LEARNING GUIDE

ChE 206
Unit Operations
Module 4 Incompressible and Compressible Fluid Flow
Reading assignment: Chapter 5 except:
1. Laminar flow of non-newtonian liquids (p. 104-106)
2. Laminar flow in an annulus (106-108)
3. Reynolds numbers and friction factor for non-newtonian fluids (p. 117-118)
4. Drag reduction in turbulent flow (p. 118-119)
5. Nonisothermal flow (p. 119-120)
6. Viscous dissipation (p. 120)
Chapter 6: only pp. 133-137
Learning Objectives:
1. Understand friction factors
2. Learn how to use empirical equations to calculate fluid flow parameters in
complicated piping systems
3. Further understand the nature of turbulence and its difference from laminar flow
4. Memorize the Hagen-Poiseuille and von Karman equations for friction factors
5. Understand how to use the friction factor chart Fig. 5-10
6. Begin to understand the complexity in modeling compressible flow systems
7. Understand the relationship between heat capacity and compressible fluid flow
8. Learn the Mach number and the concept of subsonic, sonic, and supersonic flow
In this module, we learn how to determine the effects of friction in piping systems.
Fundamental and empirical formulas are presented that allow you to estimate the key
parameters in a fluid system velocity, pressure drop, necessary flow cross-section
from the other parameters and the friction losses in the system. We also continue to
understand the differences between laminar and turbulent flow. In most practical
systems, we move liquids at turbulent flow rates yet we still do not have a real good
grasp of what happens in turbulent systems. The mathematics to describe turbulent flow
parameters are complicated, and we ignore them in this course (we study these in our
Graduate Transport Phenomena course); relying on empirical formulas so that we have
ways to make calculations required to solve practical problems.

Module 4 Incompressible and Compressible Fluid Flow

Key Concepts
1. Incompressible fluids: an ideal incompressible fluid has no change in density
regardless of the pressure and temperature, or work performed on the fluid. In actual
practice, there are no truly incompressible fluids. However for all practical purposes
there are many circumstances when real fluids can be considered incompressible.

A system where the fluid of interest has only slight density differences throughout
the process. The most common scenario is a Newtonian liquid at nearly constant
temperature. Pressure can vary fairly substantially without a great deal of
inaccuracy. At pressure approaching the critical point, this assumption breaks
down.

Gases in systems where both the temperature and pressure are approximately
constant.

2. Compressible fluids: all real fluids are compressible. However the purposes of
macroscopic fluid flow problems, a fluid is considered to be compressible when it
undergoes large density variations which is every situation not covered by item #1,
above.

Gases must always be considered compressible unless both the temperature and
pressure are approximately constant.

Liquids are compressible when there is a large change in temperature, large

pressure changes near the critical point, or for non-Newtonian liquids. In general,
organic liquids will have more density variation than aqueous liquids so
compressibility considerations must be addressed more frequently for these fluids.

3. Characteristics of incompressible flow in pipes at steady-state conditions:

dP
0
dr

that is, pressure is a state variable and a scalar that is independent

of direction. This is true for both laminar and turbulent flow conditions.

r (see Figure 5.2). That is, the shear stress is proportional to the distance
from the centerline of the pipe. At r = 0, = 0. This property can be assumed true
for most (but not all) flow scenarios. We assume an axi-symmetric flow field.
This allows us to treat many fluid flow problems as two or even one dimensional
problems (making their solutions much easier!). If this is true, then @ r = R (the
pipe wall), , = max.

Pressure drop is caused almost (but not entirely) by friction losses at solid
boundaries (ie the pipe wall). Thus, we can define a skin friction coefficient, hfs:

Ps
h fs
L

where

Ps
L

is the pressure drop per unit length of pipe, L.

So for a circular pipe at steady-state:

h fs (

4 w L
)( )
D

The friction factor was defined in the early days of fluid mechanics (early
1900s) because it could be measured experimentally in the lab:

w 1
2
2 w2
f
v
v
2

where v is the average velocity.

This quantity is known as the Fanning

Friction Factor.

An alternate form is known as the Blasius friction factor. You can find the
equation in your textbook and the conversion between the two definitions.

The quantities hfs and f are very important in fluid flow, so you need to know
these.

4. Laminar flow in pipes:

r
1
R

max
At steady state,
where r is radial distance from the
centerline and R is the radial distance from the centerline to the wall of the pipe.
See Figure 5.3.

vavg

vmax
2

The Hagen-Poiseville equation is the analytical solution describing the flow

field for steady-state one dimensional flow in a cylinder:

Ps
v

D2

32

f
and for this case,

16
Re

. Remember this only holds

for laminar flow.

5. Turbulent Flow in Pipes it isnt possible to define exact properties for turbulent
flow. Instead, we have to work with average properties and deviations from average
properties (see your textbook for more information).

For turbulent flow we define the friction velocity as:

u v
*

f
2

Another useful concept is the dimensionless velocity, this is a normalized

velocity where a specific velocity measurement is referenced (via a ratio) to the
friction velocity:

u( y )
u
u*

where y+ is the dimensionless distance.

The velocity in the turbulent core (excluding the boundary layer, where all of the
momentum change is assumed to occur) can be estimated from the following
semi-empirical equation, known as the Prandtl equation:
u+ = 2.5lny+ + 5.5

this eqn. is good for Re>10,000.

Refer to figure 5.7 in your textbook.

The average velocity in turbulent flow, including the boundary layer can be
approximated from the following semi-empirical equation:

u umax

1 3.75 f

The friction quantity in this equation can be found from the following:

1
f

2.5 ln Re

1.75
8

usually we just read this off of a chart derived by experiment see Figure 5.10.
This figure is the primary relationship for friction loss used in fluid flow
calculations. You should always have this figure readily available and know how
to use it. I used it often during my Industrial career.

It is often useful to relate to umax because it is fairly easy to measure vmax at the
centerline of the pipe. See figure 5.8.
For turbulent flow in a pipe:
= 0.8-0.9 * umax
Re 104, u = 0.8* umax
Re 106, u = 0.9* umax

7. Roughness: the amount of friction that a fluid experiences as it flows past a fixed
boundary is directly related to the condition of the surface. No real surface is
perfectly smooth and the number of imperfections is measured in terms of the
roughness of the surface. The higher the roughness, the higher the frictiongenerated losses in momentum. Figure 5.10 includes corrections for roughness.
The problem though is that for a real process piping system, there is no good way to
identify the true roughness in the piping. One method that can be used is to use
ultrasound or x-rays to directly evaluate the interior piping surface. This can be very
expensive and is not usually justified. Another method is to take known flow
conditions and use these to back-estimate the roughness factor. This can then be used
to evaluate changing conditions.

8. Friction losses in fittings

Piping systems involve more than just straight runs of piping. All of the elbows,
valves, tees, and other components of the system are known as the fittings. Each
different type of fitting induces a different change to the flow field. As a result, flow
past the solid surfaces of the fitting contributes to the friction losses and pressure drop
in the piping system. This friction loss is different for each type of fitting, but in
general is fairly constant for Newtonian fluids for each fitting type.
Many experiments have been performed to tabulate these losses. These are typically
reported in one of two methods. 1) As a dimensionless friction loss coefficient, Ki.
2) As an equivalent pipe length, Lfi.
1) friction loss coefficient
we add the coefficients together and multiply by the kinetic energy of the fluid
then add the total to the friction loss from the piping:
2
v
h f h fs K i
i 2

and since

h fs (

4 w L
)( )
D

2
4 fL
v

hf
Ki
i 2
D

For a given piping system, we count up the number of each fitting type and use
the standard values from the tables many of these are given in Table 5.1.
2) Equivalent length method. This form is called velocity heads in your book
where head = distance, L. If the pressure drop is provided in terms of equivalent
pipe length, then:

hf

_
2

2f v
L

L
fi
D
i

and if you compare the two forms, you can see that:

L fi

K iD
4f

Others are provided in a supplemental handout I am providing you entitled Fitting

Friction Factors. Another good source is Perrys Handbook of Chemical
Engineering.
9. Compressible Flow Concepts
9.1 It is much more difficult to analyze compressible flow problems than
incompressible ones because density is now a variable.
9.2 We tend to talk about compressible flow systems based on ideal flow paths:

Isentropic: constant entropy

This is an ideal path where no mechanical work is transformed into heat
energy (ie no friction). Basically this flow path describes the motion of a
wave rather than the motion of a particle. It represents the best or upper limit
of what can be expected in any real flow system.

Adiabatic: constant enthalpy

No energy is lost, but mechanical work can be converted into heat. This is a
perfectly insulated system since no energy is lost to the environment.

Isothermal: constant temperature

As mechanical work is converted into heat, it is removed to maintain a
constant temperature.

Polytropic: mixed state path.

This flow path describes real flow fields. All state variables can change: T, q,
S.

9.3 Flow calculations are complicated in piping systems involving compressible

fluids. The basic strategy we use is to divide the flow field into sectors in which
we assume the fluid is incompressible. Then we match the boundary conditions

between the sectors to solve the problem. The smaller the sector, the more
accurate the solution. Numerical fluid flow programs do all of this automatically
for you. One version, ChemCad, is available for use in this course.
Many real-world flow problems can be solved assuming that a compressible fluid
is incompressible over a fairly large distance; making solution by hand possible.
Of course, with the use of computer programs this isnt really necessary.
We need to consider compressibility when:
a) we are compressing the fluid to increase pressure
b) we have a large P, like across a valve or in a long cross country pipeline
c) we have a large temperature change
However, in interconnecting piping within a process unit, if P isnt too large, we
can assume incompressible flow or break the flow into segments where we
assume incompressibility within the segments.