Physics for Engineers I
Lecture 10: Fluids
Gottlieb Uahengo Jr., Ph.D.
Phases of Matter
• Solid, liquid, and gas are the three (3) common phases of matter.
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Phases of Matter
• A solid – maintains a generally fixed size and shape; usually requiring a
large force to change its shape or volume.
• A liquid – maintains no fixed shape; readily takes on the shape of its
container and it can flow. As with a solid it is not readily compressible, and
requires a large force to change its volume
• A gas – maintains neither fixed shape nor a fixed volume; it’ll expand to fill
its container.
• A plasma – only occurs at very high temperatures, and is made up of
ionized atoms (electrons separated from nuclei).
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Phases of Matter
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Density and Specific Gravity
• The density, 𝜌, of a substance is defined as its mass per unit volume:
𝑚
𝜌=
𝑉
• Where;
• 𝑚 is the mass of a sample of the substance
• 𝑉 is the volume of the sample of substance
• NB: density is a characteristic property of any pure substance.
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Density and Specific Gravity
• Objects made of a particular pure substance can have various shapes,
size or mass, but the density of the objects will be the same for each.
• Thus, utilizing the concept of density, we can express the mass of an
object as follows:
𝑚 = 𝜌𝑉
• It follows that the weight of an object can be expressed as:
𝑚𝑔 = 𝜌𝑉𝑔
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Density and Specific Gravity
• The SI unit for density is kg⁄m! , although it is sometime
commonly expressed as g⁄cm! .
• You will have to convert from 𝒌𝒈⁄𝒎𝟑 to 𝒈⁄𝒄𝒎𝟑
• The density of a substance is affected by both temperature
and pressure. Thus, you will find tables with densities of
substances also listing the (atmospheric) temperature.
• Specific gravity (SG) of a substance is the ratio of its
density to to the density of water at 4 °C
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Pressure in Fluids
• Pressure and force are closely related, but they are not the same thing.
𝐹
pressure = 𝑃 =
𝐴
• Pressure is formally defined as the force per unit area, where the force, 𝑭,
is acting perpendicular to the surface area, 𝑨.
• Although, force is a vector, pressure is a scalar. Thus, pressure only has
magnitude.
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Pressure in Fluids
• The SI unit for pressure is 𝐍⁄𝐦𝟐 , and is given the name Pascal (Pa).
1 Pascal = 1 N⁄m#
• You will often see the units N⁄m# out in the wild. Occasionally,
dynes⁄𝑐m# and lbs⁄in# [“psi” = pounds per square inch].
• These are expressions of measurements in other standards (recall
Chapter 1), and you can easily convert between them.
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Pressure in Fluids
• Pressure is particularly useful in dealing with fluids.
• It is experimentally observed that a fluid exerts pressure in every
direction. This is called as isostatic pressure.
• Furthermore, at any depth in a fluid at rest, the pressure is the same
in all direction at the given depth. To understand why, let’s consider a
a tiny cube of the fluid, which is so small that we can consider it a
point and ignore the effect of gravity on it.
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Pressure in Fluids
• The pressure on one side must equal the pressure on the opposing
side, else if this were not true, there would be a net force on the cube
and it would start accelerating (i.e., moving)
• Thus, if the fluid is not flowing, then the pressure must be equal.
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Pressure in Fluids
• The fluid pressure in a fluid a rest, always act perpendicular to any solid
surface it touches. If there were a component of the force parallel to the
the surface, as shown in the figure below:
• Then by Newton’s 3rd law the solid surface would exert an equal but
opposite force on the fluid, which would result in the fluid flowing – a
contradiction of what is observed and the assumption that the fluid is at
rest.
NB: the force due to fluid pressure, in a fluid at rest, always act perpendicular to the surface. 12
Pressure in Fluids
• In a liquid of uniform density, the pressure due to the liquid, at the
depth 𝒉 is due to the weight of the column of liquid directly above it.
Figure 10-3
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Pressure in Fluids
• The force due to the weight of the column of liquid acting on an area A is
𝑭 = 𝒎𝒈 = 𝝆𝑽 𝒈 = 𝝆𝑨𝒉𝒈, where 𝑨𝒉 is the volume of the column of
liquid, 𝝆 is the density of the liquid (assumed uniform) and 𝒈 is the
acceleration due to gravity. Thus, the pressure, 𝑷, due to the weight of
liquid can be described as:
𝐹 𝜌𝐴ℎ𝑔
𝑃= =
𝐴 𝐴
• Note that the area A does affect the pressure at a given depth. The fluid
pressure is directly proportional to the density of the liquid and to the
depth within the liquid. In general, at a given depth within a uniform
liquid, the pressure is the same.
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Pressure in Fluids
• The preceding equation is exceedingly useful. However, it is valid only
for liquid of uniform density – that is the fluid is incompressible.
• This is useful a good approximation, although at great depths in the
ocean, the density of water increases due to compression by the
great weight of water above.
• Thus, if the density of the fluid varies (significantly), a more practical
relation is:
Δ𝑃 = 𝑃# − 𝑃$ = 𝜌𝑔 ℎ# − ℎ$
Δ𝑃 = 𝜌𝑔Δℎ [𝜌 ≈ 𝑐𝑜𝑛𝑠𝑡𝑛𝑎𝑡 𝑜𝑣𝑒𝑟 Δℎ]
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Pressure in Fluids
• NB: The preceding equation (𝜟𝑷 = 𝝆𝒈𝜟𝒉) tells us how the pressure
changes over a small change in depth (𝜟𝒉) within a fluid, even if the
fluid is compressible.
• Gases are very compressible, and the density can vary significantly
with depth.
• Thus, in the general case, where 𝝆 may vary significantly, we need to make
use of 𝜟𝑷 = 𝝆𝒈𝜟𝒉, where 𝜟𝒉 should be small if 𝝆 varies significantly with
depth (or height).
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Atmospheric Pressure
• The pressure of the Earth’s atmosphere, as with any fluid, varies
according to depth.
• However, the Earth’s atmosphere is somewhat complicated; not only
does the density vary significantly with altitude, but there is no
distinct upper limit to the atmosphere from which the heigh, ℎ, can
be measured.
• Nevertheless, we can still calculate the approximate difference in
pressure between two altitudes above earth’s surface using:
Δ𝑃 = 𝜌𝑔Δℎ 17
Atmospheric Pressure
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Atmospheric Pressure
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Atmospheric Pressure
• The pressure of the air at a give place varies slightly according to the
local weather.
• At sea level, the pressure of the atmosphere, on average is
1.013×10% N⁄m# (14.7 lb⁄in.# ). This value is defined as one unit of
an atmosphere (atm):
𝟏 𝐚𝐭𝐦 = 𝟏. 𝟎𝟏𝟑×𝟏𝟎𝟓 𝐍⁄𝐦𝟐 = 𝟏𝟎𝟏. 𝟑 𝐤𝐏𝐚
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Atmospheric Pressure
• Another unit of pressure, commonly used in meteorology is the bar.
1 bar = 1.000×10% N⁄m#
• Thus, the standard atmospheric pressure is slightly more than 1 bar.
• The pressure due to the weight of the atmosphere is exerted on all
objects immersed in the great seas of air (Earth’s atmosphere). So,
one might ask, how does the human body withstand the enormous
pressure on its surface?
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Atmospheric Pressure
The answer, is that biological cells maintain an internal pressure that
approximately equal to the external pressure, just as a balloon closely
matches the outside pressure of the atmosphere.
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Gauge Pressure
• Tyre gauges, and most pressure gauges, register the pressure above
and beyond the atmospheric pressure. This is known as the gauge
pressure.
• Thus, to get the absolute pressure, 𝑷, one must add the atmospheric
pressure, 𝑷𝟎 , to the gauge pressure, 𝑷𝑮 :
𝑃 = 𝑃) + 𝑃*
• If the tyre gauge reads 220 kPa, the absolute pressure inside the tyre
is 321 kPa.
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Pascal’s Principle
• The earth’s atmosphere exerts pressure on all object with which it is
in contact, including other fluids (viz. ocean). French philosopher
Blaise Pascal observed that the external pressure acting on a fluid is
transmitted throughout the fluid.
• As an example, the pressure due to water at a depth of 100 m below
the surface of a lake is:
𝑃 = 𝜌𝑔ℎ = 1000 kg⁄m! 9.8 m⁄s" 100 m
𝑃 = 9.8×10# N⁄m" = 9.7 atm
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Pascal’s Principle
• However, the total (absolute) pressure at this depth (100 m) is due to
the pressure exerted by the column of water plus the atmospheric
pressure above it.
• Thus, the total pressure, if the lake is located at sea level, would be:
P = 9.7 atm + 1 atm = 10.7 atm
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Pascal’s Principle
• Pascal’s principle states the following:
If an external pressure is applied to to a confined fluid, the pressure at
every point within the fluid increase by that amount.
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Pascal’s Principle
• Many practical devices utilize this principle. One such example is a
hydraulic lift, show below:
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Pascal’s Principle
• A hydraulic lift – uses a small input force to exert a large output force
by making the area of the out piston larger that the area of the input
piston.
• Briefly, assume the input and output pistons are at the same height
(depth); therefore, equal pressure. The external input force 𝐹+, , by
Pascal’s principle, increases the pressure equally throughout.
Therefore, at the same level (depth):
𝑃-./ = 𝑃+,
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Pascal’s Principle
𝑃-./ = 𝑃+,
𝐹-./ 𝐹+,
=
𝐴-./ 𝐴+,
𝐹-./ 𝐴-./
=
𝐹+, 𝐴+,
𝑭𝐨𝐮𝐭
• The quantity [𝑭𝐢𝐧 is called the mechanical advantage of the
hydraulic lift.
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Pascal’s Principle
• Again: the quantity 𝑭𝐨𝐮𝐭[𝑭𝐢𝐧 is called the mechanical advantage of the
hydraulic lift.
• As an example, if the area of the output piston is 20 times that of the
input cylinder, the force is multiplied by a factor of 20. Thus, a meager
force of 80 N (8-kg) could lift a 1600 N (163-kg).
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Pascal’s Principle
• The brake system of a car works on the same principle. When a river
steps on the brake pedal, the pressure in the master cylinder
increase. This pressure increase is transmitted thought the brake
fluid, thus pushing the brake pads against the disk, which is attached
to the car’s wheel.
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Measurement of Pressure
• Numerous devices have been developed over the years to measure
pressure. The simplest is the open-tube manometer, which is a
U-shaped tube partially filled with a liquid, usually mercury or water.
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Measurement of Pressure
• The pressure measured is related to the difference in height Δℎ of the
two levels of the liquid through the following relation:
𝑃 = 𝑃* + 𝜌𝑔Δℎ [manometer]
• Where;
• 𝑃0 is atmospheric pressure (acting on the top of the liquid in the left-hand
tube)
• 𝜌 is the density of the fluid
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Measurement of Pressure
• NB: that the quantity 𝝆𝒈𝚫𝒉 is the gauge pressure – the amount by
which 𝑃 exceeds atmospheric pressure 𝑃* .
• Instead of calculating the product 𝝆𝒈𝚫𝒉 it is often sufficient to report
the change in height 𝚫𝒉. This is why pressure is often specified as so
many “millimeters of mercury” (mmHg). The unit mmHg is equivalent
to 133 N⁄m# , because for 1 mm (1.0×101! m):
𝜌𝑔Δℎ = 13.6 ×10! 9.80 kg⁄m! 9.80 m⁄s # 1.0×101! m
𝜌𝑔Δℎ = 1.33×10# N⁄m#
• The unit mmHg is known as a torr, named after Evangelista Torricelli.
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Measurement of Pressure
• Another type of devis is the aneroid gauge, in which pointers are
linked to flexible ends of an evacuated thin metal chamber.
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Measurement of Pressure
• Another device is the common tyre gauge, shown below.
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Measurement of Pressure
• Atmospheric pressure is commonly measured using
a modified mercury manometer with one end closed,
which is known as a barometer.
• The glass tube is filled with mercury and inverted into a
bowl of mercury.
• With a long enough tube, the mercury level drops, leaving
a vacuum at the top of the tube – supported by
atmospheric pressure.
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Measurement of Pressure
• AGAIN: atmospheric pressure can only support a column of mercury about
76 cm high (exactly 76.0 cm at standard atmospheric pressure).
• This means, a column of mercury 76 cm high, exerts the same pressure as
the atmosphere.
𝑃 = 𝜌𝑔Δℎ
𝑃 = 13.6 ×10! 9.80 kg⁄m! 9.80 m⁄s" 0.760 m
𝑃 = 1.013×10# N⁄m"
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Measurement of Pressure
• A calculation similar to the preceding will show that atmospheric pressure
can maintain a column of water 10.3 m high in a tube whose top is under
vacuum.
• This is significant because it tells us that no matter how good a vacuum
pump, water cannot be made to raise more than 10 m under normal
atmospheric pressure.
• NB: The point is that a pumps, do not really suck liquid (water) up a tube -
they merely reduce the pressure at the top of a tube. It is the atmospheric
pressure that pushes the liquid up the tube, when the top is at a lower
pressure (under vacuum).
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Measurement of Pressure
• So, next time you are sipping a soft-drink (viz. Fanta) through a straw;
remember that the act of sucking only lowers the pressure at the top
of the straw (tube), and it is the atmospheric pressure that pushes
the Fanta up the straw and into your mouth.
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Buoyancy
• Object submerged in a fluid appear to weigh less than they do when
outside the fluid; this is a classical example of buoyancy.
• In this case the force of gravity is still acting downward, however the
liquid is also exerting an upward buoyant force.
• Think of it as analogous to the normal force (𝐹1 ); but in a fluid! 💡
• The buoyant force occurs because the pressure in a fluid increases
with depth!
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Buoyancy
• This means that the upward pressure on the bottom surface of a
submerged object is greater than the downward pressure on its top
surface. To see this, consider a cylinder of height Δℎ, as shown below:
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Buoyancy
• The top and bottom ends have an area of 𝐴, and it is completely
submerged in a fluid of (uniform) density 𝜌2 .
• The fluid exerts a pressure of 𝑷𝟏 = 𝝆𝑭 𝒈𝒉𝟏 at the top surface.
• The force due to this pressure; 𝑭𝟏 = 𝑷𝟏 𝑨 = 𝝆𝑭 𝒈𝒉𝟏 𝑨 and it is
directed downwards (recall the forces always acts perpendicular to a
solid surface).
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Buoyancy
• Similarly, the fluid exerts and upwards force one the bottom surface
of the cylinder, equal to 𝑭𝟐 = 𝑷𝟐 𝑨 = 𝝆𝑭 𝒈𝒉𝟐 𝑨. The net force exerts
by the fluid on the cylinder is the buoyant force, 𝑭𝑩 , and acts
upwards, with magnitude:
𝐹⃗5 = 𝐹# − 𝐹$
𝐹⃗5 = 𝜌2 𝑔𝐴(ℎ# − ℎ$ )
𝐹⃗5 = 𝜌2 𝑔𝐴Δℎ
𝐹⃗5 = 𝜌2 𝑔𝑉
𝐹⃗5 = 𝑚2 𝑔
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Buoyancy
𝐹⃗5 = 𝐹# − 𝐹$
𝐹⃗5 = 𝜌2 𝑔𝐴(ℎ# − ℎ$ )
𝐹⃗5 = 𝜌2 𝑔𝐴Δℎ
𝐹⃗5 = 𝜌2 𝑔𝑉
𝐹⃗5 = 𝑚2 𝑔
• Where;
• 𝑉 = 𝐴Δℎ is the volume of the cylinder
• 𝜌2 𝑉 is the mass of the fluid displaced
• 𝝆𝑭 𝑽𝒈 = 𝒎𝑭 𝒈 is the weight of the fluid which takes up a volume equal to the
volume of the cylinder
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Buoyancy
• This result sis valid, irrespective of the shape/geometry of the object,
and is formally known as Archimede’s principle:
The buoyant force on an object immersed in a fluid is equal to the
weight of the fluid displaced by that object.
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Buoyancy
• This phenomenon should look familiar by now…
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Buoyancy
• Archimede’s principle applies equally well to objects that float, such
as wood. In general, an object floats on a fluid if its density (𝜌6 ) is less
than that of the fluid (𝜌2 ).
• This is readily observed when a submerged wooden log of mass 𝑚6
experiences a net upward force and floats to the surface if 𝑭𝑩 >
𝒎𝑶 𝒈; that is, if 𝝆𝑭 𝑽𝒈 > 𝝆𝑶 𝑽𝒈 or when 𝝆𝑭 > 𝝆𝑶 .
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Buoyancy
• At equilibrium – when it is floating – the buoyant force on an object
has magnitude equal to the weight of the object.
• Consider a log whose specific gravity is 0.60 and a volume 2.0 m3
(shown below). Thus, its mass would is:
𝑚6 = 𝜌6 𝑉 = 0.60×10! kg⁄m! 2.0 m! = 1200 kg
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Buoyancy
• If the log is fully submerged, it will displace a mass of water equal to:
𝑚2 = 𝜌2 𝑉 = 10! kg⁄m! 2.0 m! = 2000 kg
• The buoyant force is greater than the weight of the log, and it will
float upward to the surface, until it come into equilibrium and
displace 1200 kg of water, which entails that 1.2 m3 of its volume shall
be submerged. 50
Buoyancy
• In general, when an object floats, we have:
𝐹5 = 𝑚6 𝑔
• This can be re-expressed as follows:
𝜌2 𝑉89:;< 𝑔 = 𝜌6 𝑉6 𝑔
• Where;
• 𝑉45678 is the volume of fluid displaced
• 𝑉9 is the full volume of the object 51
Buoyancy
• It follows that:
𝑉89:;< 𝜌=
=
𝑉6 𝜌2
• This means the fraction of the object submerged is given by the ratio
of the object’s density to that of the fluid. When the fluid is water,
this fraction equals the specific gravity of the object.
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Fun Fact 😎
• Thus, ordinary objects weight less in air than they do in a vacuum, but
because the density of air is so small, the effect for ordinary object is
miniscule.
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Fluids in Motion
• The study of fluids in motion is called fluid dynamics, (when the fluid is
water) hydrodynamics.
• There are two main types of fluid flow:
1. Streamline or laminar flow – the fluid flow is smooth, such that layers of the fluid
slide by each other smoothly. Each particles of the fluid follows a smooth path,
called the streamline, and these paths do not cross one another; ever!
2. Turbulent flow – above a certain speed the flow becomes turbulent flow. Turbulent
flow is characterized by erratic, small, whirlpool-like circles known as eddy current
or eddies.
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Fluids in Motion
• Depictions of streamline/laminar flow & turbulent flow:
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Fluids in Motion
• Eddy currents absorb a great deal of energy – this is because an
enormous amount of internal friction called viscosity – although
there is a certain amount of viscosity in streamline flow, this internal
friction is much greater in the flow is turbulent.
• Laminar flow is drastically easier to work with… Just trust me!
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Fluids in Motion
• Let stay in out lane, and consider steady laminar flow of a fluid
through an enclosed tube or pipe, such as the one depicted below:
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Fluids in Motion
• We can determine how the speed of the fluid changes when the
diameter of the tube changes via a quantity called the mass flow
rate. The mass flow rate is defined as the mass 𝜟𝒎 of fluid that
passes a give point per unit time 𝜟𝒕:
Δm
mass glow rate =
Δ𝑡
• The volume of fluid passing point 1 (through area 𝐴$ )
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Fluids in Motion
• The volume of fluid passing point 1 (through area 𝐴$ ) in during the
time interval Δ𝑡 is 𝐴$ × Δℓ$ , where Δℓ$ is the distance that the fluid
move in the time interval Δ𝑡.
59
Fluids in Motion
• Thus, the velocity of the fluid (of density 𝜌$ ) passing point 1 is:
>ℓ&
𝑣$ =
>@&
60
Fluids in Motion
• It the follows that the mass flow rate, 𝚫𝒎𝟏 ⁄𝚫𝒕 through area 𝑨 is:
Δ𝑚 𝜌$ Δ𝑉$ 𝜌$ 𝐴$ Δℓ$
= = = 𝜌$ 𝐴$ 𝑣$
Δ𝑡 Δ𝑡 Δ𝑡
• Where;
• Δ𝑉: = 𝐴:Δℓ: is the volume of the mass Δ𝑚:
61
Fluids in Motion
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Fluids in Motion
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Examples
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The End.
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