ADAMSON UNIVERSITY

College of Engineering
Chemical Engineering Department
Manila

Experiment No. 4

IDEAL FLUID FLOW

Group Number: 5

Unit Operations Lab 1/ 51145

14:00 – 17:00 Friday / Unit Ops Lab

Name Student Number Signature

1. Arca, Giea Patricze 201510220

2. Butial, Raymond V. 201510199
3. Custodio, JV L. 201510352
4. Decatoria, Terry SJ. 201510304
5. Legaspi, Lhaila T. 201510085

Engr. Sherrie Mae M. Vinluan

Instructor

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 Unit Operations Laboratory-Experiment 4- Ideal Fluid Flow

Abstract

Movement of fluids can be classified as laminar or turbulent flow. Laminar flow refers to

a steady fluid motion in which the fluid particles move along well defined stream line.

Meanwhile, a turbulent flow demonstrates fluid movement in a very irregular path. This

experiment aims to demonstrate fluid flow associated with sinks and sources in a two-

dimensional plane. Water was allowed to flow through the levelled laminar flow table to clean

the inside surfaces of the glass plate and the tubes. Formation of bubbles is also regulated. A dye

is used to demonstrated the flow of Rankine half-body, oval, and doublet that was formed by

adjusting the control valves. Rankine Half Body was formed by dividing the flow from its origin

and letting it flow outwards to the other direction dividing the streams into two. Rankine Oval

was obtained which dye’s flow resembling that of an oval shape through a uniform flow and a

sink. Doublet was formed through the use of a combination of sources and sinks which must be

equidistant from a reference. In this experiment, through the manipulation of the source and sink

valves on the laminar flow table, figures demonstrating the science behind Fluid Mechanics.

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 Unit Operations Laboratory-Experiment 4- Ideal Fluid Flow

Objectives

To demonstrate fluid flow associated with sinks and sources in a two-dimensional plane

specifically the formation of Rankine half body, Rankine Oval, and Doublet.

Materials/Equipment Needed

The materials prepared are water and soluble dye. The equipment used is the Laminar

flow table.

Equipment Set-up
 Unit Operations Laboratory-Experiment 4- Ideal Fluid Flow

Theoretical Background
To call a fluid an ideal one, it should have the following characteristics or assumptions
(1) Incompressible – constant density, (2) Irrotational – smooth flow, no turbulence, (3)
Nonviscous – fluid has no internal friction, (4) Steady flow – the velocity of the fluid at each
point is constant in time.

The governing equation for inviscid, ideal fluid flow is the Reynold’s number. Reynold’s
number is a qualitative measure of the importance of viscous forces compared to inertial forces.
𝑖𝑛𝑒𝑟𝑡𝑖𝑎𝑙 𝑓𝑜𝑟𝑐𝑒𝑠 𝑈𝐿
𝑅𝑒 = =
𝑣𝑖𝑠𝑐𝑜𝑢𝑠 𝑓𝑜𝑟𝑐𝑒𝑠 𝑣

Kinematic viscosity in water, 𝑣𝑤𝑎𝑡𝑒𝑟 = 10−6𝑚2/𝑠. Ergo,

𝑈𝐿 1 𝑖𝑛𝑒𝑟𝑡𝑖𝑎𝑙 𝑓𝑜𝑟𝑐𝑒𝑠
𝑅𝑒 = ≥ 106 ≫ 1 → ~ ≅0
𝑣 𝑅𝑒 𝑣𝑖𝑠𝑐𝑜𝑢𝑠 𝑓𝑜𝑟𝑐𝑒𝑠

This means that viscous effects are << compared to inertial effects - or confined within
very small regions.

Neglecting viscous effects is equivalent to setting the kinematic viscosity,

𝑣 = 0, 𝑏𝑢𝑡 𝑣 = 0 ↔ 𝑖𝑛𝑣𝑖𝑠𝑐𝑖𝑑 𝑓𝑙𝑢𝑖𝑑

Therefore, we assume

𝑖𝑛𝑐𝑜𝑚𝑝𝑟𝑒𝑠𝑠𝑖𝑏𝑙𝑒 𝑓𝑙𝑜𝑤 + 𝑖𝑛𝑣𝑖𝑠𝑐𝑖𝑑 𝑓𝑙𝑜𝑤 ≡ 𝑖𝑑𝑒𝑎𝑙 𝑓𝑙𝑢𝑖𝑑 𝑓𝑙𝑜𝑤

Experimental Procedures

1. Level the working area using the screw adjusting feet provided. The level may be

accurately checked using a spirit level on the lower glass laid normal, parallel, and

diagonal to the direction of flow.

2. Clean the inside surfaces of the glass plates using a de-greasing solvent such as carbon

tetrachloride.

3. Close all the sink and source taps and the drain cocks on the inlet and outlet tanks.

4. Ensure that the water supply and drain facilities are connected.
 Unit Operations Laboratory-Experiment 4- Ideal Fluid Flow

5. Start water flowing through the apparatus and adjust the inlet valve, bypass valve and

downstream overshot weir to give a depth of flow approximately level with the bottom

face of the top glass.

6. Lower the top glass to make the final adjustment to the flow and level control weir. Tis

operation must be performed carefully to ensure that air bubbles are eliminated from the

space between the glass plates. The leading edge (i.e. die injector end) of the top glass

plate should coincide with the leading edge of the bottom plate. With water flowing

across the apparatus and the flow and depth adjusted as described above, the front edge of

the glass is lowered slowly into position pivoting about rear edge. The water surface

should contact the lower surface of the glass progressively to ensure complete air

expulsion. Failure to exclude air may be due to the following causes: (a) depth of water is

insufficient, (b) dirt or grease on glass, (c) source or sink not fully closed, and (d) rapid or

uneven lowering of the glass.

7. Remove air in the sink or source line by opening the valves and flushing the lines

through. Air bubbles introduced between the glass plates through the source line may be

removed as described in procedure 6.

8. Clean the fine tubes of the injector by flushing water through it. Passing a fine wire along

the tubes may clear any blockages.

9. Fill dye reservoir with a water or alcohol dye and open the regulating valve.

10. Ensure that the dye rake discharges are submerged, and that dye flows freely from each

rake.

11. Blockages caused by air bubbles may relieved by a light tap or by pressurizing the free

surface of the dye in the reservoir.

 Unit Operations Laboratory-Experiment 4- Ideal Fluid Flow

12. Determine the flow rates associated with each of the source or sink orifices in the floor of

the working section. Measurement of the sink flow rate is determined by removing the

sink drainpipe from the sink manifold and collecting the discharged water in a measuring

cylinder. During this operation the corresponding source control valve should be fully

closed and the orifice pinch clip fully open. Measurement of the source flow rate is

determined via a sink drainpipe in the same way. During this operation, the

corresponding sink control valve should be fully open, and the orifice pinch clip fully

closed. After measurement, the sink control valve should be fully closed, and the pinch

clip fully opened.

13. Adjust the weir plate, inlet control valve, and bypass valve to give the minimum steady

flow rate available, without admitting air between glass plates. The corresponding low

water velocity through the test section will provide near-ideal flow conditions.

14. Open and adjust the dye-regulating valve to give fine, clearly defined dye streams, which

indicate relevant streamlines.

15. To form a pattern known as “half body”, introduce flow from a central source orifice by

opening the respective control valve. Separation of the central dye streams is semi-

infinite provided the source flow rate is constant. The source flow rate may be adjusted to

demonstrate the change in size of the body produced.

16. To form a pattern known as “Rankine Oval”, repeat procedure 15 with the addition of a

sink downstream of the source. As the flow rate of the sink is increased, the half body is

modified in shape. When the source and sink flow rates are equal, the streamlines close to

produce a Rankine Oval.

 Unit Operations Laboratory-Experiment 4- Ideal Fluid Flow

17. To form a doublet, introduce flow from a central orifice on the table, which are in fact

two orifices in proximity such that a coincident sink and source can be demonstrated. The

result is a circular streamline surrounding the Doublet, which acts like a solid cylindrical

boundary to external flow. Within this boundary, circulation patterns exist which may be

demonstrated by introducing a few crystals of potassium permanganate. This effect is an

extension of the Rankine oval with sinks and source coincidence.

18. Repeat procedure 15-17 for different combinations of sinks, sources, and flow rates.

19. After the experiment, the whole system must be flushed through with clean water to

remove traces of dye.

Results and Discussions

Table 1: Main Source and Sink Flowrate

Control Flowrate (L/min)

Source 9
Sink 23.6

In this experiment, in order for us to have a distinct grasp on how to manipulate the

Laminar Flow Table, it is essential that we get to know the amount of fluid flowing in the said

table in order to adjust it to certain magnitudes not relative to a value but rather an inference to

how much more or less fluid should flow in order to come up with the figures showing the

effects and principles in Fluid Mechanics otherwise known as Momentum Transfer. By using the

flow rate instrument attached to the table, we were able to determine that 9 L/min of fluid is

flowing to the inlet of the table while the sink for the said table is 23.6 L/min. Both values show

the maximum magnitudes the table can endure and the water source can provide for this

experiment.
 Unit Operations Laboratory-Experiment 4- Ideal Fluid Flow

Table 2: Source Flowrate

Source Control # Flowrate (L/min)

1 1.16
2 1.16
3 1.16
4 1.16
5 1.16
6 1.16
7 1.16
8 1.16

The flow rate for each source control was also determined. In order to do this, the sink

valves were all properly closed while the source valve one at a time was opened. The water from

the open source valve was then allowed to flow towards the drainage of the table where its fluid

was collected on a 1 liter beaker for about 30 seconds. This was performed on each valve in

order to measure how much each valve can exert a fluid towards the table once opened. Since the

valves were all connected in a parallel arrangement, the flowrate of one source valve is the same

with the others showing the recurrence of a flow rate of 1.16 L/min in the table above.

Table 3: Sink Flowrate

Sink Control # Flowrate (L/min)

1 0.6
2 0.6
3 0.6
4 0.6
5 0.6
6 0.6
7 0.6
8 0.6

The flow rate of each sink valve was also appropriately measured, computed, and

determined in order to know the amount of fluid that drains from the laminar flow table to the

assigned outlet. The same procedure for determining the source flow rate was also done in this
 Unit Operations Laboratory-Experiment 4- Ideal Fluid Flow

portion of the experiment. The arrangement of the sink flow rates was also parallel, thus

justifying the magnitude of 0.6 L/min of a flow rate for each of sink valves in the table.

Figure 1. Rankine “Half Body”

In having the knowledge of the capacity of each valves capability to provide or drain the

fluid in question, we were able to visualize on which vale should be open and closed at the same

time in order to come up with the figures assigned for this experiment. The first figure to be

formed was the Rankine Half Body. In Momentum Transfer it is simply known that it is a

combination of a source and uniform flow. The source for this experiment was the source valve

corresponding to a particular location on the table where to as the uniform flow was provided by

the main source valve. As the laminar flow is continuously provided, the source valve open,

caused a disruption in the system that caused the formation of a Rankine Half Body by somewhat

dividing the flow from its origin and letting it flow outwards to the other direction, compressing

the other streams towards each other in two different directions. For this particular form, the

source valve which is open is considered to be the stagnation point governed by the equation:
 Unit Operations Laboratory-Experiment 4- Ideal Fluid Flow

(Stream Function)

(Potential Function)

These equations are in the virtue of cylindrical coordinates and gives rise to the

quantitative nature of the Rankine Half Body. In fact the magnitude of the velocity at any point

in the flow can be determined through the use of the following equation:

In terms of momentum transfer, Rankine Half body can be inferred as two

incompressible, irrotational flows that have been combined by superposition in such a way that

their stream and potential functions are combined into one.

Figure 2. Rankine Oval

 Unit Operations Laboratory-Experiment 4- Ideal Fluid Flow

The next figure to be formed is the Rankine Oval which is a combination of a uniform

flow, a source, and a sink. In order to form this figure in the laminar flow table one simply has to

make use of a source and sink valve at the same time at opposite sides of the origin with a

magnitude equal in amount to the other while at the same letting the uniform stream to flow

along the table. Through this, the first source valve that is open will divide the stream into two

portions while the sink valve which is opened on the other side will then attract the flow towards

it in order to form the oval shape. Similar to a Rankine Half Body this figure can also be

quantized through the following equations:

All the streamlines inside this oval originates at the source while it flows on the sink to

the other side. The net volume outflow from this said oval is then zero.
 Unit Operations Laboratory-Experiment 4- Ideal Fluid Flow

Figure 3. Doublet

The last figure to be formed is a Doublet. It is a combination of a source and sink whose

distance from the origin is equidistant while maintaining the same amount of power in terms of

their function. In order to complete such a figure, one must make sure that the distance between

the two is gradually decreased in terms of the streamline from the uniform flow while making

sure that their strengths are equal so that they may come close together, otherwise the figure

would be utterly difficult to form. Similar to other forms of flows, this is also governed by the

following equation:
 Unit Operations Laboratory-Experiment 4- Ideal Fluid Flow

Conclusion
In this experiment, it was conducted using a trial and error process in which the source and

sink controls were adjusted in order to obtain the desired pattern of the ideal fluid flow. A blue

colored dye was utilized and was injected through the equally spaced needles. This was done in

order to form the flow of water between the glass plates. Each of the streamline were properly

indicated to determine its position and bubbles were eliminated because that they would cause

errors to the flow pattern during the experiment.

Two flow patterns were performed in the experiment which were the straight streamline

flow and the Rankine half-body pattern. For the straight streamline flow, all the source and sink

controls were closed to demonstrate the pattern. For the Rankine half-body pattern, the source 1

and 2 controls and the sink 1 and 2 controls were opened and the remaining sink controls were

closed. Since the different combinations of the sink and source controls were given during the

experiment, the different flow patterns for the laminar fluid flow were carried out and

accomplished.
 Unit Operations Laboratory-Experiment 4- Ideal Fluid Flow

APPENDICES

A. Experimental Data
Main sink flowrate: 23.6 L/min

Sink Flowrate:

Control #1: 0.6 L/min

Control #2: 0.6 L/min

Control #3: 0.6 L/min

Control #4: 0.6 L/min

Control #5: 0.6 L/min

Control #6: 0.6 L/min

Control #7: 0.6 L/min

Control #8: 0.6 L/min

Main source flowrate: 9 L/min

Source Flowrate:

Control #1: 1.16 L/min

Control #2: 1.16 L/min

Control #3: 1.16 L/min

Control #4: 1.16 L/min

Control #5: 1.16 L/min

Control #6: 1.16 L/min

Control #7: 1.16 L/min

Control #8: 1.16 L/min

 Unit Operations Laboratory-Experiment 4- Ideal Fluid Flow

Appendix B. Sample Computations

A. Source Flow Rate (Control #1)

Volume of water collected = 580 mL

Time considered = 30 seconds

Source Flow Rate = 580 mL / 30 sec = 19. 33 mL/s or 1.16 L/min

B. Sink Flow Rate (Control #1)

Volume of water collected = 300 mL

Time considered = 30 seconds

Sink Flow Rate = 300 mL / 30 sec = 10 mL/s or 0.6 L/min

B. Attendance Sheets
Unit Operations Laboratory-Experiment 4- Ideal Fluid Flow

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