Physical properties of fluids

By
Vincent Msadala
University of Malawi, The Polytechnic, Faculty of Engineering,
Department of Civil Engineering .
 The need for Fluid Mechanics
• Fluid mechanics is a subject that studies the
behaviour of fluids at rest (Fluid Statics) and in
motion (Fluid Dynamics)
• Fluid Mechanics is the major theoretical
background to civil engineering hydraulics
problems/issues/applications
• The provision of adequate water services such as
the supply of potable water networks, drainage
systems, sewerage systems requires extensive
knowledge of fluid mechanics and hydraulics
• Fluid mechanics is involved in nearly all areas of
Civil and Environmental Engineering either directly
or indirectly.
 The need for Fluid Mechanics
• Some examples of direct involvement are those
where we are concerned with manipulating the
fluid:
– Sea and river (flood) defences; flood control
– Canals, drainage/irrigation canals
– Water distribution / sewerage (sanitation) networks;
– Hydraulic design of water/sewage treatment works;
– Dams and reservoirs;
– Pumps and turbines;
– Water retaining structures.
The need for Fluid Mechanics
• Some examples where the primary object is
construction - yet analysis of the fluid mechanics is
essential:-
– Flow of air in / around buildings;
– Bridge piers in rivers;
– Ground-water flow

• The knowledge of Fluid Mechanics is needed for

making sound engineering analysis and judgment
with respect to (mostly) water as a fluid
• This course, although introducing general fluid
flow ideas and principles, will demonstrate many
of these principles through examples where the
fluid is water.
 System of units
• Many different ways are used to express
various quantities;

• For consistency, we will use the SI (metric)

system;
 The SI system of units
• Consists of six primary units, from which
all quantities may be described;
• Secondary units are used in general
practice which are made from
combinations of these primary units;
• The primary units: - In Fluid Mechanics
only the top four

-Notice introduction of
dimensions
 Derived (secondary
units)

Obtained from a
combination of
primary units
Fluid mechanics vs Solid mechanics
• The molecules of a solid are more closely
packed as compared to that of fluid.
Attractive forces between the molecules of a
solid are much larger than those of a fluid.

• A solid body undergoes either a definite

deformation or breaks completely when
shear stress is applied on it. The amount of
deformation is proportional to the magnitude
of applied stress up to some limiting
condition. In case of fluid, there would be
continuous deformation as long as the shear
stress is applied.
Fluid mechanics vs Solid mechanics
• Solids can resist tangential stress under static
conditions, whereas fluids can resist
tangential stress under dynamic condition.

• Further, when the tangential stress

disappears, solids regain either fully or partly
their original shape whereas a fluid can never
regain its original shape.
 Fluid mechanics vs Solid
mechanics
• In the analysis of fluids we often take small
volumes (elements) and examine the
forces on these.

• Take the rectangular element below; what

forces cause it to deform?
 Fluid mechanics vs Solid
mechanics
• Forces acting along edges (faces), such as
F, are know as shearing forces.
• From this we arrive at the definition:
A fluid is a substance that deforms continuously when
subjected to a tangential or shear stress, however small the
shear stress may be.

• This has the following implications for

fluids at rest:
If a fluid is at rest there are NO shearing forces acting on it, and
any force must be acting perpendicular to the fluid.
 Liquids vs. Gases
• A liquid is difficult to compress and often
regarded as being incompressible whereas a
gas is easy to compress and usually treated as
such - it changes volume with pressure.

• A given mass of liquid occupies a given

volume and will form a free surface whereas
a gas has no fixed volume, it changes volume
to expand to fill the containing vessel. No free
surface is formed.
 Properties of Fluids - Density
• There are 3 ways of expressing density:
• 1. Mass density:
ρ = mass of fluid per unit volume i.e. M/V

ρ=

• Units: kg/m3; Dimensions: ML-3

• Typical values:
– Water = 1000kg/m3; Mercury = 13546kg/m3
– Air = 1.23kg/m3; Paraffin Oil = 800kg/m3
• .
 Properties of Fluids - Density
2. Specific weight (Specific gravity):
γ = weight of a fluid per unit volume
γ = mg/v = ρg; where g is the gravitational
acceleration

Units: N/m3 (or kg/m2/s2); Dimensions: ML-2T-2

Typical values:
Water = 9814 N/m3; Mercury = 132943 N/m3
Air = 12.07 N/m3; Paraffin Oil = 7851 N/m3
 Properties of Fluids - Density
3. Relative density:
Ratio of density of a liquid at actual conditions to the density of pure
water at 4 °C under atmospheric pressure.
σ = ratio of mass density to standard mass density

– Units: none, as it is a ratio; Dimensions: 1.

– Typical values:
Water = 1, Mercury = 13.5, Paraffin Oil =0.8.
 Properties of Fluids – Specific
Volume
• Specific volume of a fluid is the volume
occupied by unit mass of fluid.

• Thus, specific volume is the reciprocal of

mass density and has the unit of m3/kg.

• It is commonly applied to gases.

 Properties of Fluids –
Compressibility
• The measure of fluid’s change in volume
under the action of external force, namely,
the normal compressive force;
• The degree of compressibility of a
substance is characterized by the bulk
modulus of elasticity (K).
• K = Δ P/Δv/V = Δ P/Δρ/ρ where Δv, ΔP
and Δρ are the changes in volume ,
pressure and density respectively . V and ρ
are the initial volume and density
respectively.
 Properties of Fluids –
Compressibility
• Values of K in liquids are very high as
compared to those of gases.

• Therefore liquids are usually termed as

incompressible fluids.

• K in water is 20,000 x 102 kN/m2 and K for

air is 101 kN/m2. It indicates that air is
about 20,000 times more compressible
than water.
Properties of Fluids - Viscosity
• Property of a fluid which offers resistance
to the movement of one layer of fluid over
another adjacent layer of fluid. When two
layers of a fluid, a distance apart move
over one other at different velocities, the
viscosity together with relative velocity
causes a shear stress acting between the
fluid layers.

• Resistance of a fluid to shear deformation;

the more viscous the fluid, the thicker it is
Properties of Fluids - Viscosity
• In a flow of fluid, when the fluid elements
move with different velocities, each
element will feel some resistance due to
fluid friction within the elements.
Therefore, shear stress can be identified
between the fluid elements with different
velocities.
 Properties of Fluids - Viscosity
• Figure shows two adjacent layers of fluid
at a distance y measured from a reference
axis. Let F be the frictional force developed
between the layers.If F acts over an area of contact A, then
the shear stress is defined as τ = F/A. τ is
proportional to the quantity Δu/Δy, where
Δy is the distance of separation of the two
layers and Δu is the difference in their
velocity. du/dy is the velocity gradient at
a point in a direction perpendicular to the
direction of the motion of the layer.
 Properties of Fluids - Viscosity
2 ways of expressing viscosity: Dynamic and Kinematic viscosity
1. Dynamic Viscosity :
• The top layer causes a shear stress on the adjacent layer while the
lower layer causes a shear stress on the top layer. This shear stress is
proportional to the rate of change of velocity. It is denoted by the
symbol τ.

– Where (μ) is the constant of proportionality and is known as the

coefficient of dynamic viscosity or only viscosity, and du/dy
represents the rate of shear strain or rate of shear deformation
or velocity gradient.
 Properties of Fluids - Viscosity

μ = the shear stress, τ, required to drag one layer of

fluid with unit velocity past another layer a unit distance
away.

Viscosity is also defined as the shear stress required to

produce unit rate of shear strain.
 Properties of Fluids - Viscosity
Units: N s/m2 or kg/m s (kg m-1 s-1)

Dimensions: ML-1T-1

Typical values:
Water =1.14 x 10-3 Ns/m2, Air =1.78 x 10-5 Ns/m2,
Mercury =1.552 Ns/m2, Paraffin Oil =1.9 Ns/m2.
 Properties of Fluids - Viscosity
2. Kinematic Viscosity :
• The ratio between the dynamic viscosity and density of fluid. It is
denoted by the Greek symbol (ν) called nu. Thus

• Units: m2/s
• Dimension: L2T-1
• Typical values:
Water =1.14 x10-6 m2/s, , Air =1.46 x10-5 m2/s
Mercury =1.145 x10-4 m2/s, Paraffin Oil =2.375 x10-3 m2/s
 Newton’s Law of Viscosity
• It states that the shear stress (τ) on a fluid element layer is directly
proportional to the rate of change of shear strain (du/dy).

• The constant of proportionality, (μ) is called the co-efficient of

viscosity or absolute viscosity or dynamic viscosity or simply
viscosity
• Fluids which obey the above relation are known as Newtonian
fluids and the fluids which do not obey the above relation are
called Non-Newtonian fluids.
 Viscosity’s variation with
temperature

viscosity

• Liquids: viscosity decreases as temperature increases

• Gases: viscosity increases as temperature increases
Fluid types based on Viscosity
1. Ideal fluid:
• A fluid which is incompressible, with no
friction and is having no viscosity.
• Ideal fluid is only an imaginary fluid as all
fluids which exist have some viscosity.
• Also referred to as an inviscid (zero
viscosity) fluid;
• Internal forces at any section within are
normal (pressure forces);
Fluid types based on Viscosity
2. Real Fluids:
• A fluid which possesses viscosity is known
as real fluid.
• Tangential or shearing forces always
develop where there is motion relative to
solid body;
• Thus, fluid friction is created;
• Shear forces oppose motion of one
particle past another;
• Friction forces gives rise to a fluid
Fluid types based on Viscosity
3. Newtonian Fluids:
• A real fluid in which the shear stress is
directly proportional to rate of shear
strain (or velocity gradient).

• They obey Newton’s law of viscosity;

Fluid types based on Viscosity
4. Non-Newtonian Fluid:
• A fluid in which the shear stress is not
proportional to the rate of shear strain.
• They do not obey Newton’s law of
viscosity;

5. Ideal Plastic Fluid:

• A fluid in which shear stress is more than
the yield value and shear stress is
proportional to the rate of shear strain (or
 Properties of Fluids – Surface
Tension
• Molecular attraction forces in liquids:
– Cohesion: enables liquid to resist tensile stress
– Adhesion: enables liquid to adhere to another
body
• Liquid-fluid interfaces:
– Liquid-gas interface: free surface
– Liquid-liquid (immiscible) interface
• At these interfaces, out-of-balance
attraction forces form imaginary surface
film that exerts a tension force in the
 Properties of Fluids – Surface
Tension
• Surface tension of various liquids
– Cover a wide range
– Decrease slightly with increasing temperature

Surface tension is responsible

for the curved shapes of
liquid drops and liquid sheets
as in this example
Properties of Fluids – Surface
Tension
 Surface Tension - Capillarity
• Property of exerting forces on fluids by
fine tubes and porous media, due to both
cohesion and adhesion
• Cohesion < adhesion, liquid wets solid,
rises at point of contact e.g. water
• Cohesion > adhesion, liquid surface
depresses at point of contact e.g. mercury
• Meniscus: curved liquid surface that
develops in a tube
Surface Tension – Capillary rise

Equilibrium of surface tension force and

gravitational pull on the water cylinder of
height h produces:
Surface Tension - Applications
• Its effects are negligible in most
engineering situations.
• Important in problems involving capillary
rise, e.g., soil water zone, water supply to
plants
• When small tubes are used for measuring
properties, e.g., pressure, account must be
made for capillarity
• Surface tension important in:
– Small models in hydraulic model studies;