CHE 413

FLUID MECHANICS
FOR CHEMICAL ENGINEERING

CHAPTER 2
FLUID STATICS

LEARNING OUTCOMES
Define and derive the Pascals law.
Distinguish between gauge, absolute and atmospheric
pressure.
Calculate the fluid pressure under different condition.

PRESSURE
Pressure is defined as a normal force exerted by a
fluid per unit area.
Units of pressure are N/m2, which is called a Pascal
(Pa).
Since the unit Pa is too small for pressures
encountered in practice, kilopascal (1 kPa = 103 Pa)
and megapascal (1 MPa = 106 Pa) are commonly used.
Other units include bar, atm, kg/cm2, lbf/in2=psi.

px y z

px y z

CHANGE OF PRESSURE IN VERTICAL

DIRECTION

PRESSURE IN HORIZONTAL
DIRECTION

ATMOSPHERIC PRESSURE
Defined as the force per unit area exerted against a
surface by the weight of air above that surface at any
given point in the Earth's atmosphere
Important to measure the atmospheric pressure as it
affects the measurement of pressure in fluids
Atmospheric pressure is taken as 1 bar = 100kPa

ABSOLUTE PRESSURE

Actual pressure at a given point.

Total pressure exerted on a system.

Pabs = gh + Patm

Always positive

GAUGE PRESSURE

Pressure at a given point Pgauge = gh

Gauge pressure, Pgauge=Pabs Patm

Can be either negative or positive

Negative gauge pressure is known as a vacuum

Pressure below atmospheric pressure are called

vacuum pressure, Pvac=Patm - Pabs

EXERCISE 1:
Determine the gauge & absolute pressure at a depth
of 10 m in a tank filled with water. The atmospheric
pressure is 100 kN/m2 .
Solution:
Pgauge = gh = 1000 x 9.81 x 10
= 98.1 kN/m2
Pabs = gh + Patm = 98.1 +100 = 198.1 kN/m2
= 198.1 kPa

PRESSURE HEAD
The gauge pressure at any point in a static liquid of
constant density can be measured by the depth, h, of a
column of the fluid that would produce the pressure
p = gh
The pressure head is given by:
h = p/g
Unit for h is m, mm or cm
Pressure head should be stated with the density of the
fluid given

EXERCISE 2:
Determine the pressure at a point in a liquid if the
head is 60mm of mercury. (SGmercury = 13.6)
Solution:
p = gh
= 13600 x 9.81 x 0.06 = 8005 Pa
= 8.005 kPa

EXERCISE 3:
A container is filled with oil of specific gravity 0.85.
Determine the pressure at a depth of 2.5m. What is
the head in m of water?
Solution:
P = oil gh = (0.85 x 1000) x 9.81 x 2.5
= 20850 Pa = 20.85kPa
The head in mm of water is given by:
h = p/wg
= 20850/(1000x9.81) = 2.125 m of water

Measurement of Pressure: Barometers

Fluid pressures can be determined by various means and devices

depending on the types of fluid

Common devices used are barometers & manometers.

The first mercury barometer was constructed in

1643-1644 by Torricelli. He showed that the
height of mercury in a column was 1/14 that of a
water barometer, due to the fact that mercury is
14 times more dense that water. He also noticed
that level of mercury varied from day to day due
to weather changes, and that at the top of the
column there is a vacuum.

Evangelista
Torricelli (16081647)

Measurement of Pressure: Manometer

Manometry is a standard technique for measuring

pressure using liquid columns in vertical or incline
tubes. The devices used in this manner are known as
manometers.
The relationship between pressure and head is used to
measure pressure with a manometer.

Three types of manometers:

1)
The Piezometer Tube
2)
The U-Tube Manometer
3)
The Inclined Tube Manometer

1.THE PIEZOMETER TUBE

Used to measure the pressure of liquids in

containers which are under pressure

Consists of a tube attached to the wall of

the container

Due to the pressure in the liquid (higher

than Patm), the liquid would rise up in the
tube

The height to which the liquid rises will

give the head in the liquid and can be
converted to pressure

Disadvantages:
1.

Can only be used for liquids

2.

Pressure must above atmospheric

3.

Liquid height must be convenient

- not too small or too large

EXERCISE 4:
What is the maximum gauge pressure of water that can be measured
by a Piezometer of height 1.5m?
And if the liquid had a relative density of 8.5 what would the
maximum measurable gauge pressure?
Solutions
The maximum measurable pressure is when the tube
is completely full (h=1.5m). Any higher and the tube will overflow.
pgauge = gh
= water x relative density
p = (8.5 x 1000) x 9.81 x 1.5
p = 12 508 N/m2 (or Pa)
p = 12.5 kN/m2 (or kPa)

2. U-TUBE MANOMETER

2. U-TUBE MANOMETER (CONT.)

CHOICE OF U-TUBE
MANOMETER
Advantages of manometers:

They are very simple.

No calibration is required - the pressure can be calculated from first
principles

Disadvantages of manometers:

Slow response - only really useful for very slowly varying pressures - no use at
all for fluctuating pressures.
For the U-tube manometer two measurements must be taken simultaneously
to get the h value. This may be avoided by using a tube with a much larger
cross-sectional area on one side of the manometer than the other.
In the U-tube manometer, the application of pressure causes the liquid in one
tube to go down while hat in the other tube goes up, so there is no fixed
reference. This tends to make the measurement of the height more difficult
and it would be if one surface could be maintained at some fixed level.
It is often difficult to measure small variations in pressure, a different
manometric fluid may be required - alternatively a sloping manometer may
be employed. It cannot be used for very large pressures unless several
manometers are connected in series.

EXERCISE 5:
Using a u-tube manometer to measure gauge pressure of fluid density = 700 kg/m3,
and the manometric fluid is mercury, with a relative density of 13.6.
What is the gauge pressure if:
a)

h1 = 0.4m and h2 = 0.9m?

b)

h1 stayed the same but h2 = -0.1m?

Solution:
pB = pC
pB = pA + gh1
pB = pAtmospheric + man gh2
We are measuring gauge pressure so patmospheric = 0
pA = man gh2 - gh1
a) pA = 13.6 x 103 x 9.81 x 0.9 - 700 x 9.81 x 0.4
= 117 327 N/m2, 117.3 kN/m2 (1.17 bar)
b) pA = 13.6 x 103 x 9.81 x (-0.1) - 700 x 9.81 x 0.4
= -16 088.4 N/m2, -16 kN/m2 (-0.16 bar)
The negative sign indicates that the pressure is below atmospheric

PRESSURE DIFFERENCE
MEASUREMENT
USING A U-TUBE MANOMETER

EXERCISE 6:
In the figure below two pipes containing the same fluid of density = 990
kg/m3 are connected using a u-tube manometer.
What is the pressure between the two pipes if the manometer contains fluid
of relative density 13.6?
Solution:
pC = pD
pC = pA + g hA
pD = pB + g (hB - h) + man g h
pA - pB = g (hB - hA) + hg(man - )
= 990 x9.81x(0.75-1.5) + 0.5x9.81 x(13.6-0.99) x 103
= -7284 + 61852
= 54 568 N/m2 (or Pa or 0.55 bar)

INCLINED MANOMETER
This type of manometer is used to measure small pressure changes