FLUID MECHANICS

FLUIDS: Viscometer – an instrument consisting of standard

orifice, used for measuring viscosity.
Fluid – is a substance that cannot maintain its own shape
but takes the shape of its container. Liquids and gases are Types of Viscosity:
both classified as fluids. Absolute/Dynamic Viscosity (μd) – viscosity which is
determined by direct measurement of shear resistance (in
Classification of Fluids: Poise).
a. Newtonian Fluids – are viscous, real fluids whose Units:
shear stresses are a linear function of the fluid 1 reyn = 1 lb-sec/in2
strain. Examples: air, water, gases, steam 1 Poise = 1 dyne-sec/cm2 = 0.1 Pa-s
b. Non-Newtonian Fluids – are real fluids whose Kinematic Viscosity (μk) – absolute viscosity divided by
viscosity is variable based on applied force or stress. the density (ρ):
Examples: pastes, gels, slurries d
k 
Fluid Properties:

 Density (ρ) – the mass per unit volume of a fluid.
mass m Units: 1 stoke = 1 cm2/s
  m2/s
volume V ft2/s
P
For ideal gas:  
RT REYNOLDS NUMBER (Re):
Where: Reynolds Number is a dimensionless number which is
P = absolute pressure, kPaa the ratio of the forces of inertia to viscous forces of the
R = gas constant, kJ/kg-K fluids. It is used to determine the type of flow in fluids.
T = absolute temperature, K Inertial force
Re 
Viscous force
 Specific Weight (γ) – the weight per unit volume of
a fluid. Reynolds number is also defined as follows:
weight W mg Dv Dv
    g Re  or Re 
volume V V d k
Where: Where: Re = Reynolds Number
γ = specific weight, N/m3 D = diameter of pipe, m
W = weight = mg v = velocity of fluid, m/s
V = volume
ρ = density Types of Flow:
Laminar Flow – occurs when the fluid flows in parallel
 Specific Volume (ν) – the volume occupied by the layers, with no mixing between the layers.
fluid per unit mass. Also known as reciprocal of
density. Turbulent Flow – occurs when the liquid is moving fast
volume V 1 with mixing between layers.
  
mass m  Transitional/Transient Flow – a mixture of laminar and
Where: turbulent flow, with turbulent flow in the center of the pipe
γ = specific weight, N/m3 and laminar flow near the edges of the pipe.
W = weight = mg Using Reynolds Number:
V = volume Re < 2300  Laminar Flow
ρ = density 2300 < Re < 4000  Transitional
Flow
 Specific Gravity (SG) – unitless ratio of fluid’s Re > 4000  Turbulent Flow
density (or specific weight) to the density/specific
weight of standard fluid such as water. SURFACE TENSION AND CAPILLARY ACTION
liquid  liquid
SG   Surface Tension is the tension of the surface film of a
 water  water liquid caused by the attraction of the particles in the
Where: surface layer by the bulk of the liquid (cohesive forces).
ρwater = 1000 kg/m3, 62.4 lb/ft3 Surface tension causes:
 Beading of rain water on a waxy surface (such
 Viscosity – the fluid’s resistance to flow or the as leaf)
property of fluid to resist shear deformation.  Formation of drops (spherical shape of drops)
Viscosity Index – the rate at which viscosity  Flotation of objects denser than water
changes with temperature.  Separation of oil and water

Problem Set 15 (Fluid Mechanics Lecture) REE SEPT 2020 Page 1

Capillary Action or capillary effect is the movement of Torricelli’s Theorem
water within the spaces of a porous material due to the (Flow Through A Nozzle):
forces of adhesion, cohesion, and surface tension.
The velocity of a fluid from an orifice or nozzle can be
Capillary rise is a rise in a liquid above the level of zero computed using the equation of Torricelli’s:
pressure due to net upward force produced by the v  2 gh
attraction of the water molecules to a solid surface. The
formula is: If coefficient of velocity (cv) is given, the actual velocity
becomes:
4 cos 
hcapillary  vactual  cv 2 gh
Dg
Where:
Where:
v = theoretical velocity
hcapillary = capillary rise (m)
vactual = actual velocity
σ = surface tension (N/m)
h = change in elevation (height of orifice)
D = diameter of pipe or tube (m)
g = acceleration due to gravity
ρ = density of fluid (kg/m3)
Θ = contact angle
If both the coefficient of contraction (cc) and coefficient of
g = acceleration due to gravity
velocity (cv) are given, we can obtain the coefficient of
discharge (cd) by the formula:
COMPRESSIBILITY AND BULK MODULUS cd  cc cv
Theoretical Flow: Q  Av  A 2gh
Compressibility (β) is the measure of the change in
volume of a substance when a pressure is exerted on the Actual Flow: Qactual  cc cv Av  cc cv A 2 gh
substance. In equation,
V HYDROSTATIC PRESSURE

 V Hydrostatic Pressure is the pressure that the fluid exerts
P
on the walls of the container.
Where: *Pressure is a function of depth or height.
∆V = change in volume (m3) *A particle in a liquid exerts pressure in all directions.
V = original volume (m3) *All points at the same horizontal plane have the same
∆P = change in pressure (Pa) pressure.
*For uniform hydraulic pressure P, the compressibility is *Pressure is always normal to the surface.
V
 The equation is: P  gh  h
 V Where:
P P = pressure
ρ = density
Bulk Modulus (E) is defined as the reciprocal of g = acceleration due to gravity
compressibility: γ = specific weight
1 P h = depth or height
E 
 V
 Pressure Head (h):
V
Pressure Head (h) is the ratio of the fluid’s pressure to
its specific weight. In equation,
GENERAL FLOW EQUATIONS
P
h
Volume Flow Rate (Q) of a fluid is a measure of the 
volume flow of fluid passing through a point per unit time. Velocity Head (hv): The velocity head (hv) is given by the
Torricelli’s Theorem:
Mass Flow Rate (ṁ) of a fluid is a measure of the mass
v2
flow of fluid passing through a point per unit time. hv 
The equations involving the two quantities are: 2g
Q  Av
 FRICTION HEAD LOSS IN PIPES:
m  Q
Where: The most frequently used formula for friction head loss (hf)
Q = volume flow rate is the Darcy-Weisbach Equation:
A = cross-sectional area of pipe fLv2
v = velocity hf 
ρ = density 2 Dg

Problem Set 15 (Fluid Mechanics Lecture) REE SEPT 2020 Page 2

Where:
hf = friction head loss, m CONTINUITY EQUATION:
f = coefficient of friction
L = length of pipe, m The Continuity Equation is derived from the conservation
v = velocity, m/s of mass; that is,
D = diameter of pipe, m  

g = acceleration due to gravity m1  m2  m1  m2

If Q, L, f and D are given, the above formula becomes: Or:

0.0826 fLQ 2
1 A1v1  2 A2v2
METRIC SYSTEM: hf 
D5
Where: For incompressible fluid: ρ1 = ρ2
Q = volume flow rate (in m3/s) Then:
f = friction factor Q1  Q2
L = length of pipe (m) A1v1  A2v2
D = diameter (m)
hf = friction head loss (m)
BUOYANCY:
0.0252 fLQ2 Buoyancy is the tendency of a body to float when
ENGLISH SYSTEM: h f 
D5 submerged in a fluid.
Where:
Q = volume flow rate (in ft3/s) Archimedes Principle – states that a body partly or
f = friction factor wholly submerged in a liquid is buoyed up by a force
L = length of pipe (ft) equal to the weight of the liquid displaced.
D = diameter (ft)
hf = friction head loss (ft) Equations involving buoyancy are as follows:
FB  Wliquid.. displaced
FRICTION FACTOR (f): The coefficient of friction for FB  Vliquid  gVliquid
laminar flow is given by the formula:
64
f  Where:
Re FB = Buoyant Force, N
Where: Re = Reynolds Number Wliquid displaced = weight of liquid displaced, N
Vliquid = volume of liquid displaced
ρ = density of the liquid
BERNOULLI’S EQUATION: g = acceleration due to gravity

Bernoulli’s Equation is a general energy equation that Note: If the weight of object submerged in air and in
is used for solving fluid flows. It states that the sum of water are given, the specific gravity of the object can be
the pressure head, velocity head and elevation head is computed by:
constant at any point in a flow medium (such as pipe). It Wair
is based or derived from the conservation of energy. SG 
Wair  Wwater

In equation,
P v2
  z  constant
 2g
2 2 2
P1 v1 P v P v
  z  2  2  z 2  3  3  z3
 2g 1  2g  2g
Where:
Pressure head = P/γ
Velocity head = v2/2g
Elevation head = z

Problem Set 15 (Fluid Mechanics Lecture) REE SEPT 2020 Page 3

HYDROSTATIC EQUATION P1  Patm
Pressure varies with depth. Using the specific case above,
where there are two liquids on a container (namely, oil and P2  Patm   oil hoil
water), the values of absolute pressure at different depths P3( bottom)  Patm   oil hoil   water hwater
or points are:
Where:
Patm = 101325 Pa (unless otherwise specified)
γwater = 9810 N/m3
γoil = SGoil × 9810 N/m3
hoil = depth of oil
hwater = depth of water

Problem Set 15 (Fluid Mechanics Lecture) REE SEPT 2020 Page 4

FLUID MECHANICS/HYDRAULICS ESAS
PROBLEM SET 15 (Lecture) REE SEPTEMBER 2020

1. The mass of air in a room which is 3m x 5 m x 20m is known to be 350 kg. Find its density.
A. 1.167 kg/m3 B. 1.176 kg/m3 C. 1.617 kg/m3 D. 1.716 kg/m3

2. One hundred (100) grams of water are mixed with 150 grams of alcohol (ρ = 790 kg/cu.m.). What is the specific
gravity and specific volume of the resulting mixtures, assuming that the two fluids mix completely?
A. 0.96, 1.04 cm3/g B. 0.82, 1.22 cm3/g C. 0.63, 1.59 cm3/g D. 0.86, 1.20 cm3/g

3. The pressure 34 meters below the ocean is nearest to:

A. 204 kPa B. 222 kPa C. 344 kPa D. 362 kPa

4. What is the atmospheric pressure on a planet where the absolute pressure is 100 kPa and the gage pressure is
10 kPa?
A. 90 kPa B. 80 kPa C. 100 kPa D. 10 kPa

5. If the pressure at a point in the ocean is 60 kPa, what is the pressure 27 meter below this point?
A. 256.3 kPa B. 521.3 kPa C. 332.8 kPa D. 185.4 kPa

6. A pressure gage 6 m above the bottom of the tank containing a liquid reads 90 kPa; another gage height 4 m
reads 103 kPa. Determine the specific weight of the liquid.
A. 6.5 kN/m3 B. 5.1 kN/m3 C. 3.2 kN/m3 D. 8.5 kN/m3

7. The weight density of a mud is given by ω = 10 + 0.5h, where ω is in kN/m 3 and h is in meters. Determine the
pressure, in kPa, at depth of 5m.
A. 89.36 kPa B. 56.25 kPa C. 62.5 kPa D. 78.54 kPa

8. What is the resulting pressure when one pound of air at 15 psia and 200°F is heated at constant volume to
800°F?
A. 28.6 psia B. 52.1 psia C. 36.4 psia D. 15 psia

9. The volume of a gas under standard atmospheric pressure 76 cm Hg is 200 in 3. What is the volume when the
pressure is 80 cm Hg, if the temperature is unchanged?
A. 190 in3 B. 90 in3 C. 110 in3 D. 30.4 in3

10. A two-meter square plane surface is immersed vertically below the water surface. The immersion is such that the
two edges of the square are horizontal. If the top of the square is 1 meter below the water surface, what is the
total water pressure exerted on the plane surface?
A. 43.93 kN B. 52.46 kN C. 64.76 kN D. 78.48 kN

Problem Set 15 (Fluid Mechanics Lecture) REE SEPT 2020 Page 5

 11. Find the total water pressure on a vertical circular gate, 2 meters in diameter, with its top 3.5 meters below the
water surface.
A. 138.7 kN B. 107.9 kN C. 169.5 kN D. 186.5 kN

12. An iceberg having specific gravity of 0.92 is floating on salt water of sp.. gr. 1.03. If the volume of the ice above
the water surface is 1000 m3, what is the total volume of the ice?
A. 8523 m3 B. 7862 m3 C. 9364 m3 D. 6325 m3

13. A block of wood requires a force of 40 N to keep it immersed in water and a force of 100 N to keep it immersed
in glycerin (sp.gr. = 1.3). Find the weight and sp. gr. of the wood.
A. 0.7 B. 0.6 C. 0.9 D. 0.8

14. Reynolds number may be calculated from

A. diameter, density and absolute viscosity
B. diameter, velocity, and surface tension
C. diameter, velocity, and absolute viscosity
D. characteristic length, mass flow rate per unit area, and absolute viscosity

15. The sum of the pressure head, elevation head, and velocity head remains constant, this is known as:
A. Bernoulli’s Theorem C. Torrecelli’s Theorem
B. Boyle’s law D. Archimedes’ Principle

16. What is the expected head loss per mile of closed circular pipe (17-in inside diameter, friction factor of 0.03)
when 3300 gal/min of water flow under pressure?
A. 38 ft B. 0.007 ft C. 3,580 ft D. 64 ft

17. Water at a gauge pressure of 3.8 atm at street level flows it to an office building at a speed of 0.06 m/s through
a pipe 5.0 cm in diameter. The pies taper down to 2.6 cm in diameter by the top floor, 20 m above. Calculate the
flow velocity and tge gauge pressure in such a pipe on the top floor. Assume no branch pie and ignore viscosity.
A. 2.22 m/s, 2.8x105 Pa C. 4.44 m/s, 2.34 x105 Pa
B. B. 1.11 m/s, 8.2x105 Pa D. 3.33 m/s, 3.24 x105 Pa

18. What is the rate of flow of water passing through a pipe with a diameter of 20 mm and speed of 0.5 m/sec?
A. 1.24 x 10-4 m3/s B. 2.51 x 10-4 m3/s C. 1.57 x 10-4 m3/s D. 1.87 x 10-4 m3/s

19. An orifice has a coefficient of discharge of 0.62 and a coefficient of contraction of 0.63. Determine the coefficient
of velocity for the orifice.
A. 0.98 B. 0.99 C. 0.97 D. 0.96

20. Determine the mean velocity of an engine oil at 60°C flowing at 0.01 kg/s through a square duct 1 cm in cross
section. At 60°C density is 864 kg/m3.
A. 0.1157 m/s B. 0.1517 m/s C. 0.2263 m/s D. 0.2630 m/s

21. The theoretical velocity of flow through an orifice 3m below the surface of water in a tall tank is:
A. 8.63 m/s B. 9.85 m/s C. 5.21 m/s D. 7.67 m/s

22. Water having kinematic viscosity v = 1.3 x 10-6 m2/s flows in a 100-mm diameter pipe at a velocity of 4.5 m/s.
The Reynold’s Number is:
A. 346,150 B. 258,250 C. 387,450 D. 298,750

Problem Set 15 (Fluid Mechanics Lecture) REE SEPT 2020 Page 6

 23. Oil having a specific gravity of 0.869 and dynamic viscosity of 0.0814 Pa-s flows through a cast iron pipe at a
velocity of 1 m/s. The pipe is 50 m long and 150 mm in diameter. Find the head lost due to friction.
A. 0.73 m B. 0.45 m C. 0.68 m D. 1.25 m

24. What commercial size of new cast iron pipe shall be used to carry 4490 gpm with a lost of head of 10.56 feet per
mile? Assume f = 0.019.
A. 625 mm B. 576 mm C. 479 mm D. 352 mm

25. The reciprocal of Bulk Modulus of any fluid is called _______.

A. volume strain B. volume stress C. compressibility D. shape elasticity

26. Determine the vertical pressure in N/m2 due to a column of water 85 m high.
A. 8.33 x 103 B. 8.33 x 106 C. 8.33 x 104 D. 8.33 x 105

27. If the absolute pressure at the bottom of the ocean is 120 kPa, how deep is the water at this point?
A. 1.90 m B. 1.85 m C. 1.68 m D. 1.55 m

28. The pressure 3 meter below the free surface of a liquid is 3.2 lb per in 2. What is the specific gravity of the liquid?
A. 46 B. 75 C. 0.75 D. 0.11

29. A stone weighs 105 lbs in air and 83 lb in water. Find the specific gravity of the stone.
A. 2.98 B. 0.35 C. 4.77 D. 2.21

30. Ethylene glycol at 60°C, with a velocity of 4 cm/s enters a 2.5 cm ID tube. At 60°C the viscosity is 4.75 x 10-6
m2/s, determine the Reynolds Number.
A. 200 B. 210 C. 2000 D. 1200

31. Air at atmospheric pressure and with a mean velocity of 0.5 m/s, flows inside a square section duct of side b =
2.5 cm. If the air temperature is 350°K, determine the Reynolds Number (at 350°K viscosity = 20.76 x 10-6 m2/s).
A. 206 B. 302 C. 108 D. 602

32. Water is flowing in a pipe with radius of 12 inches and a velocity of 11 m/sec. The viscosity of water is 1.131 Pa-
sec. What is the Reynolds Number?
A. 2964 B. 5930 C. 5800 D. 9189

33. Water is flowing through a cast iron pipe at the rate of 3500 GPM. The inside diameter of pipe is 8 in. Find the
flow velocity.
A. 6.81 m/sec B. 8.35 m/sec C. 1.70 m/sec D. 105 m/sec

34. A turbine is rated at 650 hp when the flow of water through it is 0.85 m 3/sec. Assuming an efficiency of 84%,
what is the head acting on the turbine?
A. 58 m B. 66 m C. 160 m D. 69 m

35. Determine the velocity of the fluid in a tank at the exit, given that surface h1 = 2m and h2 = 5 cm.
A. 8.2 m/sec B. 6.2 m/sec C. 5.3 m/sec D. 20 m/sec

Problem Set 15 (Fluid Mechanics Lecture) REE SEPT 2020 Page 7

 36. Determine the friction head loss for fully developed laminar flow of ethylene glycol at 40°C (ρ = 1101 kg/m 3
through a 5 cm diameter, 50 m long pipe, if friction factor is 0.242 and a flowrate of 0.1 kg/s.
A. 6.42 m B. 2.64 m C. 3.46 m D. 5.32 m

37. Calculate the discharge in liters per second through a 5 in diameter orifice under a head of 7.6 of water. Assume
coefficient of discharge of 0.65
A. 78 B. 1547 C. 77 D. 100

38. Find the water pressure reading if manometer is 9.60 in HG. Mercury has a relative density of 13.6.
A. 30.2 kPa B. 32.5 kPa C. 79.8 kPa D. 0.35 kPa

39. The static head corresponding to a flow velocity of 10m/sec is:

A. 6.10 m B. 5.09 m C. 1.67 m D. 8.36

40. A water tank with diameter 5 m is filled with water. If the water level is 2.4 m above the nozzle and the nozzle is
10 ft above the ground, how long will it take the water to hit the ground?
A. 1 sec B. 1.5 sec C. 0.79 sec D. 2.18 sec

Problem Set 15 (Fluid Mechanics Lecture) REE SEPT 2020 Page 8