Republic of the Philippines

CAMARINES NORTE STATE COLLEGE

F. Pimentel Avenue, Brgy. 2, Daet, Camarines Norte – 4600, Philippines

COLLEGE OF ENGINEERING

Fluid Mechanics is defined as the science that deals with the behavior of fluids at rest (fluid statics) or
in motion (fluid dynamics), and the interaction of fluids with solids or other fluids at the boundaries.

A. Fluids
A substance in the liquid or gas phase is referred to as a fluid. Distinction between a solid and a fluid
is made on the basis of the substance’s ability to resist an applied shear (or tangential) stress that tends to
change its shape. A solid can resist an applied shear stress by deforming, whereas a fluid deforms
continuously under the influence of a shear stress, no matter how small. In solids, stress is proportional to
strain, but in fluids, stress is proportional to strain rate. When a constant shear force is applied, a solid
eventually stops deforming at some fixed strain angle, whereas a fluid never stops deforming and
approaches a constant rate of strain.

A.1 Fundamental Properties of Fluids

Although there are many fluid properties, there are only a few that are needed often. These properties
are organized into three groups.

1. Weight and Mass Properties

Three properties (𝜌, 𝛾, SG) are used to characterize weight or mass. In general, you can find one of
these properties and then calculate either of the other two using the following equations:

Unit Weight or Specific Weight 𝜸: Defined as the product of the material’s density and the standard gravity,
𝜸 = 𝝆g (N/m3)

Note: The unit weight of water at 4°C is 9.81 kN/m3 while at 20°C is 9.79 kN/m3.

Specific Weight of Air and Gases 𝜸𝒂𝒊𝒓 𝒐𝒓 𝒈𝒂𝒔

𝜸 = 𝑷/𝑹𝑻

Where:
P = absolute pressure
T = absolute temp. in Kelvin or Rankine
= C° + 273° in Kelvin
= F° + 460° in Rankine
R = gas constant

Mass of Air and Gases 𝒎𝒂𝒊𝒓 𝒐𝒓 𝒈𝒂𝒔

𝒎 = 𝝆𝑽
Where:
V = volume of gas in a container
𝜌 = density of gas or air

Mass Density 𝝆: A quantitative expression of the amount of mass contained per unit volume,
𝒎
𝝆= (kg/m3 or slugs/ft3)
𝑽

Note: The mass density of water at 4°C is 1000 kg/m3 while at 20°C is 988 kg/m3.

The density of a substance, in general, depends on temperature and pressure. The density of most
gases is proportional to pressure and inversely proportional to temperature. Liquids and solids, on the other
hand, are essentially incompressible substances, and the variation of their density with pressure is usually
negligible.

CE 3a – Mechanics of Fluids Page 1 of 4

 Republic of the Philippines
CAMARINES NORTE STATE COLLEGE
F. Pimentel Avenue, Brgy. 2, Daet, Camarines Norte – 4600, Philippines

COLLEGE OF ENGINEERING

Specific Gravity 𝑺𝑮: Also called as relative density, the ratio of the density of a substance to the density of
some standard substance at a specified temperature (usually water at 4°C, for which 𝜌H2O = 1000 kg/m3).
That is,
𝝆 𝜸
𝑺𝑮 = =
𝝆𝑯𝟐 𝑶 𝜸𝑯𝟐 𝑶

2. Properties for Characterizing Viscosity

To characterize friction-like effect in flowing fluids, engineers use viscosity.

Viscosity 𝝁: The property of a fluid which determines the amount of its resistance to a shearing stress. The
viscosity of liquids decreases with increasing temperature, whereas the viscosity of gases increases with
increasing temperature.

Kinematic Viscosity 𝝂: The ration of the dynamic viscosity of a fluid to its mass density.
𝝁
𝝂=
𝝆
3. Miscellaneous Properties
The last properties (𝜈, 𝜎, pv, and Ev) are used for specialized problems.

Specific Volume 𝝊: The ratio of the substance’s volume to its mass. It is the reciprocal of density and is an
intrinsic property of matter.

Surface Tension 𝝈: A property that characterizes the tendency of a liquid surface to behave as stretched
membrane.

Vapor Pressure pv: The pressure at which a liquid will boil.

Bulk Modulus of Elasticity Ev: A property that characterizes the compressibility of a fluid.

B. Principles of Hydrostatic Pressure

Pressure is defined as a normal force exerted by a fluid per unit area. We speak of pressure only when
we deal with a gas or a liquid. The counterpart of pressure in solids is normal stress. Since pressure is defined
as force per unit area, it has units of newtons per square meter (N/m 2), which engineers call a pascal (Pa). That
is, 1 Pa = 1 N/m2.

Absolute Pressure, Pabs: The actual pressure at a given position, and it is measured relative to absolute
vacuum (i.e., absolute zero pressure).

Gage Pressure, Pgage: Defined as 𝝆gh or the difference between the absolute pressure and the local
atmospheric pressure. It can be positive or negative.

Vacuum Pressures, Pvac: Pressures below atmospheric pressure. They are measured by vacuum gages that
indicate the difference between the atmospheric pressure and the absolute pressure

Absolute, gage, and vacuum pressures are related to each other by:
Pgage = Pabs − Patm
Pvac = Patm − Pabs

Note: The atm unit is roughly equivalent to the mean sea-level atmospheric pressure on Earth, that is, the Earth's atmospheric
pressure at sea level is approximately 1 atm (101.3 kPa). In most circumstances, atmospheric pressure is closely approximated by
the hydrostatic pressure caused by the weight of air above the measurement point.

CE 3a – Mechanics of Fluids Page 2 of 4

 Republic of the Philippines
CAMARINES NORTE STATE COLLEGE
F. Pimentel Avenue, Brgy. 2, Daet, Camarines Norte – 4600, Philippines

COLLEGE OF ENGINEERING

B.1 Variation of Pressure with Depth

The pressure in a fluid at rest does not change in the horizontal direction. This can
be shown easily by considering a thin horizontal layer of fluid and doing a force balance
in any horizontal direction. However, this is not the case in the vertical direction in a
gravity field. Pressure in a fluid increases with depth because more fluid rests on deeper
layers, and the effect of this “extra weight” on a deeper layer is balanced by an increase
in pressure (Fig. 1 ).

To obtain a relation for the variation of pressure with depth, consider a

rectangular fluid element of height Δz, length Δx, and unit depth (Δy = 1), as shown
in Fig. 2 (a free-body diagram of rectangular fluid element in equilibrium).
Assuming the density of the fluid 𝜌 to be constant, a force balance in the vertical z-
direction gives
∑ Fz = maz = 0: P1 Δx Δy − P2 Δx Δy − ρg Δx Δy Δz = 0
where W = mg = 𝜌 g Δx Δy Δz is the weight of the fluid element and Δz = z2 − z1.
Thus,
ΔP = P2 − P1 = −ρg Δz = −𝛾 s Δz

where 𝛾s = 𝜌 g is the specific weight of the fluid. Thus, we conclude that the pressure difference between two
points in a constant density fluid is proportional to the vertical distance Δz between the points and the density 𝜌
of the fluid.
Note: Pressure in a static fluid increases linearly with depth. This is what a diver experiences when diving deeper in a lake.

Pressure Head, 𝚫𝒛: The height of a liquid column that corresponds to a particular pressure exerted by the
liquid column on the base of its container.

B.2 Manometer
A manometer (often shaped like the letter “U”) is a device for measuring pressure by raising or
lowering a column of liquid. For example, Fig. 3 shows a U-tube manometer that is being used to measure
pressure in a flowing fluid. In the case shown, positive gage pressure in the pipe pushes the manometer
liquid up a height Δh.

The single equation for evaluation of the pressure in the pipe of Fig. 3 is,
0 + γmΔh − γℓ = p4

One can read the equation in this way: “Zero pressure at the open end, plus the change in
pressure from point 1 to 2, minus the change in pressure from point 3 to 4, equals the pressure in the
pipe”. The main concept is that pressure increases as depth increases and decreases as depth
decreases.

CE 3a – Mechanics of Fluids Page 3 of 4

 Republic of the Philippines
CAMARINES NORTE STATE COLLEGE
F. Pimentel Avenue, Brgy. 2, Daet, Camarines Norte – 4600, Philippines

COLLEGE OF ENGINEERING

The general equation for the pressure difference measured by the manometer is:

Where: 𝛾i and hi are the specific weight and deflection in each leg of the manometer.
Note:
(1) the pressure change across a fluid column of height h is ΔP = 𝜌 gh
(2) pressure increases downward in a given fluid and decreases upward (i.e., Pbottom > Ptop)
(3) two points at the same elevation in a continuous fluid at rest are at the same pressure.

Practice Problems:
1. A reservoir of glycerin (glyc) has a mass of 1200 kg and a volume of 0.952 m3. Find the glycerin’s (a)
weight W, (b) mass density 𝜌, (c) specific weight 𝛾, (d) specific gravity SG.

2. The specific gravity of ethyl alcohol is 0.79. Calculate its specific weight (in both pounds per cubic foot
and kilonewtons per cubic meter) and mass density (in both slugs per cubic foot and kilogram).

3. One cubic foot of glycerin has a mass of 2.44 slugs. Find its specific weight on both pounds per cubic
foot and kilonewtons per cubic meter.

4. If the tank of Problem No. 3 holds 30.5kg of salad oil, what is the density of the oil?

5. A pressure gage at elevation 8 at the side of a tank containing a liquid reads 80 kPa. Another gage at
elevation 3 reads 120 kPa. Compute for the (a) specific weight, (b) density, (c) specific gravity.

6. A tank contains oil SG = 0.80, gasoline SG = 0.90 and sea water SG = 1.03. If the depths of the liquids
are 0.5 m, 0.8 m, and 1 m for oil, gasoline and sea water respectively.
(a) Find the pressure at the depth of 1.2 m.
(b) Find the pressure at the depth of 1.8 m.
(c) Find the pressure at the bottom of the tank.

7. Compute the following:

(a) Gage pressure of a gas having an absolute pressure of 40 psia and atmospheric
pressure of 846 mbar abs.
(b) Gage pressure in bar.
(c) Gage pressure in psi.

8. If the atmospheric pressure is 101.3 kPa and the absolute pressure at the bottom of
the tank as shown in Fig. A is 231.3 kPa.
(a) What is the specific gravity of the olive oil?
(b) What is the absolute pressure at the interface of the olive oil and the mercury?
(c) What is the gage pressure at the interface of the olive oil and the mercury?

9. The water in a tank is pressurized by air, and the pressure is measured by a

multifluid manometer as shown in Fig. B. The tank is located on a mountain at an
altitude of 1400 m where the atmospheric pressure is 85.6 kPa. Determine the air
pressure in the tank if h1 = 0.1 m, h2 = 0.2 m, and h3 = 0.35 m. Take the densities
of water, oil, and mercury to be 1000 kg/m 3, 850 kg/m3, and 13,600 kg/m3,
respectively. (The air pressure in the tank is uniform, i.e.,
its variation with elevation is negligible due to its low
density, and thus we can determine the pressure at the
air–water interface).

10. A multifluid container is connected to a U-tube, as shown in Fig. C. For

the given specific gravities and fluid column heights, determine (a) the gage
pressure at A and (b) the height of a mercury column that would create the
same pressure at A.

CE 3a – Mechanics of Fluids Page 4 of 4