Cauchy momentum equation

The Cauchy momentum equation is a vector partial differential equation put forth by Cauchy that describes the
non-relativistic momentum transport in any continuum:[1]
(

u
+ u u
t

)
= + g

where is the density of the continuum (for which the

continuity equation holds), is the stress tensor, and g
contains all of the body forces per unit mass (often simply
gravitational acceleration). u is the ow velocity vector
eld, which depends on time and space.The expression
u u denotes the vector eld with components uj j ui
and stands for the vector eld with components j ji
.

Derivation

Applying Newtons second law ( ith component) to a

control volume in the continuum being modeled gives:

An example of convection. Though the ow may be steady (timeindependent), the ow decelerates as it moves down the diverging
duct (assuming incompressible or subsonic compressible ow),
hence there is an acceleration happening over position.

mai = Fi

Dui

dV =
j ij dV +
gi dV
Dt

Dui
(
j ij gi ) dV = 0
Dt

Regardless of what kind of continuum is being dealt with,

convective acceleration is a nonlinear eect. Convective acceleration is present in most ows (exceptions include one-dimensional incompressible ow), but its dynamic eect is disregarded in creeping ow (also called
Stokes ow). Convective acceleration is represented by
the nonlinear quantity:

Dui
j ij gi = 0
Dt
where represents the control volume. Since this equation must hold for any control volume, it must be true
that the integrand is zero, from this the Cauchy momentum equation follows. The main step (not done above) in
deriving this equation is establishing that the derivative of
the stress tensor is one of the forces that constitutes Fi .[1]

u u
which may be interpreted either as (u) u or as u(u),
with u the tensor derivative of the velocity vector u.
Both interpretations give the same result, independent of
the coordinate system provided is interpreted as the
covariant derivative.[2]

2.1 Advection operator

Convective acceleration

The convection term is often written as

A signicant feature of the NavierStokes equations is the

presence of convective acceleration: the eect of timeindependent acceleration of a ow with respect to space.
While individual continuum particles indeed experience
time dependent-acceleration, the convective acceleration
of the ow eld is a spatial eect, one example being uid
speeding up in a nozzle.

(u )u
where the advection operator u is used. Usually this
representation is preferred as it is simpler than the one in
terms of the tensor derivative u. [2]
1

2.2

ALTERNATIVE FORMS

Tensor derivative

Here u is the tensor derivative of the velocity vector, equal in Cartesian coordinates to the component-bycomponent gradient. Note that the gradient of a vector is
being dened as [u]mi = m vi , so that [u (u)]i =
vm m vi = [(u )u]i .

= p + .
The eect of the pressure gradient on the ow is to accelerate the ow in the direction from high pressure to low
pressure.

The stress terms p and are yet unknown, so the general

form of the equations of motion is not usable to solve
problems. Besides the equations of motionNewtons
2.3 Irrotational ow
second lawa force model is needed relating the stresses
The convection term may, by a vector calculus identity, to the ow motion.[6] For this reason, assumptions based
on natural observations are often applied to specify the
be expressed without a tensor derivative:[3][4]
stresses in terms of the other ow variables, such as velocity and density.
(
)
u2
u u =
+ ( u) u.
2

4 External forces

The form has use in irrotational ow, where the curl of

the velocity (called vorticity) = u is equal to zero.
The vector eld g represents body forces per unit mass.
Therefore, this reduces to only
Typically, these consist of only gravity acceleration, but
may include others, such as electromagnetic forces. In
non-inertial coordinate frames, other inertial accelera)
(
u2
tions associated with rotating coordinates may arise.
.
u u =
2
Often, these forces may be represented as the gradient of
some scalar quantity , with f = , in which case they
are called conservative forces. Gravity in the z direction,
3 Stresses
for example, is the gradient of gz . Because pressure
from such gravitation arises only as a gradient, we may
The eect of stress in the continuum ow is represented include it in the pressure term as a body force h = p .
by the p and terms; these are gradients of surface The pressure and force terms on the right-hand side of the
forces, analogous to stresses in a solid. Here p is called NavierStokes equation become
the pressure gradient and arises from the isotropic part
of the Cauchy stress tensor, which has order two. This
part is given by normal stresses that turn up in almost all
p + f = p + = (p ) = h.
situations, dynamic or not. The anisotropic part of the
stress tensor gives rise to , which conventionally
describes viscous forces; for incompressible ow, this is
only a shear eect. Thus, is the deviatoric stress tensor, 5 Alternative forms
and the stress tensor is equal to:[5]

5.1 Eulerian form

= p1 +

See also: conservation law (physics)

where 1 is the identity matrix in the space considered and The equation can also be put into conservation form by
the shear tensor.
dening:
All non-relativistic momentum conservation equations, y = u;
F = u u + pI
such as the NavierStokes equation, can be derived by beginning with the Cauchy momentum equation and speci- Here y has same length N as the ow speed and F has size
2
fying the stress tensor through a constitutive relation. By N . In 3D for example y has length 3, I has size 3x3 and
expressing the shear tensor in terms of viscosity and uid F has size 3x3, so the explicit forms are:
velocity, and assuming constant density and viscosity,
the Cauchy momentum equation will lead to the Navier

u1
u1 + p u1 u2 + p u1 u3
Stokes equations. By assuming inviscid ow, the Navier

u1 u2
u22
u2 u3 .
Stokes equations can further simplify to the Euler equa- y = u2 ; F =
u3
u3 u1
u3 u2
u23 + p
tions.
The divergence of the stress tensor can be written as

Cauchy equations are in this form:

3
Cauchy equations in the Froude limit Fr (corresponding to negligible external eld) are named free
In the Eulerian forms it is apparent that the assumption of Cauchy equations:
no deviatoric stress brings Cauchy equations to the Euler
equations.
and can be eventually conservation equations. The limit
of high Froude numbers (low external eld) is thus noBy dening the material derivative, the equation can be table for such equations and is studied with perturbation
theory.
contracted into:
Finally in Lagrangian form the equations are:

5.2

Lagrangian form

Nondimensionalisation
7 3D explicit forms

In order to make the equations dimensionless, a characteristic length r0 , and a characteristic velocity u0 , need
7.1 Cartesian 3D coordinates
to be dened. These should be chosen such that the di(
)
mensionless variables are all of order one. The following
ux
ux
ux
ux
P
xx
xy
x:
+ ux
+ uy
+ uz
=
+
+
dimensionless variables are thus obtained:
t
x
y
z
x
x
y
)
(
0 , u uu0 , r rr0 , t ur00 t, r0 ,
uy
uy
uy
P
yx
yy
uy
+ ux
+ uy
+ uz
=
+
+
y:
g gg0 , p pp0 , 0 ,
t
x
y
z
y
x
y
(
)
uz
uz
uz
uz
P
zx
zy
Substitution of these inversed relations in the Euler moz:
+ ux
+ uy
+ uz
=
+
+
mentum equations yields:
t
x
y
z
z
x
y

7.2 Cylindrical 3D coordinates

)
0 u20 u (
0
+
0 u20 u u + p0 p = +g0 g
r0 t
r0
r0
(
)
u2
ur
ur
u ur
ur
P 1 (rrr )
r:
+ ur
+
+ uz

=
+
and by dividing for the rst coecient:
t
r
r
z
r
r r r
(
)
)
(
u
u
u u
u
ur u
1 P 1

0
g0:r0
u
p0
+ ur
+
+ uz
+
=
+

p
=

+
g
+

u
+
t
r
r

z
r
r r
t
0 u20
0 u20
u20 (
)
uz
uz
u uz
uz
P zz 1 z
z:
+ ur
+
+ uz
=
+
+
+
Now dening the Froude number:
t
r
r
z
z
z r
Fr =

u20
,
g0 r0

the Euler number:

p0
Eu =
,
0 u20
and the coecient of frication:[7]

Cf =

20
,
0 u20

the equations are nally expressed (now omitting the indexes):

8 See also
Euler equations (uid dynamics)
NavierStokes equations
Burnett equations
Chapman-Enskog expansion

9 References
[1] Acheson, D. J. (1990). Elementary Fluid Dynamics.
Oxford University Press. p. 205. ISBN 0-19-859679-0.
[2] Emanuel, G. (2001), Analytical uid dynamics (second
ed.), CRC Press, ISBN 0-8493-9114-8 pp. 67.

[3] See Batchelor (1967), 3.5, p. 160.

[4] Eric W. Weisstein, Convective Derivative, MathWorld, retrieved 2008-05-20
[5] Batchelor (1967) p. 142.
[6] Feynman, Richard P.; Leighton, Robert B.; Sands,
Matthew (1963), The Feynman Lectures on Physics,
Reading, Massachusetts: Addison-Wesley, ISBN 0-20102116-1, Vol. 1, 94 and 121.
[7] University of California, Berkeley, Dep. of Chemical and
Biomolecular Engineering, Table of dimensionless numbers

REFERENCES

10
10.1

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