Análisis comparativo de la convección natural y forzada: Fundamentos, ventajas y aplicaciones en sistemas térmicos y agroindustriales

Autores/as

DOI:

https://doi.org/10.17268/agroind.sci.2026.02.12

Palabras clave:

transferencia de calor, convección natural, convección forzada, coeficiente de convección, aplicaciones industriales

Resumen

Este estudio se realiza un análisis detallado, tanto técnico como bibliométrico, de los procesos de transferencia de calor mediante convección natural y forzada. Se abordan sus principios físicos fundamentales, formulaciones matemáticas, variables que condicionan su desempeño y aplicaciones relevantes en los sectores térmico y agroindustrial. La investigación se sustentó en el examen de 169 publicaciones científicas difundidas entre 2010 y 2024, empleando herramientas especializadas como VOSViewer y Bibliometrix para explorar tendencias, ejes temáticos y vacíos existentes en la literatura. La convección natural, reconocida por su eficiencia energética y simplicidad estructural, ha mostrado efectividad en sistemas pasivos como el secado solar o la refrigeración sin partes móviles. Por otro lado, la convección forzada, al requerir intervención mecánica, permite un control más preciso de las condiciones térmicas, resultando fundamental en procesos como el enfriamiento de baterías, la pasteurización, la esterilización y el funcionamiento de paneles fotovoltaicos térmicos. Los hallazgos bibliométricos reflejan un incremento sostenido en estudios sobre dinámica de fluidos computacional (CFD), uso de nanofluidos y mejoras geométricas. Se concluye que ambos mecanismos de convección pueden integrarse estratégicamente según las exigencias térmicas, energéticas y operativas de cada sistema, favoreciendo el diseño de soluciones térmicas robustas, sostenibles y adaptables a diversos entornos industriales.

 

Citas

Abdulkadhim, A., Abed, I. M., & Said, N. M. (2021). An exhaustive review on natural convection within complex enclosures: Influence of various parameters. Chinese Journal of Physics, 74, 365-388. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.cjph.2021.10.012

Aguilar, J. F. G., & Hernández, J. R. R. (2014). Ley de enfriamiento de Newton de orden fraccionario Fractional Newton cooling law.

Altin, O., Marra, F., & Erdogdu, F. (2022). Computational study for natural convection effects on temperature during batch and continuous industrial scale radio frequency tempering/thawing processes. Journal of Food Engineering, 312, 110743. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jfoodeng.2021.110743

Barragán, D. (2009). Entropy production and Newton’s cooling law. Ingeniería e Investigación, 29(2), 88-93. https://doi.org/10.15446/ing.investig.v29n2.15167

Başaran, A., Yılmaz, T., & Çivi, C. (2018). Application of inductive forced heating as a new approach to food industry heat exchangers: A case study—Tomato paste pasteurization. Journal of Thermal Analysis and Calorimetry, 134(3), 2265-2274. https://doi.org/10.1007/s10973-018-7250-7

Bhandari, M., Sharma, R., Bobade, H., Sharma, S., & Singh, B. (2025). Infrared thermogenesis: Review of multifaceted effects on cereal grains’ functional, morphological & rheological properties and safety concerns. Food Control, 172, 111207. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.foodcont.2025.111207

Caliskan Temiz, M., Bacak, A., Camci, M., Karakoyun, Y., Acikgoz, O., & Dalkilic, A. S. (2025). A new hybrid CFD approach to study the impact of forced convection on radiant cooled wall with baseboard diffuser including various vane angles. International Journal of Thermal Sciences, 213, 109804. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.ijthermalsci.2025.109804

Campañone, L. A., Salvadori, V. O., & Mascheroni, R. H. (2005). Food freezing with simultaneous surface dehydration: Approximate prediction of freezing time. International Journal of Heat and Mass Transfer, 48(6), 1205-1213. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.ijheatmasstransfer.2004.09.030

Chen, Z., Liao, M., Hu, X., Ma, Y., Jiang, S., Chen, X., Zou, F., Fan, X., & He, Z. (2023). Study on the performance of thermoelectric refrigerator under natural convection heat transfer condition. Applied Thermal Engineering, 230, 120822. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.applthermaleng.2023.120822

Chouikhi, H., & Amer, B. M. A. (2023). Performance Evaluation of an Indirect-Mode Forced Convection Solar Dryer Equipped with a PV/T Air Collector for Drying Tomato Slices. Sustainability, 15(6), 5070. https://doi.org/10.3390/su15065070

González, N. P., Rivera, D. R., & Moraga, N. O. (2021). Conjugate turbulent natural heat convection and solid food freezing modelling: Effects of position and number of pieces of salmon on the cooling rate. Thermal Science and Engineering Progress, 26, 101101. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.tsep.2021.101101

Han, J.-C., & Wright, L. M. (2022). Analytical Heat Transfer (2.a ed.). CRC Press. https://doi.org/10.1201/9781003164487

Hasan, M., Perna, R., Elkholy, A., Durfee, J., & Kempers, R. (2025). A lightweight additively manufactured two-phase integrated natural convection heat sink. Applied Thermal Engineering, 266, 125700. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.applthermaleng.2025.125700

Hashemian Nik, E., Macheiner, G., Thang, V. H., & Hochenauer, C. (2024). Experimental investigation of heat transfer for hot water shower sterilization of bags and bottles. International Journal of Heat and Mass Transfer, 229, 125729. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.ijheatmasstransfer.2024.125729

Hossain, M. I., Chowdhury, M. S. H., Ahmed, S. S. U., Hamja, A., & Siddique, I. J. (2025). Forced convective heat transfer over twisted and perforated forked pin fin heat sink: A numerical study. International Journal of Thermal Sciences, 211, 109719. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.ijthermalsci.2025.109719

Ikramov, A. M., Polatov, A. M., & National University of Uzbekistan. (2023). 10.26516/1997-7670.2023.45.89. The Bulletin of Irkutsk State University. Series Mathematics, 45, 104-120. https://doi.org/10.26516/1997-7670.2023.45.104

Incropera, F. P., & Witt, D. P. de. (2009). Fundamentos de transferencia de Calor (4a ed). Prentice Hall.

Kadhim, S. A., Ashour, A. M., Sherza, J. S., Bouabidi, A., Hussein, A. K., Togun, H., Rashid, F. L., & Ahmad, S. (2025). Review of insertion scenarios in enhancement performance of double-pipe heat exchanger: Case of cut twist tape. Chemical Engineering and Processing - Process Intensification, 213, 110308. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.cep.2025.110308

Kumar, R., Kumar, A., & Assam, A. (2024). Investigating forced convection in porous media-filled cavities for designing supplementary passive cooling systems. Thermal Science and Engineering Progress, 55, 102914. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.tsep.2024.102914

Lau, W. L., Reizes, J., Timchenko, V., Kara, S., & Kornfeld, B. (2015). Heat and mass transfer model to predict the operational performance of a steam sterilisation autoclave including products. International Journal of Heat and Mass Transfer, 90, 800-811. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.ijheatmasstransfer.2015.06.089

Mirzaei, A. M., Mokhtari Mehmandoosti, M., Bijarchi, M. A., & Ganji, D. D. (2025). Investigation of entropy generation and natural convection in a trapezoidal porous enclosure with a square hole: A finite element analysis. Case Studies in Thermal Engineering, 70, 106069. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.csite.2025.106069

Munir, S., Rahman, A., Alkuhayli, N. A. M., & Nawaz, R. (2025). Computational analysis of thermal enhancement and flow dynamics in lid‐driven staggered cavities with uniform/nonuniform temperature walls. ZAMM - Journal of Applied Mathematics and Mechanics / Zeitschrift Für Angewandte Mathematik Und Mechanik, 105(5), e70011. https://doi.org/10.1002/zamm.70011

Ohlsson, K. E. A., Östin, R., & Olofsson, T. (2016). Accurate and robust measurement of the external convective heat transfer coefficient based on error analysis. Energy and Buildings, 117, 83-90. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.enbuild.2016.01.040

Prajapati, C., & Sheorey, T. (2023). Exploring the efficacy of natural convection in a cabinet type solar dryer for drying gooseberries: An experimental analysis. Journal of Agriculture and Food Research, 14, 100684. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jafr.2023.100684

Rostane, B., Aliane, K., Alqahtani, S., Kaid, N., Menni, Y., & Chamkha, A. J. (2024). Three-dimensional assessment of convective heat transfer in perforated cubic obstacles arranged in a staggered pattern under laminar flows. Physics of Fluids, 36(9), 093615. https://doi.org/10.1063/5.0223015

Shafiei, D., Mostafavi, S. A., Mehrabadi, S. J., & Toghraie, D. (2022). Analysis of the effects of forced convective heat transfer to reduce the efficiency of heaters of gas pressure reducing stations. Case Studies in Thermal Engineering, 38, 102356. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.csite.2022.102356

Shaik, S. A., Nigam, P. K., & Gugulothu, S. K. (2025). Optimizing cooling efficiency in Li-ion battery packs: A numerical study on the influence of inter-cell gaps and airflow dynamics. Thermal Science and Engineering Progress, 62, 103624. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.tsep.2025.103624

Sharma, S., & Balakotaiah, V. (2025). Analysis of natural convection effects in non‐vacuum‐based insulation layers of large‐scale liquid hydrogen tanks. AIChE Journal, 71(4), e18725. https://doi.org/10.1002/aic.18725

Sheng, X., Gao, C., Li, L., Lu, X., Zhang, J., Xu, Y., & Ding, J. (2025). Numerical fitting of convective heat transfer coefficient on ball screw surface with linear -rotary composite motion. International Communications in Heat and Mass Transfer, 165, 108977. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.icheatmasstransfer.2025.108977

Umbricht, G. F., Rubio, D., Echarri, R., & El Hasi, C. (2020). A technique to estimate the transient coefficient of heat transfer by convection. Latin American Applied Research - An international journal, 50(3), 229-234. https://doi.org/10.52292/j.laar.2020.179

Vagiakis, A., Korres, D. N., & Tzivanidis, C. (2025). Simulation of natural convection heat transfer in dielectric liquids for single-phase immersion cooling rack server. Applied Thermal Engineering, 274, 126595. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.applthermaleng.2025.126595

Varma, M. N., & Kannan, A. (2006). CFD studies on natural convective heating of canned food in conical and cylindrical containers. Journal of Food Engineering, 77(4), 1024-1036. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jfoodeng.2005.07.035

Verlindo, R., Schwert, R., Peruzzolo, M., Fischer, B., Dornelles, R. C. P., Mello, R. D. O., Junges, A., Backes, G. T., & Cansian, R. L. (2024). Efficiency of natural and forced convection systems in cooking ham: Industrial scale validation. Journal of Food Process Engineering, 47(9). https://doi.org/10.1111/jfpe.14740

Wang, Q., Li, X., Wang, T., Ma, S., Zhang, B., & Ma, T. (2024). Analysis methodology of thermal conduction-advection resistance in parallel during heat transfer in the fluid domain. Scientia Sinica Technologica, 54(9), 1789-1796. https://doi.org/10.1360/SST-2023-0310

Wei, W., & Jiang, Z. (2023). A bibliometrix-based visualization analysis of international studies on conversations of people with aphasia: Present and prospects. Heliyon, 9(6), e16839. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.heliyon.2023.e16839

Will, J. B., Kruyt, N. P., & Venner, C. H. (2017). An experimental study of forced convective heat transfer from smooth, solid spheres. International Journal of Heat and Mass Transfer, 109, 1059-1067. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.ijheatmasstransfer.2017.02.018

Wodołażski, A., & Smoliński, A. (2025). Optimization Study of Hydrothermal Liquefaction Sewage Sludge to Biocrude Oil in Continuous Multiphase Plug Flow Reactor. Processes, 13(4), 976. https://doi.org/10.3390/pr13040976

Wu, T., Yan, R., Jin, Z., Cao, S., Xu, H., Jiang, Y., Fan, R., & Li, X. (2025). A compact and less heat affected Nd:YAG laser with heat dissipation by natural convection solely. Optics & Laser Technology, 183, 112371. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.optlastec.2024.112371

Xiao, Y., Zhang, C., & Gu, H. (2020). Investigation of thermosyphon characteristics in a vertical narrow annulus closed at top with external forced convection cooling. Annals of Nuclear Energy, 138, 107226. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.anucene.2019.107226

Xu, C., Rao, Y., & Zhang, P. (2025). Experimental and numerical studies of turbulent flow and heat transfer enhancement over oblong-dimple patterned surfaces. International Journal of Heat and Fluid Flow, 115, 109863. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.ijheatfluidflow.2025.109863

Yang, M., Wang, D., Dong, Z., Zhang, Z., Li, Y., & Du, D. (2025). Insight into the permeability effect on forced convective heat transfer characteristics in porous media based on the pore-scale numerical study. International Communications in Heat and Mass Transfer, 165, 109004. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.icheatmasstransfer.2025.109004

Zaini, M. I. A., Mustapha, M., Nazri, N. S., Rosli, N. N., Mutalib, M. A., Sulong, W. M. W., Ibrahim, M. A., & Fudholi, A. (2025). Innovative water-cooling system for enhanced energy efficiency in photovoltaic-thermal system. Case Studies in Thermal Engineering, 70, 106137. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.csite.2025.106137

Zhao, J., Liaw, K. L., Zolfagharroshan, M., Xu, M., Akbarzadeh, A., & Sasmito, A. P. (2025). Exposed-area dependent forced convective heat transfer in periodic lattice structures. International Journal of Heat and Mass Transfer, 241, 126683. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.ijheatmasstransfer.2025.126683

Zuo, Z., Dong, L., Yang, Q., Wang, Z., Zhao, W., Zhan, B., Tong, L., Wu, P., & Wang, L. (2025). Visualization study of frosting characteristics on a horizontal cold plate under natural convection condition. International Journal of Heat and Mass Transfer, 241, 126789. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.ijheatmasstransfer.2025.126789

Descargas

Publicado

2026-04-10

Cómo citar

Calderon, L., & Huacacolqui, S. (2026). Análisis comparativo de la convección natural y forzada: Fundamentos, ventajas y aplicaciones en sistemas térmicos y agroindustriales. Agroindustrial Science, 16(2), 305-318. https://doi.org/10.17268/agroind.sci.2026.02.12

Número

Sección

Artículo de Revisión