Reynolds Transport Theorem (RTT)

The basic physical laws can be applied to flow field to relate various flow properties. The flow
domains are generally specified through Eulerian or Lagrangian approach. Moreover, the flow
variables are generally specified as functions of space and time (Eulerian description), while the
basic laws are applicable to a closed system of particles. The Reynolds Transport Theorem
(RTT) relates the information of control volume to the system of particles.

Fig. 2.2.1: Illustration of Reynolds Transport Theorem (RTT).

Consider a control volume (CV) at certain time t which is coinciding with the closed mass
system (CMS) as shown in Fig. 2.2.1. The CV is bounded by a control surface (CS) a-c-b-d.
After a certain time interval Δt, the CMS moves to a new position shown as a-c1-b-d1. During
this time interval, the outside fluid enters the control volume through the surface a-c-b and leaves
through the surface b-d-a. There are three different regions I, II and III in the Fig. 2.2.1. If B is
any fluid property and β is its corresponding intensive property, then, the net change in the
property during the time Δt is given by,
 (2.2.1)

In Eq. (2.1.10), divide both sides by Δt and take the limits .

(2.2.2)

where, is the velocity of fluid with respect to CV, ρ is the density and is the differential

volume and is the differential area vector. Thus, in words, RTT can be stated as, net rate of
change of the total property of the control mass system is equal to the sum of the net rate of
change of the total property of the coinciding control volume and net rate of total property efflux
out of the control surface .

Corollary of Reynolds Transport Theorem

The relation between the system rates of change, control volume surface and volume integrals
can be established through the Reynolds Transport Theorem (RTT). There are different ways by
which RTT is specified. Let us explore them here.

1. The generalized expression of RTT for a fixed control volume with an arbitrary flow pattern is
given by,

(2.2.3)
Here, is the any property of the system, β is the corresponding intensive property, ρ is the

density of the fluid, is the velocity vector of the fluid and is the unit normal vector outwards
to the area dA. The left hand side term of Eq. (2.2.3) is the time rate of change of any system
property B. The first term in the right hand side of Eq. (2.2.1) is the change of same
property Bwithin the control volume while the second term is the change of flux of B passing
through the control surface.

2. If the control volume moves uniformly at a velocity , then an observer fixed to this control

volume will note a relative velocity of the fluid crossing the surface. It may be noted

that both must have the same coordinate system. The expression for RTT can be
represented by the following equation.

(2.2.4)

When, , the above equation reduces to Eq. (2.2.3).

3. Consider the most general situation when the control volume is moving and deforming as
well. It means the volume integral in Eq. (2.2.4) must allow the volume elements to distort with
time. So, the time derivative must be applied after the integration. So, the RTT takes the form as
given below.

(2.2.5)

4. Many fluid flow problems involve the boundaries of control surface as few inlets and exits
(denoted by i) so that flow field is approximately one-dimensional. Moreover, the flow
properties are nearly uniform over the cross section of inlet of exits. So, Eq. (2.2.5) reduces to,
 (2.2.6)

Conservation of Mass

The mathematical form of mass conservation applied to a system is written as,

(2.2.7)

- In order to apply RTT for mass conservation, substitute the system property as mass of the

system i.e. so that . Then Eq. (2.2.5) can be applied to obtain the integral mass
conservation law for a generalized deformable control volume.

(2.2.8)

- In the case of fixed control volume, Eq. (2.2.8) reduces to,

(2.2.9)

- If the control volume has only of one-dimensional inlets and outlets, then one can write Eq.
(2.2.9) as,

(2.2.10)

- If the flow within the control volume is steady with one-dimensional inlets and outlets,

then and Eq. (2.2.9 & 2.2.10) reduces to,

 (2.2.11)

Eq. (2.2.11) states that the mass flows entering and leaving the control volume for a steady flow
balance exactly and called as continuity equation.

- If inlet and outlet are not one-dimensional, one has to compute the mass flow rate by
integration over the section.

(2.2.12)

Again considering a fixed control volume, further simplification is possible if the fluid is treated
as incompressible i.e. density variation that are negligible during the course of its motion. In fact,
it is quite true for liquids in general practice while for gases, the condition is restricted up to gas
velocity less than 30% of the speed of sound. It leads to the simplification of Eq. (2.2.9)

where and the density term can come out of the surface integral.

(2.2.13)

- If the inlets and outlets are approximated as one-dimensional, then Eq. (2.2.13) becomes,

(2.2.14)

where, is the volume flow passing through the given cross section. Again, if the cross-
sectional area is not one-dimensional, the volume flow rate can be obtained as,

(2.2.15)
In this way, the average velocity Vav can be defined such that, when multiplied by the section
area, the volume flow rate can be obtained.

(2.2.16)

This is also called as the volume-average velocity. If the density varies across any section, the
average density in the same manner.

(2.2.17)

Since, the mass flow is rate the product of density and velocity, and the average product

will take the product of the averages of .

(2.2.18)

Linear Momentum Equation

The control-volume mass relation (conservation of mass) involves only velocity and density. The
vector directions for velocity only show the flow entering or leaving the control volume.
However, many specific flow problems involve the calculations forces/moments and energy
associated with the flow. At any case, mass conservation is always satisfied and constantly
checked.

The linear momentum equation is mainly governed by Newton’s second law of motion for a
system; it states that “The time rate of change of the linear momentum of the system is equal
to the sum of external forces acting on the system”. Here, the attention is focused to the

arbitrary property i.e. linear momentum which is defined by so that .

Applying RTT to the linear momentum for a deformable control volume,
 (2.3.1)

In this equation, the fluid velocity vector is measured with respect to inertial coordinate

system and the vector sum of all the forces acting on the control volume includes the
surface forces acting on all fluids and the body forces acting on the masses within the control
volume. Since, Eq. (2.3.1) is a vector relation, the equation has three components and the scalar
forms are represented below;

(2.3.2)

Here, u, v and w are the velocity components in the x, y and z directions, respectively. For a fixed

control volume, so that Eq. (2.3.1) reduces to,

(2.3.3)

- Similar to “mass flux”, the second term in Eq. (2.3.3) can be represented as momentum flux
given by the following equation,

(2.3.4)

- If the cross-section is one-dimensional, then are uniform over the area and the result
for Eq. (2.3.4) becomes,

(2.3.5)
Thus, the Eq. (2.3.3) can be simplified for one-dimensional inlets and outlets as follows;

(2.3.6)

- In terms of application point of view, the momentum equation can be stated as the vector force
on a fixed control volume equals the rate of change of vector momentum within the control
volume (first term in RHS of Eq. 2.3.6) plus the vector sum of outlet and momentum fluxes
(second term in RHS of Eq. 2.3.6). Generally, the surface forces on a control volume (first term
in LHS of Eq. 2.3.6) are due to the pressure and viscous stresses of the surrounding fluid. The
pressure forces act normal to the surface and inward while the viscous shear stresses are
tangential to the surface.

Angular Momentum Equation

The angular-momentum relation can be obtained for control volume by replacing the variable (B)

as the angular momentum vector . Since, the fluid particles are non-rigid and have variable
velocities; one must calculate the angular momentum by integration of the elemental mass (dm).
It is in contrast to solids where the angular momentum is obtained through the concept of
moment of inertia. At, any fixed point ‘O', the instantaneous angular momentum and its
corresponding intensive properties are given by,

(2.3.7)

Here, is the position vector from the point ‘O' to the elemental mass dm and is velocity
vector of that element. Considering RTT for angular momentum, one can obtain the general
relation for a deformable control volume.

(2.3.8)
By, angular momentum theorem, the rate of change of angular momentum must be equal to sum
of all the moments of all the applied forces about a point ‘O' for the control volume.

(2.3.9)

For a non-deformable control volume Eqs (2.3.8 & 2.3.9) can be combined to obtain the
following relation.

(2.3.10)

If there are one-dimensional inlets and exits, Eq. (2.3.10) is modified as,

(2.3.11)

Energy Equation

The first law of thermodynamics for a system states that the rate of increase of the total stored
energy of the system is equal to net rate of energy additions by the heat transfer into the system
plus net rate of energy addition by work transfer into the system. The mathematical statement for
energy equation is given by,

(2.3.12)

Now, RTT can be applied to the variable energy E and the corresponding intensive property

becomes . So, for a fixed control volume, energy equation is written as,

(2.3.13)
Here, Q is the energy transfer by heat and W is the energy transfer by work. They are considered
as positive when heat is added to the system or work is done by the system. The system energy
(per unit mass) mainly consists of different forms such as internal energy, kinetic energy and
potential energy.

(2.3.14)

The energy transfer by heat involves the mode of transfer i.e.

conduction/convection/radiation. The time derivatives of work transfer can be represented as,

(2.3.15)

The shear work due to viscous stresses and work done due to pressure forces occur at

the control surface while the shaft work is deliberately obtained by the system. Using Eq.
(2.3.15) in (2.3.13), one can obtain the control volume energy equation.

(2.3.16)

Here, the pressure work term is combined with the energy flux term because both involve surface

integral. Introducing the thermodynamic property enthalpy that occurs in the fixed
control volume, Eq. (2.3.16) becomes,

(2.3.17)

If the control volume has number of one-dimensional inlets and outlets, then the surface integral
reduces to summation of inlet and outlet fluxes i.e.
 (2.3.18)

- If the flow is one-dimensional, steady throughout and only one fluid is involved, then the shaft
work is zero. Neglecting viscous work, Eq. (2.3.17) reduces to,

(2.3.19)

When the same equation is applied to a infinitesimally thin control volume, then Eq. (2.3.19)
reduces to,

(2.3.20)

Let us discuss the second law of thermodynamics that introduces the concept of thermodynamic
property entropy (S) of a system. For all pure substances, the T-ds relation is very common and
holds good for common engineering working fluids such as air and water.

(2.3.21)

Combining Eqs (2.3.20 & 2.3.21), one can obtain,

(2.3.22)
The equality sign in Eq. (2.3.22) holds good for the energy equation based on first law of
thermodynamics. However, the more appropriate form of second law of
thermodynamics accounts for losses by means an inequality. It states that, the time rate of
increase of the entropy of a system must be greater than or at least equal to the sum of ratio of
net heat transfer rate into the system to absolute temperature for each particle mass in the
system receiving heat from surroundings. This general statement can be written mathematically
as,

(2.3.23)

At the instant, when the system and control volume are identical, the RHS of Eq. (2.3.23) may be
written as,

(2.3.24)

Now, RTT can be applied to the variable entropy S and the corresponding intensive property

becomes . For a fixed non-deforming control volume, the expression of RTT

becomes,

(2.3.25)

Combination of Eqs (2.3.23, 2.3.24 & 2.3.25) gives,

(2.3.26)

Eq. (2.3.26) can be simplified for steady, one-dimensional flow with single inlet as,

(2.3.27)
Considering the specific entropy (s) and with infinitesimal small control volume at uniform
absolute temperature (T), Eq. (2.3.27) is simplified as

(2.3.28)

The equality sign holds good for any reversible (frictionless) process while the inequality sign is
applicable for irreversible processes involving friction.

Combined Equation (First and Second Law of Thermodynamics)

Let us revisit the following equations derived in the previous section from the statements of first
and second law of thermodynamics.

(2.4.1)

Combination of first and second law of thermodynamics leads to,

(2.4.2)

Introducing the equality sign, Eq. (2.4.2) can be rewritten as,

(2.4.3)

The equality sign in Eq. (2.4.2) holds good for any steady and reversible (i.e. frictionless) while
the inequality sign exists for all steady and irreversible flow involving friction. The extent to
which the loss of useful/available energy occurs is mainly due to the irreversible flow
phenomena including viscous effects. If some shaft work is involved, then the resulting equation
becomes,
 (2.4.4)

Both the Eqs (2.4.3 & 2.4.4) are valid for compressible and incompressible flows. In the case of
frictionless and steady flows, the combined first and second law leads to the following equation;

(2.4.5)

Steady Flow Energy Equation (SFEE)

Let us recall the following energy equation derived in the previous section;

(2.4.6)

The general form of one-dimensional steady flow energy equation may be obtained from Eq.
(2.4.6) and it has lot of engineering applications. If there is one inlet (section 1) and one outlet
(section 2), then the first term in Eq. (2.4.6) can be omitted and the summation term in Eq.
(2.4.6) reduces to single inlet and outlet.

(2.4.7)

Since mass flow rate is constant, the continuity equation becomes . So, the terms in
Eq. (2.4.7) can be rearranged as follows;

(2.4.8)
Here, the terms refer to heat and work transferred to the fluid

per unit mass and is the stagnation enthalpy. Eq. (2.4.8) is known as
the steady flow energy equation (SFEE). Each term in this equation has the dimensions of energy
per unit mass. The other way to represent this equation is in the form energy head which is
obtained by dividing both sides with the term g (i.e. acceleration due to gravity). So, the other
form of Eq. (2.4.8) is given by,

(2.4.9)

Where, are the head forms of heat and work transfers. The

terms are called as pressure head and velocity head, respectively.

- A very common application of SFEE is the low-speed flows with no shaft work and negligible
viscous dissipation such as liquid flow through pipes. In such cases, Eq. (2.4.9) may be written
as,

(2.4.10)

Here, the terms are called as available/total head at the inlets and outlets,
respectively and hf is the loss in head due to friction.

Bernoulli Equation

Ignoring the frictional losses in steady flow energy equations, one can obtain the precise relation
of pressure, velocity and elevation. This equation is called as Bernoulli equation developed in the
year 1755. This equation is very famous and widely used with lot of restrictions. In general, all
fluids are viscous and flows are associated with certain component of friction. In order to
use Bernoulli equation correctly, one must confine the regions of flow which are nearly
frictionless.

Consider an elemental fixed stream tube control volume of variable area A(s) and length ds as
shown in Fig. 2.4.1. The fluid properties p, V and ρ vary along the streamline
direction s and t while they are assumed to be uniform over the cross section A. The streamtube

is oriented at any arbitrary angle θ with an elevation change .

Fig. 2.4.1: Schematic representation of frictionless flow in a stream tube.

Now, applying the principle of conservation of mass to this elemental control volume, one can
write,

(2.4.11)

The linear momentum equation can also be applied in the stream-wise direction i.e.
 (2.4.12)

The elemental force consists of surface forces due to pressure and

gravitational forces and its expression is

given by,

(2.4.13)

Substitute Eq. (2.4.13) in the linear momentum equation (Eq. 2.4.12).

(2.4.14)

Recalling continuity equation, the first and last term of RHS of Eq. (2.4.14) cancels out. Divide
both sides by ρA and rearrange it to obtain the final desired relation;

(2.4.15)

This is the Bernoulli's equation for unsteady, frictionless flow along a streamline. It can be
integrated between any two points ‘1' and ‘2' as given below;

(2.4.16)

When the flow is unsteady and incompressible (constant-density), Eq. (2.1.16)

reduces to,
 (2.4.17)

Eq. (2.4.17) is the Bernoulli equation for steady frictionless incompressible flow along a

streamline. Many a times, the Bernoulli constant is known as energy grade line and the

height corresponding to pressure and elevation is known as hydraulic grade line.

Steady Flow Energy Equation vs Bernoulli Equation

In general, the steady flow energy equation is applied to the control volumes with one-
dimensional inlets and outlets. Often, in many situations, it is not strictly one-dimensional rather
velocity may vary over the cross-section. So, the kinetic energy term in Eq. (2.4.6) can be

modified by introducing a dimensionless correction factor so that the integral can be

proportional to the square of the average velocity through the control surface for an
incompressible flow.

(2.4.18)

If u is the velocity normal to the control surface, then the integral can be evaluated to obtain the
expression of α known as kinetic energy correction factor.

(2.4.19)
So, the general form of steady flow energy equation for an incompressible flow can be obtained
from Eq. (2.4.8) by using the parameter α.

(2.4.20)

This relation (Eq. 2.2.20) involves the terms that accounts for friction, heat transfer, shaft work
and any viscous dissipation. In contrast, the strict restrictions are imposed Bernoulli's
equation (Eq. 2.4.17) that can be listed as follows;

• Steady, incompressible and frictionless flow

• Flow along a single streamline because different streamlines may have different Bernoulli
constant.

• Flow with one inlet and outlet

• No shaft work and heat transfer between the sections.