EngiRef / Thermodynamics Engineering Formula

Log Mean Temperature Difference

Log Mean Temperature Difference: Effective temperature difference for heat exchangers. A Heat Transfer formula in thermodynamics engineering.

Heat Transfer

Specification

Name
Log Mean Temperature Difference
Discipline
thermodynamics
Category
Heat Transfer
LaTeX
LMTD = \frac{\Delta T_1 - \Delta T_2}{\ln(\Delta T_1 / \Delta T_2)}
Description
Effective temperature difference for heat exchangers
Conditions
Counter-flow or parallel-flow heat exchanger
Can solve for
LMTD
Tags
lmtd, heat, exchanger, temperature, difference

Variables

Variables for Log Mean Temperature Difference
SymbolNameUnitSi UnitImperial Unit
LMTDLog Mean Temp DiffKK°F
ΔT₁Temp Diff at End 1KK°F
ΔT₂Temp Diff at End 2KK°F

Common questions

What is the Log Mean Temperature Difference formula?
Effective temperature difference for heat exchangers. It sits under Heat Transfer, Thermo engineering in the EngiRef reference.
What do the symbols in the Log Mean Temperature Difference formula mean?
In Log Mean Temperature Difference, LMTD is log mean temp diff in K; ΔT₁ is temp diff at end 1 in K; ΔT₂ is temp diff at end 2 in K.
When does the Log Mean Temperature Difference formula apply?
Log Mean Temperature Difference holds under this condition: Counter-flow or parallel-flow heat exchanger.