FEEG2003 Fluid Mechanics

Part 1. Conservation equations

L1.1 Revision

Recommended reading: White 1.2 – 1.7.

At the completion of this lecture you should be able to…

1. Describe the continuum assumption.

2. Define all thermodynamic properties of a fluid.
3. Solve simple problems using the ideal gas equations of state (e.g. problems 1.1.3-4)

1.1.1 Physical properties of a fluid.

The subject of fluid mechanics is a branch of continuum mechanics which studies the behaviour
of fluids - liquids, gases and plasmas. In a fluid the molecules which are free to move relative
to one-another, unlike a solid in which there is little relative motion of molecules within the
material. In a liquid, the inter-molecular forces are weak enough to allow relative movement
of molecules but strong enough to keep the molecules close so that the fluid maintains a definite
volume. This means that a liquid will deform to take the shape of a container into which it is
placed (forming a free-surface if the volume of the container is larger than the volume of the
fluid) and is generally difficult to compress. In a gas, the intermolecular forces are almost
negligible and thus molecules move freely and are relatively far apart. This means that a gas
will expand to fill a container into which it is placed and is generally easy to compress. An
idealised representation of the molecular structure of solids, liquids and gases is shown in figure
A below.

Solid Liquid Gas

Figure 1.1.A. Idealised representation of the molecular structure of a solid, liquid and gas.

In continuum mechanics, the material of interest is modelled as a continuous material. Thus, in

fluid mechanics, although the fluid is comprised of numerous small molecules we model the
fluid as being a continuous material. The properties of this continuous material are then
determined by the ‘average’ behaviour of the molecules within the fluid. For example, at room
temperature, a cube of air with sides of length 10-6m contains approximately 107 molecules.
These molecules are all moving in random directions at approximately 500m/s. However, if
(on a macroscopic scale) the air velocity is zero, then the vector average of the velocities of all
molecules is zero. Alternatively, if the air was moving, the vector average of all molecules will
equal the air velocity. As long as there are enough molecules within our small cube during the
time over which the velocity was measured, this averaging process can be used to define any
macroscopic property of the fluid we require (velocity, temperature, pressure etc.) within our
small element. In fluid mechanics, the continuum assumption states that these properties are
continuous functions of position and time. This allows us to use differential calculus to analyse
the behaviour of the fluid. For example, density, 𝜌𝜌, is a fluid property which is a function of
position, 𝐱𝐱, and time 𝑡𝑡. We can write this as follows:

𝜌𝜌(𝐱𝐱, 𝑡𝑡).

Note that the position variable 𝐱𝐱 is a vector which can be defined in a Cartesian coordinate
system as

𝐱𝐱 = 𝐢𝐢1 𝑥𝑥1 + 𝐢𝐢2 𝑥𝑥2 + 𝐢𝐢3 𝑥𝑥3

where 𝐢𝐢1 , 𝐢𝐢2 and 𝐢𝐢3 are unit vectors in the 𝑥𝑥1 , 𝑥𝑥2 and 𝑥𝑥3 directions respectively (see figure B
below).

x3

1
i3
i1 x1
i2 1
1
x2

Figure 1.1.B. Cartesian coordinate system showing unit vectors.

Dimensions and units

A dimension is measure of a physical variable. In fluid mechanics, there are four primary
dimensions: mass (M), length (L), time (T) and temperature (Θ). All other dimensions, which
are referred to as secondary dimensions, can be constructed from combinations of these four
primary dimensions. A dimension is quantified by a unit. For example, length is a dimension
with units of metres (m). Table A below lists all primary dimensions and their SI units 1 as well
as some secondary dimensions and their units.

1
The SI abbreviation comes from the French le Système Internnational d’unités)
 Primary dimensions Secondary dimensions
Dimension Unit Dimension Unit
Mass kg Force N, kg.m.s-2
Length m Pressure Pa, N.m-2, kg.m-1.s-2
Time s Energy J, N.m, kg.m2.s-2
Temperature K Power W, N.m.s-1, kg.m2.s-3
Table 1.1.A. Table of common dimensions and units

Note that units which are named after a person (Joule, Watt, Newton) are abbreviated by a
Capital letter (J, W, N). Other units (seconds, metres, kilograms) are abbreviated with lower-
case letters (s, m, kg).

Control volumes

A control volume is a volume of fluid surrounded by an imaginary enclosing surface known as

the control surface. In this module we will derive a partial differential equation for the
conservation of mass for the flow through a stationary control volume. A control volume can
be any shape, and the fluid is free to pass across the control surface. A cuboid shaped control
volume with sides of length 𝐿𝐿1 , 𝐿𝐿2 and 𝐿𝐿3 is shown in figure C below.

𝑥𝑥3
𝑥𝑥1 𝑥𝑥2
𝐿𝐿3

𝐿𝐿1

𝐿𝐿2

Figure 1.1.C. An example control volume.

Fluid properties

In fluid mechanics, we use theory or experiment to determine the properties of the fluid as a
function of position and time. In almost all cases, the emphasis is on determining the space-
time distribution of one or more of these properties. The fluid properties which we will use in
this course are listed below. Note that the number of properties which need to be determined
in each case depends on the specifics of the problem being considered. This will be discussed
in more detail throughout this course.
Velocity.

The fluid velocity, 𝐮𝐮, is a vector which is a function of space and time. The velocity vector has
components 𝑢𝑢1 , 𝑢𝑢2 and 𝑢𝑢3 in the 𝑥𝑥1 , 𝑥𝑥2 and 𝑥𝑥3 directions respectively i.e.

𝐮𝐮(𝐱𝐱, 𝑡𝑡) = 𝐢𝐢1 𝑢𝑢1 (𝐱𝐱, 𝑡𝑡) + 𝐢𝐢2 𝑢𝑢2 (𝐱𝐱, 𝑡𝑡) + 𝐢𝐢3 𝑢𝑢3 (𝐱𝐱, 𝑡𝑡)

In most engineering problems, the fluid velocity is often the most important parameter which
we are trying to determine. In this course, we will denote the magnitude of the velocity vector
as 𝑈𝑈. i.e.

𝑈𝑈 = √𝐮𝐮 ∙ 𝐮𝐮

Velocity has SI units of metres per second (m.s-1).

The velocity field is often visualised using 3 different methods, namely, streamlines, streaklines
and pathlines.

• Streamlines are a family of curves which are everywhere tangent to the local velocity
field.
• Pathlines are the trajectory an individual fluid ‘particle’ follows. An individual smoke
particle injected into a flow will follow a pathline (provided the particle is light and has
negligible drag).
• A streakline is a line which is made up of all particles which have passed through a
particular point. A streakline may be produced by releasing smoke or dye into a fluid
from a fixed point. A streakline is a curve made up of the endpoints of the pathlines of
many particles released from the same point over time.

For a steady flow, streamlines, streaklines and pathlines are coincident.

Pressure.

In a static fluid, pressure, p, is defined as the magnitude of the compression stress at that point.
We will introduce the concept of fluid stresses in a later lecture. Pascal’s law states that the
compression stress within a static fluid is independent of direction. Although compressive
stress has a direction, pressure is a scalar quantity and therefore has no direction. Pressure has
SI units of Pascals (Pa) or Newtons per square metre (N.m-2). The definition of pressure in a
moving fluid is more complicated and will also be covered in a later lecture.

Density.

Mean density is defined as the ‘mass of a given amount of fluid’ ÷ ‘fluid volume’. The density,
𝜌𝜌, at a particular point within a fluid is defined as the mean density of an infinitesimally small
control volume centred on the point of interest. Density can vary greatly in gases but is nearly
constant in liquids. Density has SI units of kilograms per cubic metre (kg.m-3).

Temperature.
At a macroscopic level, absolute temperature, T, can be shown to be proportional to the average
kinetic energy of the random microscopic motions of the fluid particles. Temperature has SI
units of Kelvins (K). 0K = -273.15°C is commonly referred to as absolute zero and is the
(theoretical) point at which fluid molecules have minimal vibrational motion. It is impossible
for a physical system to have a temperature less than or equal to absolute zero.

The following additional properties become important when work, heat, energy balances and
mixtures of fluids need to be analysed.

Internal energy.

Internal energy, 𝐸𝐸𝑢𝑢 , is the energy ‘stored’ within a system due to the kinetic and potential
energy associated with the microscopic motion of the fluids molecules. Internal energy is an
extensive quantity related to the size (or extent) of the system under consideration and SI has
units of Joules. It will also be convenient to introduce specific internal energy, 𝑒𝑒𝑢𝑢 , which may
be defined by dividing the internal energy by the mass of the system. We can allow specific
internal energy to be a function of space and time (i.e. 𝑒𝑒𝑢𝑢 (𝐱𝐱, 𝑡𝑡)) by defining specific internal
energy at a point to be equal to the ratio of the internal energy and mass within an
infinitesimally small volume of fluid centred at location 𝐱𝐱 at time 𝑡𝑡. Specific internal energy
has SI units of Joules per kilogram (J.kg-1).

Specific total energy.

Specific total energy, 𝑒𝑒𝑡𝑡 , is defined as the sum of the specific internal (𝑒𝑒𝑢𝑢 ), kinetic and potential
energy of the fluid particles.

You will recall from high-school physics that the kinetic energy of a particle with mass 𝑚𝑚 and
1
velocity magnitude 𝑈𝑈 is equal to 2 𝑚𝑚𝑈𝑈 2 . Thus the kinetic energy per unit mass at a point within
1
the fluid is equal to 2 𝑈𝑈 2. Similarly, you will have learnt that the potential energy of a particle
with mass 𝑚𝑚 is equal to 𝑚𝑚𝐠𝐠 ∙ 𝐱𝐱, which is the work required to lift that particle to a position 𝐱𝐱 =
𝐢𝐢1 𝑥𝑥1 + 𝐢𝐢2 𝑥𝑥2 +𝐢𝐢3 𝑥𝑥3 against a gravity field. In this text we will define the 𝑥𝑥3 coordinate as being
upwards i.e. 𝐠𝐠 = −𝐢𝐢3 𝑔𝑔 and we’ll usually assume that the magnitude of the gravity vector, 𝑔𝑔 =
9.81m.s-2. Thus, the potential energy per unit mass (relative to the origin of the coordinate
system) at a point within the fluid is equal to 𝑔𝑔𝑥𝑥3 .

Thus, specific total energy in a fluid is defined by the following equation

1 1
𝑒𝑒𝑡𝑡 = 𝑒𝑒𝑢𝑢 + 𝑈𝑈 2 − 𝐠𝐠 ∙ 𝐱𝐱 = 𝑒𝑒𝑢𝑢 + 𝑈𝑈 2 + 𝑔𝑔𝑥𝑥3
2 2
Specific total energy has SI units of Joules per kilogram (J.kg-1).

Enthalpy.

Enthalpy, 𝐸𝐸ℎ , is a measure of the energy of a thermodynamic system. It is defined by the

following equation
 𝐸𝐸ℎ = 𝐸𝐸𝑢𝑢 + 𝑝𝑝𝑝𝑝

where 𝐸𝐸𝑢𝑢 is the internal energy, 𝑝𝑝 is the pressure and 𝑉𝑉 is the volume of the system. The
product of pressure and volume can be interpreted as the energy (work) required to ‘make room’
for the system by displacing its environment.

Specific enthalpy, 𝑒𝑒ℎ , is defined by dividing the equation defining 𝐸𝐸ℎ by the mass of the system,
𝑀𝑀 which yields

𝐸𝐸ℎ 𝑝𝑝
𝑒𝑒ℎ ≡ = 𝑒𝑒𝑢𝑢 + .
𝑀𝑀 𝜌𝜌

Similar to density and internal energy, specific internal energy can be defined as a continuous
function of space and time. Enthalpy has SI units of Joules (J). Specific enthalpy has units of
Joules per kilogram (J/kg).

Entropy.

Entropy, 𝑆𝑆, represents a quantitative measure of the amount of thermal energy not available to
do work in a closed system. Entropy is an extensive variable with units of Joules. A
corresponding intensive variable known as specific entropy, 𝑠𝑠, can also be defined and which
is assumed to be a continuous function of space and time. Entropy has SI units of Joules per
Kelvin (J.K-1). Specific entropy has SI units of Joules per kilogram Kelvin (J.kg-1.K-1).

Specific heats

In high-school physics you were taught that the heat capacity of an object, 𝐶𝐶 was defined as
the heat energy transferred to an object Δ𝑄𝑄 divided by the change in temperature of that object
Δ𝑇𝑇 i.e. 𝐶𝐶 = Δ𝑄𝑄/Δ𝑇𝑇. A specific heat capacity, 𝑐𝑐, can also be defined by dividing the heat
capacity by the mass of the object.

In your first year Thermofluids module, you may (or may not) remember that for a constant
pressure process, the heat transfer into a system is equal to the change in enthalpy of that system.
Thus, for a constant pressure process, a specific heat capacity for the system can be defined as
the change in specific enthalpy of the system divided by the change in temperature of the
system. For infinitesimally small changes in temperature, a specific heat at constant pressure
can be defined as follows

𝜕𝜕𝑒𝑒ℎ
𝑐𝑐𝑝𝑝 = � �
𝜕𝜕𝜕𝜕 𝑝𝑝

where the sub-script p on the right-hand side indicates that the derivative is evaluated with
pressure held constant.

Also, you may recall that for a system undergoing a process in which the volume does not
change then the heat transfer into the system is equal to the change in internal energy of the
system. For a constant volume process, a specific heat capacity for the system can be defined
as the change in specific internal energy of the system divided by the change in temperature of
the system. Thus, for infinitesimally small changes in temperature, a specific heat at constant
volume can be defined as follows

𝜕𝜕𝑒𝑒𝑢𝑢
𝑐𝑐𝑣𝑣 = � �
𝜕𝜕𝜕𝜕 𝑣𝑣

where the sub-script v on the right-hand side of this equation indicates that the derivative is
evaluated with the volume (per unit mass) held constant.

Specific heat capacity has SI units of Joules per kilogram Kelvin (J.kg-1.K-1).

Viscosity.

Viscosity is the property of a fluid which quantifies the fluid’s resistance to a change in velocity.
Consider a thin layer of fluid of thickness 𝛿𝛿𝑥𝑥2 in a flow which is laminar and moves in the
positive 𝑥𝑥1 −direction (as shown in figure D below). The lower surface of the layer moves at
velocity 𝑢𝑢 while the upper surface moves at velocity 𝑢𝑢 + 𝛿𝛿𝛿𝛿. In order to sustain this velocity
difference, there is a shear stress (force per unit area) 𝜏𝜏 exerted on the upper and lower surfaces
of the fluid layer by the adjacent fluid. Note that the fluid within the layer exerts an equal and
opposite stress on the boundary of the layer.

𝑥𝑥2 𝜏𝜏 𝑢𝑢 + 𝛿𝛿𝛿𝛿

𝑥𝑥1 𝛿𝛿𝑥𝑥2
𝜏𝜏 𝑢𝑢

Figure 1.1.D. Shear stress acting on a thin layer of fluid.

It can be shown that these shear stresses are related to the change in velocity 𝛿𝛿𝛿𝛿 and layer
thickness 𝛿𝛿𝑥𝑥2 by the following linear expression

𝛿𝛿𝛿𝛿
𝜏𝜏 = 𝜇𝜇 .
𝛿𝛿𝑥𝑥2

where 𝜇𝜇 is the dynamic viscosity. For an infinitesimally small element (𝛿𝛿𝑥𝑥2 → 0) this equation
becomes

𝜕𝜕𝜕𝜕
𝜏𝜏 = 𝜇𝜇 .
𝜕𝜕𝜕𝜕

Kinematic viscosity 𝜈𝜈 is defined as the ratio of dynamic viscosity to density, i.e.

𝜇𝜇
𝜈𝜈 = .
𝜌𝜌

Dynamic viscosity has SI units of Pa.s or kg.s-1.m-1. Kinematic viscosity has units of m2.s-1.
Thermal conductivity.

Thermal conductivity is the property of a fluid which quantifies its ability to conduct heat. It is
denoted by the symbol 𝑘𝑘 and has units of W.m-1.K-1. It appears in Fourier’s law which states
that the rate of heat flow per unit area across a surface with unit normal parallel to the 𝑥𝑥𝑖𝑖 -
coordinate ( 𝑖𝑖 = 1, 2 or 3 ) 𝑞𝑞𝑖𝑖 is equal to – 𝑘𝑘 times the temperature gradient in the 𝑥𝑥𝑖𝑖 -
direction i.e.

𝜕𝜕𝜕𝜕
𝑞𝑞𝑖𝑖 = −𝑘𝑘 .
𝜕𝜕𝑥𝑥𝑖𝑖

State relations

Apart from the specific total energy, 𝑒𝑒𝑡𝑡 which is dependent on the internal energy, velocity and
position, the rest of fluid properties listed above (𝑝𝑝, 𝜌𝜌, 𝑇𝑇, 𝑒𝑒𝑢𝑢 , 𝑒𝑒ℎ , 𝑠𝑠, 𝑐𝑐𝑝𝑝 , 𝑐𝑐𝑣𝑣 , 𝜇𝜇 and 𝑘𝑘) are true
thermodynamics properties which are determined by the state of the fluid. The two-property
rule states that if two of the fluid properties listed above are known, then all other properties
can be expressed as functions of these two properties. For example, say we have a sensor which
is capable of measuring the pressure and temperature of air at a particular location and time.
The two property rule then tells us that the density at this location and time is a function of
pressure and temperature only i.e.

𝜌𝜌(𝑝𝑝, 𝑇𝑇)

Such a relationship is known as an equation of state. Fortunately, these functions are well-
known for most common fluids which we deal with as engineers. Equations of state are
dependent on the properties of the fluid and must be determined by experimental measurement
or deduced from statistical mechanics.

It is not normally possible to write the equation of state in closed form and for most fluids, the
equations of state are usually expressed as tables. However, there is one notable exception
which is the ideal gas equation of state

𝑝𝑝 = 𝜌𝜌𝜌𝜌𝜌𝜌,

where 𝑅𝑅 = 𝑐𝑐𝑝𝑝 − 𝑐𝑐𝑣𝑣 is the gas constant (𝑅𝑅 = 287J.kg-1.K-1 for air). The ideal gas equation of
state is valid for most gases we encounter as engineers including air.

In an ideal gas, it can be shown that specific enthalpy and specific internal energy are only
functions of temperature i.e. 𝑒𝑒ℎ (𝑇𝑇), 𝑒𝑒𝑢𝑢 (𝑇𝑇). Therefore, the specific heats are also functions of
temperature only i.e.

𝜕𝜕𝑒𝑒ℎ 𝑑𝑑𝑒𝑒ℎ (𝑇𝑇) 𝜕𝜕𝑒𝑒𝑢𝑢 𝜕𝜕𝑒𝑒𝑢𝑢 (𝑇𝑇)

𝑐𝑐𝑝𝑝 = � � = = 𝑐𝑐𝑝𝑝 (𝑇𝑇), 𝑐𝑐𝑣𝑣 = � � = = 𝑐𝑐𝑣𝑣 (𝑇𝑇).
𝜕𝜕𝜕𝜕 𝑝𝑝 𝑑𝑑𝑑𝑑 𝜕𝜕𝜕𝜕 𝑝𝑝 𝜕𝜕𝜕𝜕

Integrating these expressions between two arbitrary states (state ‘1’ and state ‘2’) yields
 2 2

𝑒𝑒ℎ 2 − 𝑒𝑒ℎ 1 = � 𝑐𝑐𝑝𝑝 (𝑇𝑇)𝑑𝑑𝑑𝑑 , 𝑒𝑒𝑢𝑢 2 − 𝑒𝑒𝑢𝑢1 = � 𝑐𝑐𝑣𝑣 (𝑇𝑇)𝑑𝑑𝑑𝑑.

1 1

In actual fact, in most engineering applications we can assume that the specific heats are only
weak functions of temperature and can be approximated as constant. Commonly used values
for air are

𝑐𝑐𝑝𝑝 ≈ 1005 J.kg-1.K-1, 𝑐𝑐𝑣𝑣 ≈ 718 J.kg-1.K-1.

The change in enthalpy within an ideal gas can thus be approximated as

𝑒𝑒ℎ 2 − 𝑒𝑒ℎ 1 = 𝑐𝑐𝑝𝑝 (𝑇𝑇2 − 𝑇𝑇1 ), 𝑒𝑒𝑢𝑢 2 − 𝑒𝑒𝑢𝑢1 = 𝑐𝑐𝑣𝑣 (𝑇𝑇2 − 𝑇𝑇1 ).

The ratio of specific heats of an ideal gas, 𝛾𝛾 is an important dimensionless parameter in

compressible flow aerodynamics.
𝑐𝑐𝑝𝑝
𝛾𝛾 ≡ ≈ 1.4 (for air)
𝑐𝑐𝑣𝑣

Unfortunately, no comparable equation of state exists for liquids. However, for engineering
purposes it is usually satisfactory to assume that liquids are incompressible (have constant
density) and have constant specific heats. Water is usually assumed to have a density of
1000kg.m-3 and 𝑐𝑐𝑝𝑝 ≈ 𝑐𝑐𝑣𝑣 ≈ 4181 J.kg-1.K-1.

Questions.

1.1.1. In the experiment illustrated below, calculate the shear stress 𝜏𝜏 if the fluid between the
two plates is (i) air (𝜇𝜇 = 10−3 Pa. s) and (ii) water (𝜇𝜇 = 1.82 × 10−5 Pa. s) at 20°C. (ans, 1Pa,
1.82×10-2Pa)

𝑥𝑥2 𝜏𝜏 𝑈𝑈

𝑥𝑥1 𝛿𝛿

𝜏𝜏
Figure 1.1.E. A fluid filling the space 𝛿𝛿 between two large parallel flat plates is subject to a
simple shearing motion. The upper plate moves with a speed U = 1m/s while the lower is
stationary. The gap between both plates is 𝛿𝛿 = 1mm. The fluid exerts a shear stress 𝜏𝜏 on the
inner surfaces of the upper and lower flat plates.

1.1.2. A 2mm thick layer of glycerine is sandwiched between two large flat plates with
dimensions 300mm x 300mm. The unit normal to each flat-plate is aligned with the 𝑥𝑥3 axis.
The upper flat-plate is kept at a constant temperature of 20°C, whilst the lower flat-plate has a
constant temperature of -30°C. Glycerine has a thermal conductivity k = 0.285 W.m-1.K-1.
Estimate the rate of heat transfer through the upper plate (noting the direction of heat-transfer).
Make sure you state any assumptions that you have made.
1.1.3. An automobile tyre has the shape of a torus of major diameter D = 60cm and minor
diameter d = 15cm. The volume V of the tyre is 𝜋𝜋𝜋𝜋(𝜋𝜋𝑑𝑑2 /4). The tyre contains air at an absolute
pressure of 𝑝𝑝 = 345𝑘𝑘𝑘𝑘𝑘𝑘 and temperature of 20°C. Calculate the mass of air in the tyre
assuming R = 287J.kg-1.K-1. You may assume that atmospheric pressure is 100kPa.

1.1.4. A rigid vessel contains 0.1kg of air initially at 105Pa and 20°C. A heat transfer to the gas
increases the temperature to 1000°C. Calculate the initial and final volume of the air, the final
pressure, the change in internal energy and enthalpy and the heat energy transferred to the air
during the heating process.