BASIC MECHANICAL ENGINNERING

INTRODUCTION TO FLUID MECHANICS

Instructor:

Syed Muhammad Imran Ali Gillani

Email: mimran@uol.edu.pk

Department of Mechanical Engineering

The University of Lahore

Page 1 of 9
 FLUID
A fluid is a substance that deforms continuously when subjected to a shear stress, no matter how small
that shear stress maybe. A fluid can be either a gas or a liquid.
In dealing with fluid-flow relations on a mathematical or analytical basis, it is necessary to consider that the
actual molecular structure is replaced by a hypothetical continuous substance, called the continuum.
SYSTEM
A system, in fluid mechanics and thermodynamics, is defined as a quantity of matter or a region in space chosen for study.
Closed System: A closed system (also known as a control mass) consists of a fixed amount of mass, and no
mass can cross its boundary. The volume of a closed system does not have to be fixed.
Open System: An open system (also called a control volume) is a properly selected region in space.
Both mass and energy can cross the boundary of a control volume, which is called a control surface.
The real or imaginary surface that separates the system from its surroundings is called the boundary.
Surroundings are the portions of matter external to the system which are affected by the changes in system.
FLUID PROPERTIES
The characteristics of a fluid by which its physical conditions may be described are called properties of the fluid.
Intensive properties are those that are independent of the amount of fluid.
Extensive properties are related to the total mass of the system.
Extensive properties per unit mass are called specific properties and these become intensive properties.
Properties Involving the Mass or Weight of the Fluid
Mass Density, (or Density)  [kg/m3]
The mass per unit volume is mass density. The density of water at 4C is 1000 kg/m3 and decreases
slightly with increasing temperature. The density of air at 20C and standard atmospheric pressure is 1.2
kg/m3.
Variation in Density: For most applications, water can be considered incompressible and, in turn, can
be assumed to have constant density. Air, on the other hand, is a relatively compressible fluid with
variable density. However, at velocities much less than the speed of sound, the air density changes only
slightly and the air can also be treated as incompressible. For an ideal gas from equation of state
p

RT
Speicific Weight,  [N/m3]  =  g
The gravitational force per unit volume of fluid, or simply the weight per unit volume, is defined as
specific weight.
Water at standard reference temperature of 4C has a specific weight of 9810 N/m3. Water at 20C has a
specific weight of 9790 N/m3.
The specific weight of air at the same temperature and at standard atmospheric pressure is 11.8 N/m3.
Specific Gravity, S
The ratio of the specific weight of a given liquid to the specific weight of water at a standard reference
 fluid  fluid
temperature of is defined as specific gravity. S  
 water  water
133 kN / m 3
The specific gravity of mercury at 20C is S Hg   13 .6
9.81 kN / m 3

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 Properties Involving the Flow of Heat
Specific Heat, c [J/kg K]
The property that describes the capacity of a substance to store thermal energy is called specific heat.
By definition, it is the amount of thermal energy that must be transferred to a unit mass of a substance to
raise its temperature by one degree.
 1
If the specific volume v of the gas  v   remains constant while the temperature changes, then the
 
specific heat is identified as cv. However, if the pressure is held constant during the change in state, then
cp
the specific heat is identified as cp. The ratio is given the symbol k.
cv
Specific Internal Energy, u [J/kg]
The energy that a substance possesses because of the state of the molecular activity in the substance is
termed internal energy. The internal energy is generally a function of temperature and pressure.
However, for an ideal gas, it is a function of temperature alone.
Specific Enthalpy, h [J.kg]
p p
u

The combination has been given the name specific enthalpy. For an ideal gas, u and are function

of temperature alone. Consequently their sum, specific enthalpy, is also a function solely of temperature.
VISCOSITY
Viscosity is that property of a fluid by virtue of which it offers resistance to shear. Whenever shear
stress is applied to a fluid, motion occurs. Solids can resist shear in a static condition, but fluids deform
continuously under the action of a shear stress. Viscous resistance is independent of the normal force
(pressure) acting within the fluid. Viscosity, , is the ratio of the shear stress to the velocity gradient.

 Newton’s law of viscosity states that for a given rate of angular deformation the shear
dV / dy 
dV
stress is directly proportional to the viscosity.   
dy
The viscosity of a gas increases with temperature, but the viscosity of liquid decreases with temperature,
because the rate of activity (back-and-forth motion) of the gas molecules increases with an increase in
temperature. For liquids, the shear stress is involved with the cohesive forces between molecules. These
forces decrease with temperature, which results in a decrease in viscosity with an increase in
temperature. A reasonable estimate for the variation of gas viscosity with absolute temperature is
3/ 2
  T   T0  S 
Sutherland’s equation,     where 0 is the viscosity at temperature T0 and S is the
 0  T0   T  S 
Sutherland’s constant. S = 111 K for air. An equation for the variation of liquid viscosity with
temperature is  = C eb/T where C and b are empirical constants that require viscosity data at two
temperatures for evaluation. In general the effect of pressure on the dynamic viscosity of common gases
is minimal for pressures less than 10 atmospheres.
Units of Viscosity: {N s/m2}
A common unit of viscosity is the poise, which is 1 dyne-s/cm2 or 0.1 Ns/m2. The viscosity of water

at 20C is one centipoise (10-2 poise) or 10-3 Ns/m2 . Combination has been given the special

name kinematic viscosity,  the units are m2/s.

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NEWTONIAN VERSUS NON-NEWTONIAN FLUIDS
In a Newtonian fluid there is a linear relation between the
magnitude of applied shear stress and the resulting rate of 
deformation ( is a constant). Because shear stress is directly
proportional to the shear strain (dV/dy), a plot relating these Non-Newtonian
variables results in a straight line passing through the origin. The Fluid
slope of this line is the value of the dynamic viscosity. Newtonian
Fluid
In a non-Newtonian fluid there is a non linear relation between the
magnitude of applied shear stress and the resulting rate of angular
deformation.
Ideal Fluid
Gases and most common liquids tend to be Newtonian fluids, dV/dy
while thick, long-chained hydrocarbons may be non-Newtonian.
If the fluid is considered to be incompressible and non-viscous, it is then called an ideal fluid.
VAPOUR PRESSURE
The pressure at which a liquid will boil is called its vapour pressure. This pressure is a function of
temperature and increases with it. Water boils at 100C at sea-level atmospheric pressure (101.3 kPa).
Boiling can also occur in water at temperatures much below 100C if the pressure in the water is
reduced to its vapor pressure. The vapor pressure of water at 10C is 1.23 kPa.
PRESSURE
Pressure is the force exerted by a fluid (a gas or a liquid) per unit area.
In a closed system, a pressure change produced at one point in the system will be transmitted
throughout the entire system. This principle is known as Pascal’s law.
2
Gage Pressure
Standard Atmospheric Pressure

Local Atmospheric Pressure

(Gage Reference)
1 atmosphere Gage Pressure
760 mm of Hg Absolute (Negative, Suction or Vacuum Pressure)
101,325 Pa Pressure
10.34 m H2O 1
Local
Barometric
Reading
Absolute
Pressure

Absolute Zero (Complete Vacuum)

P=0
(Absolute Reference)

Atmospheric pressure at a location is simply the weight of the air above that location per unit surface
area. Standard atmospheric pressure (1 atmosphere) is the mean pressure at sea level. The pressure in
an absolute vacuum is called absolute zero pressure, and all pressures referenced with respect to this
zero pressure are termed absolute pressures. The pressure measured with respect to the atmospheric
pressure is called gage pressure. Pressures below atmospheric pressure or negative gage pressures are
termed vacuum pressures.
Absolute pressure = Atmospheric pressure + Gage pressure

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 FLUIDS IN MOTION
Types of Flow
Flow can be classified in many ways such as uniform versus non-uniform; steady versus unsteady;
turbulent versus laminar; rotational versus irrotational; real versus ideal; reversible versus irreversible.
In uniform flow velocity vector does not change from point to point along any of the streamlines in the
flow field. That is at every point the V is same for any given instant. Therefore, it follows that the
streamline depicting such flow must be straight and parallel. If they are not straight, there will be a
directional change of velocity. If they are not parallel, there will be a change of speed along the
V V
streamlines. Mathematically,  0 (uniform flow)  0 (non-uniform flow) Here V is the total
s s
velocity at a given point on a streamline, and s is the distance along the streamline measured from an
arbitrary point on the streamline. In non-uniform flow the velocity changes from point to point along
the streamline. Therefore, the flow pattern consists of streamlines that are either curving in space or
converging or diverging.

Flow from a slot Uniform flow patterns. (a) Open-channel flow. (b) Flow between parallel plates

In steady flow at any given point

the velocity vector does not
change with time. That is, at any
point velocity does not vary in
magnitude or direction with
V
time. Mathematically, 0
t
V
(steady flow) 0
t
(unsteady flow) Here V is the Non-uniform flow patterns (a) Converging flow (b) Vortex flow
velocity at a given point in the
flow field.
In steady flow the streamline has a fixed inclination at every point and therefore fixed in space. A
particle always moves tangent to the streamline; hence, in steady flow the path of a particle is a
streamline. Examples:
 Flow through a pipe at a constant rate is steady uniform flow.
 Flow through a pipe at a changing rate (decreasing or increasing) is unsteady uniform flow.
 Flow through a nozzle at a constant rate is steady non-uniform flow.
 Flow through a nozzle at a changing rate (decreasing or increasing) is unsteady non-uniform flow.
In laminar flow, fluid particles move along smooth
pipes in laminas, or layers, with one layer gliding
smoothly over an adjacent layer. Laminar flow is
governed by Newton’s law of viscosity (  angular
deformation). A typical example is the flow of honey
or thick syrup from a vessel. Tendencies to lateral or
swirling motion are strongly damped by viscosity.

Laminar and turbulent flowPage

in a straight
5 of 9 pipe
(a) Laminar flow (b) Turbulent flow
In turbulent flow the liquid particles move in very irregular, swirling paths, causing mixing action
throughout the flow field. This mixing is caused by eddies (current running back) of varying size within
the flow. Turbulent flow phenomenon can be observed when smoke from a large stack discharges into
surrounding air. The turbulence sets up greater shear stresses throughout fluid and causes more
irreversiblities or losses. For the laminar flow case, the velocity distribution is parabolic across the
section, and at any give distance from the pipe wall, the velocity is constant with respect to time. In the
turbulent-flow case, two effects are readily apparent. First, because the eddies cause the flow to be
mixed rather thoroughly, the velocity distribution over most of the section is more uniform than is the
case in laminar flow. This results because the turbulent mixing process transports the low-velocity fluid
near the wall toward the center and the higher-velocity fluid in the central region toward the wall.
The second effect of turbulence is to add continuously fluctuating components of velocity to the flow.
At a given instant the distribution of the velocity component in the direction of flow is consequently
irregular. At a given point the velocity varies with time. Therefore, the flow is called unsteady.
However, if we consider the temporal mean (average with respect to time) velocity at a given point
taken over a relatively long period of time, the velocity is virtually constant, and the flow is therefore
VD VD
termed steady. An index relating to turbulence is the Reynolds number, defined as Re  
 
where V is the velocity.
If the Reynolds number is large (Re > 2000), the flow in a pipe will generally be turbulent; but if the
Reynolds number is smaller (Re < 2000), the flow will be laminar.
If the fluid particles within a region have rotation about any axis, the flow is called rotational flow, or
vortex flow. If the fluid within a region has no rotation, the flow is called irrrotational flow.
In general, three coordinate directions are needed to describe the velocity and property changes in a
flow field. Such flows are three-dimensional.
For some flow situations there are no changes in one coordinate direction; two dimensions suffice to
describe such flow, such flows are two-dimensional.
In one-dimensional flow, variation or changes in velocity, pressure, etc., in a plane transverse to the
main flow direction are neglected.
Rate of Flow
Volume rate of flow, simply called flow rate or discharge for
a fluid of constant velocity V is, Q = VA, for variable velocity
Q  A VdA .

The mass rate of flow past a section is m  A VdA . If

density is constant across the flow section, then
m   A VdA   Q , where cross-sectional area A is always
oriented normal to the velocity vector.
Always consider either the area of a section normal to the
total velocity or the velocity component normal to the given
area, as shown in figure, then Q  A udA  V cos dA .
 
Defining an area vector as one that has the magnitude normal to the area, then Q  A V  dA . For
  Q
constant velocity Q  V  A . Mean or average velocity, V  .
A
For turbulent flow in pipes, the mean velocity may be close approximation to the actual distribution of
velocity over most of the section, as shown in figure. However, for laminar flow the mean velocity
differs considerably from the velocity over most of the flow section.

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Acceleration
   
Cartesian Components: V  Vx i  V y j  Vz k where Vx = f1(x, y, z, t), Vy = f2(x, y, z, t), Vz = f3(x, y, z, t),

 dV  x , y , z , t  dV x  dV y  dV z    
a x , y , z , t    i j k  a x i  a y j  a zk
dt dt dt dt
dV x  x , y , z , t  V x dx V x dy V x dz V x dt V x V x V x V x
ax       Vx  Vy  Vz 
dt x dt y dt z dt t dt x y z t
dV y x , y , z , t  V y dx V y dy V y dz V y dt V y V y V y V y
ay       Vx  Vy  Vz 
dt x dt y dt z dt t dt x y z t
dV z  x , y , z , t  V z dx V z dy V z dz V z dt V z V z V z V z
az       Vx  Vy  Vz 
dt x dt y dt z dt t dt x y z t
Normal and Tangential Components: The velocity of a fluid particle
 
on a pathline is shown in figure. (a) Vs ,t   V s ,t e t where V s ,t 
is the speed of the particle, which can vary with distance along the
pathline, s, and time, t. The direction of the velocity vector is given

by a unit vector e t .
 
 dV  dV    de t 
a  e t  V  
dt  dt   dt 

dV s , t   V  ds   V  dt   V  V de t
        V   . The derivative of unit vector is nonzero
dt  s  dt   t  dt   s  t dt
because the direction
 of the unit vector changes with time as the particle moves along the pathline. From
de t V  
dynamics  e n , where r is the local radius of curvature of the pathline, and e n is a unit vector
dt r
that is perpendicular to the pathline and pointing inward towards the center of curvature.
  V V   V2 
a  V   t
e  e n . The first term shows that if the speed of a fluid particle is changing, there
 s t  r
V V
is a component of acceleration tangent to the pathline, a t  V  . The second term shows that a
s t
V2
curved pathline give rise to a component of acceleration normal to the pathline, a n  namely the
r
centripetal acceleration. The components of the acceleration vector are shown in figure (b). an will be
present anytime a fluid particle is moving on a curved path and at will be present if the particle is
changing speed.
Convective and Local Acceleration: The terms, in above equations, that include changes of velocity
V x V x V x
with respect to position, V x ,V y ,V z are called convective accelerations and those that are
x y z
V x V y V z V
change of velocity with respect to time , , , are called local acceleration. Local
t t t t
acceleration results when the flow is unsteady. In a steady flow, the local acceleration is zero.
Convective accelerations occur when velocity is a function of position in a flow field, that is, when the
flow is non-uniform or when the velocity changes along a streamline. In uniform flows, the convective
acceleration is zero.

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 Continuity Equation
The continuity principle is based on the conservation of mass as it applies to the flow of fluids. In other
words, the continuity equation states that the mass rate of flow out of a region of space, such as a cv,
minus the mass rate of flow into the region is equal to the rate at which the fluid mass is being
evacuated from the region. In the case of continuity equation, the extensive property B in the cv
equation is the mass of the system, Msys, and the corresponding intensive property b is unity.
Substituting B = Msys and b = 1 in the cv equation yields the general form of the continuity equation.
dM sy s d  
 cv dV  cs  V  dA By definition, the mass of the system is constant.
dt dt
dM sy s   d
= rate of change of the mass of the system = 0. Then cs  V  dA   cv dV
dt dt
This is the general form of the continuity equation. It states that the net rate of outflow of mass from the
cv is equal to the rate of decrease of mass within the cv. For flow streams having a uniform velocity
  d
across the flow section the continuity equation is   V  A   cv dV
 
cs dt
For steady flow the continuity equation is cs  V  dA  0
This equation must be applied to each cs where fluid mass is
entering or leaving; therefore, for one inlet and one outlet, as
shown in figure
   

cs1 in  1 1
V  dA 1  
cs 2 out  2 2
V  d A 2 0

If the inlet and outlet velocities are, at each inlet and outlet, 
perpendicular

to their respective areas, then
all outflow integral dot products are evaluated as  2 V2  dA 2   2 V2 dA2 and inflows are
 
evaluated as  1 V1  dA 1    1 V1 dA1 . Therefore, cs in   1 V1 dA1  cs out   2 V2 dA2
If 1 and 2 do not vary across the inlet and outlet areas, then  1 cs in  V1 dA1   2 cs out  V2 dA2
For one-dimensional flow, considering average velocity across the section, then
cs in  V1 dA1  V1 A1 and cs out  V 2 dA2  V 2 A2 , thus 1V1 A1   2V2 A2  m , mass flow rate.
For steady flow problems continuity equation says the mass flow rate is a constant.
For constant density flow 1 = 2 then V1 A1  V2 A2 .
This equation states that the volume flow rate at section 1 is equal to the volume flow rate at section 2.
Therefore, for one-dimensional incompressible flow Q1 = Q2.

Since
d
 cv dV   d Vcv   0 (Vcv is also constant.) V1, 1, A1
dt dt
Therefore, for constant-density flow, steady or unsteady
  
cs V  dA  0 which states that the net volume efflux is zero.
This implies that the cv is filled with liquid at all times.  V2, 2, A2
For multiple inlets and outlets, the cv equation must be
extended. Consider a conduit shown in figure. Assume 
that the density at each station is constant (though not
necessarily equal); that the velocity vectors are V3, 3, A3
perpendicular to their respective areas; and that the cross
sectional average velocities  ateach section are therefore defined.
Then the equation cs  V  dA  0 reduces to  1V1 A1   3V3 A3   2V2 A2  0 or m 1  m 3  m 2
For the case where the densities are all equal 1 = 2 = 3 V1 A1  V3 A3  V2 A2
That is, the sum of the inflow volume flow rates equals the sum of the volume flow rates out of the cv.

Page 8 of 9
 ADVANCED FLUID DYNAMICS
Problem Sheet

1. The hypothetical velocity distribution in a circular duct, as

v r
shown in Fig. 1 is  1  , where r is the radial location in
V0 R
the duct, R is the duct radius, and V0 is the velocity on the axis. Fig. 1
Find the ratio of the mean velocity to the velocity on the axis. (Ans: 1/3)

2. Water flows in a two-dimensional

channel of width W and depth D as
shown in Fig. 2. The hypothetical
velocity profile for the water is
 4 x 2  y2 
V x, y   Vs 1  2 1  2 
 W  D 
where Vs is the velocity at the water
Fig. 2
surface midway between the channel walls.
The coordinate system is as shown; x is measured from the center plane of the channel and y
downward from the water surface. Find the discharge in the channel in term of Vs, D, and W.
(Ans: (4/9) Vs W D)

3. An end-burning rocket motor, as shown in Fig. 3, has a

chamber diameter of 10 cm and a nozzle exit diameter
of 8 cm. The density of the propellant is 1800 kg/m3
and the surface regresses at the rate of 1 cm/s. Fig. 3
The gases crossing the nozzle exit plane have a pressure of 10 kPa abs and a temperature of
2000 C. The gas constant of the exhaust gases is 415 J/kg K. Calculate the gas velocity at the
nozzle exit plane. (Ans: 2653 m/s)

4. Two streams discharge into a pipe as shown in Fig. 4.

The flows are incompressible. The volume flow rate of
stream A into the pipe is given by QA = 0.02 t m3/s
and that of stream B by QB = 0.008 t2 m3/s, where t is
in seconds. The exit area of the pipe is 0.01 m2. Find the
Fig. 4
velocity and acceleration of the flow at the exit at t = 1 s.
(Ans: Answer: 2.8 m/s; 3.6 m/s2)

Page 9 of 9