Abstract:
Thermal contact resistance(TCR)in stratified soil media significantly affects heat transfer, generating interfacial temperature differences and complicating the analysis of heat conduction processes. This study employed a self-developed one-dimensional soil column thermal resistance testing apparatus. Initially, the thermal conductivities of clay and sand were measured at temperatures of 50 ℃, 60 ℃, 70 ℃, and 80 ℃. Subsequently, based on the steady-state heat flow method, TCR experiments were conducted for four types of soil interfaces(clay-clay, sand-sand, heated clay-sand, and heated sand-clay)under unidirectional temperature gradients to investigate the influence of interface type and heating temperature on TCR evolution. The results indicate that with prolonged heating, the interface temperature difference and TCR initially rise rapidly, then decline, and eventually oscillate within a stable range. As temperature increases, the variability of interfacial temperature differences grows, while TCR trends vary with interface type: as temperature rose from 50 ℃ to 80 ℃, the TCR of stratified soil with a clay layer distal to the heating end decreased by approximately 0.002 K·m
2 ·W
-1, whereas that with a sand layer distal to the heating end increased by about 0.001 K·m
2 ·W
-1. Furthermore, finite element numerical simulations of temperature distribution in wet porous media were performed to validate the experimental temperature measurements. Based on the observed thermal resistance variation patterns, it is recommended that engineering designs balance energy supply and heat loss to optimize system performance.