• DECEMBER 2019

Physical Laws Governing Fluid

Dynamics

Governing Equations of Fluid Dynamics – Lesson 2

Overview

• In order to develop mathematical models of fluid motion, we first need to develop

mathematical equations which govern that motion in terms of the flow parameters we have
described previously.
• To this end we will follow the steps below:
1
Apply physical laws to a Lagrangian fluid parcel. We will state these laws without
detail but will provide references for additional supporting materials as necessary.
2
Apply the Reynold Transport Theorem to transform these laws to a Eulerian
framework. This will result in a set of differential equations, which can be solved for
specific problems by defining suitable boundary conditions and initial conditions
(for unsteady flow problems).

Let’s get started!

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Governing Equations — Lagrangian Form
• Consider a fixed quantity of fluid (a fluid parcel) as it moves through space. We will focus on the
properties of this parcel and the external effects (forces, work, heat transfer) acting on it. The
nomenclature is given below.
𝐹Ԧ𝑠
𝑀 = mass
Ω = volume of fluid parcel 𝑉
𝐴 = surface area of fluid parcel 𝐴
𝑉 = velocity of the fluid parcel
𝐸 = total energy (internal + kinetic + potential) Ω 𝑀
𝑓 = arbitrary scalar (e. g. dye concentration) 𝐸 𝑓
𝑊ሶ = net work done by parcel on its surroundings
𝑄ሶ
𝑄ሶ = net heat transfer to parcel from surroundings 𝑊ሶ
𝐹Ԧ𝑠 = net surface forces acting parcel boundary 𝐹Ԧ𝑏
𝐹Ԧ𝑏 = net body force acting on parcel

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A Note on Surface Area Orientation

• The differential surface area on our fluid parcel

is defined by an outward pointing surface 𝑛ො
normal vector.

• This orientation is important when defining

surface stresses and fluxes so that the signs of 𝑑𝐴
those terms are consistent as we develop the
governing equations.

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Physical Laws – Lagrangian Form – Conservation of Mass
• Conservation of Mass – Lagrangian Form
• Mass is neither created nor destroyed in the moving fluid parcel.

𝑑𝑀
=0
𝑑𝑡

• This essentially says that the matter within our parcel cannot change since, by definition, no mass
crosses the boundary of the parcel.

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Physical Laws – Lagrangian Form – Conservation of Momentum
• Conservation of Momentum – Lagrangian Form
• The rate of change of momentum = sum of the forces acting on the fluid.

𝑑 𝑀𝑉
= 𝐹Ԧ𝑠 + 𝐹Ԧ𝑏
𝑑𝑡

• This is simply a familiar restatement of Newton’s Second Law for moving masses. The time
derivative represents the time rate of change of the parcel’s momentum, and the forces acting on
the parcel are simply the surface forces (due to pressure and friction) and body forces (due
to gravitational fields and similar effects).
• Note that the surface forces act only on the parcel’s surface boundary, while the body force
(e. g., due to gravity) acts on the volume (i.e., the mass of the parcel).

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Physical Laws – Lagrangian Form – Conservation of Energy

• Conservation of Energy – Lagrangian Form

‐ The change in total energy = net heat transfer - net rate of work done by the fluid

𝑑𝐸
= 𝑄ሶ − 𝑊ሶ
𝑑𝑡

‐ This is a restatement of the First law of Thermodynamics.

‐ The heat transfer can occur due to thermal conduction from the adjacent fluid.
‐ Energy transfer due to work can come from many sources, including mechanical mixing and viscous
effects.
‐ Sources may also be introduced to account for radiation and chemical reactions, though we will
not consider these effects in this course.

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How Do We Connect the Lagrangian and Eulerian Forms?

• The Lagrangian form of the governing equations is convenient

for stating the physical laws governing fluid motion. However,
Moving Parcel
they are not traditionally convenient for formulating governing
equations mathematically as differential equations.
• We therefore need a bridge between the moving parcel
Lagrangian form and the more convenient stationary control
volume Eulerian form of the equations. That bridge is the Ω
Reynolds Transport Theorem.
• To help convey the idea, consider a fixed control volume Ω of
arbitrary shape as shown in the figure. Imagine now that a
parcel of fluid of the same shape suddenly occupies the same
space as the control volume at a given instant in time.
Fixed Control Volume

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Reynolds Transport Theorem
• Let F represent some extensive property associated with the fluid parcel.

𝐹 = ම 𝜌𝑓 𝑑𝛺 Note: 𝑓 can be either scalar

or vector function
𝛺

• The Reynolds Transport Theorem relates the Lagrangian derivative of some property with changes in
that property in the fixed Eulerian control volume as follows:

𝑑𝐹 𝜕 𝜌𝑓
= ම 𝑑Ω + ඾ 𝑓 𝜌𝑉 ∙ 𝑛ො 𝑑𝐴
𝑑𝑡 𝜕𝑡
Ω 𝐴

Lagrangian Eulerian

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Governing Equations – Eulerian Form
• Using Reynolds Transport Theorem, we can convert the governing equations in the Lagrangian
form to differential equations in the Eulerian framework:
1 Apply Reynolds Transport Theorem to the Lagrangian forms of the physical laws.

2 Convert surface integrals to volume integrals using Gauss’ Divergence Theorem from
vector calculus:
Note: for conciseness we will
඾ 𝑈 ∙ 𝑛ො 𝑑𝐴 = ම 𝛻 ∙ 𝑈 𝑑𝛺 refer to this as “Divergence
Theorem” for the rest of the
𝐴 𝛺 course.

where 𝑈 is any vector function.

3 Collect all terms on one side of the equation and assert that the integral is satisfied for
an arbitrary volume, hence the integrand must be zero.

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Summary

• This lesson has outlined our strategy for developing the governing equations of fluid dynamics by using
the Reynolds Transport Theorem to convert the Lagrangian forms of the physical laws to the equivalent
Eulerian forms.

• We will continue in the next lesson by considering our first governing equation, the conservation of
mass equation.

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