6 Unsteady Viscous Incompressible Flow Most of the steady solutions of the Navier-Stokes equations of incompressible fluids examined so far can be extended to unsteady conditions. A number of other unsteady solutions of the Navier-Stokes equations can also be emphasized. 6.1. Parallel Unsteady Flow Let us now extend assumption (4.4) to the unsteady case usu(xyt), v0, w=0. The fact that u must not depend on x is a further consequence of the continuity equation. Assumptions (6.1) imply that pathlines and streamlines are coinciding and are straight lines parallel to Ox. (6.1) 6.1.1. General Remarks Let us introduce (6.1) into the generalized Helmholtz equation (3.60). The resulting vector equation has the following components on Oy and Oz: Bau (au ae =0, (6.2) dz| or ay? az? a}au (aru, au Ofau_ fou, aul, (6.2) 33 (2-2) ‘The first equation shows that the parenthesis does not depend on z, while the second equation shows that the same parenthesis does not depend on y either. It follows that au (au a°u on | Se Oe ee), 6.3) or Ss + *) F(t) (178 6. Unsteady Viscous Incompressible Flow Then, according to the Navier-Stokes equations (2.107), pressure p or function P = p + pgz (4.3) is also independent on y and z, being at most a function of x FOO +R. (6.4) Case F # 0 corresponds, for example, to a flow produced by a variation in time of the pressure gradient; the solid surfaces are usually at rest. Notice that if no gravity force acts on Ox and if the fluid domain is unlimited in this direction, then F = 0. Indeed, pressure would increase indefinitely at large distances x otherwise. Case F = 0 corresponds, for example, to Couette flow produced by unsteady motion of solid boundaries. The motion of the solid surfaces may be impulsive (e.g., impulsive start of a surface from rest) or may be prescribed, the fluid being initially at rest or having some prescribed motion at t = 0. The nonhomogeneous equation (6.3) is linear, and therefore its solution may be found by adding a particular solution to the general solution of the homogeneous equation deriving from (6.3) Another approach is to transform equation (6.3) into a homogeneous one through the substitution Lap ee (Fie oleae 6.5 w'=us f Fond wer (6.5) Indeed, equation (6.3) becomes , 20 2, Out aa | (66) or ay? “e One may then look for the solution of the homogeneous equation 2. au om Slo, (a) or ay? az? with initial and boundary conditions t=0, u=uly,z), u=Uj,gj(t) on C, (6.8) where C; are the solid boundaries and g(¢) is an imposed time dependence. Usually GC; represent two solid surfaces or one solid surface and the point at infinity (unlimited fluid), Through superposition of effects, one can interpret the general conditions (6.8) as the sum of two sets of conditions, i.e., a first problem with conditions t=0, wm =up(y.2), 4 =0 on C,G, (6.9) and a second problem with conditions 1=0, ty =0, m =Vg(t) on G, m=00n GC. (6.10) Finally, if 13 is a solution of (6.7) with conditions