A typical central office chassis (telecommunications) system was analyzed using FLOTHERM to determine the significance of radiation heat transfer on specific computed solid and air temperatures and the overall partitioning of heat leaving the chassis by the various heat transfer modes. Various power levels and ambient temperatures were considered. All conditions were simulated both with “radiation on” and “radiation off” so the magnitude of error due to neglecting radiation could be assessed. Emphasis was on forced convection (i.e., with a fan tray present), however, one natural convection case (i.e., with no fan tray present) was analyzed for comparison.

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