Practice Convection in Physics

Use these practice problems to test your method after reviewing the concept explanation and worked examples.

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Quick Recap

Heat transfer through the bulk movement of a fluid (liquid or gas) that carries thermal energy from one place to another.

Hot air rises and cool air sinks — this circulation carries heat through the room.

Showing a random 20 of 50 problems.

Example 1

easy
Can convection occur in a solid steel block? Why or why not?

Example 2

medium
A heated plate transfers 1200 W by convection over 3 m23 \text{ m}^2 with h=20h = 20. Find the temperature difference.

Example 3

medium
Convective heat flow is 800 W. If the airflow doubles hh and the temperature difference stays the same, find the new heat flow.

Example 4

medium
A wall (A=10 m2A=10 \text{ m}^2, surface at 30°C30°C) loses heat to outside air at 5°C5°C with h=12h=12. Find QQ.

Example 5

hard
Why does water boil in a pot mostly at the bottom but heat the whole pot quickly?

Example 6

hard
Why do desert nights feel colder than expected even when air temperature is moderate?

Example 7

easy
Can convection occur inside a perfect solid like steel?

Example 8

medium
A 0.2 m20.2 \text{ m}^2 heater is at 60°C60°C in 20°C20°C air with h=18h=18. Find QQ.

Example 9

medium
Convective heat flow is 750 W750 \text{ W} at h=15h=15, A=2 m2A=2 \text{ m}^2. Find ΔT\Delta T.

Example 10

medium
A cup of coffee loses 50 W by convection at ΔT=50°C\Delta T = 50°C. Find its convective coefficient times area (hAhA).

Example 11

easy
Is the convective heat transfer coefficient hh a fixed material property like thermal conductivity?

Example 12

easy
Which two states of matter can transfer heat by convection?

Example 13

medium
Why do convection ovens cook food faster than conventional ovens at the same temperature?

Example 14

challenge
A house wall loses heat by conduction (1000 W) and the outer surface then loses it by convection (h=20h = 20, A=10 m2A = 10 \text{ m}^2). In steady state, find the temperature difference between the outer surface and the outside air.

Example 15

medium
An attic vent uses convection to push hot air out. Hot attic air at 40°C40°C rises while cooler outside air at 25°C25°C enters at the soffits. What property of the hot air drives this motion?

Example 16

hard
A wall conducts 1500 W1500 \text{ W} to its outer surface, which loses heat by convection (h=15h=15, A=10 m2A=10 \text{ m}^2) into 5°C5°C air. In steady state, find the outer surface temperature.

Example 17

easy
Convection requires a ___ that can flow to carry thermal energy from place to place.

Example 18

medium
Wind chill: at ΔT=10°C\Delta T = 10°C, increasing wind raises hh from 55 to 3030. Find the factor by which convective heat loss grows.

Example 19

medium
Sea breezes occur because land heats faster than water during the day. How does convection create the breeze?

Example 20

medium
A heater surface (A=0.5 m2A = 0.5 \text{ m}^2, h=30h = 30) is at 70°C in 25°C air. Find the convective heat output.
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