Hydrostatic Forces in Curved Surfaces

CE309 – Fluid Mechanics

Engr. Larriz Samudio

Faculty Member
Civil Engineering Department
Intended Learning Outcomes

• To analyze the hydrostatic pressure on curved surfaces in a given condition.

• To compute horizontal and vertical components of hydrostatic force on curved surfaces

and its resultant under various circumstances.

• To determine the location of the resultant hydrostatic force on curved surfaces.

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Hydrostatic Forces

• If a submerged surface is curved, then the

pressure acting on the surface will change not
only its magnitude but also its direction, since it
must always act normal to the surface.

• In this case, it is generally best to determine the

horizontal and vertical components of the
resultant force caused by the pressure, and then
use vector addition to find the resultant.

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Liquid Below Curve Surface

Hydrostatic Forces in Curved Surfaces 4

Liquid Above Curve Surface

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Liquid Above and Below Curve Surface

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Sample Problem 1

• The submerge curve AB is one quarter of a

circle of radius 2 m and is located on the
lower corner of a tank as shown. The
length of the tank perpendicular to the
sketch is 4 m. Find the magnitude and
location of the horizontal and vertical
components of the total force acting on
AB.

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Sample Problem 2

• Determine the resultant force the oil exerts

on the semicircular surface AB. The tank
has a width of 3 m. Take 𝜌𝑜 = 900 kg/m3.

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Sample Problem 3

• Calculate the magnitude of the resultant

force per meter length due to water acting
on the radial tainter gate shown in the
figure.

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Sample Problem 4

• In the figure shown, the 1.20m diameter

cylinder, 1.20 m long is acted upon by
water on the left and oil having a sp. gr. of
0.80 on the right. Determine the
components of the reaction at B if the
cylinder weighs 19.62 kN.

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Sample Problem 5

• The semicircular plate in the figure is 4 m

long and acts as a gate in a channel.
Determine the resultant force the water
pressure exerts on the plate, and then find
the components of reaction at the hinge
(pin) B and at the smooth support A.
Neglect the weight of the plate.

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