Skip to main content

Taming the Flow: Why Fluid Mechanics Makes Even the Best Engineers Sweat

 Introduction:

 Fluid mechanics is a man's attempt to tame the fluids. This branch of physics deals with the prediction of fluid behavior in natural and man-made environment. Despite being even older than Christianity (250 BC) when the famous Archimedes law was discovered this branch of physics still leaves many heads scratching. This article is an attempt to indicate why such is the case.

\


Mathematical Maze:

The governing equations of fluid mechanics while conceptually simple, can build up to be a real cause of migraine. These equations can be as simple as a formula for density and go on to be as complicated and twisted as Navier-Stokes equations. The use of calculus (one of toughest branches of mathematics) can be a daunting task for even many experienced engineers and scientists. Navier- stokes equations involve the use of partial differential equations to describe the motion of fluid in a given space. These equations can be so complex that manual calculations may not be possible at some point the use of computers (high end) might be inevitable. 

So, anyone who wants to delve even a little deep into the subject must have strong mathematical background to predict fluid behavior.


Looks Complicated no doubt.

Non - Linear Nightmares:

Fluids unlike solid everyday objects display a non- linear behavior such that even a small change in a condition lead to great impacts on fluid behavior. For example, the transition of fluid flow from laminar to turbulent can be so quick that it can be a great difficulty to pinpoint at what condition the fluid characterizes a rough flow (turbulent). 

It is difficult to predict fluid behavior using just simple formulas due to continuum of particles.

The particles' movements are influenced by the fluid, and the fluid's motion is influenced by the particles, its an unavoidable coupling  - Ivan Christov
Ivan Christov discusses the solution such that to treat the fluid motion as a single particle rather than a barrage of "never ending" particle rush. This pushes us onto another topic of hypothetical fluid or also called an Ideal fluid.


The Concept of hypothetical fluid

Most textbooks and courses offering fluid mechanics base the topic on what's called an Ideal fluid that is to assume the behavior of fluid as simple as possible to make modelling the fluid not an almost impossible task.

These assumptions are clearly justified as theories based on them allow us to come very close to actual behavior of the fluid though still not accurate. 

However, when based on design of real fluid systems an unexperienced engineer can be rightly intimidated when modelling real life flow systems such as river basins. computer software are used to analyze e.g Flow 3D,RiverCAD etc.. This adds on the  disconnect of intuitive understanding for a student.






Conclusion

Fluid mechanics, despite its everyday presence in everything from raindrops to rockets, presents a captivating intellectual challenge. The complexity arises from the interplay of non-linear behavior, the limitations of current computational power, and the need to balance mathematical rigor with practical applications. While ideal fluids offer a simplified starting point, the real world presents a much richer, and sometimes messier, story.



So, next time you watch a raindrop race down a window pane, remember – it's a captivating glimpse into the hidden world of fluid mechanics.







Comments

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

Fluid Statics: Archimedes Principle Made Simple

The Story of Archimedes' Principle Thousands of years ago in 250 B.C a man named Archimedes in Greece ran naked into the street shouting at the top his lungs eureka!. Such enthusiasm is justified when you just discovered an experimental method to find the gold content in the crown of king of Syracuse (or else get Zapped!). The story goes such that the king suspected some blacksmith had short changed him by making him a crown of alloyed gold (Blasphemy!). So, he consulted Archimedes a wise and a great scientific mind of that time (remember it is Greece) to check if such is the case. The Approach to the problem Most people would approach this problem by taking into the account the weight of crown and try to compare it to the weight of a crown made by pure gold. But lets say the forger was very clever and made sure that this crown of alloyed gold was to weigh the same in air compared to a crown made with pure gold (say the king already has). This now complicates the problem (for that...
Post a Comment
Read more

Irrigation: Drip Irrigation Technology

Introduction: Drip Irrigation is the process of slow application (droplets) of available water on or below the soil surface as per the requirement of the crop. The first account of drip irrigation system is recorded in Germany in 1860. The drip irrigation as known today was introduced (or made mainstream) by an Israeli engineer Simcha Blass in 1930's. He noticed a tree near a leaking faucet was growing greener and healthier than the ones surrounding it.                                               Figure 1: A typical Drip Irrigation Field View He then founded a company in called Netafim  which is a giant in the industry of High Efficiency Irrigation Systems. Thus, irrigation and agriculture was never the same and was revolutionized by Drip irrigation technology. Components of A drip Irrigation System: • Head Unit: Head unit consists of prime mover (motor or engine), w...
Post a Comment
Read more

Designing: How to design a Drip irrigation System

 Introduction: As drip irrigation is already introduced in  "introduction to drip irrigation" . This article aims to explain a general design for an efficient drip system. This  will involve some engineering concepts, fundamentals of fluid mechanics and mathematics. Considerations: Following steps are fundamental to design drip irrigation system for a given crop, area and water availability: • Survey of the area Find the total area that needs to be irrigated using the drip system. Then determine the topography and relative position to the highest point from the pumping unit. Determine the type of crop (vegetables and drip system are a perfect match) and find the power source, also, locate where the pumping system is located. Determine where Main lines, submain lines and lateral will be laid out. Refer to the image below.   • Water quality consideration Emitters in a drip system have very small openings and can be easily clogged by dust particles, salts and other soli...
Post a Comment
Read more