ONE FORMULA, ONE ANSWER
Insulated-tip fin efficiency calculator
Compare heat transfer from a straight uniform fin with the ideal heat transfer if its entire surface were at the base temperature. Choose input units and calculate one value within the stated conditions.
Inputs
Calculations run in this browser. Scientific notation such as 1.2e-3 is supported. Do not group thousands.
Result
Insulated-tip fin efficiency η
Enter values and select Calculate.
m = √(hP/(kA꜀)); η = tanh(mL)/(mL); mL → 0: η → 1
Assumptions
Required: steady one-dimensional conduction, uniform cross-section, constant conductivity, convection coefficient and ambient temperature, uniform base temperature and an insulated tip. Excluded: transverse temperature gradients, radiation and contact resistance. P creates the lateral convection area; the tip area is excluded. At h=0 or L=0 the displayed efficiency is its limiting value 1, which does not imply nonzero heat transfer.
Displayed values are floating-point approximations. Design safety factors and unprovided error contributions are not calculated.
Formula references and credits
NaNa Lab created the code, descriptions, icons and preview images. Text, figures and code from the linked references have not been reproduced.
Physical constants: NIST / CODATA 2022. The values of μ₀ and ε₀ are measured recommendations, not exact defining constants. Values and precision notes are in the source record.
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