// definition
Thermal conductivity
Heat transport under a temperature gradient
Short definition
A property relating conductive heat flux to the temperature gradient within a material. It is expressed in watts per metre-kelvin, W·m⁻¹·K⁻¹. Gas comparisons require a stated temperature and pressure conditions; a dilute-gas limiting value describes the gas in that regime.
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Primary sources
- NIST SRD 81, data field definitionsThermal conductivity definition and SI unit.
- Huber / NIST, thermal conductivity of gases, 2024PDF pages 1 and 2: pressure, temperature and dilute-gas limit.