Faculty of Engineering

Department of Mechanical Engineering

Fluid Mechanics and Hydraulics Laboratory

Critical Reynolds Number in Pipe Flow

Student Name: mohamad aljafreh

Student ID: 320170103005

Experiment NO.:5

Instructor Name: Dr. N. Beithou

Date:02/08/2021
 1. Objective

The objective of this experiment is to find the critical Reynolds number for the transition range that exits in pipe Flow.

2. Theoretical Background

The Reynolds number is defined as a dimensionless ratio of inertia forces to viscous forces and is used in identifying
Certain characteristics of fluid flow. The Reynolds number can be used to determine whether the flow in a pipe is laminar or
turbulent. A Reynolds number of 2,100 is usually accepted as the transitional value between laminar and turbulent
flow regimes. However, the transition between flows regimes exist over a range of Reynolds numbers. The critical
Reynolds number is the Reynolds number that exists anywhere in the transition region between laminar and
turbulent flow. Given the tube size, the Reynolds number can be calculated with

(1)

Where V is the average velocity in the pipe, D is the hydraulic diameter, and v is the kinematic viscosity of the liquid.
In this experiment, a square pipe and two different sized circular pipes will be used. For a circular pipe flowing full, the
hydraulic diameter equals the inside diameter of the pipe. For a square pipe, the hydraulic diameter will equal the
length of one side.
This can be show with the equation

(2)

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3. Equipment

Figure 1: The critical Reynolds number determination apparatus.

4. Procedure

1- Fill the tank with water and remove any air bubbles in the pipes. Record the water temperature in the tank.

2- Establish laminar flow in one of the pipes by starting a very low flow rate of water and dye. Use the valve at
point B in Figure 1 to adjust the dye flow rate. A seamless, threadlike dye pattern should be achieved in the pipe
at a distance that is about ten hydraulic diameter lengths away from the pipe entrance.

3- Once a laminar flow is achieved, open the Rotameter valve, at point A in Figure 1, slightly to increase the water
flow rate.

4- Increase the water flow rate and observe the dye pattern until the pattern changes by still appears laminar. This
is the beginning of transition. Record this flow rate from the Rotameter.

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 5- Continue increasing the flow rate and observing the dye pattern. Eventually, the dye will completely mix with
the water. The flow will be fully turbulent once this point has been reached. Again, record the flow rate at this
point.

6- Repeat steps 2-5 for the other two pipes. Note to keep the water level in the tank at a constant height
throughout the experiment. Once complete, close the valve at point B to stop the dye flow and drain the tank.
5. Result

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6. Discussion and Conclusions

The target critical Reynolds number for each pipe is 2100. From Table 3 column 3, the Reynolds number for the large
and small circular pipes is close to the accepted value of 2100. However, the Reynolds number calculated for the square
pipe has more error than the other two pipes. This error could have originated from an air bubble that was trapped
inside of the pipe's entrance to the tank. Also, while performing the experiment, a lot of sediment was noticed in the
water. This sediment could have caused turbulence in all three pipes which would have affected the average velocity of
the flowing water. This ultimately would affect the calculated Reynolds numbers for each pipe. Another source of error
could have originated from moving the table that the apparatus is built on. If the table is moved slightly, then the dye
flowing in the pipe would appear to be turbulent for some time. This would have affected our judgment in determining
whether if the flow was turbulent or still laminar. The error in this experiment could be reduced if the water in the tank
is clean and all air is correctly removed from the system. Also, the pipe entrance for each pipe is square and not round. A
rounded pipe entrance would also reduce the error in this lab because it would reduce turbulence caused by square pipe
entrance.

7.INTRODUCTION
In nature and in laboratory experiments, flow may occur under two very different
regimes: laminar and turbulent. In laminar flows, fluid particles move in layers,
sliding over each other, causing a small energy exchange to occur between layers.
Laminar flow occurs in fluids with high viscosity, moving at slow velocity. The
turbulent flow, on the other hand, is characterized by random movements and
intermixing of fluid particles, with a great exchange of energy throughout the fluid.
This type of flow occurs in fluids with low viscosity and high velocity. The
dimensionless Reynolds number is used to classify the state of flow. The Reynolds
Number Demonstration is a classic experiment, based on visualizing flow behavior
by slowly and steadily injecting dye into a pipe. This experiment was first
performed by Osborne Reynolds in the late nineteenth century
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