Fluid Mechanics

8. Boundary Layers

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 Boundary Layers

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 Large Re flows

Neglect of viscosity.
Irrotational flows
Potential flows

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 Flow Past a Cylinder

1
p  po  Vo2 [1  4 sin 2  ]
2

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 No pressure drag

• If there is drag at all, it is because of viscous

forces.
But viscous forces are small compared to total forces.

Drag ≈ shear stress × area = (μV/L)L2 = μVL

CD = drag/(ρV2L2) ≈ ρVL/μ = 1/Re

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 Drag Coefficient

400

100

At large Re, CD is of order 1!

10

CD

Something wrong
0.1
10-1 100 101 102 103 104 105 106
Vijay Gupta, Sharda University ReD
 D’Almbert Paradox

D'Alembert proved that –

for incompressible and inviscid potential flow –
the drag force is zero on a body moving with
constant velocity relative to the fluid.

Zero drag is in direct contradiction to the

observation of substantial drag on bodies moving
relative to fluids, such as air and water; especially at
high velocities corresponding with high Reynolds
numbers.
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 The real paradox

Not that there is drag, but that 𝐶𝐷 is of order 1!

Something seriously wrong in our theory!

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 Real story

Inviscid velocity profile on circular cylinder = 2𝑉𝑜 sin 𝜃

𝑉𝑜
𝜃

Actual velocity on the surface is zero everywhere:

Vijay Gupta, Sharda University NO SLIP CONDITION
 Concept of Boundary Layer

Hot
Convection Diffusion

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 Concept of Boundary Layer

•Boundary layer is very thin

•Flow outside BL can be taken as non-viscous
•Pressure across BL can be taken as
unchanging

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 Actual flows

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 Prandtl 1903

Flow can not be taken as inviscid everywhere

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 Two length scales!

𝛿
1. L, D, c, etc.

2. Thickness of boundary layer 𝛿

Total force within BL ~ mass×acc. ~𝜌𝐿2 𝛿 𝑉𝑜 𝑉𝑜 /𝐿
Viscous forces within BL~ stress×area

The two forces should be of the same order

This gives
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 Estimate the drag

Shear stress on wall = μdV/dy ~ μVo/δ

Drag force ~ (μVo/δ)L.1

Drag coefficient ~ drag/ρVo2L ~

This is consistent with the approximation we are

dealing with for streamlined bodies.

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 Prandtl boundary layer theory

Prandtl in 1903 suggested a theory by which you

could actually compute them

On a flat plate,

Viscous stresses are still small. We now only

know how to estimate them.
So what is the big deal!
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 Big deal is here!

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 So what is happening!

Boundary layer separation

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 Incomplete pressure recovery

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 Two kinds of separation

Laminar Boundary Layer: Cylinder diameter: 10 cm;

Flow velocity: Water: 1 m/s; Air: 10 m/s

Turbulent Boundary Layer: Cylinder diameter: 10 cm;

Flow velocity: Water: 5 m/s; Air: 50 m/s
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 Boundary layer separation

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 Incomplete recovery of pressure

Pressure drag

Clearly drag forces are DUE TO pressure forces and

so the drag coefficient should be of order 1
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