Unsteady state conditions are a precursor to steady state conditions. No system exists initially under steady state conditions. Some time must pass, after heat transfer is initiated, before the system reaches steady state. During that period of transition the system is under unsteady state conditions.
In an unsteady-state heat transfer process, the temperature at any location in the system changes with time. The transfer of heat in this process is unsteady or transient. Unsteady-state heat transfer is important because of the large number of heating and cooling problems occurring in biological systems. In this entry, the general governing equation for unsteady-state heat transfer is covered first, and then expressions for lumped capacity method, semi-infinite solids, infinite slab, infinite cylinder, sphere, and finite solids are derived.