Process / pipelineHeat Exchanger Design

Log Mean Temperature Difference

The Log Mean Temperature Difference (LMTD) method is a fundamental tool for calculating heat transfer rates in heat exchangers. It defines the effective temperature difference between two fluids as the logarithmic average of the temperature differences at the inlet and outlet. This method enables engineers to size and analyze heat exchangers systematically using the basic heat transfer equation Q = U A LMTD.

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Sources

  1. Kern, D. Q. (1950). Process Heat Transfer. McGraw-Hill. link
  2. Incropera, F. P., DeWitt, D. P., Bergman, T. L., & Lavine, A. S. (2007). Fundamentals of Heat and Mass Transfer (6th ed.). Wiley. ISBN: 978-0470055540

Related methods

Referenced by

ScholarGateLog Mean Temperature Difference (Log Mean Temperature Difference Method for Heat Exchangers). Retrieved 2026-06-04 from https://scholargate.app/en/thermodynamics/log-mean-temperature-difference