Boundary layer

..perhaps the hardest place

to use Bernoulli’s equation
(so don’t)
 Drag on a surface – 2 types
• Pressure stress / form drag

• Shear stress / skin friction drag

• A boundary layer forms due to skin friction

Boundary layer – velocity profile
• Far from the surface, the fluid
velocity is unaffected.
• In a thin region near the
surface, the velocity is reduced

• Which is the “most correct”

velocity profile?
…this is a good
approximation near
the “front” of the plate
 Boundary layer growth

• The free stream velocity is u0, but next to the

plate, the flow is reduced by drag
• Farther along the plate, the affect of the drag is
felt by more of the stream, and because of this
• The boundary layer grows
 Boundary layer transition
• At a certain point, viscous forces become to small
relative to inertial forces to damp fluctuations

• The flow transitions to turbulence

• Important parameters:
– Viscosity μ, density ρ
UO x UO x
– Distance, x Re x  
– Velocity UO  
• Reynolds number combines these into one number
First focus on “laminar” boundary layer
• A practical “outer edge” of the boundary
layer is where u = uo x 99%

• Across the boundary layer there is a

velocity gradient du/dy that we will use to
determine τ
• Let’s look at the growth of the boundary
layer quantitatively.
• The velocity profiles grow along the surface

• What determines the growth rate and flow profile?

 δ(x)
Blasius
• Resistance of fluid to change in velocity due
to viscous forces depends on…?
– Velocity, UO UO x UO x
– Viscosity, μ Re x  
 
– Density, ρ
y
– Position, x

• The Reynolds number
• Blasius (1908) derived:
u y  x   x  x
 f    g  g  5
  Re   
UO  x   UO  UO u
UO
 B L thickness & fluid properties

UO x UO x
Re x  
 
Blasius, cont’d: Surface shear stress a
u u
  
δ(x) y y

• Shear stress
  u UO   y
  f  y

y  x Re x   
 
  u UO   3/2
u U
  0.332 1/O2 1/ 2

y  x Re x  
 y 0
 0.332
y y 0 x 

3/2
UO UO
 y 0  0.332  0.332 Re X u
x 
1/ 2 1/ 2 x
UO
 Boundary layer transition
• At a certain point, viscous forces become to small
relative to inertial forces to damp fluctuations

• The flow transitions to turbulence

• Important parameters:
– Viscosity μ, density ρ
UO x UO x
– Distance, x Re x  
– Velocity UO  
• Reynolds number combines these into one number
How does BL transition?
Next focus on “turbulent” boundary layer
• A practical “outer edge” of the boundary
layer is (still) where u = uo x 99%

• Across the boundary layer there is a

velocity gradient as well as variations in
the velocity that determine τ
Turbulence: average & fluctuating velocity

The velocity profile concerns the mean velocity. The fluctuating

part contributes to the internal stress for high Re flow.
Three zones in the turbulent BL
 Viscous sub-layer

• The velocity in the viscous

sub-layer is linear
Log law of the wall
 Majority of the boundary layer

• 105 < Re < 107

Shear stress, thickness of
turbulent boundary layer
(somewhat empirical)
UO  0.027 
2 U
2
 0.455 
 y 0   y 0  O  
 ln2 Re  
2  Re X1/ 7  2  X 

O 0.027 O 0.455
cf   cf  
2
UO 2 Re X
1/ 7
UO 2
2
ln2 0.06 Re X 

0.16 x
 1/ 7
Re X
Laminar, Turbulence, Induced Turbulence
Laminar Turbulent Induced
δ 5x 0.16 x
1/ 7
0.37 x
1/ 5
Re X Re X Re X

0  
2 2 2
U 0.664 U 0.455 U 0.058
 O  O  2   O
2 Re X 2  
 ln 0.06 Re X  2 Re L 1/ 5
O
cf  0.664 0.455 0.058
U O 2 ln 2 0.06 Re X 
2
1/ 5
Re X Re X

1
BLUO *
2
L 1 2 1.33
1 2 0.074
BLUO 2 BLUO
FS   Bdx
1/ 5
 2 Re L
2 Re L 0.523 1520 
 2  
 ln 0.06 Re L  Re L 
x 0

FS 1.33
Cf  0.523

1520 0.074
BLUO 2 ln2 0.06 Re L  Re L
2
Re L Re L
1/ 5
 Example 9.8 from text
Assume that a boundary layer over a smooth, flat plate is
laminar at first and then becomes turbulent at a critical
Reynolds number of 5 x 105. If we have a plate 3 m long x
1 m wide, and if air at 20°C and atmospheric pressure
flows past this plate with a velocity of 30 m/s what will be
the average resistance coefficient Cf for the plate? Also,
what will be the total shearing resistance of one side of the
plate and what will be the resistance due to the turbulent
part and the laminar part of the boundary layer?
What is the answer to the same questions if the boundary
layer is “tripped” by some sufficiently large roughness
element that the boundary layer is turbulent from the
beginning?
Example