Microscopic and Macroscopic scales

Macroscopic scales Microscopic scales

𝑒̂

P0
Statistical
averaging

𝑒̂

𝑒̂
Source: Fluid Mechanics by Fox, McDonald and Pritchard
Microscopic description
Intermolecular Ratio of amplitude Molecular
forces of random thermal arrangement
movement of
molecules to 𝒅𝟎
Solid Strong <<1 Ordered
Liquid Medium Of order unity Partially ordered
Gases Weak >>1 Disordered
𝑑 : mean molecular distance
Source: An introduction to fluid dynamics, by G. K. Batchelor
Continuum description
• Description at macroscopic scales in terms of quantities such as
density, pressure and velocity as continuous functions of space and
time
• Independent of the microscopic structure of materials
• Constitutive equation for behaviour of materials
Mechanics
• Relationship between force and motion
• Kinematic variables describe motion: displacement, velocity,
acceleration…

• Mechanics of rigid bodies (non-deforming)

• Mechanics of deformable bodies (solids and fluids)
Governing equations
• Conservation laws (mass, momentum, energy, angular momentum)
• Constitutive equations (mechanical behaviour of materials)

• Formulation of constitutive relations for different materials

• Solving conservation equations (with the constitutive relation) to
describe the behaviour of materials under the influence of different
forces
Vectors and tensors
• Examples:
• Scalar or a zeroth order tensor: speed of a moving particle
• Vector or a first order tensor (both magnitude and direction): Force or
velocity
• Second order tensor: stress tensor. To specify a surface force at a point in
three dimensions, force components in three directions on three
independent surface orientations are needed. Thus, there are 9 components
in a second order stress tensor.
Representation in index notation
• Velocity vector as or or 𝒊
• Repeated indices denote summation
• A second order tensor has two free indices, for example,
and components
• A second order tensor is also expressed as linear combination of dyadic
products, 𝒊 𝒋
• Index notation helps in writing equations or deriving identities concisely
• Special functions:
• Kronecker delta function: 𝛿 = 0 𝑖𝑓 𝑖 ≠ 𝑗 and 1 (𝑖𝑓 𝑖 = 𝑗)
• Alternating symbol: 𝜖 = 1 𝑖𝑓 𝑖𝑗𝑘 𝑎𝑟𝑒 𝑐𝑦𝑐𝑙𝑖𝑐 , −1 𝑖𝑓 𝑖𝑗𝑘 𝑎𝑟𝑒 𝑎𝑛𝑡𝑖𝑐𝑦𝑐𝑙𝑖𝑐 and
0 (𝑖𝑓 𝑡ℎ𝑒𝑟𝑒 𝑖𝑠 𝑎 𝑟𝑒𝑝𝑒𝑎𝑡𝑒𝑑 𝑖𝑛𝑑𝑒𝑥)
Representation in index notation
• Vector magnitude squared as or
• .
• Gradient of a scalar function as or

• Curl of a vector is or

• Divergence of a vector is or
Coordinate transformation
• Coordinate system is
𝑒̂
obtained by rotating
about the axis by an angle θ
P

𝑒̂ ′ • The projections of the position

vector OP along and axes
𝑒̂ ′ 𝑒̂ are the same
O

θ • The projections of the position

vector OP along and
𝑒̂ 𝑒̂ ′
axes are different
Transformation of vectors
• Suppose the new coordinate system, , is obtained by
rotation
• M is a proper orthogonal matrix
•
• If a vector has components and in the two coordinate systems
• or
• or 𝑻