solid or between solid objects in thermal contact. Conduction is greater in solids because the network of relatively close fixed spatial relationships between atoms helps to transfer energy between them by vibration Steady-state conduction Steady state conduction is the form of conduction that happens when the temperature difference(s) driving the conduction are constant, so that (after an equilibration time), the spatial distribution of temperatures (temperature field) in the conducting object does not change any further. Thus, all partial derivatives of temperature with respect to space may either be zero or have nonzero values, but all derivatives of temperature at any point with respect to time are uniformly zero. In steady state conduction, the amount of heat entering any region of an object is equal to amount of heat coming out (if this were not so, the temperature would be rising or falling, as thermal energy was tapped or trapped in a region). For example, a bar may be cold at one end and hot at the other, but after a state of steady state conduction is reached, the spatial gradient of temperatures along the bar does not change any further, as time proceeds. Instead, the temperature at any given section of the rod remains constant, and this temperature varies linearly in space, along the direction of heat transfer. In steady state conduction, all the laws of direct current electrical conduction can be applied to "heat currents". In such cases, it is possible to take "thermal resistances" as the analog to electrical resistances. In such cases, temperature plays the role of voltage, and heat transferred per unit time (heat power) is the analog of electrical current. Steady state systems can be modelled by networks of such thermal resistances in series and in parallel, in exact analogy to electrical networks of resistors. See purely resistive thermal circuitsfor an example of such a network.

Transient conduction In general, during any period in which temperatures are changing in time at any place within an object, the mode of thermal energy flow is termed transient conduction. Another term is "non steady-state" conduction, referring to time-dependence of temperature fields in an object. Nonsteady-state situations appear after an imposed change in temperature at a boundary of an object. They may also occur with temperature changes inside an object, as a result of a new source or sink of heat suddenly introduced within an object, causing temperatures near the source or sink to change in time. When a new perturbation of temperature of this type happens, temperatures within the system will change in time toward a new equilibrium with the new conditions, provided that these do not change. After equilibrium, heat flow into the system will once again equal the heat flow out, and temperatures at each point inside the system no longer change. Once this happens, transient conduction is ended, although steady-state conduction may continue if there continues to be heat flow. If changes in external temperatures or internal heat generation changes are too rapid for equilibrium of temperatures in space to take place, then the system never reaches a state of unchanging temperature distribution in time, and the system remains in a transient state. An example of a new source of heat "turning on" within an object which causes transient conduction, is an engine starting in an automobile. In this case the transient thermal conduction phase for the entire machine would be over, and the steady state phase would appear, as soon as the engine had reached steady-state operating temperature. In this stat\ e of steady-state equilibrium, temperatures would vary greatly from the engine cylinders to other parts of the automobile, but at no point in space within the automobile would temperature be increasing or decreasing. After establishment of this state, the transient conduction phase of heat transfer would be over. Analysis of non steady-state conduction systems is more complex than steady-state systems, and (except for simple shapes) calls for the application of approximation theories, and/or numerical analysis by computer. One popular graphical method involves the use of Heisler Charts. Occasionally transient conduction problems may be considerably simplified if regions of the object being heated or cooled can be identified, in which thermal conductivity is very much greater than that for heat paths leading into the region. In this case, the region with high conductivity can often be treated in the lumped capacitance model, as a "lump" of material with a simple thermal capacitance consisting of its aggregate heat capacity. Such regions show no temperature variation across their extent during warming or cooling (as compared to the rest of the system) due to their far higher conductance. During transient conduction, therefore, their temperature changes uniformly in space, and as a simple exponential in time. An example of such systems are those which follow "Newton's law of cooling" during transient cooling (or the

reverse during heating). The equivalent thermal circuit consists of a simple capacitor in series with a resistor. In such cases, the remainder of the system with high thermal resistance (comparatively low conductivity) plays the role of the resistor in the circuit. Pada pemrosesan makanan, sering kali ditemui kondisi suhu yang menjadi fungsi dari waktu. Aplikasi yan paling umum dari perpindahan kalor konduksi tak tunik adalah proses memasak dan mendinginkan makanan di dalam suatu wadah atau kaleng. Apabila wujud bahan makanan yang diproses adalah padat, perpindahan kalor akan trejadi secara konduksi saja. Penghitungan kuantitatif perpindahan panas konduksi tak tunak cukup rumit. Persamaan Fourier dalam bentuk turunan parsial tiga dimensi digunakan untuk mneyelesaikan penghitungan ini. Pada konduksi tak tunak, temperatur bahan makanan akan sangat bergantung pada waktu dan posisi bahan itu sendiri. Perubahan temperatur akan dipengaruhi oleh: 1. Temperatur mula-mula bahan makanan 2. Temperatur dari medium pemanas 3. Koefisien perpindahan panas permukaan 4. Konduktivitas termal, specifi heat, dan massa jenis bahan makanan dan variasinya terhadap temperatur dan konposisi 5. Ketebalan dari bahan makanan. Persamanan umum dari perpindahan panas konduksi tak tunak adalah

Dimana : perubahan temperatur terhadap waktu massa jenis bahan kapasitas kalor spesifik konduktivitas termal Saat bahan makanan padat dipanaskan atau didinginkan dengan menggunakan fluida, resistansi terhadap perpindahan panas akan diatur oleh koefisien perpindahan panas permukaan (h) dan konduktivitas termal bahan (k). Kedua faktor ini berhubungan dengan angka Biot :

Dimana : panjang karakteristik pada bahan padat Apabila angka Biot yang didapat kecil atau bernilai kurang dari 0,2, permukaan bahan merupakan resistansi utama dari perpindahan kalor. Pada kasus ini diasumsikan bahwa resistansi dari dalam bahan diabaikan. Walaupun demikian, banyak pula kasus dimana angka Biot yang didapat lebih dari 1 sehingga resistansi dalam bahanya tidak diabaikan. Penghitungan dari kasus ini cukup remit dan membutuhkan bantuan bagan dalam penyelesaianya

During potato frying, heat is transferred from the frying medium to the product surface by convection and from the surface to the inside by conduction. After im-mersion in the frying medium, a small amount of air occluded within the potato tissue expands and gives rise to the

first bubbles that escape from the potato. The potato surface heats up to the wet bulb temperature and water starts vapourising. As frying progresses, the evaporation front moves towards the centre, a surface crust is formed, and eventually the temperature of the potato surface rises to that of the oil.