Integration over areas 3 1

1. Introduction
The purpose of this document is to help you make the link between the physical world
and some of the mathematical techniques that you’re already familiar with. Algebraic
expressions are a very precise and powerful way of describing the physical world, and
it’s important that you learn to visualise what an equation is telling you. In your maths
course, you have studied various types of integral and differential calculus, and these
pages will show you how they translate directly into physical meaning. We will look at
four situations in detail:
(a) Use of calculus to find the total mass of a fluid that has non-uniform density
(b) Simple flow situations for which calculus is not needed
(c) The extension of the basic principles to apply calculus to flow across surfaces
(d) Calculations of flow parameters such as the position of maximum flow speed
2
2. Determining the mass of a cone of fluid of non-uniform density
It is some times necessary to calculate the mass (M = ρV ) of a fluid in a non-
rectangular container. In figure 1 there is a cone with a fluid with a height H and a
maximum radius R, with a constant density, ρ0 , in it. The mass can be written as
Z
M = dm,

where dm = ρ0 dV . The infinitesimal volume, which is highlighted in figure 1 in red can

be written as dV = Adh where A = πr2 . The mass can then be written as
Z Z H Z H
M = ρ0 dV = ρ0 Adh = ρ0 πr2 dh,
0 0

as the density is constant throughout the fluid, this can be taken out of the integral. This
can not be directly integrated as the variable r is a function of the vertical coordinate
h (i.e. the radius of the cone gets bigger with height). Noting that tan α = h/r we can
write
Z H
ρ0 π ρ0 πH 3 ρ0 πR2 H
M= 2 h2 dh = 2 = ,
tan α 0 3 tan α 3
as tan α = H/R. It is always useful to check that the units are consistent. In the above
equation, π/3 just has a numerical value and no units, the dimensions of ρ0 are kg/m3
and R2 H are m3 such that we are left with kg, the units of mass. Next, it is possible that
one comes across a suspension, which is a fluid which contains solid particles sufficiently
large to result in sedimentation and this can lead to a density variation through the
vertical direction of the fluid. If the density varies with height, let’s say ρ0 = ρ1 (1 − h/H)
where ρ1 is a constant. Looking at figure 1, this means that at h = H (i.e. the top of
the cone) the density would be zero and at h = 0 (i.e. bottom of the cone) the density
would be ρ1 . For 0 < h < H the density varies linearly from ρ1 to zero. Similar to above
we can write
Z Z H
M= ρ0 dV = ρ0 πr2 dh,
0
and then substituting in tan α = h/r and ρ0 = ρ1 (1 − h/H) gives
Z H 
ρ1 π h
M= 1− h2 dh,
tan2 α 0 H
where the density ρ1 can be taken out of the integral as it is a constant, however the
expression which exhibits the variation with height needs to be included in the integral.
Therefore, integrating,
Z H  3 H
h4

ρ1 π h 2 ρ1 π h
M= 1 − h dh = − ,
tan2 α 0 H tan2 α 3 4H 0
where the sub and super script on the right indicate the limits of integration. Inserting
these gives
ρ1 πH 3 ρ1 πR2 H
M= = ,
12 tan2 α 12
which shows that the mass is proportional to R2 ; that means that if the maximum radius
is increased by a factor of 2, the mass is increased by a factor of 4.
 Integration over areas 3 3
R

dh H

h
α
r

Figure 1: Schematic of a cone with a radius R, outer angle α and a height H. An

infinitesimal volume is shown with dashed red lines, such that dV = πr2 dh.
4
L
1 2

U A V

Figure 2: Schematic of flow in a circular pipe, with cross-sectional area A, with fluid
moving left to right with a uniform velocity, U . Fluid particles, initially at location 1
(shaded blue area) will travel a distance L = U t in a time t, thereby sweeping a volume
V.

3. Volume flow rate

In many engineering applications it is necessary to determine how much fluid is flowing
through a pipe (water or oil), blood vessel, syringe or tubing etc. The flow rate, usually
denoted as Q, is the volume of fluid that passes through a given cross sectional area per
unit time and has units m3 /s; it is a scalar quantity, having magnitude only. The flow
rate therefore is given by
V
Q= ,
t
where V is the volume and t is the time. If we now take a look at the pipe in figure 2,
which has a constant area, A, and the flow has a constant velocity U in the horizontal
direction. The swept volume can be expressed as V = AL where L is the length travelled
by the fluid in a certain amount of time, t. We can write
V AL
Q= = = AU ,
t t
where U = L/t is the velocity of the fluid.
3.1. Volume flow rate between two flat plates with a constriction
Next let’s consider a flow, shown in figure 3, between two flate plates (of width w) which
has a constriction, which means that the distance between the plates decreases such that
D2 < D1 (the subscripts denote the distance between the two plates at either location
’1’ or ’2’). Conservation of mass in the system means that the mass flow rate, ṁ = ρU A,
at locations ’1’ and ’2’ are equal. Additionally, for incompressible flows the density is
constant which means that the volume flow rate is the same at both the locations 1 and
2. Mathematically 1

Q1 = Q2 , A1 U1 = A2 U2 ,
where A1 = wD1 and A2 = wD2 . Rearranging gives
A1
U2 = U1 ,
A2
 Integration over areas 3 5

(a)
y

D1 , U 1 D2 , U 2

(b)

Figure 3: Schematic of a fluid flowing from left to right through a constriction between
two flat plates (of width w) where D2 < D1 . In (b) the cross-section A − A in (a) is
shown.

which means that if the area is decreased by a half, the velocity will increase by a factor
of 2.

3.2. Volume flow rate in a circular pipe with a constriction

Next, let us take the example in figure 4 where the fluid is flowing in a circular pipe
(from left to right) with a diameter D1 which goes through a constriction to D2 (where
D1 > D2 ). Again equating the flow rate between location 1 and 2 gives

A1 U1 = A2 U2 ,
6
y

D1 , U 1 D2 , U 2

Figure 4: Schematic of a fluid flowing from left to right through a constriction for a
circular pipe where D2 < D1 .

and
U2 D2
= 12 ,
U1 D2
which means that halving the diameter will result in the velocity increasing by a factor of
four. In fact, when studying laminar flow in the fluid mechanics course, it will be shown
that U ∝ D2 such that Q ∝ D4 , which means that a doubling of the diameter of a pipe
will result in a 16 fold increase in Q!

1
 Integration over areas 3 7
n = {0, 1} y

A
x

u = {U, 0}

Figure 5: Schematic of a flow with a velocity u = {U, 0}. The dashed line indicates an
imaginary surface A with a unit normal n = {0, 1}. As the normal to the surface and
the velocity vector are perpendicular there is no flow through the imaginary surface.
Mathematically, u · n = 0.

4. General form of the flow rate equation

In the previous sections we have calculated the flow rate between to plates with a con-
stant velocity and looked at the case of a constriction. However many flows in engineering
applications are not as simple as this and are either more geometrically complex or have
a velocity field that varies in space. We can therefore write,
Z
Q = (u · n)dA,
A

where u is the velocity and n is the unit normal vector pointing out of the domain surface
A. The bold font indicates that the velocity and the unit normal are vector quantities.
Looking at figure 5 we see a velocity field given by u = {U, 0} (i.e. there is no vertical
component to the velocity field). Here, U is a constant. The unit normal to the imaginery
surface A (the dashed line) is given by n = {0, 1}. Therefore
   
U 0
u·n= · = 0,
0 1
so the integral
Z Z
Q= (u · n)dA = (0)dA = 0,
A A
which shows that if the velocity is perpendicular to the surface, there is zero flow rate
through the surface.
Next, consider figure 6 with a velocity field given by u = {U cos θ, U sin θ}. The unit
normal to the imaginery surface A (the dashed line) is given again by n = {0, 1}. There-
fore    
U cos θ 0
u·n= · = U sin θ,
U sin θ 1
so the flow rate is
Z Z
Q = (u · n)dA = (U sin θ)dA = AU sin θ,
A A

where A is the area of the surface. This shows that if θ = 0o then there is zero flow rate
through the surface (which was the previous case, i.e. figure 5). When θ = 90o then, the
velocity vector and the normal are parallel to each other and the flow rate is Q = AU .
How we can apply this equation to specific fluid mechanics problems will be demon-
strated in the following examples.
8
n = {0, 1} y

A
x

u = {U cos θ, U sin θ}

Figure 6: Schematic of a flow with a velocity u = {U cos θ, U sin θ} where θ is the angle
of the velocity field relative to the x-axis. The dashed line indicates an imaginary surface
A with a normal n = {0, 1}. In this case u · n 6= 0 and so there is a flow through the
imaginary surface.

D u n

Figure 7: Schematic of flow between two flat plates with a width w and separated by a
distance D.

4.1. Flow between horizontal flat plates

Figure 7 shows a schematic of flow in the positive x−direction in between two flat plates,
then n = {1, 0}, u = {U, 0} and u · n = U . Note: the velocity vector is given by u,
whereas the x-component of the velocity vector is given by U . Therefore
Z Z
Q = (u · n)dA = U dA.
A A

As the velocity is constant across the cross-section, this can be taken out of the integral
to give
Z
Q=U dA = U A.
A
R
where A dA = A (this equation simply states that summing up all the infinitesimal areas
over an area A is A). In figure 7, A = wD. This is the formal derivation of the equation
that has already been presented above.
 Integration over areas 3 9
n

y
θ
x

D, u

Figure 8: Schematic of flow between two flat plates with a width w and separated by a
distance D which are at an anglle.

u = {U, 0}

D y u(y) n

u = {0, 0}
x
Figure 9: Schematic of flow between two flat plates, with a width w and separated by
a distance D with the bottom boundary stationary and the top moving at a constant
velocity.

4.2. Flow between flat plates at an angle

When the flow is at an angle, θ, such as in figure 8, then n = {cos θ, sin θ}, u =
{U cos θ, U sin θ}, where U is a constant and
   
U cos θ cos θ
u·n= · = U cos2 θ + U sin2 θ = U.
U sin θ sin θ
and so the flow rate is
Z Z
Q= (u · n)dA = U dA = U A,
A A

which is the same as in the previous case. Alternatively, it would have been possible to
rotate the x − y axis labels to coincide with the angle of the plates, resulting in the flow
situation shown in figure 7.

4.3. Flow between two flat plates with sheared velocity (Couette flow)
A classic fluid mechanics flow field is the sheared flow between two plates, separated by
a distance D and with unit depth, which is shown in figure 9, which occurs when the

1
10

r δr

Figure 10: Cross section of circular pipe, with radius R, showing an infinitesimal annular
slice of area 2πrδr, where δr is the thickness of the slice.

bottom boundary is stationary (i.e. u = 0 at y = 0) and the top boundary is moving at

a constant velocity U at y = D. Note: this is the no-slip condition which states that the
relative velocity between a rigid boundary and the fluid is zero. This results in a velocity
field of the form
 
U y/D
u= ,
0
where we can see the boundary conditions are met when y = 0 and y = D and the vertical
fluid velocity is zero. If we take the unit normal as pointing to the right n = {1, 0} and
write the incremental area dA = wdy (where w is the width of the plates) we can then
write the flow rate as
u·n
z }|  { D
D Z D
U y 2 

Uy wU D
Z
U y/D 1
Q=w · dy = w dy = w  = 2 .
0 0 0 0 D 2D 0

4.4. Flow in a circular pipe

The velocity field in a circular pipe, with radius R, with a maximum velocity U (at r = 0)
and zero velocity at the pipe boundary (at r = R) is
 2
!
U 1 − Rr 2
u= .
0

Looking at the boundary conditions, this flow field obeys the no-slip condition with u = 0
at r = R. The flow rate is given by
Z Z
Q = (u · n)dA = U dA,
A A 1

where the axes have been aligned such that n = {1, 0}. The integral can be changed to
one in polar coordinates
dA = 2πrdr.
 Integration over areas 3 11
This can be seen in figure 10, where the infinitesimal annular slice has an area 2πrdr and
the limits of the integral are from 0 to R, such that
Z R  Z R
r2 r3
 
Q= U 1 − 2 2πrdr = 2πU r − 2 dr.
0 R 0 R
Integrating gives
 R
1 2 1 r4

 = 1 U πR2 = 1 AU.

Q = 2πU r −
2 4 R2 
0 2 2
where A is the area of the pipe.
It is possible to verify using differential calculus that the maximum velocity occurs at
the centre. Differentiating the velocity field (and only considering the x-component of
the velocity) with respect to r gives

dux 2U r
=− 2 ,
dr R
which if the the left hand side is set to zero, the stationary point is r = 0. To verify that
this stationary point is a maximum the second differential with respect to r is taken:
d2 ux 2U
2
= − 2.
dr R
As U > 0 and R > 0,
dux
< 0,
dr
which means that the stationary point is a maximum.
12
4.5. Volume flow rate with a spatially varying velocity field (I)
In the previous sections we have considered flow fields which were dependent on only one
spatial coordinate (either y or r). However, it is also possible that velocity fields depend
on more than one spatial coordinate, which will be covered in this section. One of the
most common flows you will encounter on this course is flow between two flat plates,
which will result in a sheared velocity field, of shear rate α, shown in figure 11. The flow
is coming out of the x − y plane and the velocity field is given by u = {0, 0, U + αy}
where we have taken U = 1 and α = 1 in the example. This shows that the velocity
field is not dependent on the x-direction. Looking at figure 11, it is useful to evaluate
some key points to check that the correct function has been plotted. The key points that
we will choose are {x, y} = {0, 0}; {0, 1}; {0.5, 0} and {0.5, 1}. The velocity at these four
points (given by U + αy) is

U + αy = 1 + α(0) = 1 at {0, 0}
U + αy = 1 + α(1) = 2 at {0, 1}
U + αy = 1 + α(0) = 1 at {0.5, 0}
U + αy = 1 + α(1) = 2 at {0.5, 1},
which is consistant with figure 11. Now, if we want to find the volume flow rate through
the control surface given by the intervals {0 ≤ x ≤ 0.5, 0 ≤ y ≤ 1} then we rate we can
write
Z
Q= (u · n)dA,
A
where n is the unit vector pointing out of the fluid domain. In the current scenario, we
take the fluid domain to be in the range {0 ≤ x ≤ 0.5, 0 ≤ y ≤ 1, 0 ≤ z ≤ 1}. Therefore,
the normal out of the fluid domain is n = {0, 0, −1}. We can therefore write
   
0 0
u · n =  0  ·  0  = −(U + αy).
U + αy −1
and substituting in this expression into the equation for the flow rate gives
Z Z 1/2 Z 1
Q = (u · n)dA = − (U + αy)dydx.
A 0 0

The integral dA = dydx has been expanded into a double integral to take into account
the two-dimensions. Performing the inner most integral first, we get
Z 1/2  1 Z 1/2    1/2  
1 1 1 1 1
Q=− U y+ αy 2 dx = − U + α dx = − U x+ αx =− U+ α .
0 2 0 0 2 2 0 2 2

4.6. Volume flow rate with a spatially varying velocity field (II)
It is possible in some situations that the velocity field will vary in two directions. Consider
the velocity field shown in figure 12, which is given mathematically by u = {0, 0, (U +
αy)x}, which shows that the velocity is dependent on both x and y. Again we check the
key points which are {0, 0}, {0, 1}, {0.5, 0} and {0.5, 1}. The velocity at these four points
(given by (U + αy)x) is
 Integration over areas 3 13

1.5

1
1
0.6
0.5 0.4
0.2
0 0

Figure 11: Velocity field given by u = {0, 0, U + αy}. Note how the velocity does not
change in the x-direction. The colour of the surface plot indicates fluid velocity from
unity (blue) to two (yellow).

(U + αy)x = (1 + α(0))0 = 0 at {0, 0}

(U + αy)x = (1 + α(1))0 = 0 at {0, 1}
(U + αy)x = (1 + α(0))0.5 = 0.5 at {0.5, 0}
(U + αy)x = (1 + α(1))1 = 2 at {0.5, 1},
which is consistant with figure 12. The flow rate is again given by
Z
Q = (u · n)dA,
A

where n = {0, 0, −1}. The inner part of the integral is

u · n = −((U + αy)x),
such that
Z 1/2 Z 1
Q=− (U + αy)xdydx.
0 0
Performing the inner integral first
Z 1/2  1 Z 1/2    1/2  
1 2 1 1 2 1 2 1 1
Q=− U y+ αy xdx = − V + α xdx = − U x + αx =− U+ α .
0 2 0 0 2 2 2 0 8 2
14

0.5

0
1
0.6
0.5 0.4
0.2
0 0

Figure 12: Velocity field given by u = {0, 0, (U + αy)x}. Note how the velocity changes
in both the y− and z-direction. The colour of the surface plot indicates fluid velocity
from zero (blue) to unity (yellow).