On the Cylindrical Probe Method of Measuring Thermal Conductivity with Special Reference to Soils. I. Extension of Theory and Discussion of Probe Characteristics

Abstract

The theory of cylindrical probes for measuring thermal conductivity is extended to the case of a probe of finite conductivity containing a line source at its centre. This provides a more realistic approximation to most actual probes than the theory for a probe of infinite conductivity developed by other authors. New experimental results are presented which are in complete agreement with theory It is shown how an estimate can be obtained of the magnitude of a possible thermal contact resistance between the probe and the medium and how its influence on the measured conductivity can be assessed.