A new exact and non local expression for the wall Nusselt number is derived to have a deep insight into the physical mechanisms that govern the wall heat transfer. 3D high-fidelity numerical simulations (RANS) are then carried out in tubular packed beds and a new set of criteria is defined to extend the Representative Elementary Volume concept to packed bed configurations which enables to unequivocally up-scale 3D simulation data to the observation scale. The mean flow deviation and the mechanical dispersion are shown to play a key role in the wall heat transfer. Finally, the usual correlations of the form View the MathML source Nu=αRepβ found in the literature for the Nusselt number are validated through fine 3D simulations and on the basis of physical investigations for 4000 ⩽ Rep ⩽ 30,000.