Created in COMSOL Multiphysics 6.

Vi ew Fac t or Com p u t at i on

This model is licensed under the COMSOL Software License Agreement 6.1.
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The computation of view factors is central when performing heat transfer simulations
using the radiosity method to account for surface-to-surface radiation. This benchmark
demonstrates how to compute geometrical view factors for two concentric spheres that
emit and receive radiation from each other. It compares simulation results to exact
analytical values, and illustrates how to use the symmetry of the geometry to reduce the
computational cost.

Introduction
The surface-to-surface radiation method in the Heat Transfer module relies on the
radiosity method. When surface-to-surface radiation is activated, operators are available to
compute the view factors between diffuse surfaces that irradiate each other. For some
standard configurations one can determine the view factors analytically, but in engineering
applications this is rarely possible. A benchmark example that compares exact analytical
values with simulation results shows the accuracy of the numerical method. Here, two
concentric spheres are used, for which the analytical view factors are known.

Figure 1: Model geometry.

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Model Definition
The model consists of two concentric radiating spheres (Figure 1) acting as perfect
emitters (surface emissivities both equal to 1). The radiation direction of each sphere is
such that they irradiate each other.

ANALYTICAL VIEW FACTORS

A detailed introduction on view factors is given in (Ref. 1). An arbitrary view factor F1 → 2
is defined as the proportion of radiation leaving surface S1 and intercepting surface S2,
that is

Radiation leaving S 1 and intercepting S 2

F 1 → 2 = ----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Total radiation leaving S 1

If the radiosity is the same on each surface, it only depends on the geometrical
configuration and thus can be calculated from geometrical properties. For two concentric
spheres, labeled ext for the outer sphere and int for the inner sphere, the view factors are:

R int 2
F ext → ext = 1 –  ------------
 R ext

R int 2
F ext → int =  ------------
 R ext

F int → int = 0

F int → ext = 1

Refer to Table 1 for numerical values of these quantities.

VIEW FACTOR COMPUTATION IN COMSOL MULTIPHYSICS

The view factor computation is performed at each evaluation point on the boundaries. A
boundary has an upside and a downside and both can be exposed to radiation. In this
model the outer sphere radiates inward, which is the downward direction and the inner
sphere radiates outward, which is the upward direction. Two operators are available for
evaluation of the mutual surface irradiation. These are:

• radopu(expression_upside,expression_downside)
• radopd(expression_upside,expression_downside)

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Both are available on all boundaries where surface-to-surface features are active. The
radopu(,) and radopd(,) operators perform the computation on the upside and
downside of the boundary where they are evaluated. The expression_upside and
expression_downside arguments are the radiosity expression on the upside and
downside of the boundaries that irradiate the boundary where the operators are evaluated.

To compute the geometrical view factor, for example, Fext → int, in COMSOL
Multiphysics, the following integration needs to be defined:

Sint radopu(0, ext) ds

F ext → int = -------------------------------------------------------------
A ext

where Sint and Sext denote interior and exterior surfaces, Aint and Aext are corresponding
surface areas.

The integration at the numerator is defined over the inner sphere, which radiates only on
the upside of its surface. Hence, radopd(,) evaluates to zero and the integrand reduces
to radopu(0,expression_upside). Moreover since the outer sphere radiates only on
the downside of its surface the expression_downside argument should be ext.

Results and Discussion

The view factors computed with COMSOL Multiphysics, by using or not the symmetry
in the geometry, are listed in Table 1 together with analytical values and absolute errors.
TABLE 1: VIEW FACTOR COMPUTATION.

VIEW FACTOR ANALYTICAL VALUE COMPUTED VALUE ERROR (NO ERROR (SYMMETRY)
SYMMETRY)

Fint → int 0 0 0 0
Fint → ext 1 1 1.1·10-3 1.1·10-3
Fext → ext 0.91 0.91 8.8·10-4 8.5·10-4
Fext → int 0.09 0.09 1.9·10-8 2.5·10-16

In this table, analytical and computed values are slightly different but rounded to
hundredths. The very small errors are listed in the last columns and reflect accurate results
of the view factors provided by the simulation.

Reference
1. Michael F. Modest, Radiative Heat Transfer, 3rd ed., Academic Press, 2013

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Application Library path: Heat_Transfer_Module/Verification_Examples/
view_factor

Modeling Instructions
From the File menu, choose New.

NEW
In the New window, click Model Wizard.

MODEL WIZARD
1 In the Model Wizard window, click 3D.
You are only interested in the view factors, hence Surface-to-Surface Radiation is the
only needed interface.
2 In the Select Physics tree, select Heat Transfer>Radiation>Surface-to-
Surface Radiation (rad).
3 Click Add.
4 Click Study.
5 In the Select Study tree, select General Studies>Stationary.
6 Click Done.

GEOMETRY 1
Define the radii of the spheres and the analytical values for the view factors as parameters.

GLOBAL DEFINITIONS

Parameters 1
1 In the Model Builder window, under Global Definitions click Parameters 1.
2 In the Settings window for Parameters, locate the Parameters section.
3 In the table, enter the following settings:

Name Expression Value Description

r_int 0.3[m] 0.3 m Radius, interior sphere
r_ext 1[m] 1m Radius, exterior sphere

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Name Expression Value Description
F_ext_ext 1-(r_int/r_ext)^2 0.91 Analytical view factor
from exterior sphere to
exterior sphere
F_ext_int (r_int/r_ext)^2 0.09 Analytical view factor
from exterior sphere to
interior sphere
F_int_int 0 0 Analytical view factor
from interior sphere to
interior sphere
F_int_ext 1 1 Analytical view factor
from interior sphere to
exterior sphere

GEOMETRY 1
No domain information are required, define the geometry as surface objects.

Sphere 1 (sph1)
1 In the Geometry toolbar, click Sphere.
2 In the Settings window for Sphere, locate the Object Type section.
3 From the Type list, choose Surface.
4 Locate the Size section. In the Radius text field, type r_int.
Create a selection of this sphere to easily access its entities throughout the modeling
process.
5 Locate the Selections of Resulting Entities section. Find the Cumulative selection
subsection. Click New.
6 In the New Cumulative Selection dialog box, type Inner sphere in the Name text field.
7 Click OK.

Sphere 2 (sph2)
1 In the Geometry toolbar, click Sphere.
2 In the Settings window for Sphere, locate the Object Type section.
3 From the Type list, choose Surface.
4 Locate the Size section. In the Radius text field, type r_ext.
5 Locate the Selections of Resulting Entities section. Find the Cumulative selection
subsection. Click New.
6 In the New Cumulative Selection dialog box, type Outer sphere in the Name text field.
7 Click OK.

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Thanks to the symmetries of the model, only one eighth of the geometry is needed.
Remove the unnecessary parts.

Delete Entities 1 (del1)

1 In the Model Builder window, right-click Geometry 1 and choose Delete Entities.
2 On the object sph1, select Boundaries 1–7 only.
3 On the object sph2, select Boundaries 1–7 only.
4 In the Settings window for Delete Entities, click Build All Objects.

Add a material to the boundaries to define their emissivities.

MATERIALS

Blackbody
1 In the Materials toolbar, click Blank Material.
2 In the Settings window for Material, type Blackbody in the Label text field.
3 Locate the Material Properties section. In the Material properties tree, select
Basic Properties>Surface Emissivity.
4 Click Add to Material.
5 Locate the Material Contents section. In the table, enter the following settings:

Property Variable Value Unit Property group

Surface emissivity epsilon_rad 1 1 Basic

SURFACE-TO-SURFACE RADIATION (RAD)

Diffuse Surface 1
1 In the Model Builder window, under Component 1 (comp1)>Surface-to-
Surface Radiation (rad) click Diffuse Surface 1.
2 In the Settings window for Diffuse Surface, locate the Radiation Direction section.
3 From the Emitted radiation direction list, choose Positive normal direction.

Diffuse Surface 2
1 In the Physics toolbar, click Boundaries and choose Diffuse Surface.
2 In the Settings window for Diffuse Surface, locate the Boundary Selection section.
3 From the Selection list, choose Outer sphere.
4 Locate the Radiation Direction section. From the Emitted radiation direction list, choose
Negative normal direction.

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Implement a symmetry condition for the view factor computation.

Symmetry for Surface-to-Surface Radiation 1

1 In the Physics toolbar, click Global and choose Symmetry for Surface-to-
Surface Radiation.
2 In the Settings window for Symmetry for Surface-to-Surface Radiation, locate the
Symmetry for Surface-to-Surface Radiation section.
3 From the Type of symmetry list, choose Three perpendicular symmetry planes.

Define new variables and nonlocal integration couplings to evaluate the view factors
directly after running the study. First, define variables that are used to identify the surfaces.

DEFINITIONS

Identifiers, Inner Sphere

1 In the Home toolbar, click Variables and choose Local Variables.
2 In the Settings window for Variables, type Identifiers, Inner Sphere in the Label
text field.
3 Locate the Geometric Entity Selection section. From the Geometric entity level list,
choose Boundary.
4 From the Selection list, choose Inner sphere.
5 Locate the Variables section. In the table, enter the following settings:

Name Expression Unit Description

ext 0 Exterior surface indicator
int 1 Interior surface indicator

Identifiers, Outer Sphere

1 In the Home toolbar, click Variables and choose Local Variables.
2 In the Settings window for Variables, type Identifiers, Outer Sphere in the Label
text field.
3 Locate the Geometric Entity Selection section. From the Geometric entity level list,
choose Boundary.
4 From the Selection list, choose Outer sphere.

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5 Locate the Variables section. In the table, enter the following settings:

Name Expression Unit Description

ext 1 Exterior surface indicator
int 0 Interior surface indicator

Now, define nonlocal integration couplings for both spheres.

Integration, Inner Sphere

1 In the Definitions toolbar, click Nonlocal Couplings and choose Integration.
2 In the Settings window for Integration, type Integration, Inner Sphere in the Label
text field.
3 In the Operator name text field, type intop_int.
4 Locate the Source Selection section. From the Geometric entity level list, choose
Boundary.
5 From the Selection list, choose Inner sphere.

Integration, Outer Sphere

1 In the Definitions toolbar, click Nonlocal Couplings and choose Integration.
2 In the Settings window for Integration, type Integration, Outer Sphere in the Label
text field.
3 In the Operator name text field, type intop_ext.
4 Locate the Source Selection section. From the Geometric entity level list, choose
Boundary.
5 From the Selection list, choose Outer sphere.

Adjust the mesh size for both spheres manually to get approximately the same number of
elements on each sphere. This is an efficient mesh for view factor computation.

MESH 1

Free Triangular 1
1 In the Mesh toolbar, click Boundary and choose Free Triangular.
2 In the Settings window for Free Triangular, locate the Boundary Selection section.
3 From the Selection list, choose All boundaries.

Size 1
1 Right-click Free Triangular 1 and choose Size.
2 In the Settings window for Size, locate the Geometric Entity Selection section.

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3 From the Selection list, choose Inner sphere.
4 Locate the Element Size section. Click the Custom button.
5 Locate the Element Size Parameters section.
6 Select the Maximum element size check box. In the associated text field, type r_int/5.

Size 2
1 In the Model Builder window, right-click Free Triangular 1 and choose Size.
2 In the Settings window for Size, locate the Geometric Entity Selection section.
3 From the Selection list, choose Outer sphere.
4 Locate the Element Size section. Click the Custom button.
5 Locate the Element Size Parameters section.
6 Select the Maximum element size check box. In the associated text field, type r_ext/5.
7 Click Build All.

The view factors are computed automatically, before the actual study runs. To evaluate the
geometrical view factors, it is sufficient to obtain the initial values.

STUDY 1
1 In the Model Builder window, click Study 1.

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2 In the Settings window for Study, locate the Study Settings section.
3 Clear the Generate default plots check box.
4 In the Study toolbar, click Get Initial Value.

RESULTS

View Factors
1 In the Model Builder window, expand the Results node.
2 Right-click Results>Derived Values and choose Global Evaluation.
3 In the Settings window for Global Evaluation, type View Factors in the Label text field.
4 Locate the Expressions section. In the table, enter the following settings:

Expression Unit Description

intop_int(comp1.rad.radopu(int, 1 Interior to interior view
0))/intop_int(1) factor
intop_ext(comp1.rad.radopd(int, 1 Interior to exterior view
0))/intop_int(1) factor
intop_ext(comp1.rad.radopd(0, 1 Exterior to exterior view
ext))/intop_ext(1) factor
intop_int(comp1.rad.radopu(0, 1 Exterior to interior view
ext))/intop_ext(1) factor

Absolute Error, View Factors

1 In the Results toolbar, click Global Evaluation.
2 In the Settings window for Global Evaluation, type Absolute Error, View Factors in
the Label text field.
3 Locate the Expressions section. In the table, enter the following settings:

Expression Unit Description

abs(intop_int(comp1.rad.radopu( 1 Absolute error, interior to
int,0))/intop_int(1)-F_int_int) interior view factor
abs(intop_ext(comp1.rad.radopd( 1 Absolute error, interior to
int,0))/intop_int(1)-F_int_ext) exterior view factor
abs(intop_ext(comp1.rad.radopd( 1 Absolute error, exterior to
0,ext))/intop_ext(1)-F_ext_ext) exterior view factor
abs(intop_int(comp1.rad.radopu( 1 Absolute error, exterior to
0,ext))/intop_ext(1)-F_ext_int) interior view factor

4 In the Results toolbar, click Evaluate and choose Evaluate All.

The results are displayed in the Table window.

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Then, verify that a computation on the full geometry yields the same values.

GEOMETRY 1

Delete Entities 1 (del1)

1 In the Model Builder window, under Component 1 (comp1)>Geometry 1 right-click
Delete Entities 1 (del1) and choose Disable.
2 In the Settings window for Delete Entities, click Build All Objects.
3 Click the Go to Default View button in the Graphics toolbar.

Create a new view which hides one of the front boundaries so that you can look inside the
outer sphere.

DEFINITIONS

View 2
In the Model Builder window, under Component 1 (comp1) right-click Definitions and
choose View.

Hide for Geometry 1

1 In the Model Builder window, right-click View 2 and choose Hide for Geometry.
2 In the Settings window for Hide for Geometry, locate the Selection section.
3 From the Geometric entity level list, choose Boundary.
4 On the object sph2, select Boundary 2 only.

SURFACE-TO-SURFACE RADIATION (RAD)

Symmetry for Surface-to-Surface Radiation 1

1 In the Model Builder window, under Component 1 (comp1)>Surface-to-
Surface Radiation (rad) right-click Symmetry for Surface-to-Surface Radiation 1 and
choose Disable.
Finally, compute the view factors with the new configuration and compare them with
the previous results to validate the use of symmetry.
2 In the Study toolbar, click Get Initial Value.

RESULTS

View Factors
In the Settings window for Global Evaluation, click Evaluate.

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Absolute Error, View Factors
1 In the Model Builder window, click Absolute Error, View Factors.
2 In the Settings window for Global Evaluation, click Evaluate.

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