FLUID MECHANICS LABORATORY

(SKPU 1711)
This introductory section is intended for you, the student, to use as a
guide and reference for fluid mechanics laboratory. It is important that
you read the practices and procedures as outlined in this introduction. The
labs are intended to provide you with the ability to
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Conduct laboratory works according to the stipulated

procedures, rules and safety requirements of the laboratory.
Critically analyze experimental data and relevant theories
involved.
Communicate and commit effectively as an individual, member
or leader in a team during data collection and laboratory report
preparation.

Laboratory Policy
Six experiments will be performed over the course of the semester.
Students are divided into several groups consisting of three students per
group. You are not allowed to change group members or section without
prior approval from a laboratory supervisor. Attendance and punctuality
are very important as poor attendance and tardiness will negatively
impact your final laboratory grade. Your lab partners should not have to
do your work for you.
Unexcused absences from your scheduled
laboratory time will result in a failing grade on your lab report for that
experiment.
Safety Precautions
Safety is the most important aspect of this laboratory. You can cause an
injury to yourself or to someone else by being careless. Ask the laboratory
instructor if you need any assistance. You are expected to work in the
laboratory for the full scheduled time. The followings are some
precautionary measures worthy taking notes while carrying out
experiments

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Determine the potential physical and chemical hazards as well as the

safety precautions that apply to your apparatus before beginning.
No laboratory work should be carried out in the absence of the
instructor.
Do not perform unauthorized experiments by yourself.
Be alert to unsafe conditions and actions and call them to the
attention of the instructor immediately.
Never leave an experiment that is in progress unattended.
Avoid distracting or startling any other worker or indulging in any
other acts of carelessness.
No eating, drinking, smoking, or chewing of gum is permitted in the
work area. Contamination of food, drink, and smoking materials is a
potential for exposure to toxic substances.
Never wear sandals, shorts, or short skirts in the lab.
Confine long hair and loose clothing when in the laboratory.
Do not make any repairs or alterations to the equipment without prior
notification of instructor.
Report all damages to instructor ASAP.
Follow classroom instructions and manufacturers recommended
procedures when operating machinery.
No playing or horsing around in the lab, this can be especially
dangerous where you have moving equipment.
Leave equipment in proper places at the end of your experiments and
clean up.
In case of a fire, chemical, or other emergency, alert the instructor
and all students in the laboratory.
If in doubt ASK.

Regulations: Cheating and plagiarism will not be tolerated. These terms

are described in the University Academic Regulations booklet. I expect
you not to cheat or to help others cheat. Copying or Cheating may
result in an E grade.

Laboratory Report Format

Each group must submit a lab report for each experiment performed. The
following format is recommended and should be adhered to closely unless
your instructor decides otherwise. Write legibly or (even better) type, and
use proper grammar. Points may be taken off for misspelled words and
incorrect grammar
1.
2.

Cover Sheet (3 points): Title of experiment, your name, date that

experiment was performed, partner's names.
Report Summary (10 points). Write a concise statement of the
principle result that is described in this report. This should answer the
following questions: What is the objective significant?, What type of

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experiment is performed to achieve the objective?, What are the

major results of the experiment? and what conclusions can be made
from these results?
Theory (12 points) : Summarize the basic fluid mechanics of your
experiment. Include equations and other principle things the reader
would need to know in order to understand the experiment.
Experimental procedure (12 points): This section gives details of
how you performed the experiment and what specific conditions
(temperature, pressure, equipment, etc.) you used. Describe briefly
how you carried out the experiment. You should include descriptions
of how you determine things that are necessary to the anticipated
results. This should be very short as well. Do not merely paraphrase
the lab handout, but give enough information that another person
could repeat your experiment if desired. You may need to recreate a
wiring diagram or draw the apparatus in order to refer to it later
during discussion.
Raw data and analysis (20 points)
- Present the raw data you took here. It is important to note that
data are the exact measurements that you took. Data
analysis should be easy to follow, in tabular form. Poor
recording skills lead to poor write-ups. If your raw data
subsequent analysis are illegible, the grade will suffer.
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raw
and
data
and

Graphs: Include title, labeled axes, smooth lines through

experimental data points, and slope calculations. Each graph
should convey a complete message and be fully understandable
without referring to any other section in the report. When
calculating a slope of a line on a graph, make sure to choose grid
points that are at the front and end of the line respectively in order
to have a large difference in x and y values. Draw a triangle or
otherwise connect the two points. Label x and y, and calculate
the slope right there on the graph. Scales should be chosen so that
the plot should take up the whole page, so that plotting accuracy
is increased.

- If you use a spreadsheet program (e.g. Excel) to plot your data and
fit a line, be sure to set scales so that the data takes up the whole
page (as above) and that the equation for the fitting line is
displayed on the graph as well as the line itself.
6.

Results & Discussion (25 points)

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Results: This is a very important section of the lab! It is here that it

becomes clear whether your data agree with the accepted value(s)
or are self-consistent. Calculate final experimental results, standard
or accepted values, if they exist, and percent errors and/or percent
differences

Discuss how your results demonstrate basic principles of fluid

mechanics. Most importantly, conclude whether your data agree
with the accepted value(s) or are self-consistent. Give possible
reasons for errors, personal observations, suggestions, and any

other comments you feel are pertinent. (Hint: In discussing errors,

think carefully about the limits of the measuring apparatus.)
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Answers to questions: Answer all the assigned questions with

complete sentences.

Conclusion (10 points). A one to two paragraph summary of your

results prevents the report from ending abruptly. The conclusion is
not the abstract, although the two both summarize important
features. The conclusion, however, can be more "judgmental" and
contain things like how a better calibration of the system could have
affected things.
References (5 points). These should appear in the text above and
should be in proper form and complete enough for an interested
party to find them in the library without too much trouble.
Appendices(3 points).Oneormoreappendicescanbeadded.Alsointhissectioncan
berawdatathatyoudonotneedtoplaceinthereporttext,samplecalculations
(particularlyfortheerrorweneedtoseehowyoucameupwithyourerrors,but
nobodyeverwouldaskforsamplecalculationsinascientificarticle)andother
backgroundinformation(ifyouwroteacomputerprogram,thecodecouldgohere).

Grading policy
This is comprised of satisfactory attendance, participation, and submitted
reports. The experiments and lab reports will be group exercises. Each
report will be graded on a 100 point scale and will be due not later one
week after the experiment is performed. You are strongly advised to
keep a copy of each laboratory report for future reference (e.g. revision
materials for final quiz). Late reports will be penalized 10 points per day
without exception. Even if a report will receive zero points, it must be
completed in a satisfactory fashion in order to pass the laboratory portion
of the course.
You will also be expected to complete a peer evaluation form at the end of
the course. These forms are for your benefit, if you feel that a group
member is not pulling their own weight, or is having a negative impact on
teamwork or your final product, this is your chance to speak up. I ask that
you take these forms very seriously, because I will. Please use them in an
appropriate manner to help aid your productivity.
There will also be a final quiz at the end of the course. The quiz will assess
your general understanding of each experiment that you have conducted
in terms of basic knowledge of fluid mechanics involved, proficiency in
conducting experiments, analysing and interpreting data and as well as
preparing reports.
Grade Determination: Your final grade will be determined by proportionally
weighting performance in the following areas;

Laboratory reports
Peer Assessment
Presentation

:
:
:

85 %
5%
10 %

TOTAL

100%

Prepared by
Mohd Fauzi Hamid (Supervisor)
Associate Professor Issham Ismail (Supervisor)
Jusni Ali (Supervisor)
Mahmood Rasidon (Technician)
Fluid Mechanics Laboratory (SKPU 1711)
Semester 02 / Session 2011/2012