CHAPTER 01

PROPERTIES OF FLUIDS

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INTRODUCTION
 Fluid mechanics? is the discipline within the broad field of applied
mechanics that is concerned with the behavior of liquids and gases at
rest or in motion.
 It covers a vast array of phenomena that occur in nature (with or
without human intervention), in biology, and in numerous engineered,
invented, or manufactured situations.
 The broad subject of fluid mechanics can be generally subdivided into
fluid statics, in which the fluid is at rest, and fluid dynamics, in which the
fluid is moving. 2
DENSITY

 Density:
 The density of a fluid, designated by the Greek symbol ρ (rho), is defined as its mass per unit
volume. Density is typically used to characterize the mass of a fluid system. In SI the units are
kg/m3. Or in British Gravitational (BG) System units is slugs/ft3.
 The value of density can vary widely between different fluids, but for liquids, variations in
pressure and temperature generally have only a small effect on the value of ρ.
 The small change in the density of water with large variations in temperature is illustrated in
Fig. 1.3.
 Unlike liquids, the density of a gas is strongly influenced by both pressure and temperature.
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DENSITY

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DENSITY

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DENSITY

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SPECIFIC VOLUME

 Specific volume:
 The specific volume, v, is the volume per unit mass and is therefore the
reciprocal of the density—that is,

 This property is not commonly used in fluid mechanics but is used in

thermodynamics.
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SPECIFIC WEIGHT
 Specific Weight:
 The specific weight of a fluid, designated by the Greek symbol γ (gamma), is defined
as its weight per unit volume. Thus, specific weight is related to density through the
equation:

 where g is the local acceleration of gravity. Just as density is used to characterize the
mass of a fluid system, the specific weight is used to characterize the weight of the
system. In SI the units are N/m3. Or in British Gravitational (BG) System units is
lb/ft3. 8
SPECIFIC WEIGHT

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SPECIFIC WEIGHT

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SPECIFIC GRAVITY

 Specific Gravity:
 The specific gravity of a fluid, designated as SG (dimensionless
quantity) , is defined as the ratio of the density of the fluid to the density
of water at some specified temperature.
 Usually the specified temperature is taken as 4 °C (39.2 °F), and at this
temperature the density of water is 1000 kg/m3 or 1.94 slugs/ft3.
 In equation form, specific gravity is expressed as:
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SPECIFIC GRAVITY

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DENSITY OF IDEAL GASES
 Density of ideal gases:
 Gases are highly compressible in comparison to liquids, with changes in gas density directly related to
changes in pressure and temperature through the equation:

 where p is the absolute pressure, ρ the density,T the absolute temperature, and R is a gas constant.
 Equation about is commonly termed the ideal or perfect gas law, or the equation of state for an ideal
gas.
 It is known to closely approximate the behavior of real gases under typical conditions when the gases
are not approaching liquefaction. 13
DENSITY OF IDEAL GASES

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DENSITY OF IDEAL GASES

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DENSITY OF IDEAL GASES

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COMPRESSIBILITY OF FLUID

 Coefficient of compressibility:
 We know from experience that the volume (or density) of a fluid changes with a
change in its temperature or pressure.
 Fluids usually expand as they are heated or depressurized and contract as they are
cooled or pressurized. But the amount of volume change is different for different
fluids.
 it is appropriate to define a coefficient of compressibility Ev [SI unit is N/m2 or
Pa or in BG units lb/in.2 or psi] (also called the bulk modulus of compressibility
or bulk modulus of elasticity) for fluids as:
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COMPRESSIBILITY OF FLUID
 Liquid compressibility:
 Large values for the bulk modulus Ev indicate that the fluid is relatively incompressible—that is, it
takes a large pressure change to create a small change in volume. As expected, values of for common
liquids are large see Tables 1.6 & 1.5.
 For example, at atmospheric pressure and a temperature of it would require a pressure of 3120 psi
(221 bar) to compress a unit volume of water 1%. This result is representative of the compressibility of
liquids. Since such large pressures are required to effect a change in volume, we conclude that liquids
can be considered as incompressible for most practical engineering applications.
 As liquids are compressed the bulk modulus increases, but the bulk modulus near atmospheric
pressure is usually the one of interest.
 The use of bulk modulus as a property describing compressibility is most prevalent when dealing with
liquids, although the bulk modulus can also be determined for gases. 18
COMPRESSIBILITY OF FLUID

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COMPRESSIBILITY OF FLUID

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 COMPRESSIBILITY OF FLUID
Gas compressibility:

 Gas compressibility:

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COMPRESSIBILITY OF FLUID
 Gas compressibility:
 With explicit equations relating pressure and density, the bulk modulus for gases can be determined by:

 An isothermal process:

 Isentropic process:

 Note that in both cases the bulk modulus varies directly with pressure. For air under standard atmospheric
conditions with p= 1.0135 bar (abs) and k=1.4, the isentropic bulk modulus is Ev = 1.4203 bar.
 A comparison of this figure with that for water under the same conditions (Ev = 21511.6428 bar) show that air is
approximately 15,000 times as compressible as water. It is clear that in dealing with gases, greater attention will
need to be given to the effect of compressibility on fluid behavior.
 However, as will be discussed further in later sections, gases can often be treated as incompressible fluids if the 22

changes in pressure are small.

COMPRESSIBILITY OF FLUID

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COMPRESSIBILITY OF FLUID

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VISCOSITY
 Viscosity:
 Viscosity is a measure of a fluid's resistance to flow. It describes the internal friction of a moving fluid. A fluid
with large viscosity resists motion because its molecular makeup gives it a lot of internal friction.
 A fluid with low viscosity flows easily because its molecular makeup results in very little friction when it is in
motion.
 We can derive the relation below:
 Where:
 τ is shearing stress
 μ is absolute viscosity, dynamic viscosity, or simply the viscosity of the fluid
 γ dot = du/dy is the rate of shearing strain
 U is the upper plate velocity
 b distance between parallel plates or thickness of the fluid film
 P is the applied force 25

 A is the effective upper plate area (Fig. 1.4 b)

VISCOSITY

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VISCOSITY

 Viscosity classifications:
 Viscosity is classified according to 2 types:
1. Absolute or dynamic viscosity (μ) [mu] – Units SI (N ∙ s/m2 or Pa.s and
poise abbreviated P, which is equivalent to 0.1 Pa.s [or centipoise, which is
one-hundredth of a poise]). The viscosity of water at 20°C is 1 centipoise. In
BG units is given as lb.s/ft2.
2. Kinematic viscosity (ν) [nu] -- Units SI (m2/s and stoke abbreviated St (1
stoke = 1 cm2/s = 0.0001 m2/s,). In BG units is given as ft2/s.
 Relation between μ and ν is: 27
Figure 1.8 shows in more detail how the
viscosity varies from fluid to fluid and
how for a given fluid it varies with
temperature. It is to be noted from this
figure that the viscosity of liquids
decreases with an increase in
temperature, whereas for gases an
increase in temperature causes an
increase in viscosity.

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VISCOSITY

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VISCOSITY

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VISCOSITY

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VISCOSITY

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VISCOSITY

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EXERCISES
1. If the specific weight of a liquid is 8.1 kN/m3, what is its density?
2. A certain gas weighs 16.0 N/m3 at a certain temperature and pressure. What are the values of its density,
specific volume, and specific gravity relative to air weighing 12.0 N/m3?
3. At normal atmospheric conditions, approximately what pressure in MPa must be applied to water to
reduce its volume by 3%? (See 10th1 2.5.4)
4. A rigid cylinder, inside diameter 15 mm, contains a column of water 500 mm long. What will be the
column length be if a force of 2 kN is applied to its end by a frictionless plunger? Assume no leakage.
(See 10th1 2.5.5)
5. A gas at 60oC under a pressure of 10000 mb absolute has a specific weight of 99 N/m3. what is the value
of R for the gas? What was might this be?
6. Calculate the density, specific weight and specific volume of oxygen at 20oC and at absolute pressure 50
kN/m2. if the oxygen is enclosed in a rigid container of constant volume, what will be the pressure if the
temperature is reduce to -100oC? (See 10th1 2.11) 34
EXERCISES

7. A flat plate 200 mm x 750 mm slides on oil (μ = 0.85 N.s/m2) over a large plane surface. What force F is
required to drag the plate at a velocity of 1.2 m/s, if the thickness t of the separating oil film is 0.6 mm?

8. A space 16 mm wide between two large plane surfaces is filled with SAE 30 (μ = 0.18 N.s/m2 lubricating
oil at 35oC). What force is required to drag a very thin plate of 0.4 m2 area between the surfaces at a
speed 0.25 m/s (a) if this plate is equally space between the two surfaces (b) if t = 5 mm?

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EXERCISES
9. A hydraulic lift of the type commonly used
for greasing automobiles consist of a 280 mm
diameter ram which slides in a 280.18 mm
diameter cylinder, the annular space being
filled with oil having a kinematic viscosity of
0.00042 m2/s and specific gravity of 0.86. if
the rate of travel of the ram is 0.22 m/s, find
the frictional resistance when 2 m of the ram
in engaged in the cylinder.
10. A journal bearing consists of an 80 mm shaft
in an 80.4 mm sleeve 120 mm long, the
clearance space (assumed to be uniform)
being filled with SAE 30 lubricating oil at
40oC (μ = 0.11 N.s/m2). Calculate the rate at
which heat is generated at the bearing when
the shaft turns at 150 rpm. Express the
answer in kN.m/s, J/s. (Note: Rate of heat
generation = Frictional torque x angular
velocity)
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EXERCISES

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Q&A 38