study of three dimensional transient heat transfer in rubber parts with variable physical properties.

in this article the transient heat transfer in rubber parts has been studied. this study is usefull for estimation of the minimum curing time of the rubber parts and thereby to ensure the quality of the rubber. also is the temperature distribution during the rubber curing is well know, then the curing time could accurately be estimated, which will lead to a better curing process. in this regard, the equation of transient heat transfer along with the proper boundary conditions in the form of three dimensional, has been solved numerically by finite difference methods. the physical properties of the rubber has been considered to vary linearly with temperature. it has been shown that for the large rubber pieces the curing process should be modelled always in three dimentions. however for special cases such as rubber rings due to negligible thickness and its symmetry the two dimentional model for heat transfer would be acceptable. also it is shown that the variation of physical properties of the rubber with temperature has predominent effect upon the curing time of the rubber.