Viscosity

Viscosity is an important fluid property when analyzing liquid behavior and

fluid motion near solid boundaries. The viscosity of a fluid is a measure of its
resistance to gradual deformation by shear stress or tensile stress. The shear
resistance in a fluid is caused by inter-molecular friction exerted when layers
of fluid attempt to slide by one another.

Viscosity is the measure of a fluid's resistance to flow

There are two related measures of fluid viscosity

 dynamic (or absolute)

 kinematic

Dynamic (absolute) Viscosity

Absolute viscosity - coefficient of absolute viscosity - is a measure of internal
resistance. Dynamic (absolute) viscosity is the tangential force per unit area
required to move one horizontal plane with respect to another plane - at an
unit velocity - when maintaining an unit distance apart in the fluid.

In the SI system the dynamic viscosity units are N s/m2, Pa s or kg/(m s) -

where

 1 Pa s = 1 N s/m2 = 1 kg/(m s)
Dynamic viscosity may also be expressed in the metric CGS (centimeter-
gram-second) system as g/(cm s), dyne s/cm2 or poise (p) where

 1 poise = 1 dyne s/cm2 = 1 g/(cm s) = 1/10 Pa s = 1/10 N s/m2

For practical use the Poise is normally too large and the unit is therefore often
divided by 100 - into the smaller unit centipoise (cP) - where

 1 P = 100 cP
 1 cP = 0.01 poise = 0.01 gram per cm second = 0.001 Pascal second =
1 milliPascal second = 0.001 N s/m2
Water at 20.2oC (68.4oF) has the absolute viscosity of one - 1 - centipoise.
Kinematic Viscosity
Kinematic viscosity is the ratio of - absolute (or dynamic) viscosity to density -
a quantity in which no force is involved. Kinematic viscosity can be obtained
by dividing the absolute viscosity of a fluid with the fluid mass density like

In the SI-system the theoretical unit of kinematic viscosity is m2/s - or the

commonly used Stoke (St) where

 1 St (Stokes) = 10-4 m2/s = 1 cm2/s

Stoke comes from the CGS (Centimetre Gram Second) unit system.

Since the Stoke is a large unit it is often divided by 100 into the smaller
unit centiStoke (cSt) - where

 1 St = 100 cSt
 1 cSt (centiStoke) = 10-6 m2/s = 1 mm2/s
 1 m2/s = 106 centiStokes
The specific gravity for water at 20.2oC (68.4oF) is almost one, and the
kinematic viscosity for water at 20.2oC (68.4oF) is for practical
purpose 1.0 mm2/s (cStokes). A more exact kinematic viscosity for
water at 20.2oC (68.4oF) is 1.0038 mm2/s (cSt).