Fluid Mechanics: Fundamentals

and Applications, 4th edition

Yunus A. Cengel, John M. Cimbala
Lecture slides by Mehmet Kanoglu

©McGraw-Hill Education. All rights reserved. Authorized only for instructor use in the classroom. No reproduction or further distribution permitted without the prior written consent of McGraw-Hill Education.
 Chapter 8

INTERNAL FLOW

©McGraw-Hill Education. All rights reserved. Authorized only for instructor use in the classroom. No reproduction or further distribution permitted without the prior written consent of McGraw-Hill Education.
 8–1 ■ INTRODUCTION
Liquid or gas flow through pipes or ducts is commonly used in heating and
cooling applications and fluid distribution networks.
The fluid in such applications is usually forced to flow by a fan or pump
through a flow section.
We pay particular attention to friction, which is directly related to the pressure
drop and head loss during flow through pipes and ducts.
The pressure drop is then used to determine the pumping power requirement.

Circular pipes can withstand large pressure differences

between the inside and the outside without undergoing any
significant distortion, but noncircular pipes cannot.
©McGraw-Hill Education.
 Theoretical solutions are obtained only for a few simple cases such as fully
developed laminar flow in a circular pipe.
Therefore, we must rely on experimental results and empirical relations for
most fluid flow problems rather than closed-form analytical solutions.

The value of the average velocity Vavg at

m  Vavg Ac   u (r ) dAc some streamwise cross-section is
Ac determined from the requirement that the
conservation of mass principle be satisfied


R
u (r ) dAc  u (r )2 r dr 2 R
The average velocity

Ac for incompressible
Vavg   0
 2 u ( r )r dr
 Ac  R 2
R 0 flow in a circular pipe
of radius R

Average velocity Vavg is defined

as the average speed through a
cross section. For fully developed
laminar pipe flow, Vavg is half of
the maximum velocity.

©McGraw-Hill Education.
 8–2 ■ LAMINAR AND Laminar flow is encountered when
highly viscous fluids such as oils flow
TURBULENT FLOWS in small pipes or narrow passages.

Laminar: Smooth
streamlines and highly
ordered motion.
Turbulent: Velocity
fluctuations and highly
disordered motion.
Transition: The flow
fluctuates between laminar
and turbulent flows.
Most flows encountered
in practice are turbulent.
The behavior of
Laminar and
colored fluid
turbulent flow
injected into the
regimes of
flow in laminar
candle smoke.
and turbulent
flows in a pipe.
©McGraw-Hill Education.
©McGraw-Hill Education.
 Reynolds Number At large Reynolds numbers, the inertial
The transition from laminar to turbulent forces, which are proportional to the fluid
flow depends on the geometry, surface density and the square of the fluid
roughness, flow velocity, surface velocity, are large relative to the viscous
temperature, and type of fluid. forces, and thus the viscous forces
cannot prevent the random and rapid
The flow regime depends mainly on the fluctuations of the fluid (turbulent).
ratio of inertial forces to viscous forces At small or moderate Reynolds
(Reynolds number). numbers, the viscous forces are large
enough to suppress these fluctuations
Inertial forces Vavg D Vavg D and to keep the fluid “in line” (laminar).
Re   
Viscous forces  
Critical Reynolds number, Recr:
The Reynolds number at which the
flow becomes turbulent.
The value of the critical Reynolds
number is different for different
geometries and flow conditions.

The Reynolds number can be

viewed as the ratio of inertial
forces to viscous forces
acting on a fluid element.
©McGraw-Hill Education.
©McGraw-Hill Education.
 For flow through noncircular pipes,
the Reynolds number is based on
the hydraulic diameter

4 Ac
Hydraulic diameter: Dh 
p

4 Ac 4( D 2 / 4)
Circular pipes: Dh   D
p D

The hydraulic diameter Dh = 4Ac/p

is defined such that it reduces to
ordinary diameter for circular tubes.
©McGraw-Hill Education.
 For flow in a circular pipe:

In the transitional flow

region of 2300  Re  4000,
the flow switches between
laminar and turbulent
seemingly randomly.

©McGraw-Hill Education.
 8–3 ■ THE ENTRANCE REGION
Velocity boundary layer: The region of the flow in which the effects of the
viscous shearing forces caused by fluid viscosity are felt.
Boundary layer region: The viscous effects and the velocity changes are
significant.
Irrotational (core) flow region: The frictional effects are negligible and the
velocity remains essentially constant in the radial direction.

The development of the velocity boundary layer in a pipe. The developed

average velocity profile is parabolic in laminar flow, but somewhat flatter or
fuller in turbulent flow.
©McGraw-Hill Education.
 Hydrodynamic entrance region: The region from the pipe inlet to the point at
which the boundary layer merges at the centerline.
Hydrodynamic entry length Lh: The length of this region.
Hydrodynamically developing flow: Flow in the entrance region. This is the
region where the velocity profile develops.
Hydrodynamically fully developed region: The region beyond the entrance
region in which the velocity profile is fully developed and remains unchanged.
Fully developed: When both the velocity profile and the normalized
temperature profile remain unchanged.
u ( r , x )
Hydrodynamically fully developed :  0  u  u (r )
x

In the fully developed flow

region of a pipe, the velocity
profile does not change
downstream, and thus the
wall shear stress remains
constant as well.

©McGraw-Hill Education.
 The pressure drop is higher in the entrance regions of a pipe, and the effect of the
entrance region is always to increase the average friction factor for the entire pipe.

The variation of wall shear stress in the flow direction for flow in a pipe
from the entrance region into the fully developed region.
©McGraw-Hill Education.
 Entry Lengths
The hydrodynamic entry length is usually taken to be the distance from
the pipe entrance to where the wall shear stress (and thus the friction
factor) reaches within about 2 percent of the fully developed value.

The pipes used in practice

hydrodynamic are usually several times the
Lh , laminar
 0.05Re entry length for length of the entrance region,
D laminar flow and thus the flow through the
pipes is often assumed to be
Lh , turbulent hydrodynamic fully developed for the entire
 1.359Re 1/ 4
entry length for length of the pipe.
D turbulent flow This simplistic approach gives
reasonable results for long
Lh , turbulent hydrodynamic entry pipes but sometimes poor
 10 length for turbulent results for short ones since it
D flow, an approximation underpredicts the wall shear
stress and thus the friction
factor.
©McGraw-Hill Education.
 8–4 ■ LAMINAR FLOW IN PIPES
We consider steady, laminar, incompressible flow of a fluid with constant
properties in the fully developed region of a straight circular pipe.
In fully developed laminar flow, each fluid particle moves at a constant axial
velocity along a streamline and the velocity profile u(r) remains unchanged in the
flow direction. There is no motion in the radial direction, and thus the velocity
component in the direction normal to the pipe axis is everywhere zero. There is
no acceleration since the flow is steady and fully developed.
(2 r dr P) x  (2 r dr P) x  dx  (2 r dx ) r  (2 r dx ) r  dr  0

Px  dx  Px (r ) r  dr  ( r ) r
r  0
dx dr
dP d (r )      du / dr 
r  0
dx dr
 d du dP
(r ) 
r dr dr dx
Free-body diagram of a ring-shaped differential
fluid element of radius r, thickness dr, and length
dx oriented coaxially with a horizontal pipe in
fully developed laminar flow.
©McGraw-Hill Education.
 Pressure Drop and Head Loss
dP P2  P1 8 LVavg 32 LVavg
 Laminar flow: P  P1  P2  
dx L R 2
D2
A pressure drop due to viscous effects represents an irreversible pressure
loss, and it is called pressure loss PL.

L Vavg 8 w Darcy
2

Pressure loss: PL  f f  friction

D 2 Vavg factor
2

64 64 dynamic
Circular pipe, laminar: f   Vavg
2
/2
 DVavg Re pressure

2
PL V
L avg
Head loss: hL   f
g D 2g
In laminar flow, the friction factor is a function of the Reynolds number
only and is independent of the roughness of the pipe surface.
The head loss represents the additional height that the fluid needs to be
raised by a pump in order to overcome the frictional losses in the pipe.

©McGraw-Hill Education.
 The relation for pressure
loss (and head loss) is one
of the most general
relations in fluid
mechanics, and it is valid
for laminar or turbulent
flows, circular or
noncircular pipes, and
pipes with smooth or rough
surfaces.

©McGraw-Hill Education.
 Wpump, L  V PL  V ghL  mgh
 L

( P1  P2 ) R 2 ( P1  P2 ) D 2 PD 2
Horizontal pipe: Vavg   
8 L 32 L 32 L

( P  P ) R 2
( P  P ) D 4
P D 4
V  Vavg Ac  1 2 R  1 2
2
 Poiseuille’s
8 L 128 L 128 L law
For a specified flow rate, the
pressure drop and thus the
required pumping power is
proportional to the length of the
pipe and the viscosity of the fluid,
but it is inversely proportional to
the fourth power of the diameter of
the pipe.

The pumping power requirement

for a laminar flow piping system
can be reduced by a factor of 16 by
doubling the pipe diameter.
©McGraw-Hill Education.
 The pressure drop P equals the pressure loss PL in the case of a
horizontal pipe, but this is not the case for inclined pipes or pipes with
variable cross-sectional area.
This can be demonstrated by writing the energy equation for steady,
incompressible one-dimensional flow in terms of heads as

P1 V12 P2 V22
 1  z1  hpump, u   2  z2  hturbine, e  hL
g 2g g 2g

P1  P2   ( 2V22  1V12 ) / 2   g[( z2  z1 )  hturbine, e  hpump, u  hL ]

Therefore, the pressure drop ΔP = P1 − P2 and pressure loss ΔPL = ghL

for a given flow section are equivalent if (1) the flow section is horizontal
so that there are no hydrostatic or gravity effects (z1 = z2), (2) the flow
section does not involve any work devices such as a pump or a turbine
since they change the fluid pressure (hpump, u = hturbine, e = 0), (3) the
cross-sectional area of the flow section is constant and thus the average
flow velocity is constant (V1 = V2), and (4) the velocity profiles at sections
1 and 2 are the same shape ( 1 = 2).
©McGraw-Hill Education.
 Effect of Gravity dWx  dW sin    gdVelement sin    g (2 r dr dx) sin 
on Velocity and
(2 r dr P ) x  (2 r dr P ) x  dx  (2 r dx  ) r
Flow Rate in
 (2 r dx  ) r  dr   g (2 r dr dx) sin   0
Laminar Flow
 d  du  dP
r     g sin 
r dr  dr  dx

R 2  dP  r2 
u (r )      g sin  1  2 
4 dx  R 

(P   gL sin ) D 2
Vavg 
32 L

(  P   gL sin  ) D 4
V 
128 L

Free-body diagram of a ring-shaped differential fluid element

of radius r, thickness dr, and length dx oriented coaxially with
an inclined pipe in fully developed laminar flow.
©McGraw-Hill Education.
 The relations developed for fully
developed laminar flow through
horizontal pipes can also be used
for inclined pipes by replacing ΔP
with ΔP − gL sin .

©McGraw-Hill Education.
 Laminar Flow in
Noncircular Pipes
The friction factor f relations
are given in Table 8–1 for fully
developed laminar flow in
pipes of various cross
sections. The Reynolds
number for flow in these pipes
is based on the hydraulic
diameter Dh = 4Ac /p, where
Ac is the cross-sectional area
of the pipe and p is its wetted
perimeter

©McGraw-Hill Education.
 8–5 ■ TURBULENT FLOW IN PIPES
Most flows encountered in engineering practice are turbulent, and thus it is
important to understand how turbulence affects wall shear stress.
Turbulent flow is a complex mechanism dominated by fluctuations, and
it is still not fully understood.
We must rely on experiments and the empirical or semi-empirical correlations
developed for various situations.
Turbulent flow is characterized by
disorderly and rapid fluctuations of swirling
regions of fluid, called eddies, throughout
the flow.
These fluctuations provide an additional
mechanism for momentum and energy
transfer.
In turbulent flow, the swirling eddies
transport mass, momentum, and energy to
other regions of flow much more rapidly
than molecular diffusion, greatly enhancing
The intense mixing in turbulent flow
mass, momentum, and heat transfer.
brings fluid particles at different
momentums into close contact and As a result, turbulent flow is associated
thus enhances momentum transfer. with much higher values of friction, heat
transfer, and mass transfer coefficients
©McGraw-Hill Education.
 Photos by Alex Wouden.

Water exiting a tube: (a) laminar

flow at low flow rate, (b) turbulent
flow at high flow rate, and (c)
same as (b) but with a short
shutter exposure to capture
individual eddies.

©McGraw-Hill Education.
 u  u  u average value u
fluctuating component u  total   lam   turb
     , P  P  P  The laminar component: accounts for the
friction between layers in the flow direction
T  T T The turbulent component: accounts for the
friction between the fluctuating fluid
particles and the fluid body (related to the
fluctuation components of velocity).

Fluctuations of the velocity component u with

time at a specified location in turbulent flow.

The velocity profile and the variation

of shear stress with radial distance
for turbulent flow in a pipe.
©McGraw-Hill Education.
 Turbulent Shear Stress

 turb   u   turbulent shear stress

Terms such as  u   or  u  2 are called Reynolds stresses or

turbulent stresses.

u Turbulent shear
 turb   u    t
y stress
t eddy viscosity or turbulent viscosity:
accounts for momentum transport by
turbulent eddies

u u Total shear
 total  (   t )   (   t )
y y stress

 t   t / kinematic eddy viscosity or

Fluid particle moving upward kinematic turbulent viscosity
through a differential area dA as a (also called the eddy diffusivity of
result of the velocity fluctuation ′. momentum).
©McGraw-Hill Education.
 2
u 2  u 
mixing length lm: related to the average
 turb  t   lm   size of the eddies that are primarily
y  y  responsible for mixing
Molecular diffusivity of
momentum v (as well as µ)
is a fluid property, and its
value is listed in fluid
handbooks.
Eddy diffusivity vt (as well
as µt), however, is not a
fluid property, and its value
depends on flow
conditions.
The velocity gradients at the
wall, and thus the wall shear Eddy diffusivity µt
stress, are much larger for decreases toward the wall,
turbulent flow than they are becoming zero at the wall.
for laminar flow, even though Its value ranges from zero
the turbulent boundary layer at the wall to several
is thicker than the laminar thousand times the value
one for the same value of of the molecular diffusivity
free-stream velocity. in the core region.
©McGraw-Hill Education.
 Turbulent Velocity Profile The very thin layer next to the wall where
viscous effects are dominant is the viscous (or
laminar or linear or wall) sublayer.
The velocity profile in this layer is very nearly
linear, and the flow is streamlined.
Next to the viscous sublayer is the buffer
layer, in which turbulent effects are becoming
significant, but the flow is still dominated by
viscous effects.
Above the buffer layer is the overlap (or
transition) layer, also called the inertial
sublayer, in which the turbulent effects are
much more significant, but still not dominant.
Above that is the outer (or turbulent) layer in
the remaining part of the flow in which
turbulent effects dominate over molecular
diffusion (viscous) effects.
The velocity profile in fully developed pipe flow is parabolic in laminar
flow, but much fuller in turbulent flow. Note that u(r) in the turbulent
case is the time-averaged velocity component in the axial direction
(the overbar on u has been dropped for simplicity).
©McGraw-Hill Education.
 u u w u
 w     or 
y y  y

u*   w /  friction velocity

u yu *
Viscous sublayer:  law of the wall
u* 
5 25
Thickness of viscous sublayer : y   sublayer  
u * u
The thickness of the viscous sublayer is proportional to the kinematic
viscosity and inversely proportional to the average flow velocity.

 / u * Viscous length; it is used to non-dimensionalize the distance

y from the surface.

 yu *  u
Nondimensionalized variables : y  and u 
 u*

Normalized law of the wall : u  y

©McGraw-Hill Education.
 The Moody Chart and Its Associated Equations
Colebrook equation (for smooth and rough pipes)
1  /D 2.51
 2.0 log(  ) (turbulent flow)
f 3.7 Re f

The friction factor in fully developed turbulent pipe flow depends

on the Reynolds number and the relative roughness  /D.

©McGraw-Hill Education.
 Equivalent roughness values for new
commercial pipes* Relative
Roughness, Friction Factor,
Roughness, ε Roughness, ε
f
Material ft mm 0.0* 0.0119
Glass, plastic 0 (Smooth) 0 (Smooth)
0.00001 0.0119
Concrete 0.003–0.03 0.9–9
0.0001 0.0134
Wood stave 0.0016 0.5
Rubber,
0.0005 0.0172
smoothed 0.000033 0.01 0.001 0.0199
Copper or
brass tubing 0.000005 0.0015 0.005 0.0305
Cast iron 0.00085 0.26 0.01 0.0380
Galvanized 0.05 0.0716
iron 0.0005 0.15
* Smooth surface. All values are for Re = 106
Wrought iron 0.00015 0.046 and are calculated from the Colebrook
Stainless steel 0.000007 0.002 equation.

Commercial The friction factor is minimum

steel 0.00015 0.045
for a smooth pipe and
* The uncertainty in these values can be as much
as ±60 percent.
increases with roughness.
©McGraw-Hill Education.
 The Moody Chart

©McGraw-Hill Education.
 At very large Reynolds numbers, the friction factor curves on the Moody
chart are nearly horizontal, and thus the friction factors are independent of
the Reynolds number. See Fig. A–12 for a full-page moody chart.
©McGraw-Hill Education.
 Standard sizes for Schedule 40 steel pipes

Nominal Actual Inside

Size, in Diameter, in
0.269

0.364
In calculations, we should
0.493 make sure that we use the
actual internal diameter of
0.622
the pipe, which may be
0.824 different than the nominal
diameter.
1 1.049
1 1.610
2 2.067
2 2.469
3 3.068
5 5.047
10 10.02

©McGraw-Hill Education.
 Types of Fluid Flow Problems
1. Determining the pressure drop (or head loss) when the
pipe length and diameter are given for a specified flow
rate (or velocity)
2. Determining the flow rate when the pipe length and
diameter are given for a specified pressure drop (or head
loss)
3. Determining the pipe diameter when the pipe length and
flow rate are given for a specified pressure drop (or head
loss)

The three types of

problems encountered
in pipe flow.

©McGraw-Hill Education.
 To avoid tedious iterations in head loss, flow rate, and
diameter calculations, these explicit relations that are accurate
to within 2 percent of the Moody chart may be used.
2
V L
2     D
0.9
  106   /D  102
hL  1.07 ln
   4.62    
gD 5   3.7 D V   3000  Re  3  108

 gD 5
hL 
0.5
   3.17v 2 L  
0.5

V  0.965  ln    Re  2000
 L   3.7 D  gD hL  
3 
0.04
  2 
4.75

5.2
  106   /D  102
1.25 LV L
D  0.66    V 
9.4

  ghL  
 ghL  

5000  Re  3  108

All quantities are dimensional and the units simplify to the desired
unit (for example, to m or ft in the last relation) when consistent
units are used. Noting that the Moody chart is accurate to within 15
percent of experimental data, we should have no reservation in
using these approximate relations in the design of piping systems.

©McGraw-Hill Education.
 Explicit Haaland 1  6.9   /D 1.11 
 1.8log    
equation f  Re  3.7  

The results obtained from this relation are within 2 percent

of those obtained from the Colebrook equation.

An equation was generated by Churchill (1997) that is not only explicit, but
is also useful for any Re and any roughness, even for laminar flow, and
even in the fuzzy transitional region between laminar and turbulent flow.
1
 8  12
1.5
 12
Explicit
f  8    ( A  B ) 
 Re   Churchill equation
16
  7  0.9
    37, 530 
16

A  2.457 ln    0.27  and B   

   Re  D    Re 
The difference between the Colebrook and Churchill
equations is less than one percent.
©McGraw-Hill Education.
 8–6 ■ MINOR LOSSES
The fluid in a typical piping system passes
through various fittings, valves, bends,
elbows, tees, inlets, exits, enlargements,
and contractions in addition to the pipes.
These components interrupt the smooth
flow of the fluid and cause additional
losses because of the flow separation and
mixing they induce.
In a typical system with long pipes, these
losses are minor compared to the total
head loss in the pipes (the major losses)
and are called minor losses.
Minor losses are usually expressed in
terms of the loss coefficient KL. For a constant-diameter section of a
hL pipe with a minor loss component, the
Loss coefficient : KL  2 loss coefficient of the component (such
V /(2 g ) as the gate valve shown) is determined
by measuring the additional pressure
hL  PL / g Head loss due loss it causes and dividing it by the
to component
dynamic pressure in the pipe.
©McGraw-Hill Education.
 When the inlet diameter equals outlet
diameter, the loss coefficient of a
component can also be determined by
measuring the pressure loss across the
component and dividing it by the
dynamic pressure:
KL = PL /(V2/2)
When the loss coefficient for a
component is available, the head loss
for that component is

V2
Minor loss : hL  K L
2g

Minor losses are also expressed in terms

of the equivalent length Lequiv The head loss caused by a
component (such as the angle
V2 Lequiv V 2 D valve shown) is equivalent to
hL  K L  f  Lequiv  KL the head loss caused by a
2g D 2g f section of the pipe whose
length is the equivalent length.
©McGraw-Hill Education.
 Total head loss (general)

hL , total  hL , major  hL , minor

2
Li Vi 2 Vj
  fi  K L , j
i Di 2 g j 2g

Total head loss (D = constant)

2
 L V
hL , total   f   KL 
 D  2g

The head loss at the inlet of a pipe

is almost negligible for well-rounded
inlets (KL = 0.03 for r/D > 0.2) but
increases to about 0.50 for sharp-
edged inlets.
©McGraw-Hill Education.
©McGraw-Hill Education.
©McGraw-Hill Education.
©McGraw-Hill Education.
 2
 Asmall 
K L   1 
   sudden expansion 
 Alarge 

Graphical
representation of
flow contraction
and the
associated head
loss at a sharp-
edged pipe inlet.

©McGraw-Hill Education.
 Data from ASHRAE Handbook of Fundamentals.

The effect of rounding of a pipe inlet on the loss

coefficient.

©McGraw-Hill Education.
 All the kinetic energy of the flow is “lost”
(turned into thermal energy) through
friction as the jet decelerates and mixes
with ambient fluid downstream of a
submerged outlet.

The losses during changes of

direction can be minimized by making
the turn “easy” on the fluid by using
circular arcs instead of sharp turns.
©McGraw-Hill Education.
 (a) The large head loss in a
partially closed valve is due
to irreversible deceleration,
flow separation, and mixing
of high-velocity fluid coming
from the narrow valve
passage.
(b) The head loss through a
fully-open ball valve, on the
other hand, is quite small.
Photo by John M. Cimbala.

©McGraw-Hill Education.
 8–7 ■ PIPING NETWORKS AND PUMP SELECTION

© 123RF
A piping network in an industrial For pipes in parallel, the head loss
facility. is the same in each pipe, and the
total flow rate is the sum of the flow
rates in individual pipes.

For pipes in series, the flow rate is

the same in each pipe, and the total
head loss is the sum of the head
losses in individual pipes.
©McGraw-Hill Education.
 The relative flow rates in parallel pipes are established from the
requirement that the head loss in each pipe be the same.
L1 V12 L2 V22
hL , 1  hL , 2  f1  f2
D1 2 g D2 2 g
1/ 2 1/2
V1  f 2 L2 D1  
V1 Ac , 1V1 D1  f 2 L2 D1 
2
 and    2
V2  f1 L1 D2  V2 Ac , 2V2 D2  f1 L1 D2 

The flow rate in one of the parallel branches is proportional to its

diameter to the power 5/2 and is inversely proportional to the square
root of its length and friction factor.
The analysis of piping networks is based on two simple principles:
1. Conservation of mass throughout the system must be satisfied. This is
done by requiring the total flow into a junction to be equal to the total flow out
of the junction for all junctions in the system.
2. Pressure drop (and thus head loss) between two junctions must be the
same for all paths between the two junctions. This is because pressure is
a point function and it cannot have two values at a specified point. In practice
this rule is used by requiring that the algebraic sum of head losses in a loop
(for all loops) be equal to zero.
©McGraw-Hill Education.
 Piping Systems with Pumps and Turbines
P1 V12 P2 V22
 1  gz1  wpump, u    2  gz2  wturbine, e  ghL
 2  2
P1 V12 P2 V22
 1  z1  hpump, u   2  z2  hturbine, e  hL
g 2g g 2g
hpump, u  ( z2  z1 )  hL the steady-flow
energy equation

When a pump moves a fluid

from one reservoir to another,
the useful pump head
requirement is equal to the
elevation difference between
the two reservoirs plus the
head loss.
©McGraw-Hill Education.
 Vghpump, u
Wpump, shaft 
 pump

Vghpump, u
Welect 
pump  motor

© Alex LMX/Shutterstock RF
The efficiency of the pump–motor
combination is the product of the
pump and the motor efficiencies.

©McGraw-Hill Education.
 Characteristic pump curves for centrifugal pumps, the
system curve for a piping system, and the operating point.

©McGraw-Hill Education.
 8–8 ■ FLOW RATE AND VELOCITY MEASUREMENT
A major application area of fluid mechanics is the determination of the flow rate
of fluids, and numerous devices have been developed over the years for the
purpose of flow metering.
Flowmeters range widely in their level of sophistication, size, cost, accuracy,
versatility, capacity, pressure drop, and the operating principle.
We give an overview of the meters commonly used to measure the flow rate of
liquids and gases flowing through pipes or ducts.
We limit our consideration to incompressible flow.

V  VAc

Measuring the flow rate is usually done by

measuring flow velocity, and many
flowmeters are simply velocimeters used for
the purpose of metering flow.

A primitive (but fairly accurate) way of

measuring the flow rate of water through a
garden hose involves collecting water in a
bucket and recording the collection time.
©McGraw-Hill Education.
 Pitot and Pitot-Static Probes
Pitot probes (also called Pitot tubes) and Pitot-static probes are widely used
for flow speed measurement.
A Pitot probe is just a tube with a pressure tap at the stagnation point that
measures stagnation pressure, while a Pitot-static probe has both a stagnation
pressure tap and several circumferential static pressure taps and it measures
both stagnation and static pressures

(a) A Pitot probe measures stagnation pressure at the nose of the probe,
while (b) a Pitot-static probe measures both stagnation pressure and static
pressure, from which the flow speed is calculated.
©McGraw-Hill Education.
 P1 V12 P2 V22
  z1    z2
 g 2g  g 2g

2( P1  P2 )
Pitot formula : V


Photo by Po-Ya Abel Chuang. Used by permission.

Close-up of a Pitot-static probe,

Measuring flow velocity with a showing the stagnation pressure
Pitotstatic probe. (A manometer may hole and two of the five static
be used in place of the differential circumferential pressure holes.
pressure transducer.)
©McGraw-Hill Education.
 Obstruction Flowmeters:
Orifice, Venturi, and
Nozzle Meters
Flowmeters based on this principle
are called obstruction flowmeters
and are widely used to measure
flow rates of gases and liquids.
Flow through a constriction in a pipe.

Mass balance: V  AV
1 1  A2V2  V1  ( A2 /A1 )V2  (d /D ) 2 V2
P1 V12 P2 V22
Bernoulli equation  z1  z2  :   
g 2g g 2g
2  P1  P2 
Obstruction ( with no loss): V2 
 1   4 

  d /D  
V  A2V2   d 2 /4 V2

©McGraw-Hill Education.
 The losses can be accounted for by incorporating a correction factor called the
discharge coefficient Cd whose value (which is less than 1) is determined
experimentally.

 2( P1  P2 )
Obstruction flowmeters: V  A0Cd
(1   4 )
A0  A2   d 2 /4   d /D

The value of Cd depends on both b and the Reynolds number, and charts and
curve-fit correlations for Cd are available for various types of obstruction meters.

91.71 2.5
Orifice meters: Cd  0.5959  0.0312 2.1  0.184 8 
Re0.75
6.53 0.5
Nozzle meters: Cd  0.9975 
Re0.5
0.25    0.75 and 104  Re  107
For flows with high Reynolds numbers (Re > 30,000), the value of
Cd can be taken to be 0.96 for flow nozzles and 0.61 for orifices.

©McGraw-Hill Education.
 Common types of obstruction meters.

©McGraw-Hill Education.
 Courtesy of KOBOLD Instruments, Pittsburgh, PA. www.koboldusa.com. Used by permission.

An orifice meter and schematic showing its built-in

pressure transducer and digital readout.

©McGraw-Hill Education.
 The variation of pressure along a flow
section with an orifice meter as
measured with piezometer tubes; the
lost pressure and the pressure recovery
are shown.

©McGraw-Hill Education.
 Positive Displacement Flowmeters

Courtesy of Badger Meter, Inc.

The total amount of mass or volume of a fluid
that passes through a cross section of a pipe

Used by permission.
over a certain period of time is measured by
positive displacement flowmeters.
There are numerous types of displacement
meters, and they are based on continuous
filling and discharging of the measuring
chamber. They operate by trapping a certain
amount of incoming fluid, displacing it to the
discharge side of the meter, and counting the
number of such discharge–recharge cycles to
determine the total amount of fluid displaced.

A positive
displacement
flowmeter with
double helical
three-lobe
impeller design. A nutating disk flowmeter.
Courtesy of Flow Technology, Inc. Source: www.ftimeters.com

©McGraw-Hill Education.
 Turbine Flowmeters

(a) and (c) Photos by John M. Cimbala; (b) Photo Courtesy of Hoffer Flow Controls, Inc.

(a) An in-line turbine flowmeter to measure liquid flow, with flow from left to right,
(b) a cutaway view of the turbine blades inside the flowmeter, and
(c) a handheld turbine flowmeter to measure wind speed, measuring no flow at
the time the photo was taken so that the turbine blades are visible. The flowmeter
in (c) also measures the air temperature for convenience.

©McGraw-Hill Education.
 Paddlewheel Flowmeters

Photo by John M. Cimbala.

Paddlewheel flowmeters are low-
cost alternatives to turbine
flowmeters for flows where very
high accuracy is not required.
The paddlewheel (the rotor and
the blades) is perpendicular to the
flow rather than parallel as was the
case with turbine flowmeters.

Paddlewheel flowmeter to
measure liquid flow, with flow
from left to right, and a
schematic diagram of
its operation.

©McGraw-Hill Education.
 Variable-Area Flowmeters (Rotameters)

(a) Photo by Luke A. Cimbala and (b) Courtesy Insite, Universal Flow Monitors, Inc.
A simple, reliable, inexpensive, and easy-to-install
flowmeter with reasonably low pressure drop and
no electrical connections that gives a direct
reading of flow rate for a wide range of liquids and
gases is the variable-area flowmeter, also called
a rotameter or floatmeter.
A variable-area flowmeter consists of a vertical
tapered conical transparent tube made of glass or
plastic with a float inside that is free to move.
As fluid flows through the tapered tube, the float
rises within the tube to a location where the float
weight, drag force, and buoyancy force balance

Used by permission.
each other and the net force acting on the float is
zero.
The flow rate is determined by simply matching the
position of the float against the graduated flow
scale outside the tapered transparent tube. Two types of variable-area
flowmeters: (a) an ordinary
The float itself is typically either a sphere or a
gravity-based meter and (b) a
loose-fitting piston-like cylinder.
spring-opposed meter.
©McGraw-Hill Education.
 Ultrasonic Flowmeters
Ultrasonic flowmeters operate using sound waves in the ultrasonic
range ( beyond human hearing ability, typically at a frequency of 1
MHz).
Ultrasonic (or acoustic) flowmeters operate by generating sound waves
with a transducer and measuring the propagation of those waves
through a flowing fluid.
There are two basic kinds of ultrasonic flowmeters: transit time and
Doppler-effect (or frequency shift) flowmeters.
V  KL t L is the distance between the transducers and K is a constant

The operation of a
transit time ultrasonic
flowmeter equipped
with two transducers.
©McGraw-Hill Education.
 Doppler-Effect
Ultrasonic Flowmeters
Doppler-effect
ultrasonic flowmeters
measure the average
flow velocity along the
sonic path.
Ultrasonic clamp-on
flowmeters enable one to
measure flow velocity without
even contacting (or disturbing)
the fluid by simply pressing a
© J. Matthew Deepe
transducer on the outer
surface of the pipe.

The operation of a Doppler-effect

ultrasonic flowmeter equipped with a
transducer pressed on the outer
surface of a pipe.
©McGraw-Hill Education.
 Electromagnetic Flowmeters
A full-flow electromagnetic flowmeter is a nonintrusive device that consists of a
magnetic coil that encircles the pipe, and two electrodes drilled into the pipe
along a diameter flush with the inner surface of the pipe so that the electrodes
are in contact with the fluid but do not interfere with the flow and thus do not
cause any head loss.
Insertion electromagnetic flowmeters operate similarly, but the magnetic field is
confined within a flow channel at the tip of a rod inserted into the flow.

(a) Full-flow and (b) insertion

electromagnetic flowmeters,

©McGraw-Hill Education.
 Vortex Flowmeters
The flow rate can be determined by generating vortices in the flow by placing
an obstruction in the flow and measuring the shedding frequency. The flow
measurement devices that work on this principle are called vortex flowmeters.
The Strouhal number, defined as St = fd/V, where f is the vortex shedding
frequency, d is the characteristic diameter or width of the obstruction, and V is
the velocity of the flow impinging on the obstruction, also remains constant in
this case, provided that the flow velocity is high enough.

The vortex flowmeter has the

advantage that it has no moving
parts and thus is inherently
reliable, versatile, and very
ccurate (usually 1 percent over
a wide range of flow rates), but
it obstructs the flow and thus
causes considerable head loss.

The operation of a
vortex flowmeter.

©McGraw-Hill Education.
 Thermal (Hot-Wire and Hot-Film) Anemometers
Thermal anemometers involve an electrically heated sensor and utilize a
thermal effect to measure flow velocity.
Thermal anemometers have extremely small sensors, and thus they can be
used to measure the instantaneous velocity at any point in the flow without
appreciably disturbing the flow.
They can measure velocities in liquids and gases accurately over a wide
range—from a few centimeters to over a hundred meters per second.
A thermal anemometer is called a
hot-wire anemometer if the sensing
element is a wire, and a hot-film
anemometer if the sensor is a thin
metallic film (less than 0.1 µm thick)
mounted usually on a relatively thick
ceramic support having a diameter of
about 50 µm.

The electrically heated sensor

and its support, components of
a hot-wire probe.
©McGraw-Hill Education.
 Schematic of a thermal
anemometer system.

King’s law
E 2  a  bV n
Thermal
E is the voltage, and the values of the constants a, b, and
anemometer
n are calibrated for a given probe. Once the voltage is
probes with single,
measured, this relation gives the flow velocity V directly.
double, and triple
sensors to measure
(a) one-, (b) two-,
and (c) three-
dimensional
velocity
components
simultaneously.
©McGraw-Hill Education.
 Laser Doppler Velocimetry
Laser Doppler velocimetry (LDV), also called laser velocimetry (LV) or laser
Doppler anemometry (LDA), is an optical technique to measure flow velocity
at any desired point without disturbing the flow.
Unlike thermal anemometry, LDV involves no probes or wires inserted into the
flow, and thus it is a nonintrusive method.
Like thermal anemometry, it can accurately measure velocity at a very small
volume, and thus it can also be used to study the details of flow at a locality,
including turbulent fluctuations, and it can be traversed through the entire flow
field without intrusion.

A dual-beam LDV system in forward scatter mode.

©McGraw-Hill Education.
 V 2V sin  /2
f   LDV equation
s 
s   /  2 sin  /2  
 is the wavelength of the laser beam and α
is the angle between the two laser beams

This fundamental relation shows the flow

velocity to be proportional to the frequency.

www.dantecdynamics.com. Used by permission.

Fringes that form as a
result of the interference at

Courtesy Dantec Dynamics,

the intersection of two laser
beams of an LDV system A time-averaged
(lines represent peaks of velocity profile in
waves). The top diagram is turbulent pipe
a close-up view of two flow obtained by
fringes. an LDV system.
©McGraw-Hill Education.
 Particle Image Velocimetry
Particle image velocimetry (PIV) is a double-pulsed laser technique used to
measure the instantaneous velocity distribution in a plane of flow by
photographically determining the displacement of particles in the plane during a
very short time interval.
Unlike methods like hot-wire anemometry and LDV that measure velocity at a
point, PIV provides velocity values simultaneously throughout an entire cross
section, and thus it is a whole-field technique.
PIV combines the accuracy of LDV with the capability of flow visualization and
provides instantaneous flow field mapping.
The entire instantaneous velocity profile at a cross section of pipe can be
obtained with a single PIV measurement.
A PIV system can be viewed as a camera that can take a snapshot of
velocity distribution at any desired plane in a flow.
Ordinary flow visualization gives a qualitative picture of the details of flow.
PIV also provides an accurate quantitative description of various flow quantities
such as the velocity field, and thus the capability to analyze the flow
numerically using the velocity data provided.

©McGraw-Hill Education.
 A PIV system to study flame stabilization.

©McGraw-Hill Education.
 Photo by Douglas Warrick. Used by permission.

Instantaneous PIV velocity vectors superimposed on a hummingbird

in hover. Color scale is from low velocity (blue) to high velocity (red).
©McGraw-Hill Education.
 A variety of laser light sources
such as argon, copper vapor,
and Nd:YAG can be used with
PIV systems, depending on the
requirements for pulse duration,
power, and time between
pulses.
Nd:YAG lasers are commonly
used in PIV systems over a
wide range of applications.
A beam delivery system such
as a light arm or a fiber-optic
system is used to generate and
deliver a high-energy pulsed
laser sheet at a specified
thickness.

With PIV, other flow

properties such as vorticity
A three-dimensional PIV system set and strain rates can also be
up to study the mixing of an air jet obtained, and the details of
with cross duct flow. turbulence can be studied.

©McGraw-Hill Education.
 Introduction to BioflAuid Mechanics
Biofluid mechanics can cover a number of physiological systems in
the human body but the term also applies to all animal species as
there are a number of basic fluid systems that are essentially a
series of piping networks to transport a fluid (be it liquid or gas or
perhaps both).
If we focus on humans, these fluid systems are the cardiovascular,
respiratory, lymphatic, ocular, and gastrointestinal to name several.
We should keep in mind that all these systems are similar to other
mechanical piping networks in that the fundamental constituents
for the network include a pump, pipes, valves, and a fluid.
For our purposes, we will focus more on the cardiovascular
system to demonstrate the basic concepts of a piping network
within a human.

©McGraw-Hill Education.
 The cardiovascular
system.

McGraw-Hill Companies, Inc.

©McGraw-Hill Education.
 (a) An artist rendering of the 12-
cc pulsatile Penn State pediatric
ventricular assist device with
the inlet attached to the left
atrium and the outlet attached
to the ascending aorta
(b) The direction of blood
through the PVAD.
Photo (b) Permission granted from ASME, from Cooper BT, et al.,
Journal of Biomechanical Engineering, Volume 130, 2008.

©McGraw-Hill Education.
 Permission granted from ASME, from Manning, KB, et al., Journal of Biomechanical Engineering, Volume
Particle traces for the
BSM valve configuration
at 250 ms (left column)
and for the CM valve
configuration at 350 ms
(right column) for the 7
mm (top row), 8.2 mm
(middle row), and 11 mm
(bottom row) planes.
These images highlight
the first time step that the

130, 2008.
rotational flow pattern is
fully developed.
©McGraw-Hill Education.
 Permission granted from ASME, from Manning, KB, et al., Journal of Biomechanical Engineering, Volume 130, 2008.

(a) The single shot chamber mimics the closure dynamics of the Bjork-Shiley
Monostrut valve. (b) On the lefthand side is a view of the intact Bjork-Shiley
Monostrut mechanical heart valve. To the right, the modification to the valve
housing is displayed. The window was later filled in with acrylic to maintain
similar fluid dynamic patterns and rigidity.
©McGraw-Hill Education.
 These schematics depict side and
front views of the overall flow
structure generated by the closing
occluder for four successive times.

Permission granted from ASME, Manning et al. JBME, 2008.

©McGraw-Hill Education.
 Three-dimensional
flow structures are
constructed with the
vectors indicating
direction and the color
signifying axial
velocity strength. The
valve closes right to
left, with x = 0
representing the
centerline of the
leaflet. The four plots
show the flow (a) 1
ms before impact, (b)
at impact, (c) 1 ms
following closure, and
(d) 2 ms after closure.
Permission granted from ASME, Manning et al. JBME, 2008.

©McGraw-Hill Education.
 Anatomy of the human body. Note the aorta and left and right
common iliac arteries.
©McGraw-Hill Education.
 Summary

• Introduction
• Laminar and Turbulent Flows
• Reynolds Number
• The Entrance Region
• Entry Lengths
• Laminar Flow in Pipes
• Pressure Drop and Head Loss
• Effect of Gravity on Velocity and Flow Rate in Laminar Flow
• Laminar Flow in Noncircular Pipes
• Turbulent Flow in Pipes
• Turbulent Shear Stress
• Turbulent Velocity Profile
• The Moody Chart and Its Associated Equations
• Types of Fluid Flow Problems

©McGraw-Hill Education.
 • Minor Losses
• Piping Networks and Pump Selection
• Serial and Parallel Pipes
• Piping Systems with Pumps and Turbines
• Flow Rate and Velocity Measurement
• Pitot and Pitot-Static Probes
• Obstruction Flowmeters: Orifice, Venturi, and Nozzle Meters
• Positive Displacement Flowmeters
• Turbine Flowmeters
• Variable-Area Flowmeters (Rotameters)
• Ultrasonic Flowmeters
• Electromagnetic Flowmeters
• Vortex Flowmeters
• Thermal (Hot-Wire and Hot-Film) Anemometers
• Laser Doppler Velocimetry
• Particle Image Velocimetry
• Introduction to Biofluid Mechanics

©McGraw-Hill Education.