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1st Sem Hotel Engg. Notes

Understanding Heat Terms, Units and Methods of Transfer in Hotel Engineering

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Last updated: 4 July 2023

Heat is an important aspect of hotel engineering, and it’s crucial to have a good understanding of heat terms, units, and methods of transfer. This blog will provide an in-depth explanation of these concepts, including the different types of heat transfer and the units used to measure heat.

What is heat?

Heat is a form of energy that is essential in hotel engineering. It’s necessary for cooking food, heating water, and keeping rooms warm. Understanding heat terms and units is crucial for maintaining a safe and efficient hotel. Heat can be transferred through three methods: conduction, convection, and radiation.

Heat Terms and Units

Heat is measured in units such as joules, calories, and British Thermal Units (BTUs). The joule is the SI unit of energy and is used to measure heat transfer in international scientific contexts. Calories are used to measure the amount of heat required to raise the temperature of one gram of water by one degree Celsius. BTUs are commonly used in the United States to measure energy.

Specific heat is another important heat term. It refers to the amount of heat required to raise the temperature of one unit of a substance by one degree Celsius. Different materials have different specific heat values, and this is important to consider when designing hotel equipment.

Methods of Heat Transfer

Heat can be transferred through conduction, convection, and radiation. Conduction is the transfer of heat through a material, such as when a pot is placed on a hot stove. Convection is the transfer of heat through a fluid or gas, such as when warm air rises and cool air sinks. Radiation is the transfer of heat through electromagnetic waves, such as when the sun warms the earth.

Important terms

Here’s a list of heat-related terms and units with their definitions:

  1. Temperature – A measure of the average kinetic energy of the particles in a substance.
  2. Joule (J) – The SI unit of energy and heat, defined as the amount of work done when a force of one newton is applied over a distance of one meter.
  3. Calorie (cal) – The amount of heat required to raise the temperature of one gram of water by one degree Celsius.
  4. British Thermal Unit (BTU) – The amount of heat required to raise the temperature of one pound of water by one degree Fahrenheit.
  5. Specific heat – The amount of heat required to raise the temperature of one unit of a substance by one degree Celsius.
  6. Heat capacity – The amount of heat required to raise the temperature of an entire object by one degree Celsius.
  7. Conduction – The transfer of heat through a material, from a region of higher temperature to a region of lower temperature, without any movement of the material as a whole.
  8. Convection – The transfer of heat through the movement of fluids or gases.
  9. Radiation – The transfer of heat through electromagnetic waves, such as infrared radiation.
  10. Thermal conductivity – A measure of how easily heat flows through a material.
  11. Thermal resistance – A measure of how much a material resists the flow of heat.
  12. Heat exchanger – A device used to transfer heat from one fluid to another.
  13. Insulation – A material that reduces the transfer of heat.
  14. Heat sink – A device that absorbs and dissipates heat.

Conclusion

Heat is an essential aspect of hotel engineering, and understanding heat terms and units is crucial for maintaining a safe and efficient hotel. The different methods of heat transfer and the units used to measure heat should be taken into consideration when designing hotel equipment. By understanding these concepts, hotel engineers can create efficient and effective heating and cooling systems for their guests.

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Syllabus BHM106

01 Maintenance

  1. Introduction
  2. Preventive and breakdown maintenance, comparisons
  3. Role & Importance of maintenance department in the hotel industry with emphasis on its relation with other departments of the hotel.
  4. Organization chart of maintenance department, duties and responsibilities of maintenance department

02 Fuels used in the catering industry

  1. Introduction
  2. Types of fuel used in catering industry; calorific value; comparative study of different fuels
  3. Calculation of amount of fuel required and cost.

03 Gas

  1. Introduction
  2. Heat terms and units; method of transfer
  3. LPG and its properties; principles of Bunsen burner, precautions to be taken while handling gas; low and high-pressure burners and their corresponding heat output
  4. Gas bank, location, different types of manifolds

04 Electricity

  1. Introduction
  2. Fundamentals of electricity, insulators, conductors, current, potential difference resistance, power, energy concepts; definitions, their units and relationships, AC and DC; single phase and three phases and its importance on equipment specifications
  3. Electric circuits, open circuits and close circuits, symbols of circuit elements, series and parallel connections, short circuits, fuses; MCB, earthing, the reason for placing switches on the live wire side.
  4. Electric wires and types of wiring
  5. Calculation of electric energy consumption of equipment, and safety precautions to be observed while using electric appliances.
  6. Types of lighting, different lighting devices, incandescent lamps, fluorescent lamps, other gas-discharged lamps, illumination, and units of illumination.
  7. External lighting
  8. Safety in handling electrical equipment

05 Water systems

  1. Introduction
  2. Water distribution system in a hotel
  3. Cold water systems in India
  4. Hardness of water, water softening, base exchange method
  5. Cold water cistern swimming pools
  6. Hot water supply system in hotels
  7. Flushing system, water taps, traps and closets.

06 Refrigeration & Air-conditioning

  1. Basic principles, latent heat, boiling point and its dependence on pressure, vapour compressor system of refrigeration and refrigerants.
  2. Vapour absorption system, care and maintenance of refrigerators, defrosting, types of refrigerant units, their care and maintenance.
  3. Conditions for comfort, relative humidity, humidification, dehumidifying, due point control, unit of air conditioning
  4. Window type air conditioner, central air conditioning, preventive maintenance
  5. Vertical transportation, elevators, escalators

07 Fire prevention and fire fighting system

  1. Classes of fire, methods of extinguishing fires (Demonstration)
  2.  Fire extinguishers, portable and stationery
  3.  Fire detectors and alarm
  4. Automatic fire detectors cum extinguishing devices
  5. Structural protection
  6. Legal requirements

08 Waste disposal and pollution control

  1. Solid and liquid waste, sullage and sewage, disposal of solid waste
  2.  Sewage treatment
  3. Pollution related to the hotel industry
  4. Water pollution, sewage pollution
  5. Air pollution, noise pollution, thermal pollution
  6. Legal Requirements

09 Safety

  1. Accident prevention
  2. Slips and falls
  3. Other safety topics

10 Security

11 Equipment replacement policy

  1. Introduction
  2. Circumstances under which equipment are replaced.
  3. Replacement policy of items which gradually deteriorates
  4. Replacement when the average annual cost is minimum
  5. Replacement when the present cost is minimum
  6. The economic replacement cycle for suddenly failing equipment

12 Audio-visual equipment

  1. Various audio-visual equipment used in hotel
  2. Care and cleaning of an overhead projector, slide projector, LCD and PowerPoint presentation units
  3. Maintenance of computers
  4. Care and cleaning of PC, CPU, Modem, UPS, Printer, Laptops
  5. Sensors – Various sensors used in different locations of a hotel – type, uses and cost-effectiveness

13 Contract maintenance

  1. Introduction
  2. The necessity of contract maintenance, advantages and disadvantages of contract maintenance
  3. Essential requirements of a contract, types of contract, their comparative advantages and disadvantages.
  4. Procedure for inviting and processing tenders, negotiating and finalizing