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The Analytical Theory of Heat
Explore the foundations of heat with the master of the subject. This edition presents the core ideas, from how heat moves through solids to the laws that govern radiant and conductive transfer.
In clear, step-by-step terms, the work introduces the principle of heat movement, defines key concepts like conduction and permeability, and develops the mathematical equations that describe how temperatures evolve in different bodies. It emphasizes that the same equations arise regardless of the physical interpretation of heat, focusing on the measurable relationships and their consequences for real materials.
How heat travels inside solids and across surfaces, including three- and six‑face boundary problems.
The development of differential equations that model the movement of heat in rings, spheres, cylinders, and prisms.
Important notions of penetrability, permeability, and external conduction in practical contexts.
Analytical methods for solving heat problems and interpreting their long-term behavior.
Ideal for readers of classic physics and engineering, this edition helps you grasp the mathematical backbone of thermal theory and its real‑world implications.
In clear, step-by-step terms, the work introduces the principle of heat movement, defines key concepts like conduction and permeability, and develops the mathematical equations that describe how temperatures evolve in different bodies. It emphasizes that the same equations arise regardless of the physical interpretation of heat, focusing on the measurable relationships and their consequences for real materials.
How heat travels inside solids and across surfaces, including three- and six‑face boundary problems.
The development of differential equations that model the movement of heat in rings, spheres, cylinders, and prisms.
Important notions of penetrability, permeability, and external conduction in practical contexts.
Analytical methods for solving heat problems and interpreting their long-term behavior.
Ideal for readers of classic physics and engineering, this edition helps you grasp the mathematical backbone of thermal theory and its real‑world implications.
494 pages, Paperback
First published February 20, 2003
About the author
Joseph Fourier
29 books22 followersJean Baptiste Joseph Fourier (21 March 1768 – 16 May 1830) was a French mathematician and physicist born in Auxerre and best known for initiating the investigation of Fourier series and their applications to problems of heat transfer and vibrations. The Fourier transform and Fourier's Law are also named in his honour. Fourier is also generally credited with the discovery of the greenhouse effect.
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Displaying 1 - 3 of 3 reviews
June 11, 2025
Its saying something to be first to put this down on paper. I read it just because it is in the huge list of books in the appendix of" how to read a book".
September 11, 2010
The original work of Fourier translated to English long, long ago.
Mine has a different cover, but really fun to look trough this work.
Mine has a different cover, but really fun to look trough this work.
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March 26, 2017Jean Baptiste Joseph Fourier believed the analytical equations Descartes used to study curves and surfaces applied to all general phenomena. He therefore discarded their shared French to instead write most of his book in mathematics. For Fourier there was no:
Which, unfortunately, is a language I am not fluent in.
...language more universal and more simple, more free from errors and from obscurities, that is to say more worthy to express the invariable relations of natural things. Pg. 7
Which, unfortunately, is a language I am not fluent in.
Displaying 1 - 3 of 3 reviews