NEAR EAST UNIVERSITY

FACULTY OF CIVIL AND ENVIRONMENTAL ENGINEERING

CIV372 Hydromechanics

Chapter two
Dimensional Analysis and Similitude
Lesson one
Chapter contents

• Introduction
• Dimensional Analysis
Introduction

• There are many problems of interest in the field of fluid mechanics

in the real world of design:
• the differential and integral equations
• It is often necessary to resort to experimental methods to establish
relationships between the variables of interest.
 Expensive,
 Keep the required experimentation to a minimum

• This is done using a technique called dimensional analysis, which is

based on the notion of dimensional homogeneity—that all terms in
an equation must have the same dimensions.
 Cont’d

• Dimensional analysis is a means of simplifying a physical problem by

appealing to dimensional homogeneity to reduce the number of
relevant variables.
• It is particularly useful for:
• Presenting and interpreting experimental data;
• Attacking problems not amenable to a direct theoretical solution;
• Checking equations;
• Establishing the relative importance of particular physical phenomena;
• Physical modelling.
 Cont’d

• For example, if we write Bernoulli’s equation in the form

• We note that the dimension of each term is length.

• Furthermore, if we factored out z1 from the left-hand side and z2
from the right-hand side, we would have
 Cont’d

• In Bernoulli’s equation, the terms are all dimensionless and the

equation is written as a combination of dimensionless parameters
• Experimental work are performed on objects that are quite large,
too large to experiment with for a reasonable cost.
• This substantially reduces the costs when compared with full-scale
studies and allows for the study of various configurations or flow
conditions
 Cont’d

• Dimension is a measure of a physical quantity, while a unit is a way

to assign a number to that dimension.

• For example, length is a dimension that is measured in units such as

microns (μm), feet (ft), centimeters (cm), meters (m), kilometers
(km), etc.
Cont’d
 Cont’d

• All non primary dimensions can be formed by some combination of

the seven primary dimensions.
• For example, force has the same dimensions as mass times
acceleration (by Newton’s second law).
• Thus, in terms of primary dimensions

• Surface tension (σs), has dimensions of force per unit length.

Dimensional Homogeneity

• Law of dimensional homogeneity: Every additive term in an

equation must have the same dimensions.
• Consider, for example, the change in total energy of a simple
compressible closed system from one state and/or time (1) to
another (2), as shown in the figure
 Cont’d

• The change in total energy of the system (∆E) is given by

where E has three components: internal energy (U), kinetic energy

(KE), and potential energy (PE).
• These components can be written in terms of the system mass (m);
measurable quantities and thermodynamic properties at each of the
two states, such as speed (V), elevation (z), and specific internal
energy (u); and the known gravitational acceleration constant (g),
 Cont’d

• It is straightforward to verify that the left side of the change in

Energy equation and all three additive terms on the right side have
the same dimensions—energy.
Example

Dimensional Homogeneity of the Bernoulli Equation Probably the

most well-known equation in fluid mechanics is the Bernoulli
equation . One standard form of the Bernoulli equation for
incompressible irrotational fluid flow is

(a) Verify that each additive term in the Bernoulli equation

has the same dimensions.
(b) What are the dimensions of the constant C?
Cont’d
 Cont’d

• In water flows studies, either analytical or experimental, there are

invariably many flow and geometric parameters involved.

• The fewest possible combinations of parameters should be utilized

to save time and money.

• For example, consider the pressure drop across the slider valve of
Fig. below.

• This could be expressed as

 Cont’d

• The first step in the planning of an experiment to study this problem

would be to decide the factors, or variables, that will have an effect on
the pressure drop.
 Cont’d

• To perform the experiments in a meaningful and systematic manner,

it would be necessary to change the variable, such as the velocity,
which holding all other constant, and measure the corresponding
pressure drop.
• Difficulty to determine the functional relationship between the
pressure drop and the various facts that influence it.
Cont’d
 Cont’d

• Considering the assumption that any equation that relates a

certain set of variables, such as the one we discussed above
can be written in terms of dimensionless parameters, as

• Fortunately, there is a much simpler approach to the problem

that will eliminate the difficulties described above.

• Collecting these variables into two non-dimensional

combinations of the variables (called dimensionless product or
dimensionless groups)
 Cont’d

• A fundamental question we must answer is how many

dimensionless products are required to replace the original list of
variables ?
• The answer to this question is supplied by the basic theorem of
dimensional analysis that states
 Cont’d

• In a given physical problem the dependent variable x1 can be

expressed in terms of the independent variables as

Where: n is the total number of variables

 Cont’d

•  p is the dependent variable V, ρ, μ, and d are the independent

variables.
• The Buckingham pi-theorem, named after Edgar Buckingham states
that (n-m) dimensionless groups of variables, called phi-terms,
where m is the number of basic dimensions included in the
variables, can be related by

• where π1 includes the dependent variable and the remaining pi-

terms include only independent variables
• For successful application of dimensional analysis dimension must
occur at least twice or not at all.
 Cont’d
• Mathematically, we can express the functional relationship in the
equivalent form
• Mathematically, we can express the functional relationship in the
equivalent form
g =0

where g is an unspecified function, different from f

 Cont’d

• Several methods can be used to form the dimensionless products, or

pi term, that arise in a dimensional analysis.

• Eight steps listed below outline a recommended procedure for

determining the pi- terms.
Steps in pi-term determination

Step 1: List all the variables

• List all the dimensional variables involved.
• Keep the number of variables to a minimum, so that we can
minimize the amount of laboratory work.
• All variables must be independent.
• For example, if the cross-sectional area of a pipe is an important
variable, either the area or the pipe diameter could be used, but not
both, since they are obviously not independent.
Ex. ϒ=ρ×g, that is, ϒ,ρ, and g are not independent
 Cont’d

• Let n be the number of variables.

Example: For pressure drop per unit length, n=5.
(All variables are  p, D, μ, ρ, and V )

• Step 2 Express each of the variables in terms of basic dimensions

and find the number of reference dimensions.
• Select a set of fundamental (primary) dimensions.
For example: MLT, or FLT.
• Example: For pressure drop per unit length , we choose FLT.
 Cont’d

• Step 3 Determine the required number of pi terms.

• Let n be the number of variables in the problem.
• Let r be the number of reference dimensions (primary dimensions)
required to describe these variables.
• The number of pi terms is n-r
• Example: For pressure drop per unit length n=5, r = 3,
Thus, the number of pi terms is n-r=5-3=2.
 Cont’d

• Step 4 Select a number of repeating variables, where the number

required is equal to the number of reference dimensions
• Select a set of r dimensional variables that includes all the primary
dimensions (repeating variables).
• These repeating variables will all be combined with each of the
remaining parameters.
• Example: For pressure drop per unit length ( r = 3)
select ρ , V, D.
 Cont’d

• Step 5 Form a pi term by multiplying one of the nonrepeating

variables by the product of the repeating variables, each raised to
an exponent that will make the combination dimensionless
• Set up dimensional equations, combining the variables selected in
Step 4 with each of the other variables (nonrepeating variables) in
turn, to form dimensionless groups or dimensionless product.
• There will be n – r equations.
• Example: For pressure drop per unit length
Cont’d
 Cont’d

Step 6: Repeat Step 5 for each of the remaining non-repeating

variables.
 Cont’d

Step 7 Check all the resulting pi terms to make sure they are
dimensionless.
• Check to see that each group obtained is dimensionless.
• Example: For pressure drop per unit length .
 Cont’d

Step 8 Express the final form as a relationship among p , the pi terms,

and think about what is means.
• Express the result of the dimensional analysis.
r

• Example: For pressure drop per unit length .

 Cont’d

• The pi terms can be rearranged. For example, Π2, could be

expressed as