Radiogenic heating
= Radiogenic heating
{title2=$Q$}
Radiogenic heating is thermal energy deposited by <radioactive decay>. If its specific heating rate is $Q$ in watts per kilogram, the volumetric rate is $\rho Q$ and the heat input per horizontal area to a column of depth $H$ is $\rho QH$. The distinction between specific and volumetric rates matters in <dimensional analysis> of a convective <heat flux> law.