ANEES HUSSAIN

EXCELLENCE IN EDUCATION SINCE 1989

XI PHYSICS | CHAP "FLUID STATICS" | BY: Engr. SALMAN ALI

FLUID:
Any substance that can flow from one place to another place is called fluid. Fluid is combination of
liquids and gases.

Fluid Statics:
The branch of Physics which deals with the study of fluid at the state of rest is called Fluid statics. Fluid
statics is based upon Newton's first and third law.

Fluid Dynamics:
The branch of Physics which deals with study of fluids in motion is called Fluid dynamics. A liquid is
studied on the basis of Law of conservation of mass and Law of conservation of energy.

PROPERTIES OF FLUIDS
PROPERTY GASES LIQUIDS
In spite of gravity and regardless of the A liquid is the sample of the
amount of substance present, gas is a substance that takes the shape
sample of matter that takes the shape of of the container it is stored in
Definition the container in which it is kept and and develops a defined
develops a uniform density inside the substance when gravity is
container. present.
Shape and Volume No fixed shape and volume No fixed shape but has volume
Compressibility Highly compressible Slightly compressible
Density Low density compared to liquids Higher density compared to
gases
Viscosity Low viscosity Higher viscosity compared to
gases
Surface tension No surface tension Has surface tension
Flow Freely flows Flows but not as freely as gases
Fluidity Flows in every direction Flows from high level to low
level
Intermolecular space Largest Large
Power High Moderate
Motion Gas molecules moves in a relaxed, Liquid molecules travel through
motionless and random way. the Brownian movement
Molecular attraction Minimum Medium

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PRESSURE
Perpendicular force per unit area acting on a surface is called pressure.

P= F / A

FACTORS ON WHICH PRESSURE DEPENDS:

1) Force: Pressure is directly proportional to force
2) Area : pressure is inversely proportional to area

UNITS:
In S.I system, its unit is Pascal (Pa) (where, 1 Pa = 1 N/m2)

Other units are:

❖ Atmosphere (atm) (where, 1 atm = 1.01 x 105 N/m2 ---- )

❖ Torr (where,1 torr 133.3Pa)
❖ Cm of Hg

PASCAL:

Pressure is said to be 1Pa when a force of 1 N act on an area of 1m2

PRESSURE IN LIQUIDS:
Consider a glass tank having water that absorb pressure on the bottom of the tank. The pressure
exerted on a point in a liquid depends on the density and depth in a liquid. To calculate pressure at the
bottom of liquid, imagine a cylinder having height ‘h’ from the bottom of the tank and cross sectional
area ‘ and the density of the liquid is ‘’.

Now volume of imaginary cylinder = V =  x h -----------(1)

As we know,

 = m/V

m= V x 

m= Ah (by equation 1) ---------------(2)

Weight of the liquid in this imaginary cylinder = W= mg= Ahg

This weight is equal to the force acting normally on area A.

❖ F= A h  g ---------------(3)

we know, P = F/A

P= A h  g /A

P=  g h

FACTORS ON WHICH PRESSURE DEPENDS:

1) Depth: Pressure inside the liquid is directly proportional to the depth h.

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 2) Density: The pressure inside liquid is directly proportional to the density of liquid.
3) Acceleration due to gravity: Pressure inside the liquid is directly proportional to the
acceleration due to gravity.

PASCAL’S LAW OR PASCAL’S PRINCIPLE:

STATEMENT:
“When pressure in pressure is applied to a liquid in a vessel, it transmitted undiminished equal
in all directions by the liquids acts perpendicular to the wall on container.” OR
“When a change in pressure is applied at any point of any static fluid it is transmitted perfectly
to all portions of the fluid and to the wall of the container.”
PROOF OF PASCALS LAW:
Consider a cylinder of height ‘h’ and cross sectional area ‘A’ with a moveable piston of mass ‘m’. Adding
weight Mg at the top of piston increases the pressure. At the top as the extra weight also acts over area
of the lid. The top of the piston increases the pressure as,

F=P/A

ΔPtop = Mg/ A

Last equation is the change in pressure at upwards which is same as change in pressure at downwards.
According to Pascal’s principle, pressure across the water changes by the same amount Mg/A and same
pressure will be applied at downwards. The downwards pressure is the sum of atmospheric pressure,
pressure due in fluid and pressure supplied by the mass M. Now pressure change at the bottom of the
container due to mass M is,

ΔPbottom = Mg/ A

As pressure changes are same everywhere so,

ΔP= ΔPtop = ΔPbottom = ΔPeverywhere

last equation shows that if external pressure is applied to a confined fluid, the pressure at every point
within the fluid increases by that amount of applied pressure.

APPLICATIONS OF PASCALS LAW:

Pascal’s principle can be seen in,

❖ Hydraulic brake system

❖ Hydraulic lift or jack
❖ Hydraulic press

1) AUTOMOBILE HYDRAULIC BRAKE SYSTEM:

It works on the Pascal’s principle and is used to stop moving vehicles.

CONSTRUCTION:

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It consist of a master cylinder joined by tubes to two smaller cylinders, one for each wheel of the car.
They are called the brake cylinders. The master cylinder and each of the brake cylinders are provided
with oil tight pistons.

WORKING:

Forward push on brake pedal (foot pedal) causes a force on the piston in the master cylinder and a
subsequent pressure on the brake oil. This pressure is transmitted in the tube to the oil in the brake
cylinder -----------. The undiminished transmitted pressure forces the piston in each brake cylinder to act
on the brake shoe against the brake drum. The resulting friction stops the wheel. When the pressure on
the brake is released the spring which connects the two brake shoes contracts and pulls them away
from the brake drum.

2) HYDRAULIC LIFT OR HYDRAULIC JACK:

It works on the Pascal’s principle and is used to lift heavy objects or car.

CONSTRUCTION:

It consists of a narrow cylinder A connected with a wider cylinder B and they are fitted with air tight
pistons.

WORKING:

Push the piston in the cylinder A in downward direction with a force F1. The pressure applied is
transmitted undiminished according to Pascal's Principle to the piston of the cylinder B. The pressure on
Piston B is same as that on A. The force on piston B is large because of larger surface area and moves the
car upward. By Pascal's Principle, the force needed to lift the automobile is less than the weight of
automobile.

𝑃1 = 𝑃2
𝐹1 𝐹2
=
𝐴1 𝐴2
𝐹2 𝐴2
=
𝐹1 𝐴1
In last equation mechanical advantage is
𝐹2
𝑀. 𝐴 =
𝐹1
3) HYDRAULIC PRESS:
Its mechanism is same as that of hydraulic lift and is used to compress cotton into a compact bale,
powder materials into compact solids etc.

CONSTRUCTION:

It consists of a narrow cylinder A connected with a wider cylinder B and they are fitted with air tight
pistons

It is filled with some incompressible fluid. Piston B is provided with a rigid roof over it.

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ARCHIMEDES PRINCIPLE
Statement:

When an object is immersed in a liquid, it experiences an upward thrust which is equal to the weight of
the liquid displaced by the object. It was discovered by Archimedes and is called Archimedes Principle.

Mathematically:

Up thrust or upward force depends upon:

• Volume of the body. More fluid is displaced, the greater the up thrust.
• Density of fluid: The greater the density, greater is up thrust.
• Local acceleration due to gravity: Greater the value of g, greater will be up thrust.

Due to up thrust, an object immersed in a liquid has an apparent weight which is given by the following
relation,

Apparent weight = Actual weight - Weight of the liquid displaced by the object (up thrust)

UPTHRUST:

It is the force, exerted upwards on an object submerged in a fluid, equal in magnitude to the weight of
the fluid displaced by the object. It is a result of Archimedes' principle, which states that the upward
buoyant force on an object is equal to the weight of the fluid it displaces. This force helps to support the
object and prevent it from sinking. As much as object dips deeper, pressure increases with depth. So,
the object has difference in pressure at top and bottom. This difference of pressure produces an upward
force which is called up thrust. It is also known as buoyancy or buoyant force. Up thrust is significantly
larger in liquids than in gasses, because liquids are much denser than gasses. Buoyancy is the tendency
of an object to float in a fluid.

Equation of up thrust:
Consider a cylinder of height 'h' and area of cross-section 'A' is immersed in a vessel containing a liquid
of density p. The up thrust (Buoyant force) is acting on the cylinder from bottom to top is given by,

Fupthrust = Δ PxA

Fupthrust=pg Δ hxa

Fupthrust= pgV

Last equation is called equation of Up thrust

Where,

P = Density of fluid

g = Acceleration due to gravity

V = Volume of fluid

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 • If the object has same density as of liquid then it will neither sink nor floating.
• If the object is denser than liquid, the same volume will weigh more and it will sink.
• If the object has less density, the up thrust will make it to float.

Q # When a crown of mass 14.7 kg is submerged in water, an accurate scale reads only 13.4 kg. Is the
crown made of gold?

SOLUTION:

Step 1:

Formula: Wa = Fr = W − FB
W − Wa = FB

Step 2:

Let V be the volume of completely submerged object and ρo the object’s density (So ρo V is its mass),
and let ρf is fluid density (water). Then ρr V is the weight of fluid displaced, then

W = mg = ρo Vg

W − Wa = FB = ρF Vg
By dividing them
W ρ0 Vg ρ0
= =
W − Wa ρFVg ρF

Step 3:

Density of fluid i.e. water is 1 × 103 kg/m3

ρo W (14.7 kg)g
= = = 11.3
ρF W − Wa (14.7 kg − 13.4 kg)g
This shows that crown is not made of gold rather made of lead.

BUYOANCY :
Buoyancy is the tendency of an object to float in a fluid. All iquids and gases in the presence of gravity
exert an upward force known as the buoyant force on any object immersed in them. Buoyancy results
from the differences in pressure acting on top and bottom surfaces of the object immersed in a static
fluid. The following factors affect buoyant force:

1) The density of the fluid the volume of the led displaced the local acceleration due to gravity.
The magnitude of the buoyant force can be calculated using Archimedes Principle, which states
that the buoyant force is equal to the weight of the fluid displaced by the object.
The formula to calculate the buoyant force is:
Buoyant Force = Density of Fluid x Volume of Displaced Fluid x Acceleration due to Gravity
The buoyant force acts in the opposite direction to gravity, resulting in an apparent reduction in
the weight of the object when it is submerged in a fluid.
For an object fully submerged add the volume of displaced fluid is equal to the volume of the
object itself if the object is partially submerged only the submerged portion contributes to the
volume of displaced fluid.

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Buoyancy in Liquids:

• If the weight of the breed object is greater than buoyant force, the object sinks
• If the weight of object is equal to the buoyant force acting upwards on the submerged object
remains at any level in fluid, like a fish.
• If the buoyant force is greater than the weight of object which is completely submerged, it rises
to the surface and floats.

Buoyancy in Gases:

The buoyancy is equal to the weight of fluid displaced. So Archimedes Principle also implies to air which
is stated as:

“An object surrounded by air is buoyed up by a force equal to the weight of the air displaced.”

A cubic meter of air at normal atmospheric pressure and room temperature has a mass of about 1.2kg
so its weight becomes around 12N

• If the mass of the 1m3 object is greater than 1.2Kg, it falls to the ground, when released
• If an object of this size has mass of less than 1.2 Kg, buoyant force in greater that weight and it
rises in air.

APPLICATIONS OF BUOYANCY:
Ship: A ship is constructed in a way so that the shape is hollow to make the overall density of the ship
lesser than the seawater Therefore, the buoyant force acting on the ship is large enough to support the
weight.

Fish: A certain group of fishes uses Archimedes principle to go up and down the water. To go up to the
surface the fish will fill its swim bladder (air sacs) with gases. The gases diffuse from their own body to
the bladder and thus make the body lighter. This enables the fish to go up.

Submarine: Submarine is ship which can travel deep under water and also at the surface of water, owes
its ability to dive and come up to law of floatation. It contains ballast tanks at either side which are filled
with water when it has to dive and are implied when it has to come up. The tanks are filled and implied
by special pumps.

Balloons: A hydrogen or helium filled balloons rises in air are less dense than air. Air becomes less dense
at high altitude. Its motion becomes ceased as weight is displaced air is equal to weight of balloon. In
other words buoyant force on the balloons equals its weight.

THE LAW OF FLOATATION:

Statement:

“A floating body displaces a weight of the fluid equal to its own weight.”

Conditions for objects to float:

i) The average density of the object should be less than the density of the fluid in which the
object has to float Example, a ship is very heavy but it floats because it is hollow inside and
contains air, this causes its average density to be lower than that of water.

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 ii) The up thrust force of the fluid on the object must be equal to total weight of the object
(law of floatation). Example, a coin will sink to the bottom when placed on the surface of
water, this is because the up thrust of water on coin is less than its weight
iii) The volume of object submerged must be large so as to displace large amount of fluid

SURFACE TENSION:
Surface tension is the tendency of the fluid to shrink in to a minimum surface area. (OR)

It is the force per unit length acting on other side of the imaginary line drawn on the liquid surface at
rest.

• The direction of force is tangential to the surface and perpendicular to the line.
• It is based on the principles that the molecule of the liquid at the surface area are in different
state than those in the center of the liquid.
• Surface tension allows objects with a higher density than water such as insects and razor blades
to float on the water surface.

Mathematically:

𝛾 𝑂𝑅 𝜎 OR T = F/L

Where,

F = force proportional length

L = Length in which force act

T = Surface tension

Unit of Surface Tension:

The S.I surface tension unit is Newton per meter, also expressed as N/m.

The CGS unit is dyne/cm.

The FPS unit is pound/foot.