Advanced Fluid Mechanics

Flow of Viscous Fluids

and Boundary Layer Flow

Lectures 3 and 4
Continuity and Navier-Stokes equations
for incompressible flow of Newtonian fluid

υ ρ
Steady, incompressible flow of Newtonian fluid in an
infinite channel with stationery plates
- fully developed plane Poiseuille flow
Fixed plate
y
z x 2a
Fluid flow direction

Fixed plate

Step 1: Choose the equation to describe the flow

Navier-Stokes equation will be used since the system
considered is an incompressible flow (Assumption 1) of
a Newtonian fluid (Assumption 2)

Step 2: Choose the coordinate system

Cartesian coordinate system is chosen
Continuity and Navier-Stokes equations
for incompressible flow of Newtonian fluid
in Cartesian coordinates

Continuity:

Navier-Stokes:
x - component:

y - component:

z - component:

R. Shanthini
25 Aug 2010
Steady, incompressible flow of Newtonian fluid in an
infinite channel with stationery plates
- fully developed plane Poiseuille flow
Fixed plate
y
z x 2a
Fluid flow direction

Fixed plate

Step 3: Decide upon the functional dependence of the

velocity components

x direction: u = function of (t, x, y, z)

y direction:
z direction:
v = function of (t, x, y, z)
w = function of (t, x, y, z) } (1)
Assumption (3): steady flow and therefore no change in time

Assumption (4): infinite channel and therefore nothing

happens in z-direction

Assumption (5): fully developed flow and therefore no change in

the flow direction (that is, x-direction)

Using the above 3 assumptions, we reduce (1) to the following:

x direction: u = function of (y)

y direction:
z direction:
v = function of (y)
w=0 } (2)
Step 4: Use the continuity equation in Cartesian coordinates

u v w v
  0 0
x y z y

v  constant or v0

Flow geometry shows that vv can not

be a constant, and therefore we choose
Fixed plate
y v
z
v0 x 2a
Fluid flow direction

Fixed plate
The functional dependence of the velocity components
therefore reduces to
x direction: u = function of (y)
y direction:
z direction:
v=0
w=0 } (3)

Step 5: Using the N-S equation, we get

x - component:

y - component:

z - component:

R. Shanthini
25 Aug 2010
N-S equation therefore reduces to
p  2u
x - component:    2  g x  0
x y
p
y - component:   g y  0
y
p
z - component:   g z  0
z
Ignoring gravitational effects, we get
p  2u
x - component:   2 0 (4)
x y
p
y - component:  0 p is not a function of y
y p is a function
p of x only
z - component:  0 p is not a function of z
z


Rewriting (4), we get

 2 u 1 p
 (5)
y 2
 x

p is a function of x only and  is a constant and

therefore RHS is a function of x only

u is a function of y only and therefore LHS is a

function of y only

Therefore (5) gives, function of (y) = function of (x) = constant

p
It means p   = constant
x
That is, pressure gradient in the x-direction is a constant.

LHS = left hand side of the equation

RHS = right hand side of the equation
Rewriting (5), we get

 2 u 1 p  p
  (6)
y 2
 x 
p
where p   is the constant pressure gradient in the x-direction
x

Since u is only a function of y, the partial derivative becomes an

ordinary derivative.

Therefore, (5) becomes

d 2u p
 (7)
dy 2

Integrating (6), we get
p y 2
u  C1 y  C 2 (8)
 2
where C1 and C2 are constants to be
ya Fixed plate

determined using the boundary y

conditions given below: x 2a
u0 at ya no-slip Fluid flow direction

u0 at y  a } boundary
condition y  a Fixed plate

Substituting the boundary conditions in (8), we get

p a 2
C1  0 and C2 
 2

p 2
Therefore, (8) reduces to u
2
 a  y 2  Parabolic
velocity profile
Steady, incompressible flow of Newtonian fluid in an
infinite channel with one plate moving at uniform velocity

- fully developed plane Couette-Poiseuille flow

p y 2
u  C1 y  C 2 (8) ya Moving plate
 2 at velocity U
y
where C1 and C2 are constants to be
determined using the boundary
x 2a
Fluid flow direction
conditions given below:
u U at ya no-slip y  a Fixed plate
u0 at y  a } boundary
condition

Substituting the boundary conditions in (8), we get

U U p a 2
C1  and C2  
2a 2  2
Therefore, (8) reduces to
p 2
u
2
 a  y 
2 U
2a
 a  y  Parabolic velocity profile
is super imposed on a
linear velocity profile
Steady, incompressible flow of Newtonian fluid in an
infinite channel with one plate moving at uniform velocity

- fully developed plane Couette-Poiseuille flow

ya Moving plate

p 2
u
2
 a  y 
2 U
2a
a  y y at velocity U

x 2a
Fluid flow direction
If zero pressure gradient is maintained
in the flow direction, then ∆p = 0. y  a Fixed plate

Therefore, we get
U
u  a  y  Linear velocity profile
2a

Point to remember:
- Pressure gradient gives parabolic profile
- Moving wall gives linear profile
Steady, incompressible flow of Newtonian fluid in a pipe
- fully developed pipe Poisuille flow

Fixed pipe φ
r
z Fluid flow direction 2a 2a

Workout on your own

Steady, incompressible flow of Newtonian fluid between
a stationary outer cylinder and a rotating inner cylinder
- fully developed pipe Couette flow
Step 1: Continuity and Navier-Stokes equations are used

Step 2: Cylindrical polar coordinate is chosen

Step 3: functional dependence of the velocity components are

determined
φ
r direction: ur = function of (t, r, , z)
 direction: u = function of (t, r,  , z)
z direction: uz = function of (t, r,  , z) a r
b z
aΩ
Assumptions:
- Steady flow no time dependence
- fully developed no change in the axial (z)-direction
- axi-symmetric flow no change in the tangential ( )-direction

Flow condition: no flow in the axial (z-) direction is assumed.

r direction: ur = function of (r)

 direction: u = function of (r) a r
z direction: uz = 0 b z
aΩ
Step 4: Use the continuity equation

ur = constant/r or ur = 0

Flow geometry shows that velocity component in the r-direction can not
be a constant divided by r in order to satisfy the “no flow through the
walls” boundary conditions, and therefore we choose ur = 0

r direction: ur = 0 a r
 direction: u = function of (r) b z
z direction: uz = 0 aΩ
 r direction: ur = 0
 direction: u = function of (r)
z direction: uz = 0

Step 5: Using the N-S equation, ignoring the gravity, we get

Radial component:

Tangential component:

Axial component:
Radial component of the N-S equation reduces to
u2 p
 
r r
which gives
p u2
 (9)
r r

Can you identify the centrifugal force???

Axial component of the N-S equation reduces to

p
0 p is not a function of z
z
Tangential component of the N-S equation reduces to

1 p  1   u  u 
0    r   2  (10)
r   r r  r  r 
which gives
p  1 d  du  u 
 r   r   2  = function of r only = f(r) (say)
  r dr  dr  r 
p
Starting from  f (r ) , we get p    f (r )

which gives p  0 at   0 and p  2  f ( r ) at   2

Pressure takes different values at   0 and at   2 , which is the

same point in the tangential direction. Since pressure is continuous,
it is impossible.
p
Therefore, we conclude f(r) = 0, which gives 0 (11)

R. Shanthini
25 Aug 2010
Combining (10) and (11), we get
1 d  du  u
 r   2 (12)
r dr  dr  r

Radial component was

p u2
 (9)
r r

There are two unknowns and two equations.

Solve (12) to get the tangential velocity component u

Then solve (9) to get the pressure p

 C2
Integrating (12) gives u  C1r  (13)
r
where C1 and C2 are constants to be determined using the
no-slip boundary conditions given below:
u  a at r  a
u  0 at r  b
Substituting the boundary conditions in (13) gives
φ
a 2 a 2b2
C1   2 and C 2  2
b  a2 b  a2
a r
Therefore (13) could be written as
b z
aΩ
a 2  b2 
u  2   r  (14)
R. Shanthini
b  a 2
 r 
25 Aug 2010
 a 2  b2 
u  2   r  (14)
b  a2  r 

Let us introduce the following non-dimensional variables:

u r
u  and r 
a a

Using the non-dimensional, (14) is reduced to the following:

1  (b / a ) 2 
u  
  r  (15)
(b / a )  1  r
2


This simple circular flow exists only at low rotational speed

of the inner cylinder.
As the rotational speed increases, this simple steady flow is
replaced by another steady flow in which the space between
cylinders is filled with (Taylor) vortices.