These notes are designed to enhance the teaching of a sophomore level course in fluid
mechanics, increase the accessibility of the principles, and raise the appeal of the subject
to students from diverse backgrounds.
These notes are intended to be used by instructors and are written in a style that addresses
the instructor, however this is not intended to exclude students who should find the notes
and examples interesting, stimulating and hopefully illuminating, particularly when their
instructor is not utilizing them. In the interest of brevity and clarity of presentation,
standard derivations, common tables/charts, and definitions are not included since these
are readily available in textbooks which these notes are not intended to replace but rather
to supplement and enhance. Similarly, it is anticipated that these lesson plans can be
used to generate lectures/lessons that supplement those covering the fundamentals of
each topic.
It is assumed that students have acquired a knowledge and understanding the following
topics: first and second law of thermodynamics, Newton’s laws, free-body diagrams, and
stresses in pressure vessels.
Author(s): Eann A. Patterson (ed.)
Series: Lesson plans and solutions
Year: 2011
Language: English
Pages: 52
Introduction and acknowledgements 5
INTRODUCTORY CONCEPTS
1. Fluids and their properties 6
Blowing bubbles, pouring detergent, floating paperclips, fried eggs
2. Statics 9
Apple bobbing, bath plug, escaping from submerged car
FLUIDS IN MOTION
3. Kinematics of fluid motion 14
Cream in coffee, BMW convertible, air-conditioning, bathroom ventilation
4. Dynamics of fluid motion 18
Floating table tennis ball, hurricanes, hand out of car window, vacuum cleaner
CONTROL VOLUME ANALYSIS
5. Momentum 22
Lifting with balloons, washing cups, umbrellas in the wind
6. Energy 25
Forced air heater, hand-dryer, cyclist food consumption
MODELING
7. Similitude and dimensional analysis 28
Bath toys, vacuum cleaner, artery flow
FLOW
8. Viscous flow in pipes (internal flow) 32
Vacuum cleaner, water squirter, bicycle pump
9. Flow over bodies (external flow) 37
Swim suits, heart surgery and pizza delivery
10. Flow in open channels 41
Water slide, curb drain, drainage ditch
11. Compressible Flow 46
Rampaging bull, flock of sheep, supersonic flight, factory explosion
APPLICATIONS
12. Turbomachines 51
Toy planes, car water pump, airplane propeller design