INTRODUCTION

MEG 222 Week 1 Lecture

Lecture Learning Outcomes
At the end of this lecture, you will be able to,
• Discuss the importance of fluid mechanics
• Identify the different classification of fluids and fluid flow
• Determine dimensions and units of physical quantities in fluid
analysis
• Identify some key fluid properties used to analyze the behavior of
fluids
• Obtain the values of fluid properties using given information
What is Fluid Mechanics?
Two broad areas of study

Fluid mechanics is a sub- Fluid Statics: fluids at rest

discipline of applied mechanics e.g. design of dams, water or fluid
which focuses on the behavior storage tanks, etc.
of liquids and gases at rest or in
motion Fluid Dynamics: fluids in motion
e.g. air-conditioning systems, gas
turbine, water & oil pipelines etc.
 Fluid Mechanics & Engineering Disciplines
• Civil & Environmental: design & analysis of
dams, bridges, predict flood risk, air & water
There is a third area of study of fluid
pollution control etc.
mechanics called Fluid Kinematics.
• Mechanical: lubrication in machinery, design &
analysis of automotive systems, cooling
In fluid kinematics, the motion of fluid
systems, compressors, pumps, refrigeration &
is studied without considering the air-conditioning etc.
forces causing such motion • Metallurgical & Materials: study of molten metal
flow in casting design, steel making vessels etc.
 Fluid Mechanics & Engineering Disciplines
Application Areas
• Biomedical: design & analysis of drug delivery
• Clean Energy
systems, ventilators, prosthetic heart valves, etc.
• Medicine and Health
• Systems: collaborate with other disciplines in the
• Climate and weather predictions
integration and improvement of fluid systems
• Buildings and urban design
design
• Oil and Gas
• Computer: design improved cooling systems for
• Water and Environment
computer hardware
• Automotive and Automobile design
• Electrical & Electronics: Cooling of electronic
• Shipping and Marine
components, plasma physics, microfluidics, etc.
 Important Parameters in Fluid Analysis

Fluid flow conditions are strongly dependent • Speed of the flow: E.g. speed of a
on three major parameters tornado, sound in air, breeze, water
• Physical size of the flow: known as from a hose, flow past a bike rider,
characteristic length. E.g. pipe river flows, oil in a pan, etc.
diameter for pipes in homes, blood • Pressure: E.g. pressure in automobile
flow in arteries and veins, air flow in tyres, vacuum pumps, high altitudes,
lungs, oil pipelines etc. car engine combustion process,
ocean etc.
 Classification of Fluids
• What is a fluid and how does it differ from a solid?
• A fluid is defined as a substance that deforms
continuously (flows) when acted on by a shearing
stress of any magnitude.

• A shearing stress (force per unit area) is created

whenever a tangential force acts on a surface as
Fig. 1: Tangential force acting on a surface
shown in Figure 1.

• A solid will initially deform when acted on by a

tangential force but it will not continuously deform
 Classification of Fluids
• There are some materials such as toothpaste, slurries, butter,
corn starch (‘ogi’) etc. that are not easily classified as strictly
solids or fluids

• They behave as solids when the shearing stress is small but if it

exceeds a critical value, they flow like fluids.

• This brings us to the major classifications of fluids as shown in

Figure 2
Fig. 2: Classification of fluids

𝜕𝑢
𝜏∞ • These classifications are based on the relationship between the
𝜕𝑦
This is the general expression for the relationship shear stress (𝜏) and the rate of deformation (also called shear
between shear stress and shear rate. The type of rate and velocity gradient 𝜕𝑢ൗ𝜕𝑦)
proportionality determines the class of the fluid
Classification of Fluids
Examples are, water, sugar solutions, glycerin,
Newtonian fluids silicone oils, light hydrocarbons, air, alcohol and

Fluids with a linear relationship glycerol.

between the shear stress and shear

rate. This implies a constant dynamic For this class of fluids, the relationship between

viscosity and when there is no shear the shear stress and shear rate is called Newton’s

stress, the shear rate is zero law of viscosity, expressed as

𝜕𝑢
𝜏=𝜇
𝜕𝑦
Classification of Fluids
There are sub-classifications of non-Newtonian
Non-Newtonian fluids fluids.

Are fluids that do not obey Newton's • Pseudoplastic fluids: also called shear-thinning
fluids. For this class of fluids viscosity decreases as
law of viscosity, i.e. the relationship
shear rate decreases. E.g. ketchup, blood, paint, nail
between the shear stress and shear
polish etc.
rate is not linear
• Dilatant fluids: also called shear-thickening fluids.
They have a higher viscosity at higher shear rates.
E.g. mixture of corn starch and water, quicksand, etc.
Classification of Fluids
There are sub-classifications of non-Newtonian
Non-Newtonian fluids fluids.

Are fluids that do not obey Newton's • Yield stress fluids: have a critical stress below

law of viscosity, i.e. the relationship which they act like solids but flow like liquids.

between the shear stress and shear E.g. toothpaste, cement, mud, mayonnaise,

rate is not linear etc.

• Viscoelastic fluids: have both viscous and
elastic properties. E.g. honey, some polymers,
saliva, mucus,etc.
Classification of Fluids

Ideal Plastic Fluids Ideal Fluids

Are fluids that have their shear stress
linearly proportional to the shear rate They do not exist in real life.
but the shear stress is greater than They are classes of fluid that have
their yield value (resistance to no viscosity
deformation)
 Classification of Fluid Flows
In fluid flow modeling and analysis, there are different classifications of the type of
flow depending on the conditions considered.

Compressible & Incompressible Steady and Unsteady

In compressible flows there is density When conditions of the flow (e.g.
change in the fluid during flow while in velocity, pressure) don’t change
incompressible flows there is no
with time, such flow is steady but
change in density
if there are changes with time, it is
an unsteady flow
 Classification of Fluid Flows

Uniform and Non-Uniform

Laminar & Turbulent
Uniform Flow represents a flow where
velocity is constant at all points across Laminar flows are smooth and

a specific cross-section during fluid streamlined, whereas turbulent

flow while in non-uniform flows, flows are irregular and chaotic.
velocity is not constant at a given
instant
Dimensions, Dimensional Homogeneity, and Units
A variety of fluid characteristics are involved in the study of fluids mechanics.
Therefore, it is necessary a system is developed to describe the characteristics in a
quantitative and qualitative manner

Quantitative
Qualitative
Provides a numerical measure of the
Identify the nature, or type of the characteristics.
characteristics e.g. length, time, This requires both a number and a standard
stress, velocity The standard is called UNITS
Dimensions and Units
• Dimension: measure of a physical
quantity without numerical values

• Unit: a way to assign a number or

measurement to the dimension

• There are fundamental and derived

quantities & units

• Fundamental units are independent

of other units (mass, length, time)
while derived units can be expressed
in terms of fundamental units
Dimensions and Units
 Dimensions and Units
Class Exercise 1

Class Exercise 2
Which of the pairs below have the
same dimensions?

An engineer is studying how some a. Force and strain

insects are able to walk on water. One b. Force and stress
important fluid property in this study
is surface tension 𝜎 which has c. Angular velocity and frequency
dimensions force per unit length. Write d. Energy and strain
the dimensions of surface tension in
terms of fundamental dimensions
 Dimensional Homogeneity
The law of dimensional homogeneity, which is a fundamental mathematical law
for equations, states that every additive term in an equation must have the
same dimension

Example: The standard form of the Bernoulli equation for incompressible

irrotational fluid flow is written as

1 2
𝑃 + 𝜌𝑉 + 𝜌𝑔𝑧 = 𝐶
2

Where 𝑃 is pressure, 𝜌 is density, 𝑉 is velocity, 𝑔 is gravity, 𝑧 is height.

(a) Do the additive terms in the equation have the same dimensions?
(b) What should be the dimensions of 𝐶?
 Dimensional Homogeneity
Class Exercise 3
Cold water enters a pipe, where it is heated by an external source. The inlet and outlet
water temperature are 𝑇𝑖𝑛 and 𝑇𝑜𝑢𝑡 respectively. The total rate of heat transfer 𝑄ሶ from the
surroundings into the water in the pipe is
𝑄ሶ = 𝑚𝑐
ሶ 𝑝 𝑇𝑜𝑢𝑡 − 𝑇𝑖𝑛

Where 𝑚ሶ is the mass flow rate of the water through the pipe, and 𝑐𝑝 is the specific heat,
(a)write out the primary dimensions of each additive term
(b)Show that the equation is dimensionally homogenous
 Some Important Properties in Fluid Analysis
We now define and discuss certain fluid properties that are related to the behavior
of fluids. These properties play an important role in analysis of fluid behaviour

Density
For liquids, variation in pressure and
Defined as mass per unit volume and
temperature generally have a effect on
typically used to characterize the mass
density but for gases, density is strongly
of a fluid system.
influenced by pressure and temperature
It is commonly designated with the
symbol 𝜌 and has the SI unit 𝑘𝑔Τ𝑚3
 Some Important Properties in Fluid Analysis

Density
Figure 3 shows how the density of water
changes with temperature.
In the previous thermodynamics course
(MEG 212), an important property
considered for analysis was specific
volume but in fluid mechanics density is
Fig. 3: Density of water as a function of temperature
commonly used (𝑣 = 1Τ𝜌)
 Some Important Properties in Fluid Analysis

Specific Gravity
Is defined as the ratio of density of the fluid to
Specific Weight density of water at some specified
Is defined as weight per unit volume and temperature.
it is also related to density (γ = 𝜌𝑔) It is a dimensionless parameter and doesn’t
The specific weight of a fluid is used to depend on the system of units used.
characterize the weight of a system.
𝜌𝑓
Its SI unit is 𝑁/𝑚3 𝑆𝐺 =
𝜌𝐻2𝑂
 Some Important Properties in Fluid Analysis

Hypothetical Experiment to obtain Viscosity

Imagine a fluid placed between two very wide
Dynamic Viscosity
plates where the bottom plate is fixed while
Density and specific weight are not sufficient
the upper plate is free to move.
to uniquely characterize the behavior of
fluids.
For example, water and oil can have
approximately the same value of density but
they have different behaviours when flowing.
Fig. 4: Behaviour of a fluid between two parallel plates
 Some Important Properties in Fluid Analysis

Hypothetical Experiment to obtain Viscosity

When a force P is applied to the upper plate, it
will move continuously with a velocity U.
The fluid in contact with the upper plate
moves with the plate velocity while the fluid in
contact with the bottom fixed plate will have
Fig. 4: Behaviour of a fluid between two parallel plates zero velocity.
 Some Important Properties in Fluid Analysis

Hypothetical Experiment to obtain Viscosity

This implies that the velocity of the fluid
between the plates will depend on their distance
from the plate defined by the expression
𝑈𝑦ൗ
𝑢=𝑢 𝑦 = 𝑏
Fig. 4: Behaviour of a fluid between two parallel plates
 Some Important Properties in Fluid Analysis

Hypothetical Experiment to obtain Viscosity

Thus, we observe that a velocity gradient is
developed in the fluid between the plates.
In this case, the velocity gradient is constant
𝑑𝑢ൗ = 𝑈ൗ
𝑑𝑦 𝑏
But in more complex flow scenario, this velocity
Fig. 4: Behaviour of a fluid between two parallel plates
gradient will not be constant
 Some Important Properties in Fluid Analysis

Analysis of Figure 4
In a small time increment 𝛿𝑡, an imaginary
vertical line AB in the fluid will rotate
through an angle 𝛿𝛽 so that

𝛿𝑎
tan 𝛿𝛽 = 𝛿𝛽 = ; δ𝑎 = 𝑈𝛿𝑡
𝑏
𝑈
Fig. 4: Behaviour of a fluid between two parallel plates
𝛿𝛽 = 𝛿𝑡
𝑏
 Some Important Properties in Fluid Analysis

Analysis of Figure 4
Considering the rate at which 𝛿𝛽 is
changing, we can now define the rate of
shearing strain as

𝛿𝛽 𝑈 𝑑𝑢
𝛾ሶ = lim = =
𝛿𝑡→0 𝛿𝑡 𝑏 𝑑𝑦
As shearing stress is increased by
Fig. 4: Behaviour of a fluid between two parallel plates
increasing P, the shearing rate will increase
 Some Important Properties in Fluid Analysis

Analysis of Figure 4
This relationship between shearing stress
and shearing rate is expressed as

𝑑𝑢 𝑑𝑢
𝜏 ∞ 𝛾ሶ ∞ =𝜇
𝑑𝑦 𝑑𝑦
The constant of proportionality the
Fig. 4: Behaviour of a fluid between two parallel plates
dynamic viscosity of the fluid
 Some Important Properties in Fluid Analysis

Kinematic Viscosity
Often in fluid flow problems, dynamic
viscosity is combined with density.

𝜇
𝜗=
𝜌
This ratio is called kinematic viscosity with
Fig. 4: Behaviour of a fluid between two parallel plates
2
the unit 𝑚 /𝑠
 Newtonian Fluid Shear Stress
The velocity distribution for the flow of a Newtonian
fluid between two fixed wide parallel plates as shown
Worked Example in the figure is given by the equation

3𝑉 𝑦 2
𝑢= 1−
2 ℎ

Where V is the mean velocity given as 0.6 𝑚/𝑠. The

fluid has a viscosity of 2.0 𝑃𝑎. 𝑠 and ℎ = 5 𝑚𝑚.
Determine the
(a) shearing stress acting on the bottom of the wall
(b) shearing stress acting on a plane parallel to the
walls and passing through the centerline.
 Newtonian Fluid Shear Stress
For a Newtonian fluid,
𝑑𝑢
Solution 𝜏=𝜇
𝑑𝑦
To calculate the shear stress, the velocity gradient is given by
𝑑𝑢 𝑑 3𝑉 𝑦 2 3𝑉𝑦
= 1− =− 2
𝑑𝑦 𝑑𝑦 2 ℎ ℎ

(a) At the bottom wall 𝑦 = −ℎ, therefore the velocity gradient

at the bottom wall becomes
𝑑𝑢 3𝑉 3𝑉 3 × 0.6 × 2 2
= , 𝜏𝑏𝑤 =𝜇 = = 720 𝑁/𝑚
𝑑𝑦 ℎ ℎ 0.005

(b) Class exercise 4

 Home Practice Questions
Question 1: The force F, of the wind blowing against a building is given by
𝐹 = 𝐶𝐷 𝜌𝑉 2 𝐴/2
Where V is the wind speed, 𝜌 the density of the air, 𝐴 the cross-sectional area of the
building and 𝐶𝐷 is a constant known as drag coefficient. Determine the dimensions of the
drag coefficient.

Question 2: For flowing water, what is the magnitude of the velocity gradient needed to
produce a shear stress of 1.0 𝑁Τ𝑚2 .

Question 3: The information on a can of coke indicates that the can contains 355 mL. The
mass of the full can of coke is 0.369 kg while an empty can weighs 0.153 N. Determine the
specific weight, density and specific gravity of the liquid coke.

Question 4: Some measurements on a blood sample at 37℃ indicate a shearing stress of

0.52 𝑁/𝑚2 for a corresponding rate of shearing strain of 200 𝑠 −1 . Determine the apparent
viscosity of the blood and compare it with the viscosity of water at the same temperature.
 SUMMARY

1 2 3 4 5 6
Definition Application Classification Dimensions, Units & Fluid Properties
Importance
Areas Homogeneity
Next Lecture
▪ More Fluid Properties
✓ Bulk modulus
✓ Vapor Pressure
✓ Surface Tension

▪ Pressure and Pressure measurement