Thermal Conductivities of Oven Mitts

1. Thermal Conductivities of Oven Mitts Jordan Holmes Stephen Merrill

2. Objective Our goal was to find the thermal conductivities (k) of different kinds of gloves. We tested the following: • Conventional Oven Mitt • Polymer Oven Mitt • Snow Glove • Dishrag

3. Procedure • We used an aluminum block to calculate the rate of heat transfer from the stove top. • Using this rate of heat transfer we measured the temperatures of the inside of each glove after reaching steady state in contact with the aluminum block. • We then calculated the thermal conductivity for each material.

4. Measurements • Stove • T = 108°C • Aluminum Block • A = .051*.089 = .00454 m2 • L = .0126 m • T = 85°C • k = 237 W/m*K • Heat Transfer Rate • q = (108-85)*237*.00454/.0126 = 1964 W • Conventional Oven Mitt • T = 70°C • L = .0025 m • TAl = 85°C • Polymer Oven Mitt • T = 80°C • L = .003 m • TAl = 105°C Assumptions • Aluminum block is pure aluminum • Constant surface temperatures • Temperatures measured after 5 minutes • Snow Glove • T = 80°C • L = .0045 m • TAl = 105°C • Dishrag • T = 82°C • L = .0045 m • TAl = 111°C

5. Results k = q*L/[A*(TAl –T)] • Conventional Oven Mitt • k = 1964*.0025/(.00454*15) = 72.1 W/m*K • Polymer Oven Mitt • k = 1964*.003/(.00454*17) = 76.34 W/m*K • Snow Glove • k = 1964*.0045/(.00454*25) = 77.9 W/m*K • Dishrag • k = 1964*.0045/(.00454*29) = 67.13 W/m*K

6. Conclusion Most of these gloves have similar thermal conductivities but the snow glove is the most conductive. We concluded that a dishrag can be just as useful as an oven mitt or better for getting hot things out of the oven because it has a lower thermal conductivity.