CLASSIFICATION OF FLUID FLOW

UNIT -2
Presented by ,
D.Dinesh , AP/Mech
 Steady flow and Unsteadyflow

A
B
C
D

Stationary viewer

If at time ‘t’ and ‘ t+delt’

Va=Vb=Vc=Vd flow is steady
flow

A
B
C
D
Stationary viewer
• A steady flow is one in which the conditions
(velocity, pressure and cross-section) may
differ from point to point but DO NOT change
with time.
• If at any point in the fluid, the conditions
change with time, the flow is described as
unsteady.
 Uniform flow and non-uniform flow

A
B
C
D

If at distance
‘x+delx’ Stationary viewer

Va=Vb=Vc=Vd flow
is Uniform flow

A
B
C
D
Stationary viewer
• If the flow velocity is the same magnitude and
direction at every point in the fluid it is
said to be uniform
• If at a given instant, the velocity is not the
same at every point the flow is non-uniform.
 Examples to understand clear

• Flow occurs in a nozzle

• Steady flow because the velocity at section 1 and section 2 are

different but they are not changing with respect to time.
 Flow occurs in a constant pipe
diameter of constant velocity

• Steady Uniform flow

 Flow of water in a river

the conditions at one point will vary from those at another point
(e.g. different velocity) we have non-uniform flow. If the
conditions at one point vary as time passes then we have
unsteady flow
 A water supply pipeline changes its
alignment through bend, the flow in bend

• Unsteady non- Uniform flow

 Pathline
• A line traced by a given particle as it flows from one
point to another.
• The direction of pathline of any fluid flowing particle
can be determined by its streamline.
 Streamline
• Streamline is an
imaginary line
tangential to the
direction of velocity
of the fluid flow
particles.
• Streamlines gives the
direction of flowing
fluid particles at a
given point and time.
 Streak line
• Streakline is the imaginary line which gives the
position of fluid particles flowing through
specific location or point at any time.
Laminar flow and Turbulent flow
 Laminar flow
• The fluid flow in which the adjacent layers of the fluid do
not mix with each other and moves parallel to each other,
is called laminar flow.
• In the laminar flow, the fluid layer moves in straight line.
• The laminar flow always occurs when the fluid flow with
low velocity and in small diameter pipes.
• The fluid flow having Reynolds number less than 2000 is
called laminar flow where viscous force are dominant.
• The fluid flow is very orderly i.e. there is no mixing of
adjacent layers of the fluid and they move parallel to each
other and also with the walls of the pipe.
• Shear stress in laminar flow depends only on the viscosity
of the fluid and independent of the density.
 Turbulent flow
• The fluid flow in which the adjacent layers of the fluid cross
each other and do not move parallel to each other, is called
turbulent flow.
• In turbulent flow the fluid layers do not moves in straight
line. They move randomly in zigzag manner.
• The turbulent flow occurs when the velocity of the fluid is
high and it flows through larger diameter pipes.
• The fluid flow having Reynolds number greater than 4000 is
called turbulent flow.
• The fluid does not flow in definite order. There is a mixing
of different layers and they do not move parallel to each
other but crosses each other.
• The shear stress in turbulent flow depends upon its density.
Examples to understand clear
 One ,two, and three dimensional
flow
• Fluid flow is three-dimensional in nature.
This means that the flow parameters like velocity,
pressure and so on vary in all the three coordinate
directions.
• Sometimes simplification is made in the analysis of
different fluid flow problems by:
• Selecting the appropriate coordinate directions so
that appreciable variation of the hydro dynamic
parameters take place in only two directions or even
in only one
 One dimensional flow
Fluid flows mainly in one
direction, and other two directions flow is negligible.
Two dimensional flow
 Three dimensional flow
• Fluid flow's motion factors are functions of
three space coordinates.
Viscous versus Inviscid Regions of Flow

Viscous flows: Flows in which the frictional effects are significant.

Inviscid flow regions: In many flows of practical interest, there are regions
(typically regions not close to solid surfaces) where viscous forces are
negligibly small compared to inertial or pressure forces.

The flow of an originally

uniform fluid stream
over a flat plate, and
the regions of viscous
flow (next to the plate
on both sides) and
inviscid flow (away from
the plate).
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Compressible and Incompressible Flow
Incompressible flow: If the density
of flowing fluid remains nearly
constant throughout (e.g., liquid
flow).
Compressible flow: If the density of
fluid changes during flow (e.g.,
high-speed gas flow)
When analyzing rockets, spacecraft,
and other systems that involve high-
speed gas flows, the flow speed is
often expressed by Mach number

Schlieren image of the spherical shock

wave produced by a bursting ballon
Ma = 1 Sonic flow at the Penn State Gas Dynamics Lab.
Ma < 1 Subsonic flow Several secondary shocks are seen in
Ma > 1 Supersonic flow the air surrounding the ballon.
Ma >> 1 Hypersonic flow
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When Mach number <0.3 the maximum density variation is less than 5% ,so
gas flow can be treated as incompressible flow.
Internal versus External Flow
External flow: The flow of an unbounded fluid over a surface such
as a plate, a wire, or a pipe.
Internal flow: The flow in a pipe or duct if the fluid is completely
bounded by solid surfaces.

• Water flow in a pipe is

internal flow, and
airflow over a ball is
external flow .
• The flow of liquids in a
duct is called open-
channel flow if the duct
is only partially filled
with the liquid and
there is a free surface.
External flow over a tennis ball, and the
turbulent wake region behind.
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Natural (or Unforced)
versus Forced Flow

Forced flow: A fluid is forced to

flow over a surface or in a pipe
by external means such as a
pump or a fan.
Natural flow: Fluid motion is
due to natural means such as
the buoyancy effect, which
manifests itself as the rise of
warmer (and thus lighter) fluid
and the fall of cooler (and thus
denser) fluid.

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 Rotational and irrotational flow
• Rotational flow: In which the fluid particles
while flowing along steramline,also rotate
about their own axis.
• Irrotational flow: In which the fluid particles
while flowing along steramline,does not rotate
about their own axis.