Compressible Flows

Contents of the Chapter

⚫ Introduction
⚫ Thermodynamic Relations
⚫ Stagnation Properties
⚫ Speed of Sound and Mach number

2
 Introduction
⚫ Flows that involve significant changes in density are called
compressible flows.
⚫ Therefore, ρ(x, y, z) must now be treated as a field
variable rather than simply a constant.
⚫ Typically, significant density variations start to appear when the
flow Mach number exceeds 0.3 or so. The effects become
especially large when the Mach number approaches and
exceeds unity.
⚫ In this chapter we will consider flows that involve significant
changes in density. Such flows are called compressible flows,
and they are frequently encountered in devices that involve
the flow of gases at very high speeds such as flows in gas
turbine engine components . Many aircraft fly fast enough to
involve compressible flow.
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 Introduction
⚫ Gas has large compressibility but when its velocity is
low compared with the sonic velocity the change in
density is small and it is then treated as an
incompressible fluid.
⚫ When a fluid moves at speeds comparable to its speed of
sound, density changes become significant and the flow
is termed compressible.
⚫ Such flows are difficult to obtain in liquids, since high
pressures of order 1000 atm are needed to generate sonic
velocities. In gases, however, a pressure ratio of only
2:1 will likely cause sonic flow. Thus, compressible gas
flow is quite common, and this subject is often called gas
dynamics.

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 Thermodynamic Relations

Perfect gas
⚫ A perfect gas is one whose individual molecules
interact only via direct collisions, with no other
intermolecular forces present.
⚫ For such a perfect gas, p, ρ, and the temperature T
are related by the following equation of state
p = ρRT
⚫ where R is the specific gas constant. For air, R
=287J/kg-K◦ .
⚫ It is convenient at this point to define the specific volume
as the limiting volume per unit mass,

5 ⚫ which is merely the reciprocal of the density.

 Thermodynamic Relations
⚫ The equation of state can now be written as
pυ = RT
⚫ which is the more familiar thermodynamic
form.
⚫ Here R is the gas constant, and

⚫ where Ro is the universal gas constant (Ro = 8314J/(kg K))

and M is the molecular weight. For example, for air
assuming M = 28.96, the gas constant is

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 Thermodynamic Relations
⚫ Then, assuming internal energy and enthalpy per unit
mass
e and h respectively,

⚫ the specific enthalpy, denoted by h, and related to the other

variables by

⚫ For a calorically perfect gas, which is an excellent

model for air at moderate temperatures both e and h are
directly proportional to the temperature.

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 Thermodynamic Relations
⚫ Therefore, we have

⚫ where cv and cp are specific heats at constant volume and

constant pressure, respectively.

⚫ and comparing to the equation of state, we see that

⚫ Defining the ratio of specific heats, γ ≡ cp/cv, we can with a

bit of algebra write

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 Thermodynamic Relations
⚫ so that cv and cp can be replaced with the equivalent
variables γ and R. For air, it is handy to remember
that

First Law of Thermodynamics

⚫ Consider a thermodynamic system consisting of a small
Lagrangian control volume (CV) moving with the
flow.
⚫ Over the short time interval dt, the CV undergoes a
process where it receives work δw and heat δq from its
surroundings, both per unit mass. This process results in
changes in the state of the CV, described by the increments
9 de, dh, dp . . .
 Thermodynamic Relations
⚫ The first law of thermodynamics
for the process is

⚫ This states that whatever energy

is added to the system, whether
by heat or by work, it must
appear as an increase in the
internal energy of the system.

1
0
 Thermodynamic Relations
Isentropic relations
⚫ Aerodynamic flows are effectively inviscid outside of
boundary layers. This implies they have negligible heat
conduction and friction forces, and hence are isentropic.
⚫ Therefore, along the pathline followed by the CV in the
figure above, the isentropic version of the first law
applies

1
1
 Thermodynamic Relations

⚫ This relation can be integrated after a few substitutions.

First, we note that

⚫ and with the perfect gas relation

⚫ the isentropic first law becomes

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 Thermodynamic Relations
⚫ The final form can now be integrated from any state 1
to any state 2 along the pathline.

⚫ From the equation of state we also have

⚫ Which gives the alternative isentropic

relation

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 Stagnation Properties
⚫ Consider a fluid flowing into a diffuser at a velocity V ,
temperature T, pressure P, and enthalpy h, etc. Here the
ordinary properties T, P, h, etc. are called the static
properties; that is, they are measured relative to the flow
at the flow velocity.
⚫ If the diffuser is sufficiently long and the exit area is
sufficiently large that the fluid is brought to rest (zero
velocity) at the diffuser exit while no work or heat
transfer is done. The resulting state is called the
stagnation state.

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 Stagnation Properties

⚫ We apply the first law per unit mass for one entrance, one
exit, and neglect the potential energies. Let the inlet state
be unsubscripted and the exit or stagnation state have the
subscript o.
2
h V  V o2
qnet 2  wnet  2
ho
⚫ Since the exit velocity, work, and heat transfer are zero,

V2
ho  h 
2

⚫ The term ho is called the stagnation enthalpy (some

authors call this the total enthalpy).
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⚫ It is the enthalpy the fluid attains when brought to
rest adiabatically while no work is done.
 Stagnation Properties
⚫ If, in addition, the process is
also reversible, the process is
isentropic, and the inlet and
exit entropies are equal.
so  s
⚫ The stagnation enthalpy and
entropy define the stagnation
state and the isentropic
stagnation pressure, Po.
⚫ The actual stagnation pressure
for irreversible flows will be
somewhat less than the
isentropic stagnation pressure
as shown in the fig.
1
6
 Conservation of Energy for Control Volumes Using
Stagnation Properties

The steady-flow conservation of energy for the above figure is

Since V2

ho  h 
2

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 For no heat transfer, one entrance, one exit, this reduces to

If we neglect the change in potential energy, this becomes

For ideal gases with constant specific heats we write this

as

Conservation of Energy for a Nozzle

We assume steady-flow, no heat transfer, no work, one entrance,

and one exit and neglect elevation changes; then the
18 conservation of energy becomes
 But m 1  thus ho1  ho2
Thus the stagnation enthalpy remains constant throughout the
m
nozzle. At 2any cross section in the nozzle, the stagnation
enthalpy is the same as that at the entrance. For ideal gases
this last result becomes
To1  To2
Thus the stagnation temperature remains constant through
out the nozzle. At any cross section in the nozzle, the
stagnation temperature is the same as that at the entrance.
Assuming an isentropic process for flow through the nozzle,
we can write for the entrance and exit states

So we see that the stagnation pressure is also constant

2 through out the nozzle for isentropic flow.
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 Speed of Sound and Mach number
⚫ An important parameter in the study of compressible
flow is the speed of sound (or the sonic speed),
which is the speed at which an infinitesimally small
pressure wave travels through a medium.

⚫ The pressure wave may be caused by a small

disturbance, which creates a slight rise in local
pressure.

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 Speed of Sound and Mach number
⚫ To obtain a relation for the speed of sound in a medium,
consider a duct that is filled with a fluid at rest,

⚫ The moving wave front separates the compressed fluid

from the stationary fluid.

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 Speed of Sound and Mach number
⚫ A piston fitted in the duct is now moved to the right with a
constant incremental velocity dV, creating a sonic wave.
⚫ The wave front moves to the right through the fluid at the speed of
sound c and separates the moving fluid adjacent to the piston from
the fluid still at rest.
⚫ The fluid to the left of the wave front experiences an incremental
change in its thermodynamic properties, while the fluid on the right
of the wave front maintains its original thermodynamic properties,
as shown in the Fig.

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 Speed of Sound and Mach number
⚫ To simplify the analysis, consider a control volume that encloses the
wave front and moves with it, as shown in the fig. below.
⚫ To an observer traveling with the wave front, the fluid to the right will
appear to be moving toward the wave front with a speed of c and the
fluid to the left to be moving away from the wave front with a speed of
c - dV.

3
0
 Speed of Sound and Mach number

Cancel terms and neglect dV 2 ; we have

dh  CdV  0

3
1
 Now, apply the conservation of mass or continuity equation

m  AV
to the control volume.
AC  (  d) A(C  dV )
→
→
AC  A(C  dV  Cd  ddV )

Cancel terms and neglect the higher-order terms like d dV

.
Also, we consider the property relation dh  T ds  v
We have
Cd    dV  0 dP
1
dh  T ds 
3
2 dP
 Let's assume the process to be isentropic; then ds = 0 and

1
dh  
dP
Using the results of the first law
→
1
dh   dP 
CdV
From the continuity equation
→ Cd
dV 

Now we have

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 Thus dP 2
d  C

Since the process is assumed to be isentropic, the above

becomes

By using thermodynamic property relations this can be

written as

where k is the ratio of specific heats, k = CP/CV.

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 Ideal Gas Result

For ideal gases →

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