S.

Ray1
Mass Flow Rate Controlled Fully
B. Ünsal Developed Laminar Pulsating
e-mail: buensal@lstm.uni-erlangen.de

F. Durst
Pipe Flows
Pressure gradient driven, laminar, fully developed pulsating pipe flows have been exten-
Ö. Ertunc sively studied by various researchers and the data for the resultant flow field are avail-
able in a number of publications. The present paper, however, concentrates on related
O. A. Bayoumi flows that are mass flow driven, i.e., the flows where the mass flow rate is prescribed as
ṁ = ṁ M + ṁA f m共t兲 and f m共t兲 is periodically varying in time. Sinusoidal and triangular
Institute of Fluid Mechanics (LSTM),
mass flow rate pulsations in time are analytically considered in detail. Results of experi-
Friedrich-Alexander-Universität Erlangen-
mental investigations are presented and are complemented by data deduced from corre-
Nürnberg, Cauerstr. 4, D-91058 Erlangen,
sponding analytical and numerical studies. Overall, the results provide a clear insight
Germany
into mass flow rate driven, laminar, fully developed pulsating pipe flow. To the best of the
authors’ knowledge, flows of this kind have not been studied before experimentally, ana-
lytically and numerically. 关DOI: 10.1115/1.1906265兴

1 Introduction and Aim of Work
The basic theory of incompressible, internal, laminar flows is
well developed and the state of knowledge up to the middle of the
20th century is well documented in books by Howarth 关1兴 and
Moore 关2兴. However, much progress has been made since then.
Most recently, time-dependent, periodic pipe and channel flows
have received increasing attention from the fluid mechanics com-
munity. In the review by Gündoğdu and Carpinlioğlu 关3兴, litera-
ture surveyed, shows that nearly all theoretical treatments of time-
dependent pulsating flows are pressure gradient driven, i.e., the
flow is pulsating owing to an imposed pressure gradient of the
following form:
dP
dx
= 冉 冊 冉 冊
dP
dx M
+
dP
dx A
sin 共2␲ ft兲
where the time-varying part is described by a single-frequency
harmonic oscillation, f, and the amplitude of an axial pressure
gradient, 共dP / dx兲A. The resultant flows are usually referred to as
pulsating flows when the time-averaged pressure gradient
共dP / dx兲 M ⫽ 0 and as oscillating flows when 共dP / dx兲 M = 0. Lam-
bossy 关4兴 was the first to derive an analytical solution for this type
of flow. A few years later, Uchida 关5兴 presented the general ana-
lytical solution for arbitrary, time-varying, axial pressure gradient
driven, laminar pulsating flows through pipes. A brief summary of
this solution is presented in the Appendix for the sake of com-
pleteness. The axial pressure gradient in such cases is considered
as a general wave form, which may be represented by a Fourier
series
plitudes 共dP / dx兲Cn and 共dP / dx兲Sn. Each of the wave forms has a
frequency corresponding to integer multiples of the basic fre-
quency f. Utilizing the linear property of the governing differen-
tial equation for an incompressible fluid, describing the flow,
Uchida 关5兴 applied the solution for a single frequency to each of
the terms in the Fourier series. In this manner, he obtained the
general solution for periodically pulsating, laminar, fully devel-
oped pipe flows by a summation over all the individual solutions.
It is obvious that the solution of Lambossy 关4兴 is a special case of
this general solution and can easily be derived from the solution
of Uchida 关5兴.
Recently, Majdalani and Chibli 关6兴 extended the work of
Uchida 关5兴 for channel flows, which was otherwise not available
共1兲
in the literature. Hence analytical treatments of the pressure gra-
dient driven, pulsating, laminar, fully developed pipe flows in-
volving incompressible fluids are well established and extension
of the work for channel flows is also available.
Many experimental studies have also been conducted with flow
facilities in which the pressure gradient, in the form of Eq. 共1兲,
was generated and 共or兲 controlled by flow interrupters, by recip-
rocating pistons, by rotary valves, etc. Among these, the studies of
Denison et al. 关7兴, Muto and Nakane 关8兴, and Shemer and Wygn-
anski 关9兴 are examples of comprehensive investigations. These
results are also well supported by the analytical solutions of Lam-
bossy 关4兴 and Uchida 关5兴. More recently, Durst et al. 关10兴 com-
bined the solution of Lambossy 关4兴 and instantaneous local den-
sity approximation-velocity measurements at the center of a pipe
to carry out instantaneous volume flow rate measurements for
different pulsating flows. It is important to note that pulsations,

冉 冊 兺冉 冊 兺 冉 dx 冊
⬁ ⬁ having wave forms other than sinusoidal, for example, triangular
dP dP dP dP pulsations with time, have not yet been investigated, probably
= + cos共2␲nft兲 + sin共2␲nft兲,
dx dx 0 n=1 dx Cn n=1 Sn
because of the experimental difficulties associated with accurate
and reproducible generation of the desired pressure gradient.
共2兲 A careful study of the literature on pulsating pipe flows sug-
where 共dP / dx兲0 has the same meaning as 共dP / dx兲 M in Eq. 共1兲 and gests that equally good knowledge does not exist for periodically
pulsating, fully developed, laminar pipe flows generated by a con-
the oscillating part of the longitudinal pressure gradient is ex-
pressed as a composition of basic harmonic functions, with am- trolled, time-dependent mass flow rate. More recently Das and
Arakeri 关11兴 presented analytical solutions of resulting pressure
gradient and velocity distribution for a prescribed, time varying
1
On leave from the Department of Mechanical Engineering, Jadavpur University volume flow rate through a pipe. The flow was assumed to be
Kolkata 700 032, India. laminar and fully developed. They presented examples of starting
Contributed by the Fluids Engineering Division for publication in the JOURNAL OF
FLUIDS ENGINEERING. Manuscript received by the Fluids Engineering Division
flows with trapezoidal variation in the volume flow rate with time
February 18, 2004; revised manuscript received March 6, 2005. Associate Editor: S. and sinusoidally oscillating flows that are either impulsively
Balachandar. blocked or starting from the rest. Very recently, a similar study on

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 pulsating channel flow for arbitrary volume flow rate variation
was presented by Muntges and Majdalani 关12兴. However, none of
these studies are well supported by simultaneous experimental
validations. This is probably due to the fact that no reliable ex-
perimental data could be produced earlier owing to the difficulties
associated with generation of accurate and reproducible volume
flow rate variation with time.
For a periodic flow, the general variation of the mass flow rate
through a pipe may be considered as
ṁ = ṁ M + ṁA f m共t兲,
where ṁ M is the cycle-averaged mass flow rate and ṁA is the
corresponding amplitude of pulsation. The function f m共t兲 is a pe-
riodic function in time and has a period t p, such that f m共t + t p兲
= f m共t兲. To the best of the authors’ knowledge, there does not exist
either an analytical solution for the resultant time-varying flow
field and the corresponding pressure gradient variation or an ex-
perimental flow facility that generates accurate time-dependent
mass flow rates. This finding initiated the authors’ work on time-
dependent, laminar, mass flow rate controlled, pulsating flow
through pipes, which is summarized in this paper.
During this work, a mass flow rate control system was devel-
oped that permits one to produce any arbitrary time variation of
ṁ共t兲. The developed system is described shortly in Sec. 2 together
with the flow facility and the appropriate measuring equipment.
For detailed description, one may refer to the paper by Durst et al.
关13兴. The whole setup was employed to study experimentally
laminar, fully developed, pulsating pipe flows.
It is obvious from the previous discussions that when the axial
pressure gradient is given in the form of a Fourier series, the
velocity field and, hence, the mass flow rate for a laminar, pulsat-
ing flow through a pipe can be obtained analytically. In the present
case, however, the mass flow rate through a pipe is prescribed.
This gives rise to an “inverse” problem, where the resultant pres-
sure gradient that occurs in the governing equation is not a priori
known. Based on the initial solutions of Uchida 关5兴, an analytical
solution is derived for the resultant time-varying velocity field and
the corresponding pressure variations for a given mass flow rate
variation, ṁ共t兲. The general form of the mass flow rate can be
described by a Fourier series
⬁ ⬁
兺 ṁ 兺 ṁ
ṁ = ṁ0 + Cn cos共2␲nft兲 + Sn sin共2␲nft兲
n=1 n=1
where ṁ0 = ṁ M in Eq. 共3兲. Moreover, the solution suggests that the
time-varying mass flow rate and the time-varying pressure gradi-
ent can be written as functions of each other and knowledge of
one of these two is sufficient for the determination of all other
unknowns of the flow. The details of the analytical solution are
presented in Sec. 3. In this section, sinusoidally and triangularly
pulsating mass flow rate variations are treated as examples and the
final results are presented. The analytical results are also com-
pared in the same section with the corresponding experimental
data. Some other types of pulsating flows, having higher degrees
of discontinuities than the triangular pulsation, are treated numeri-
cally as well. In general, these pulsations cannot be accurately
represented by an appropriate Fourier series of the type shown in
Eq. 共4兲 and one must apply Lanczos’ sigma factor to avoid the
Gibbs Phenomenon. The comparisons of the analytical solution
with applied sigma factor, numerical solution, and experimental
results are also presented in this section for power-type mass flow
rate pulsations.
Finally, with the aid of experimental, analytical, and numerical
tools, various physical aspects of the mass flow rate controlled,
laminar, pulsating flows of incompressible fluids through pipes are
considered in detail. Section 4 presents conclusions and an out-
look towards future research in this field.
406 / Vol. 127, MAY 2005
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2 Experimental Investigations
2.1 Experimental Setup and Measuring Equipment. In or-
der to carry out the experimental investigations on mass flow rate
controlled pulsating flows, a mass flow rate control system was
developed. The basic design concepts of the system and its essen-
tial parts were presented by Durst et al. 关13兴. Some verification
experiments were also presented in this article in order to demon-
strate the outstanding properties of the mass flow control unit. The
developed mass flow controller allowed to generate any kind of
preset time-dependent mass flow rate variations with very high
共3兲
cycle to cycle repeatability and accuracy in the range of
0 – 217.8 g min−1. The overall accuracy of the mass flow rate con-
troller was found to be within ±1%.
An experimental setup employing the developed mass flow rate
control system was set up in the authors’ laboratory for time-
dependent, laminar mass flow driven pipe flow investigations. A
schematic diagram of the setup is given in Fig. 1. For the authors’
experiments, the mass flow rate control system was supplied with
pressurized air of 5 bar. An externally produced signal from the
computer was used to supply the time-dependent mass flow rate
signal to the mass flow control unit. The signal can be, in prin-
ciple, any function of time and can be freely chosen via the com-
puter software employed. After the mass flow control unit, the
flow was conditioned with wire screens and a flow straightener. A
2 m ⫻ 14-mm-diam Perspex pipe was added after the flow condi-
tioner for the present investigations. For the present experimental
setup, under steady flow conditions, the flow remained laminar up
to Re= 6000. However, to be on the safer side, in the present
investigations the maximum Reynolds number was maintained
below 4650 for all the experimental runs. Furthermore, in order to
ensure the laminar state of flow in the pipe, the centerline velocity
was monitored at the end of the pipe with a DISA 55 M01
constant-temperature hot-wire anemometer.
Static pressure measurements were performed with ten pressure
transducers distributed along the length of the pipe. The operating
range of the pressure sensors was 20 mbar and the transducers
were temperature compensated. The natural frequency of these
transducers was around 1 kHz, which allowed tracking of fast
pressure changes resulting due to pulsating flows. All the mea-
surements were digitized simultaneously by the computer through
a 16 bit 333 kHz data acquisition card and measurements were
synchronized with input signals of the mass flow rate controller,
which were produced by a 12 bit 200 kHz data acquisition card.
共4兲 During postprocessing of the data, the statistical information and
the time-based information 共frequency, amplitude, etc.兲 were ex-
tracted and other analyses, such as digital filtering and fast Fourier
transforms, were conducted as and when required.
As mentioned earlier, the mass flow rate variations with time
were generated using the mass flow rate controller by supplying
the corresponding electrical signal 共0 – 10 V兲 to its analog port. In
the present experiments, the mass flow rates were not directly
measured, but, they were taken from the given input signals. The
entire mass flow rate control unit, which produces highly accurate
mass flow rates 共within ±1%兲, was previously calibrated and the
details were provided by Durst et al. 关13兴.
2.2 Experimental Investigations. In order to study the be-
havior of mass flow rate controlled pulsating flows through pipes,
experiments were carried out in which sinusoidal and triangular
mass flow rate pulsations were applied for various flow frequen-
cies f. The resulting axial pressure gradients were measured at a
location 1.75 m away from the pipe entrance such that the flow
may be considered to be fully developed at this position 共this
location corresponds to 125 D兲. For sinusoidal pulsations, three-
dimensionless mass flow rate amplitudes 共ṁ*A兲, namely, 0.95, 0.72
and 0.61, were chosen, where, ṁ*A is the ratio of the amplitude of
time-varying part of the mass flow rate 共ṁA兲 to the cycle-averaged
mass flow rate 共ṁ M 兲. For each of these cases, the frequency of
Transactions of the ASME
 Fig. 1 Schematic diagram of the experimental setup

pulsation was varied over a wide range, f = 0.001– 22.5 Hz. Trian-
gular pulsations, on the other hand, were applied only for ṁ*A
= 0.95 and the frequency range was varied from 0.001 to 20 Hz.
Acquired pressure signals were analyzed through Fourier trans-
formation and the corresponding phase and amplitude information
was obtained from the first harmonic, which is satisfactory for
sinusoidal pulsations. In the case of triangular pulsations, owing
to deviations of the shape of the signal, which will be considered
later, digital filtering was first applied in order to remove the
noise, before applying fast-Fourier transform to obtain amplitude
and phase information. For all cases, the mean 共time-averaged兲
value of the pressure signals was calculated by considering more
than 50 periods.
2.2.1 Flow With Sinusoidal Pulsations. In Fig. 2 examples of
applied sinusoidal mass flow pulsations and measured axial pres-

Fig. 2 Applied sinusoidal mass flow rate and measured pressure gradients for mA*
= 0.9473, for different pulsation frequencies

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 generated for sinusoidal, triangular, and power-type pulsations.
The major conclusions may be summarized as follows:
1 ⳵U
␳ ⳵t
=−
dP ␮ ⳵ ⳵U
+ r
dx r ⳵r ⳵r
冉 冊 共A1兲

• The results for sinusoidal pulsation show that the amplitude Since in the present paper the emphasis is placed on a general-
ratio, defined as m̂*A / 共dP / dx兲A, and the phase difference be- type of pulsating pipe flow, the driving pressure gradient is con-
tween the mass flow rate and the pressure gradient depend sidered in the following form:

冉 冊 冉 冊
solely on the dimensionless frequency F. Hence this forms
dP dP dP
the most important basis for analytical solutions of other = + f共t兲 共A2兲
types of pulsations. Both of these data were verified with dx dx M dx A
experiments and the results were found to be in excellent
This has a perioicity t p and hence, f共t + t p兲 = t共t兲. In order to treat
agreement.
• The analytical solution for other types of pulsations, where all possible functions of f共t兲, it is the best to express the axial
the mass flow rate can be expressed in terms of a Fourier pressure gradient in the form of a Fourier series

冉 冊
series, can be obtained from the knowledge of sinusoidal ⬁ ⬁

兺 兺
pulsation. In these situations, the amplitude ratio and the 1 dP
− = P̂0 + P̂cn cos共2␲nft兲 + P̂sn sin共2␲nft兲
phase difference for each of the frequencies 共where the nth ␳ dx

冋 册
n=1 n=1
frequency is given by nF兲 are obtained separately. The re- ⬁ ⬁
quired pressure gradient can then be generated by superpos-
ing the results for each of the frequencies that construct the = P̂0 1 + 兺 P̂*cn cos共2␲nF␶兲 + 兺 P̂ *
sn sin共2␲nF␶兲

冋 册
mass flow rate signal. The results generated from this ana- n=1 n=1

lytical treatment have been successfully used for the solu- ⬁

tion of triangular pulsations. The results obtained for lower
frequencies are in excellent agreement with the experimen-
tal data. However, for higher frequencies, both analytical
and experimental results show oscillations, particularly near
the point of discontinuity.
• For flows with a higher order of discontinuity, such as
power pulsations, the analytical solution produces a very
high degree of nonphysical oscillations, particularly near the
discontinuity. This is due to the poor definition of Fourier
series for such pulsations and it is shown that these oscilla-
tions can be removed by the application of Lanczos’ sigma
factor.
Finally, the present study has shown that the employed mass
flow rate control system permits time variations of pulsating flows
to be chosen that have mass flow rate controlled properties regard-
ing their time variations. The instrument provides an excellent
basis for detailed experimental investigations of time-varying in-
ternal flows. Through well controlled time variations of the mass
flow rate, experimental investigations can be carried out and their
results can also be compared with data from analytical and nu-
merical studies. In this way, extensive investigations into pulsat-
ing internal flows are feasible and should be carried out in the
future.
= P̂0 1 + 兺 P̂
n=1
*
cn exp共2␲nF␶i兲 共A3兲
*
where P̂c,sn = P̂c,sn / P̂0 is the dimensionless amplitude of the pres-
sure gradient pulsation and f is the overall frequency of pulsation.
F 共=R2 f / ␯兲 and ␶ 共=␯t / R2兲 are the dimensionless 共characteristic兲
frequency and time for the flow problem, respectively. P̂0 is equal
to P̂ M , the time-averaged axial pressure gradient. P̂*en is the com-
plex form of the pressure gradient, given in the following form:
P̂*en = P̂*cn − iP̂sn
*
共A4兲
The equality in Eq. 共A3兲 for the last part of the equation holds
only for the real part of the right-hand side. The same equation
clearly shows that the pressure gradient consists of two parts. First
is the steady part 共the mean pressure gradient兲, characterized by
P̂0, or, P̂ M 共in the dimensionless form, unity兲, and the second is
the oscillating part, characterized by the amplitude of the pressure
gradient pulsation, P̂c,sn 共in the complex and dimensionless form,
P̂*en兲 and frequency of oscillation f 共in the dimensionless form, F兲.
With the above Fourier series for the driving pressure gradient,
the solution for velocity is sought in the following form:
⬁ ⬁

U = U0 + 兺U
n=1
cn cos共2␲nF␶兲 + 兺U
n=1
sn sin共2␲nF␶兲
Acknowledgments
⬁
Dr. Subhashis Ray thanks the authorities of Jadavpur University
for granting leave to carry out this research work. He also thanks
= U0 + 兺U
n=1
en exp共2␲nF␶i兲 共A5兲
the Alexander von Humboldt Foundation for financing his re-
search stay at the Institute of Fluid Mechanics 共LSTM-Erlangen兲, The boundary conditions for this problem are given by 共i兲 at r
Friedrich Alexander Universität, Erlangen-Nürnberg, Germany. = 0, U is finite or ⳵U / ⳵r = 0, and 共ii兲 at r = R, U = 0. Substituting U
from Eq. 共A5兲 in the momentum Eq. 共A1兲 and using these bound-
ary conditions, the analytical solution for velocity distribution as a
function of radius and time can be obtained as
Appendix A: Analytical Treatments of Pressure Driven,

冋
⬁
Axisymmetric, Laminar, Fully Developed, Pulsating 4P̂*en
兺
U
Pipe Flow
*
U = = 2共1 − r*2兲 − 1
Uav n=1 ␲nF

The analytical solution for axisymmetric, laminar, fully devel-
oped, pulsating pipe flows, driven by an arbitrary time varying
pressure gradient, is available in the literature; see, for example,
Lambossy 关4兴, Uchida 关5兴 for details. The derivations in this Ap-
pendix represent a repetition, but contain some extensions to the
existing analysis.
The governing momentum equation in the cylindrical coordi-
nates for axisymmetric, laminar, fully developed 共no transverse
flow兲, pulsating pipe flow is
册
J0关共2␲F兲1/2i3/2r*兴
− exp 共2␲nF␶i兲 共A6兲
J0关共2␲F兲1/2i3/2兴
where U* is the dimensionless axial velocity and Uav is the aver-
age velocity of the fluid through the tube corresponding to the
steady part of the pressure gradient and is given by, Uav
= P̂0R2 / 8␯. This result may be obtained by solving the steady,
laminar, fully developed flow through pipes.

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 Flow Rates in Periodically Operating Injection Systems,” Exp. Fluids, 20, pp.
178–188.
关11兴 Das, D., and Arakeri, J. H., 2000, “Unsteady Laminar Duct Flow with a Given
Volume Flow Rate Variation.” Trans. ASME, J. Appl. Mech., 67, pp. 274–281.
关12兴 Muntges, D. E., and Majdalani, J., 2002, “Pulsatory Channel Flow for an
Arbitrary Volumetric Flow Rate,” 3rd AIAA Theoretical Fluid Mechanics
Meeting, 2856.
关13兴 Durst, F., Heim, U., Ünsal, B., and Kullik, G., 2003, “Mass Flow Rate Control
System for Time-Dependent Laminar and Turbulent Flow Investigations,”
418 / Vol. 127, MAY 2005
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Meas. Sci. Technol., 20, pp. 893–902.
关14兴 Ohmi, M., and Iguchi, M., 1981, “Flow Pattern and Frictional Losses in Pul-
sating Pipe Flow. Part 6: Frictional Losses in a Laminar Flow,” Bull. JSME,
24共196兲, pp. 1756–1767.
关15兴 Hamming, R. W., 1986, “Lanczos’␴ Factors and the ␴ Factors in the General
Case 32.6 and 32.7,” in Numerical Methods for Scientists and Engineers,
Dover, New York, pp. 534–536.
关16兴 Patankar, S. V., 1980, Numerical Heat Transfer and Fluid Flow, Hemisphere,
Washington D.C.
Transactions of the ASME
 of a sine function. The series also contains a distinct amplitude 3.2 Treatments of Flows With Sinusoidal Pulsation. Before
and a phase lag corresponding to each of the frequencies. Let us presenting the details of complicated mass flow rate pulsations, let
now consider the mass flow rate controlled flows, where the time- us first consider the simple case of a sinusoidal pulsation, which is
varying pulsating mass flow rate is given generally in the form of given by
a Fourier series5
ṁ
⬁ ṁ* = = 1 + ṁA* sin共2␲ ft兲 = 1 + ṁA* sin共2␲F␶兲 共20兲
ṁ M
*
ṁ = 1 + 兺
n=1
ṁ*n sin共2␲nF␶兲 共13兲
The above equation shows that the flow is characterized by a
single frequency and, hence, one can easily obtain the amplitude
Now, it would be essential to compare Eq. 共12兲, which is the ratio, ␾m = 兩␺n兩, and the phase lag, ⌬␪m, for the mass flow rate
solution for mass flow rate for pressure-driven flows, with the from Eqs. 共15兲 and Eq. 共16兲, respectively. The corresponding
prescribed mass flow rate for the mass flow rate controlled flow in function, ␺共F兲, is obtained from Eq. 共7兲 by putting n = 1. The
Eq. 共13兲. For the sake of comparison, it is better to rewrite Eq. required mean pressure gradient is obtained from Eq. 共19兲. There-
共12兲 in the following form: fore, the normalized pressure gradient, that would generate the
⬁ given mass flow rate through the tube, may now be written as
兺 ṁ sin共2␲nF␶ − ⌬␪m,n兲 共14兲
冉 冊
*
ṁ* = 1 + n 1 dP
n=1 − = P̂0关1 + P̂s* sin共2␲F␶ + ⌬␪m兲兴 共21兲
␳ dx
where and ⌬␪m,n are, respectively, the normalized amplitude
ṁ*n
and the phase lag of the nth wave of the mass flow rate oscillation where the amplitude of pressure gradient pulsation, P̂s* = ṁ*A / ␾m, is
and are given as follows:6 obtained in a straightforward manner.
The analytical solutions of the axial pressure gradients for si-
ṁ*n = P̂sn
*
兩 ␺ n兩 共15兲 nusoidally pulsating flows are compared with the corresponding

再 冎
R共␺n兲
⌬␪m,n = tan−1
J共␺n兲
It is obvious from Eq. 共15兲 that a dimensionless amplitude ratio of
the mass flow rate for the nth signal can be defined as ␾m,n
= ṁ*n / P̂sn
*
= 兩␺n兩. It is also important to note that both the amplitude
ratio and the phase lag are only functions of the nth frequency, nF.
For a prescribed mass flow rate problem, however, all the ampli-
tudes, ṁ*n, are known for each of the frequencies. Hence, Eq. 共15兲
can be used to obtain the values of the required pressure gradient
amplitudes, P̂sn *
, since 兩␺n兩 depends only on the given frequency,
nF 关see Eq. 共7兲 for further clarification兴. Similarly, the required
phase difference of the pressure gradient, which would generate
the given mass flow rate distribution, can also be obtained from
Eq. 共16兲. Therefore, the complete form of the normalized resultant
pressure gradient pulsation is given as
experimental results in Fig. 6 for F = 0.01, 0.1, 1, and 10. For the
sake of comparison, in this figure the experimental results for
共16兲 pressure drop are also presented in the form of dimensionless
quantities. It is obvious that the general agreement is extremely
good. The figure also shows the applied mass flow rate as a func-
tion of dimensionless time. It is clear that for very low frequencies
共f = 0.01 and 0.1兲, the magnitude of the dimensionless axial pres-
sure gradient, 共dP / dx兲*A, is almost equal to the dimensionless am-
plitude of the prescribed mass flow rate, ṁ*A. The phase difference
is also almost nonexistent at these low frequencies. Both the phase
difference and 共dP / dx兲*A, however, increase with the increase in
frequency of pulsation.
It is also obvious from the analytical treatment of the inverse
problem that the amplitude ratio, defined as ṁ*A / 共dP / dx兲*A, and
also the phase difference are only functions of the pulsation fre-
quency, F. The comparison of the analytical solution and the ex-
perimental data for the amplitude ratio and the phase difference,
as presented in Fig. 7, not only shows excellent agreement be-

冉 冊 冉 冊冒
⬁ tween the two, but also reveals this fact.
*
兺 P̂
1 dP 1 dP
− = − P̂0 = 1 + *
sin共2␲nF␶ + ⌬␪m,n兲 3.3 Treatments of Flows With Triangular Pulsation. It is
␳ dx ␳ dx n=1
sn
evident from the previous discussion that the inverse problem can
共17兲 be easily solved when a simple sinusoidal pulsation in the mass
flow rate is considered. Let us now consider a more complex case
It may be observed that in order to obtain the complete pressure
of a triangular pulsation. A typical triangular pulsation can be
gradient, one would also require the value of the steady part
expressed in the form of a Fourier series as follows:
共mean兲 of the pressure gradient pulsation, P̂0 共which is also equal
⬁
to P̂ M 兲. This may be obtained from the knowledge of the cycle- 8ṁA* 共− 1兲共n−1兲/2
averaged mass flow rate, ṁ M . The mean cycle-averaged axial ve-
ṁ* = 1 + 兺
␲ n=1,3,5,. . .
2
n2
sin共2␲nF␶兲 共22兲
locity through the cross section of the tube, Uav, can be written in
Let us now consider the nth term in the above series, that de-
terms of both ṁ M and P̂ M as 共see Appendix A for details兲 scribes the oscillating part of the mass flow rate. This is given as
ṁ M P̂ M R2 8共− 1兲共n−1兲/2ṁA*
Uav = 2 = 共18兲 *
ṁos,n = sin共2␲nF␶兲 共23兲
␳␲R 8␯ ␲ 2n 2
From the above equation, P̂ M is obtained as Therefore, it can be immediately identified that for the nth sinu-
soidal signal, the amplitude and the frequency are given as
8␮ṁ M
P̂ M = 共19兲 8共− 1兲共n−1兲/2ṁA*
␳ 2␲ R 4 ṁ*n = 共24兲
␲ 2n 2

5
In Eq. 共13兲, ṁ*n is the prescribed dimensionless amplitude of the nth frequency of Fn = nF 共25兲
the mass flow rate oscillation. It will be further clarified when the analysis for
triangularly pulsating mass flow rate controlled flow will be described. One should therefore construct the nth pressure signal which
6
It is important to note that Eq. 共14兲 is the solution of the pressure gradient driven would generate the corresponding mass flow rate as described by
flows. In this equation, ṁ*n and ⌬␪m,n are obtained using Eqs. 共15兲 and Eq. 共16兲. Eqs. 共23兲–共25兲. As was performed earlier for sinusoidal pulsation,

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 Fig. 6 Comparison of experimental and analytical pressure gradients for sinusoidal
mass flow rate pulsations for F = 0.01, 0.1, 1 and 10

the amplitude ratios, ␾m,n, and the phase lags, ⌬␪m,n, are obtained
for each of the frequencies, nF, using Eqs. 共15兲 and 共16兲, respec-
tively. Therefore, the complete normalized pressure gradient that
would generate the given triangular mass flow rate pulsation is
obtained as
higher frequencies. Particularly at a very high frequency 共F = 10兲,
the presence of higher harmonics in the experimental results is
different in appearance from the analytical solutions, which also
show the presence of higher harmonics, particularly prominent

冋 册
near the discontinuity. This issue is addressed below. From Fig. 8,

冉 冊
⬁ it is also clear that for very low frequencies 共F = 0.01 and 0.1兲, the
兺
1 dP magnitude of the dimensionless axial pressure gradient, 共dP / dx兲*A,
− = P̂0 + *
P̂sn sin共2␲nF␶ + ⌬␪m,n兲 共26兲
␳ dx n=1,3,5,. . . is almost equal to the dimensionless amplitude of the prescribed
mass flow rate, ṁ*A. The phase difference is also almost nonexist-
where the amplitude of pressure gradient pulsation for the nth
ent at these low frequencies. Both the phase difference and
wave is given as P̂sn*
= ṁ*n / ␾m,n. 共dP / dx兲*A, however, increase with increase in frequency of
In Fig. 8, the analytical solutions of the axial pressure gradients pulsation.
for the case of triangular pulsations are compared with the corre- Figure 9 shows the variations of the analytically obtained and
sponding experimental results for F = 0.01, 0.1, 1, and 10. It also experimentally observed phase difference and amplitude ratio 关de-
shows the applied mass flow rate as a function of dimensionless fined in a manner similar to that for sinusoidal pulsation,
time. It is observed that the general agreement is extremely good ṁ*A / 共dP / dx兲*A兴 with the dimensionless frequency of pulsation. It is
for lower frequencies. However, the agreement is moderate for
clear that here also, the general agreement between the analytical
and experimental results is extremely good. Figure 9 also shows
that the phase difference, which is small 共almost nonexistent兲 for
lower frequencies, increases sharply for moderate values of F and
reaches its asymptotic value of ␲ / 2 at a much lower frequency as
compared to the case of sinusoidal pulsations 共see Fig. 7 for
comparison兲.
Let us now focus on the presence of the higher harmonics in the
experimental results for F = 10 and its associated discrepancy with
the analytical results. In order to explain this apparent disagree-
ment the power spectrum of the axial pressure gradient data is
analyzed in Fig. 10. It clearly shows that for all cases, a strong
secondary frequency is generated at around 兰 = 33 Hz. The ques-
tion that remains to be answered is, therefore, from where does
this frequency appear? It may be postulated that this frequency
appears from the experimental system and its associated instru-
mentation. The system as a whole, therefore, has a cutoff fre-
quency of 33 Hz and all the signals, beyond this frequency are
essentially of no importance. In the analytical study, when the
Fig. 7 Variation of ⌬␪ and P̂A* with F and ṁA* for sinusoidal mass flow rate is expressed in terms of a Fourier series, a certain
pulsations number of terms is considered 共which is usually very high兲. The

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 Fig. 8 Applied triangular mass flow pulsations and comparison of experimental and analyti-
cal pressure gradient wave forms for F = 0.01, 0.1, 1 and 10
apparent discrepancy may be attributed to this fact. In order to
demonstrate this, the analytical results are presented in Fig. 11 for
F = 10, using up to 40 terms 共corresponding to f ⯝ 125 Hz兲 and ten
terms 共corresponding to f ⯝ 33 Hz兲. It is obvious that when the
cutoff frequency for the analytical solution is restricted to its ap-
propriate value, the result also shows the presence of similar
higher harmonics, as observed in the experiments. It is also im-
portant to note that when the mass flow rate data are generated by
considering smaller number of terms in the Fourier series, some
amount of error is automatically introduced. In the experiments a
similar error is also present because of the time constant of the
mass flow rate control system and the associated instrumentation.
3.4 Identification of Different Flow Regimes. From Figs. 7
and 9 for sinusoidal and triangular pulsations, different flow re-
gimes for pulsating flows may be identified for sinusoidal and
triangular pulsations, respectively. Earlier, Ohmi and Iguchi 关14兴
Fig. 9 Variation of ⌬␪ and P̂A* with F for triangular pulsations
412 / Vol. 127, MAY 2005
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made similar classifications for sinusoidally pulsating flows based
on the phase difference data. They termed the flow regime “quasi-
steady” when the value of ṁ*A / 共dP / dx兲*A 艋 0.95, which corre-
sponds to a dimensionless frequency of pulsation F 艋 0.277. Simi-
larly, the regime is termed “inertia dominated,” when F 艌 124.
The regime between these two is termed “intermediate.” However,
it may be noted here that these definitions, although being con-
ceptually true, are not unique and depend strongly on the param-
eter and the criterion chosen to identify such regimes. From Fig.
7, it is observed that if the same definitions for different flow
regimes are adopted in the present study, almost the same values
of limiting pulsation frequencies are obtained. However, these val-
ues would be substantially modified if the phase difference is
chosen as the parameter for such definitions. Similar observations
are made for the case of triangular pulsations, presented in Fig. 9,
hence, the comments are also similar. As such, there is no need for
further precise definition of these regimes, as long as the entire
variation is available.
3.5 Pulsations With Discontinuities. In the case of power or
sawtooth pulsations, the discontinuity in mass flow rate is more
severe than that for triangular pulsation. The results for flows with
power pulsation for F = 0.1 and 10 are presented in Fig. 12, where
the figures at the top show the complete variation and those at the
bottom show the zoomed view near the discontinuity in mass flow
rate. It is obvious that the sudden decrease 共or increase兲 in pres-
sure gradient near the discontinuity is more than that observed
earlier for triangular pulsation. The overall agreement in the ob-
served pressure gradients, obtained with different methods, is ex-
cellent at lower frequencies 共for example, F = 0.1兲. However, the
zoomed views show that even at lower frequencies, the analytical
solution produces an oscillatory pressure gradient near the discon-
tinuity, which is nonphysical in nature. It may be noted that for
such pulsations with strong discontinuities, the Fourier series pro-
duces an exact 共or desired兲 oscillatory mass flow rate, since it
cannot handle such a strong discontinuity and this is known as
Transactions of the ASME
 Fig. 10 Power spectrum of pressure wave forms for F = 0.01, 0.1, 1 and 10 triangular mass
flow rate pulsations

Gibb’s phenomenon. In the numerical method 共see Appendix B兲,
however, the discontinuity is handled by setting a very small value
of ␦t, above which, the mass flow rate is allowed to change. This
may be regarded as one of the techniques to avoid discontinuity.
Figure 12 shows 共particularly the zoomed view兲 that with numeri-
cal treatment, the generated pressure field appears to be smooth.
When the pulsation frequency is very high 共for example, F = 10兲,
the analytical solution produces severe oscillations in the pressure
gradient 共they are also high in magnitude兲 and, hence, they are not
shown. On the other hand, the nonphysical oscillations in analyti-
cal solution can be removed by the application of Lanczos’ Sigma
factor 共see Hamming 关15兴 for details兲 which is defined as
where the sinc term is the sigma factor.
In Fig. 13 a comparison is provided between the analytical
solution with applied sigma factor and the numerical solution. It is
clear from the figure that by the application of sigma factor, ana-
lytical solution gives smooth pressure field as good as the numeri-
cal one.
4 Conclusions
In the present paper, various issues of laminar, fully developed,
mass flow rate controlled, pulsating pipe flows have been consid-

冉 冊
k−1
ered experimentally, analytically, and numerically. The review of
the literature shows that although much effort has been put into
兺
1 2n
f共␪兲 = a0 + sinc 关an cos共n␪兲 + bn sin共n␪兲兴 solving pressure gradient driven pulsating pipe flows, to the best
2 n=1,3,5,. . . k
of the authors’ knowledge, little effort has been put into the study
共27兲 of mass flow rate controlled flows. In this paper, results were

Fig. 11 Effect of number of terms used in Fourier series in analytic solution of triangular
mass flow rate pulsations for F − 10 „left one with 40 terms corresponding to 125 Hz, right
one with ten terms corresponding to 33 Hz…

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 Fig. 12 Results for flows with power pulsation for F = 0.1 and 10 „top: the complete
variation, bottom: zoomed view near the discontinuity…

Fig. 13 Comparison of analytical solution with applied sigma factor and numerical so-
lution for flows with power pulsation for F = 0.1 and 10 „top: the complete variation,
bottom: zoomed view near the discontinuity…

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 generated for sinusoidal, triangular, and power-type pulsations.
The major conclusions may be summarized as follows:
1 ⳵U
␳ ⳵t
=−
dP ␮ ⳵ ⳵U
+ r
dx r ⳵r ⳵r
冉 冊 共A1兲

• The results for sinusoidal pulsation show that the amplitude Since in the present paper the emphasis is placed on a general-
ratio, defined as m̂*A / 共dP / dx兲A, and the phase difference be- type of pulsating pipe flow, the driving pressure gradient is con-
tween the mass flow rate and the pressure gradient depend sidered in the following form:

冉 冊 冉 冊
solely on the dimensionless frequency F. Hence this forms
dP dP dP
the most important basis for analytical solutions of other = + f共t兲 共A2兲
types of pulsations. Both of these data were verified with dx dx M dx A
experiments and the results were found to be in excellent
This has a perioicity t p and hence, f共t + t p兲 = t共t兲. In order to treat
agreement.
• The analytical solution for other types of pulsations, where all possible functions of f共t兲, it is the best to express the axial
the mass flow rate can be expressed in terms of a Fourier pressure gradient in the form of a Fourier series

冉 冊
series, can be obtained from the knowledge of sinusoidal ⬁ ⬁

兺 兺
pulsation. In these situations, the amplitude ratio and the 1 dP
− = P̂0 + P̂cn cos共2␲nft兲 + P̂sn sin共2␲nft兲
phase difference for each of the frequencies 共where the nth ␳ dx

冋 册
n=1 n=1
frequency is given by nF兲 are obtained separately. The re- ⬁ ⬁
quired pressure gradient can then be generated by superpos-
ing the results for each of the frequencies that construct the = P̂0 1 + 兺 P̂*cn cos共2␲nF␶兲 + 兺 P̂ *
sn sin共2␲nF␶兲

冋 册
mass flow rate signal. The results generated from this ana- n=1 n=1

lytical treatment have been successfully used for the solu- ⬁

tion of triangular pulsations. The results obtained for lower
frequencies are in excellent agreement with the experimen-
tal data. However, for higher frequencies, both analytical
and experimental results show oscillations, particularly near
the point of discontinuity.
• For flows with a higher order of discontinuity, such as
power pulsations, the analytical solution produces a very
high degree of nonphysical oscillations, particularly near the
discontinuity. This is due to the poor definition of Fourier
series for such pulsations and it is shown that these oscilla-
tions can be removed by the application of Lanczos’ sigma
factor.
Finally, the present study has shown that the employed mass
flow rate control system permits time variations of pulsating flows
to be chosen that have mass flow rate controlled properties regard-
ing their time variations. The instrument provides an excellent
basis for detailed experimental investigations of time-varying in-
ternal flows. Through well controlled time variations of the mass
flow rate, experimental investigations can be carried out and their
results can also be compared with data from analytical and nu-
merical studies. In this way, extensive investigations into pulsat-
ing internal flows are feasible and should be carried out in the
future.
= P̂0 1 + 兺 P̂
n=1
*
cn exp共2␲nF␶i兲 共A3兲
*
where P̂c,sn = P̂c,sn / P̂0 is the dimensionless amplitude of the pres-
sure gradient pulsation and f is the overall frequency of pulsation.
F 共=R2 f / ␯兲 and ␶ 共=␯t / R2兲 are the dimensionless 共characteristic兲
frequency and time for the flow problem, respectively. P̂0 is equal
to P̂ M , the time-averaged axial pressure gradient. P̂*en is the com-
plex form of the pressure gradient, given in the following form:
P̂*en = P̂*cn − iP̂sn
*
共A4兲
The equality in Eq. 共A3兲 for the last part of the equation holds
only for the real part of the right-hand side. The same equation
clearly shows that the pressure gradient consists of two parts. First
is the steady part 共the mean pressure gradient兲, characterized by
P̂0, or, P̂ M 共in the dimensionless form, unity兲, and the second is
the oscillating part, characterized by the amplitude of the pressure
gradient pulsation, P̂c,sn 共in the complex and dimensionless form,
P̂*en兲 and frequency of oscillation f 共in the dimensionless form, F兲.
With the above Fourier series for the driving pressure gradient,
the solution for velocity is sought in the following form:
⬁ ⬁

U = U0 + 兺U
n=1
cn cos共2␲nF␶兲 + 兺U
n=1
sn sin共2␲nF␶兲
Acknowledgments
⬁
Dr. Subhashis Ray thanks the authorities of Jadavpur University
for granting leave to carry out this research work. He also thanks
= U0 + 兺U
n=1
en exp共2␲nF␶i兲 共A5兲
the Alexander von Humboldt Foundation for financing his re-
search stay at the Institute of Fluid Mechanics 共LSTM-Erlangen兲, The boundary conditions for this problem are given by 共i兲 at r
Friedrich Alexander Universität, Erlangen-Nürnberg, Germany. = 0, U is finite or ⳵U / ⳵r = 0, and 共ii兲 at r = R, U = 0. Substituting U
from Eq. 共A5兲 in the momentum Eq. 共A1兲 and using these bound-
ary conditions, the analytical solution for velocity distribution as a
function of radius and time can be obtained as
Appendix A: Analytical Treatments of Pressure Driven,

冋
⬁
Axisymmetric, Laminar, Fully Developed, Pulsating 4P̂*en
兺
U
Pipe Flow
*
U = = 2共1 − r*2兲 − 1
Uav n=1 ␲nF

The analytical solution for axisymmetric, laminar, fully devel-
oped, pulsating pipe flows, driven by an arbitrary time varying
pressure gradient, is available in the literature; see, for example,
Lambossy 关4兴, Uchida 关5兴 for details. The derivations in this Ap-
pendix represent a repetition, but contain some extensions to the
existing analysis.
The governing momentum equation in the cylindrical coordi-
nates for axisymmetric, laminar, fully developed 共no transverse
flow兲, pulsating pipe flow is
册
J0关共2␲F兲1/2i3/2r*兴
− exp 共2␲nF␶i兲 共A6兲
J0关共2␲F兲1/2i3/2兴
where U* is the dimensionless axial velocity and Uav is the aver-
age velocity of the fluid through the tube corresponding to the
steady part of the pressure gradient and is given by, Uav
= P̂0R2 / 8␯. This result may be obtained by solving the steady,
laminar, fully developed flow through pipes.

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 The mass flow rate through the cross section of the tube as a the solution of the inverse problem is the primary objective of this
function of time is obtained by integrating the velocity solution in paper, we would first present the forward problem, where the pres-
the following manner: sure gradient is considered to be a known function of time. The

冕 冕 冕
R 1 1 reason will soon be apparent.
ṁ = 2␲␳ rUdr = 2␲␳UavR2 r*U*dr* = 2ṁ M r*U*dr* B.1 Solution for Pressure Gradient Controlled Flow. The
0 0 0 governing equation for such flow is given by Eq. 共A1兲 and the
共A7兲 boundary conditions are discussed in the Appendix A. This type of
flow is characterized by a known pressure gradient as a function
Using Eq. 共A6兲, the mass flow rate through the tube is expressed of time, which consists of two parts—a steady part and an oscil-
as lating part. A typical example is given in Eq. 共A3兲. However, it is

冋
⬁ obvious that the oscillating part could be complex in nature, par-
4P̂*eni
兺 ␲nF
ṁ
ṁ* = =1− 1 ticularly when the controlled mass flow rate through the tube is
ṁ M n=1 complex, as may be observed in Sec. 3.

+
2i1/2J1关共2␲nF兲1/2i3/2兴
共2␲nF兲1/2J0关共2␲nF兲1/2i3/2兴
exp共2␲nF␶i兲 册 共A8兲
In order to cast the governing equation in the dimensionless
form, the nondimensional variables must be defined. The dimen-
sionless radius, time, velocity and frequency are already defined
where ṁ* is the dimensionless mass flow rate, ṁ M is the steady in the Appendix A. The reference pressure gradient is defined on
part of the mass flow rate through the tube due to Uav and is given the basis of the expression for the average velocity as shown in
Eq. 共18兲
as ṁ M = ␳␲R2Uav. Equation 共A8兲 may also be written in a more

冉 冊
convenient form
⬁
1 dP ␯Uav P̂0
− = = 共B1兲
ṁ* = 1 − 兺 ṁ *
os,n 共A9兲 ␳ dx ref R2 8
n=1
Therefore, the dimensionless pressure gradient is expressed as8

冋 册
*
where, ṁos,n is the nth oscillating part of the mass flow rate pul-

冉 冊
* ⬁
sation. It may be noted that ṁos,n is directly proportional to the nth *
兺 P̂
1 dP
snsin共2␲nF␶兲 共B2兲
*
amplitude of complex pressure gradient, P̂*en. Therefore, the ratio, − =8 1+
␳ dx n=1
*
ṁos,n / P̂*en, depends only on the nth frequency of pulsation, nF.
It is interesting to note that both the velocity and the mass flow The terms in the square brackets can be recognized as the normal-
rate are expressed in terms of dimensionless variables. Moreover, ized pressure gradient with respect to the steady part of the pres-
the dimensionless mass flow rate is expressed in such a fashion sure gradient pulsation. With the help of the various dimensionless
that its steady part is expressed as unity. One may also rewrite Eq. variables, the nondimensional governing equation may be written
共A3兲 by normalizing the pressure gradient with P̂0 and may ex- as

press the steady part of the pressure gradient also as unity. Most of
the previous authors, for example, Lambossy 关4兴, Uchida 关5兴, Ma-
jdalani and Chibli 关6兴, however, chose different ways to express
these quantities. It may not be out of context to emphasize here
that if the scales are properly chosen, all the results 共such as
velocity, mass flow rate, etc.兲 can be expressed in a very simple
manner as presented in this Appendix. The advantage of proper
scaling is further clarified in Sec. 3, while extending the analytical
solution for mass flow rate driven pulsating pipe flows.
The analytical solution, presented here also clearly brings out
the various dimensionless parameters, which affect the laminar,
fully developed, pulsating fluid flow through pipes. This knowl-
edge is utilized in Appendix B, which deals with the numerical
solution of such problems.
Appendix B: Numerical Investigation
Under the present experimental conditions, as explained in Sec.
2, the mass flow rate, rather than the axial pressure gradient, is
controlled. The analytical solution for the pressure gradient con-
trolled flows 共see Appendix A兲 clearly shows that if the pressure
冉 冊 冉 冊
⳵U 1 dP *
1 ⳵ * ⳵U
= − + r * 共B3兲
⳵␶ ␳ dx r* ⳵r* ⳵r
It is important to note that, owing to the proper choice of scaling,
the dimensionless governing equation does not contain any di-
mensionless number. In the above equation, the nondimensional
pressure gradient could be, in principle, any periodic function of
time. The above equation can now be discretized by using a non-
uniform mesh and control volume approach. For the time deriva-
tive, implicit treatment was used as it is known to be uncondition-
ally stable. At the centerline, zero velocity gradient was prescribed
via a one-sided first-order differencing, and at the wall the veloc-
ity was set to zero by suitably adjusting the coefficients of the
discretized equation. The resulting discretized equations for any
time step exhibit a tri-diagonal-matrix structure and they were
solved using the Thomas algorithm 共see Patankar 关16兴 for details兲.
From the velocity solution of the discretized equations, the mass
flow rate was obtained by numerically integrating the velocity
profile as

冕
gradient is known, the velocity profile and, hence, all other im- 1
portant quantities can be easily obtained. In Sec. 3, it was also ṁ
ṁ* = =2 Ur*dr* 共B4兲
shown that for mass flow rate controlled flows, where the pressure ṁA 0
gradient is not known a priori, the inverse problem can be solved
analytically and the required axial pressure gradient can still be From the above presentation, it is obvious that for a laminar, fully
obtained if the mass flow rate is expressed in the form of a Fourier developed, pulsating flow through a pipe, if the pressure gradient
series. However, when this time-dependent, mass flow rate con- is known as a function of time, the governing equation can be
trolled, pulsating flow is complex7 and contains strong disconti- numerically integrated to obtain the solution for velocity and the
nuities, the analytical solution seems to be too difficult and less mass flow rate. This solution will be utilized to obtain the velocity
accurate and, hence, the numerical solution is essential. Although and the pressure gradient for the inverse problem.

7 8
For example, consider power wave or sawtooth wave type pulsations, where a If the pressure gradient is expressed in the form of a Fourier series, which is also
Fourier series cannot express the pulsation with reasonable accuracy without appli- not essential for the numerical solution. Also note that this definition is different 共by
cation of Lanczos’ Sigma factor. a factor of 8兲 from the definition given in Eq. 共17兲.

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 B.2 Solution for Mass Flow Rate Controlled Flow. For the f ⫽ frequency 共Hz兲
mass flow rate controlled problem, the mass flow rate through the h ⫽ function of time
tube is expressed in a general form as ṁ ⫽ mass flow rate 共kg/s兲
ṁ = ṁ M + ṁA f m共t兲 共B5兲 n ⫽ integer number
P ⫽ pressure 共Pa兲
The above equation may also be written in the dimensionless form R ⫽ pipe radius 共m兲
as r ⫽ radial location 共m兲
ṁ t ⫽ time 共s兲
ṁ* = = 1 + ṁA* f m共␶兲 共B6兲 U ⫽ velocity 共m/s兲
ṁ M x ⫽ axial coordinate 共m兲
Some examples of these types of mass flow rates were shown in
Secs. 2 and 3. The analysis in the previous subsection clearly Subscripts
shows that if the pressure gradient is known, all other quantities 0 ⫽ averaged quantity
can be obtained by numerical integration. Since for mass flow rate A ⫽ amplitude
controlled flows the pressure gradient is not known a priori, in av ⫽ time averaged mean
order to start the solution, a guessed value for the pressure gradi- C ⫽ cosine term of Fourier series
ent is required. The first guessed value for dimensionless pressure g ⫽ guessed value
gradient was taken as 8, corresponding to the steady part of the M ⫽ time averaged mean
mass flow rate variation. However, since the guessed pressure n ⫽ nth term of Fourier series
gradient is incorrect, the obtained mass flow rate would also be os ⫽ oscillating component
incorrect. Therefore, mathematically, one may write, p ⫽ period

冋冉 冊 册 S ⫽
*
sine term of Fourier series
1 dP
ṁ* − ⫽ ṁ* 共B7兲 w ⫽ wall
␳ dx g
Superscripts
where the subscript “g” indicates the guessed value and ṁ* on the *
⫽ dimensionless quantity
right-hand side is given by Eq. 共B6兲. Let h, which would be a ˆ ⫽ pressure gradient
function of time, be the correction required to the guessed pres-
sure gradient. Thus, one may write Greek Letters

ṁ* 冋冉 冊−
1 dP
␳ dx
*

g
册
+ h共␶兲 = ṁ* 共B8兲
⑀ ⫽
␮ ⫽
␯ ⫽
initialization value
dynamic viscosity
kinematic viscosity
Expanding the above equation by a Taylor series and retaining ␪ ⫽ phase 共rad兲
only up to the first-order terms, the following equation is ob- ␳ ⫽ density 共kg/ m3兲
tained: ␶ ⫽ shear stress

ṁ* 冋冉 冊 册
−
1 dP
␳ dx
*

g
+ h共␶兲
⳵m*
⳵关兵− 1/␳ . 共dP/dx兲其*g兴
= ṁ* 共B9兲
Dimensionless Numbers
F ⫽ 共R2 f兲 / ␯ dimensionless frequency
P*A ⫽ 共dP / dx兲A / 共dP / dx兲 M dimensionless pressure
Therefore, the correction, h共␶兲, is obtained as
amplitude 共=P̂*A兲
ṁ* − ṁ*关兵− 1/␳ . 共dP/dx兲其*g兴 ṁ*A ⫽
h共␶兲 = 共B10兲 ṁA / ṁ M dimensionless mass flow rate
ṁ*/⳵关兵− 1/␳ . 共dP/dx兲其*g兴 amplitude
where the denominator on the right-hand side implies the rate of ṁ* ⫽ ṁ / ṁ M dimensionless mass flow rate
change of mass flow rate with respect to the change in guessed Re ⫽ 共U M D兲 / ␯ Reynolds number
pressure gradient. This term was numerically evaluated from the r* ⫽ r / R dimensionless radial location
basic definition of the partial derivative as follows: ␶ ⫽ 共␯t兲 / R2 dimensionless time
U* ⫽ U / U M dimensionless velocity
⳵ṁ*
⳵关兵− 1/␳ . 共dP/dx兲其*g兴
References
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Transactions of the ASME