FLUID PROPERTIES AND ITS IMPORTANCE

IN
FLUID MECHANICS

Dr.T.Murali Krishna B.Tech, M.E., Ph.D.

Associate Professor
Department of Civil Engineering
R.M.K.Engineering College
• Fluid is a substance which is capable of flowing
from one place to another place on its own or by
application of some external forces acting on it.

Fluids: (i) Liquids (ii) Gases

• Liquids:
– No specific shape
– Definite volume
– Difficult to compress-incompressible
• Gases:
– No definite volume & shape
– Easy to compress- compressible
FLUID MECHANICS:
• It is the study of the behavior of fluids which are under rest or in
motion.

• Classification:

(i) Fluid Statics

– Hydro Statics
– Aero Statics

(ii) Fluid Kinematics

(iii) Fluid Dynamics

Basic Fluid Properties
The following are the basic fluid properties one has
to be very clear while studying Fluid Mechanics:
• Density
• Specific weight
• Specific gravity
• Specific volume
• Viscosity
• Surface tension
• Capillarity
• Compressibility and
• Vapour pressure.
• There are three fundamental physical quantities as used in Fluid
Mechanics.
They are:

• Mass (which refers to the amount of matter or substance present in a given

volumetric space),
• Length (which refers to the distance between two identified points), and
• Time (which refers to the elapsed period between two instants).

All other physical quantities are derived.

For instance,
area (length x length),
• volume (length x length x length),
• velocity (distance/time),
• acceleration (velocity/time),
• force (mass x acceleration),
• work (force x distance moved),
• power (work done/time) and so on.
Sl. Physical
Dimension Unit
No. quantity
gm (gram)
1 Mass M
kg (kilogram)
mm (millimeter)
2 Length L cm (centimeter)
m (meter)
s (second)
3 Time T min (minute)
hr (hour)
• Density (or) Mass Density (or) Specific Mass :
• Density of a fluid refers to the denseness of that fluid particles in a
given volume.
• It is defined as the ‘mass, i.e., amount of matter, present in an unit
volume of the fluid’
• It is denoted by ‘’ (Rho).

 = Mass/unit volume

Mass : X kg
 = X kg/m3
Volume : 1 m3

The dimension of density: M/L3 M L-3.

Unit for measurement:

CGS system: gm/cm3
MKS and SI systems: kg/m3
• Specific weight (or) Weight Density
• The ‘specific weight is defined as the weight of an unit volume
of a fluid’.
g

Mass
• It is denoted by  (Gamma).
Weight
•  = Weight/unit volume

• The dimension of specific weight: F/L3 FL-3

where F represents weight (or force).
• It is also given as ML-2 T-2.

The units for measurement can be:

• in CGS syste: gm(f)/cm3, gm/(cm2s2)

• in MKS system: kg(f)/m3, kg/(m2 s2).
• in SI system: N/m3, kg/(m2s2).
• Specific gravity or Relative Density (S)
• Specific volume
• Specific volume of a fluid is ‘the volume occupied by unit mass of
the fluid’.
• It is also the same as ‘the volume occupied by unit weight of the
fluid’.
• It is the reciprocal of density or specific weight of the fluid.
• Denoted it by ‘’ (upsilon).

•  = Volume/mass = 1/(mass/volume) = 1/

= Volume/weight = 1/(weight/volume) = 1/

Dimensions: L3/M M-1L3

L3/F F-1L3 or (M-1 L2 T2).
The units are:
• CGS system: cm3/gm or cm3/gm(f)
• MKS system: m3/kg or m3/gm(f)
• SI system: m3/kg or m3/N
Viscosity:
• Molecular attraction
• Molecular attraction  m1 m2 /d2
m1, m2 = mass of the molecules
d = distance between the molecules

(i) Cohesion or Cohesive force

(ii) Adhesion or Adhesive force

Cohesion or Cohesive force is the cause for Viscosity.

It is a measure of internal fluid friction which causes resistance to flow.
• Let us consider two sets of two molecules (m1 and m2) close to each
other and they are moving together.
• In one case, both the molecules travel at the same velocity.
• In the other case, they travel at different velocities
According to Newton,
T A
 du
 1/dy
i.e., T  A (du/dy)

Expressing T/A =  , as the shear stress

  du/dy
• Introducing a constant for the proportionality, it can be written as:

•  =  (du/dy) Newton’s law of viscosity

where  (mu) is the constant of proportionality which is called as the
‘coefficient of viscosity’ or ‘dynamic viscosity’.
(du/dy) called as the velocity gradient
• Newton’s law of viscosity can be stated as that ‘the shear stress in a
plane where differential movement is taking place is directly
proportional to the velocity gradient prevailing at that plane’

• Rewriting the equation for  as:

•  = / (du/dy) =  dy/du

• Dimensions:
• Dimension of  Dimension of Force/Area MLT-2/L2 ML-1 T-2
• Dimension of dy Dimension of distance L
• Dimension of du Dimension of velocity LT-1
• Dimension of  ML-1T-2 L / LT-1 ML-1 T-1
• If force is directly used, it is given as FL-2 L / LT-1 FL-2 T.
• Dimensions of  : ML-1 T-1 or FL-2 T

• Units of Viscosity:

System of Fundamental
Unit
units Dimensions
M LT gm/(cm s)
CGS
FLT gm(f) s/cm2

M LT kg/(m s)
MKS
FLT kg (f) s/m2

M LT kg/ (m s)
SI
FLT N s/m2
• Kinematic viscosity:
• ‘The ratio of dynamic viscosity to the density of fluid is
termed as kinematic viscosity’.
• It is denoted by  (nu).
• =/
• Dimensions: M L-1 T-1/M L-3 L2 T-1.

• CGS system: cm2/s

• MKS and SI systems: m2/s
• Variation of viscosity with temperature

visco
sity

Liquid

Gas

Temperature
Newton’s law of viscosity based classification of fluids

Ideal Plastic fluid

Non Newtonian fluid
Newtonian fluid
Shear Stress

Rate of shear strain du/dy

Rate of Shear Strain (du/dy)

Surface Tension:
• It is due to cohesion between liquid molecules at the free surface.
• Surface tension can be defined as the ‘apparent tension which is
manifested to counteract the net downward force prevailing at the
interface between a gas and a liquid or between two immiscible
liquids’.

• It is denoted by the,  (sigma).

• Surface tension is expected to stretch the particle, and therefore, it

is a line force acting along the circumference of the particle.
• ie., it is taken as the force per unit length.

Dimensions: F L-1 or MT-2.

Units:
• CGS system: gm/s2, gm (f)/cm and dyne/cm
• MKS system: kg/s2 and kg (f) /m
• SI system: kg /s2 and N/m
• Capillarity
• It is due to both cohesion and adhesion.
• Vapour Pressure:
• The gas whose temperature and pressure is such that it is very near to the
liquid state is called vapour.
• Vapour pressure is defined as pressure exerted by the vapour on its liquid
surface by itself or mixture of gases.
Thank you