The hot wire technique is considered to be an effective and accurate means of determining the thermal conductivity of ceramic materials. However, specifically for materials of high thermal diffusivity, the appropriate time interval to be considered in calculations is a decisive factor for getting accurate and consistent results. In this work, a numerical simulation model is proposed with the aim of determining the minimum and maximum measuring time for the hot wire parallel technique. The temperature profile generated by this model is in excellent agreement with that one experimentally obtained by this technique, where thermal conductivity, thermal diffusivity and specific heat are simultaneously determined from the same experimental temperature transient. Eighteen different specimens of refractory materials and polymers, with thermal diffusivities ranging from 1x10-7 to 70x10-7 m²/s, in shape of rectangular parallelepipeds, and with different dimensions were employed in the experimental programme. An empirical equation relating minimum and maximum measuring times and the thermal diffusivity of the sample is also obtained.
hot wire technique; numerical simulation model; minimum and maximum measuring time; thermal properties; refractories
