Evaluation of Various Methods Used to Predict Heat Transfer Across Rectangular Reflective Insulation Systems

An evaluation of various methods used to predict the resistance to heat transfer for vertical enclosures with reflective insulation is performed Ex perimental results were obtained from several sources to provide a basis for compari son of the accuracy of the predictive methods. The various predictive methods con sidered included using the ASHRAE guide, employing experimental correlations obtained from various sources, and applying several numerical methods used to model the governing equations. The resistance values predicted from the various methods were either obtained directly from the sources when provided, or were found by applying the published predictive methods when the results were not pro vided. A wide range of differences between the experimental results and the predic tive methods was found. The accuracy of the methods ranges from within 1% to over 40% difference from the experimental results.