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Thermal Energy Conduction in a Honey Bee Comb Due to Cell-heating Bees by J.A.C. Humphrey; E.S. Dykes is a Biochemistry, Genetics and Molecular Biology article available to read on EtoBox.

What is Thermal Energy Conduction in a Honey Bee Comb Due to Cell-heating Bees about?

Theoretical analysis and numerical calculations are performed to characterize the unsteady two-dimensional conduction of thermal energy in an idealized honey bee comb. The situation explored corresponds to a comb containing a number of brood cells occupied by pupae. These cells are surrounded by other cells containing pollen which, in turn, are surrounded (above) by cells containing honey and (below) by vacant cells containing air. Up to five vacant cells in the brood region can be occupied by cell-heating bees which, through the isometrical contraction of their flight muscles, can generate sufficient energy to raise their body temperatures by a few degrees. In this way, the cell-heating bees alter the heat flux and temperature distributions in the brood region so as to maintain conditions that benefit the pupae. The calculations show that the number of cell-heating bees significantly affects the magnitude, time rate of change, and spatial distribution of temperature throughout the comb. They also reveal a vertically aligned asymmetry in the spatial distribution of temperature that is due to the large heat capacity and thermal conductivity of honey relative to air, whereby air-fill

Who reads Thermal Energy Conduction in a Honey Bee Comb Due to Cell-heating Bees?

Author

J.A.C. Humphrey; E.S. Dykes

Publisher

Elsevier Science; Elsevier ; Elsevier Inc.; Elsevier BV (ISSN 0022-5193)

Published

2008

Language

EN

Field

Biochemistry, Genetics and Molecular Biology (Life Sciences)