Inverse problem of coupled thermoelasticity for prediction of heat flux and thermal stresses in an annular cylinder

This study presents a means of solving the inverse problem of coupled thermoelasticity in an annular cylinder. While knowing the temperature history at any point of the body, the boundary time-varying heat flux can be computed, and subsequently the distributions of temperature and thermal stresses in the cylinder can be determined as well. The accuracy of the inverse analysis is examined by using simulated exact and inexact measurements obtained on the surface and at an interior location of the cylinder. Numerical results demonstrate that excellent estimation for the heat flux and thermal stresses distributions can be obtained for all the test cases considered in this study. (C) 2001 Elsevier Science Ltd.