Influence of errors in known constants and boundary conditions on solutions of inverse heat conduction problem

This work examines the effects of the known boundary conditions on the accuracy of the solution in one‐dimensional inverse heat conduction problems. The failures in many applications of these problems are attributed to inaccuracy of the specified constants and boundary conditions. Since the boundary conditions and material properties in most thermal problems are imposed with uncertainty, the effects of their inaccuracy should be understood prior to the inverse analyses. The deviation from the exact solution has been examined for each case according to the errors in material properties, boundary location, and known boundary conditions. The results show that the effects of such errors are dramatic. Based on these results, the applicability and limitations of the inverse heat conduction analyses have been evaluated and discussed.