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Moody Diagram: Darcy Friction Factor

This document discusses flow through enclosed ducts and pipes. It covers topics like Bernoulli's equation, applications of Bernoulli's equation, the Moody diagram, and friction losses in pipes. The key learning outcomes are applying Bernoulli's equation to problems involving work and energy, describing laminar and turbulent flow, and calculating frictional and other losses in pipe systems. The Moody diagram relates friction factor, Reynolds number, and relative roughness for fully developed pipe flow. Friction factor depends on Reynolds number and pipe roughness. Laminar, transitional, and turbulent flow regimes have different formulas for calculating friction factor.

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Nikka Briones Domingo
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555 views6 pages

Moody Diagram: Darcy Friction Factor

This document discusses flow through enclosed ducts and pipes. It covers topics like Bernoulli's equation, applications of Bernoulli's equation, the Moody diagram, and friction losses in pipes. The key learning outcomes are applying Bernoulli's equation to problems involving work and energy, describing laminar and turbulent flow, and calculating frictional and other losses in pipe systems. The Moody diagram relates friction factor, Reynolds number, and relative roughness for fully developed pipe flow. Friction factor depends on Reynolds number and pipe roughness. Laminar, transitional, and turbulent flow regimes have different formulas for calculating friction factor.

Uploaded by

Nikka Briones Domingo
Copyright
© © All Rights Reserved
We take content rights seriously. If you suspect this is your content, claim it here.
Available Formats
Download as DOCX, PDF, TXT or read online on Scribd
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COURSE OUTCOME #2: Describe flow thru enclosed ducts and pipes.

TOPICS: Bernoulli’s Equation – work and energy


Applications of Bernoulli’s Equation
Moody Diagram
Friction losses and other minor losses in pipeline.
LEARNING OUTCOME: Apply Bernoulli’s equation in work and energy problems
Describe the properties of laminar and turbulent flow
Calculate frictional and other losses in a pipe system.

MOODY DIAGRAM
The Moody diagram (also known as the Moody chart) is a graph in non-
dimensional form that relates the Darcy friction factor, Reynolds number, and
the relative roughness for fully developed flow in a circular pipe. (see attached below)

Darcy Friction Factor


The Darcy friction factor is a dimensionless quantity used in the Darcy–
Weisbach equation, for the description of frictional losses in pipe or duct as well as
for open-channel flow. This is also called the Darcy–Weisbach friction factor, resistance
coefficient, or simply friction factor.
The friction factor has been determined to depend on the Reynolds number for
the flow and the degree of roughness of the pipe’s inner surface (especially for  turbulent
flow). The friction factor of laminar flow is independent of roughness of the pipe’s inner
surface.

ε
f = f (Re, D , pipe cross – section)

The pipe cross-section is also important, as deviations from circular cross-section


will cause secondary flows that increase the head loss. Non-circular pipes and ducts are
generally treated by using the hydraulic diameter.

Relative Roughness
The quantity used to measure the roughness of the pipe’s inner surface is
called the relative roughness, and it is equal to the average height of surface
irregularities (ε) divided by the pipe diameter (D).
ε
Relative Roughness = D

where both the average height surface irregularities and the pipe diameter are in
millimeters.

If we know the relative roughness of the pipe’s inner surface, then we can obtain
the value of the friction factor from the Moody chart.

Reynolds Number
The Reynolds number is the ratio of inertial forces to viscous forces and is a
convenient parameter for predicting if a flow condition will be laminar or turbulent. It
can be interpreted that when the viscous forces are dominant (slow flow, low Re) they
are sufficient enough to keep all the fluid particles in line, then the flow is laminar. Even
very low Re indicates viscous creeping motion, where inertia effects are negligible.

When the inertial forces dominate over the viscous forces (when the fluid is flowing
faster and Re is larger) then the flow is turbulent.

It is a dimensionless number comprised of the physical characteristics of the


flow. An increasing Reynolds number indicates an increasing turbulence of flow.

It is defined as:

ρVD VD
ReD = μ = v

where:
V = flow velocity,
D= characteristic linear dimension, (travelled length of the fluid; hydraulic diameter etc.)
Ρ = fluid density (kg/m3),
μ = dynamic viscosity (Pa.s),
ν = kinematic viscosity (m2/s); ν = μ / ρ.

Darcy Friction Factor for Various Flow Regime


The most common classification of flow regimes is according to the Reynolds
number. The Reynolds number is a dimensionless number comprised of the physical
characteristics of the flow and it determines whether the flow is laminar or turbulent. An
increasing Reynolds number indicates an increasing turbulence of flow. As can be seen
from the Moody chart, also Darcy friction factor is highly dependent on the flow regime
(i.e. on the Reynolds number).

Darcy Friction factor for Laminar Flow


For practical purposes, if the  Reynolds number  is less than 2000, the flow
is  laminar. The accepted transition Reynolds number for flow in a circular pipe is
Red,crit = 2300. For laminar flow, the head loss is proportional to velocity rather than
velocity squared, thus the friction factor is inversely proportional to velocity. The Darcy
friction factor for laminar (slow) flows is a consequence of Poiseuille’s law that and it is
given by following equations:

64 Geometry Factor k
Circular pipes: f = Square 56.91
ℜ
2:1 62.19
k Rectangle
Non – circular Pipes: f =
ℜ , 48≤ k ≤ 96 5:1 76.28
Rectangle
Parallel Plates 96.00

Darcy Friction factor for Transitional Flow


At Reynolds numbers between about 2000 and 4000 the flow is unstable as a
result of the onset of turbulence. These flows are sometimes referred to as transitional
flows. The Darcy friction factor contains large uncertainties in this flow regime and is not
well understood.

Darcy Friction factor for Turbulent Flow


If the  Reynolds number  is greater than 3500, the flow is   turbulent. Most fluid
systems in nuclear facilities operate with turbulent flow. In this flow regime the
resistance to flow follows the Darcy–Weisbach equation: it is proportional to the square
of the mean flow velocity. The Darcy friction factor depends strongly on the relative
roughness of the pipe’s inner surface.
The most common method to determine a friction factor for turbulent flow is to
use the Moody chart. The Moody chart (also known as the Moody diagram) is a log-log
plot of the Colebrook correlation that relates the Darcy friction factor, Reynolds number,
and the relative roughness for fully developed flow in a circular pipe. The Colebrook–
White equation:
1 ε 2.51
= -2 log10 ( 3.7 D + ¿
√f h ℜ√f

which is also known as the Colebrook equation, expresses the Darcy friction factor f as


a function of pipe relative roughness ε / Dh and Reynolds number.

In 1939, Colebrook found an implicit correlation for the friction factor in round
pipes by fitting the data of experimental studies of turbulent flow in smooth and rough
pipes.

For hydraulically smooth pipe and the turbulent flow (Re < 10 5) the friction factor
can be approximated by Blasius formula:

f = (100.Re)-¼

It must be noted, at very large Reynolds numbers,  the friction factor is


independent of the  Reynolds
number. This is because the
thickness of laminar sublayer
(viscous sublayer) decreases
with increasing Reynolds
number. For very large
Reynolds numbers the
thickness of laminar sublayer is
comparable to the surface
roughness and it directly
influences the
flow. The laminar
sublayer becomes so thin that
the surface roughness
protrudes into the flow. The
frictional losses in this case are
produced in the main flow primarily by the protruding roughness elements, and the
contribution of the laminar sublayer is negligible.

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