Heat transport by acoustic streaming within a cylindrical resonator

Several experiments on heat transport within a cylindrical resonance tube, mediated by acoustic streaming, are described. The amplitude dependence of the heat transfer coefficient, h, from a hot object located inside the tube depends on the size of the object. For an object short compared to the acoustic displacement amplitude, h is proportional to the square root of amplitude; for a long object, h is linear in amplitude. For an empty resonator with a heated wall segment, the radial heat flux varies with position in a manner consistent with the global streaming pattern within the tube. The magnitude of heat transport from the heated wall segment is increased by inserting an object into the tube because the localized streaming velocity induced by the object is larger than the global streaming velocity in the empty tube. These effects could find application in the cooling of hot objects like electronic components or in thermoacoustic engines.