Thermal Analysis 

Thermal Analysis is concerned with temperature in a region and the rate of flow of energy through that region by conduction, convection or radiation.   Modern thermal analysis codes typically use finite element techniques to solve for temperature fields.

AVI Library 71a Multi Forging
Forging #71:  A non-isothermal forging is modeled.  A hot workpiece is placed in a cold die. Note the contact locations between the workpiece and the punch and die. The workpiece is seen to cool down at these contact locations as heat is transferred to the cold punch and die.

Thermal Analysis, using finite element techniques, is carried out as a steady-state or transient analysis.  Conductive heat transfer is handled directly by finite element techniques; conduction occurs in a solid due to temperature differences. However, radiation heat transfer analysis may require additional particle-tracking or ray-tracing techniques to approximate the radiant energy arriving at a given surface.

Convective heat transfer occurs due to the swirling motion of a fluid at a non-uniform temperature, owing to its variation in density and the action of gravity. A common way to handle convection is through convective heat transfer coefficients. Advanced simulation codes may couple fluid, thermal, and structural analysis in order to study the multi-physics effect on the design of equipment and structures.