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The Governing Equations of Fluid Mechanics
The Governing Equations of Fluid Mechanics
The Governing Equations of Fluid Mechanics
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The Navier-Stokes Equations
+ ∇ =0 Mass
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+∇ =− +∇ +∇ − ∇ ̂ + ,
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+∇ =− +∇ +∇ − ∇ ̂ + , Momentum
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+∇ =− +∇ +∇ − ∇ + ,
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+∇ + =∇ ∇ + ̿ + ̇ Energy
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Complexity of Full Navier-Stokes Equations
• Navier-Stokes equations are coupled, nonlinear partial differential equations – there
are no general solutions.
• Only a few very simple problems permit an exact analytical solution (we will look at
some of these in this course).
• Perhaps the BIGGEST complexity of the Navier-Stokes equations is that even if we
could solve them exactly, we would need to resolve all the scales of motion which are
seen in nature – specifically the scales of motion associated with turbulent flow.
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What Can We Do?
• If solving the Navier-Stokes equations directly is impractical, what can we do?
- Simplify the physics and thereby simplify the governing equations
• Obtain exact solutions to simpler forms of the equations.
• Model the effect of turbulence and other physics to further simplify the equations.
- Use numerical techniques (Computational Fluid Dynamics)
• Obtain numerical solutions to the full Navier-Stokes equations or any of their simplified forms.
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Simplified Modeling
• We can approach simplified modeling of fluid motion in several ways:
• Simplified Physics
- Turbulence Modeling Æ Develop models of turbulence that permit practical solutions with
reasonable accuracy.
- Steady-State Assumption Æ Assume that small scale unsteady fluctuations can be modeled or
ignored.
Simpler
- Incompressible Flow Æ Ignore compressibility (e.g., low speed, constant density flow)
- Properties Æ Assume constant properties (e.g., not functions of temperature)
- Boundary Layer Flow Æ Ignore viscous effects away from walls
- Inviscid Flow Æ Ignore viscous effects entirely
- Potential Flow Æ Ignore viscous effects AND assume vorticity of the flow field is negligible
• Dimensional Simplification
- Develop 1D and 2D versions of the governing equations.
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Dimensional Simplification
• For many real-world problems, we can simplify our flow model by
assuming the flow is dimensionally 1D, 2D planar or axisymmetric.
• 1D simplification
- The flow has a primary direction and its properties can be averaged at
planar sections orthogonal to this direction. Quasi-1D nozzle model
- Primarily applicable to internal flows (e.g., pipes, nozzles, diffusers)
• 2D planar simplification
- Assume flow field gradients in one direction are small
- Planar flow field (e.g., flow is modeled in the x-y plane)
- Applicable to a wide range of problems if the flow is primarily 2D (e.g.,
airfoils, bluff bodies, wide ducts, channels, etc.)
• Axisymmetric simplification
- This is a special form of 2D simplification valid when the flow is
independent of the angular variable about the axis
- Applicable to a wide range of problems with axisymmetric geometries: 2D airfoil model
circular pipes, nozzles, bodies of revolutions in external fluid flows
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Summary
• We have looked at the governing equations of fluid dynamics (Navier-Stokes
equations) and considered ways of simplifying them in order to develop tractable
models.
• These include simplifying the physics and dimensionality.
• We will consider these proposed simplifications in more detail in the next lessons.