Chapter 2: Properties of Fluids

CHAPTER 2
Fluid Properties

Example 1.
A certain gas weighs 16 N/m3 at a certain temperature and pressure. What are the values of its density,
specific volume, and specific gravity relative to air weighing 12 N/m3?

Solution:
Solving for ρg:
 g  g g
N  m
16 3
  g  9.81 2 
m  s 
kg
  g  1.63 3 answer
m
Solving for υg:
1
g 
g
1 m3
g   0.613 answer
kg kg
1.63 3
m
Solving for SGg:
g
SGg 
a
N
3
16
SGg  m  1.33 answer
N
12 3
m

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Example 2.
A team is designing a helium-filled balloon that will fly to an altitude of 80,000 ft. As the balloon ascends,
the upward force (buoyant force) will need to exceed the total weight. Thus, weight is critical. Estimate the weight
(in Newton’s) of the helium inside the balloon. The balloon is inflated at a site where the atmospheric pressure is
0.89 bar and the temperature is 22°C. When inflated prior to launch, the balloon is spherical (radius 1.3 m) and the
inflation pressure equals the local atmospheric pressure.

Solution:

Situation: The application is a helium filled balloon of radius r = 1.3 m.

 100kPa 
0.89bar    89kPa
P=  1bar 
T = 22oC + 273 = 295 K
r = 1.3 m

Find: Weight of helium inside the balloon

J
2077
Properties: From Table A.2, RHe = kg  K

Analysis:
Solving for VHe:

4 4
VHe   r 3    1.3m   9.202m3
3

3 3
Solving for ρ using ideal gas law:
P

RT
89, 000 J kg
  0.145 3
 J  m
 2077 kg  K   295K 
 
 The weight of helium inside the balloon is;
W  V
W   gV
 kg  m
 m  s 
 
W   0.145 3  9.81 2  9.202m3  13.08 N answer

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Example 3.]
If the viscosity of water at 70 oC is 0.00402 poise and its specific gravity is 0.978. Determine its absolute
viscosity in Pa-s and its kinematic viscosity in m2/s and in stokes.

Solution:
Absolute viscosity
μ = (0.00402 poise)(0.1 Pa-s/poise) = 0.000402 Pa-s

solving for ρf:

f
S .G. 
w
f
0.978 
kg
1000
m3
kg
 f  978
m3
Kinematic viscosity
N
0.000402 s
 m 2  4.11x10 7 m
2
 
f 978 3
kg s
m
 
 m  1 stoke 
2 
   4.11x107    0.00411 stoke
 s  m2 
 0.0001 
 s 

Example 4.]
Two large plane surfaces are 25-mm apart and the space between them is filled with a liquid of viscosity μ
= 0.958 Pa-s. Assuming the velocity gradient to be a straight line, what force is required to pull a very thin plate of
0.37m2 area at a constant speed of 0.3m/s if the plate is 8.4 mm from one of the surfaces.

Solution:

ΣF=0
F = F1 + F2
F

  A
U U
y y

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Solving for F1:

F1
N 2
0.958 2  0.37m
m m
0.3
s
0.0166m
F1  6.4N ans.
Solving for F2:
F2
N 2
0.958 2  0.37m
m m
0.3
s
0.0084m
F2  12.66 ans.

Therefore,

F = 6.4N + 12.66N = 19.06N ans.

Example 5.]
The viscosity of a fluid is to be measured by a viscometer constructed of two 75-cm-long concentric
cylinders. The outer diameter of the inner cylinder is 15 cm, and the gap between the two cylinders is 0.12 cm. The
inner cylinder is rotated at 200 rpm, and the torque is measured to be 0.8 N · m. Determine the viscosity of the fluid.

Solution:

Given:
L = 75 cm
ω = 200 rpm = 20.943 rad/s
Torque = 0.8 N-m
Find: µ

Analysis:
 y
 
U U
y

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Solving for U:
U  r
 rad 
U   0.075m   20.943 
 s 
m
U  1.571
s
Solving for τ:
Torque  F  r 
Torque   A  r 
Torque   2 rL  r    2 r 2 L
0.8 N  m   2  0.075m   0.75m 
2

N
  30.18
m2
 N 
 30.18 m 2   0.0012m 
     0.0231Pa  sec answer
m
1.571
s

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Example 6.]
What is the value of the surface tension of a small drop of water 0.3mm in diameter which is in contact
with air if the pressure within the droplet is 561 Pa?

Solution:
4 s
P 
d
N 4 s
561 2 
m 0.0003m
N
  0.042 answer
m
Example 7.]
Consider a soap bubble 2 mm in diameter and a droplet of water, also 2 mm in diameter, that are falling in
air. If the value of the surface tension for the film of the soap bubble is assumed to be the same as that for water,
which has the greater pressure inside it? (a) The bubble, (b) the droplet, (c) neither—the pressure is the same for
both.

Solution:

For soap bubble:

4 ssb 8 ssb
Psb  
R d
P d
 ssb  sb
8
For droplet of liquid:
4 sd
Pd 
d
P d
 sd  d
4
Taking,
 ssb   sd
Psb d Pd d

8 4
Psb  2Pd

Therefore, the greater pressure is the bubble. Answer

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Example 8.]
To what height above the reservoir level will water (@20 oC) rise in a glass tube, such as shown in figure, if
the inside diameter of the tube is 1.6 mm?

Solution:
For water @ 20oC:
γ = 9.79 kN/m3
σ = 0.073 N/m

4σ 4 ( 0 . 073 N m)
Δh= = =0 .0186 m or 18 . 6mm ans .
γd 9790 N 3 ( 0 . 0016 m )
( m )

Example 9.]
A 10 in3 sample of water is compressed in a cylinder until it pressure is increase from 100 to 2000 psi. Find
the;
a.) Change in the volume of water
b.) Percent change in volume of water
c.) Percent change in the density of water.

Solution:

a.) Solving for ΔV:

− ΔP
EB = ΔV
V
−( 2000-100 ) Psi
312 ,000 psi= ΔV
10 in 3
ΔV = - 0.06089 in3
b.) Solving for %ΔV:
Decrease volume 0 . 06089 in3
%ΔV = = =0. 6089 %
Original Volume 10 in 3

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c.) Solving for %Δρ:

ρ2
%Δρ=
ρ1
From; m1 = m2
ρ1 V 1 =ρ2 V 2
ρ2 V 1 10 in 3
= = =100 .613 %
ρ1 V 2 9 .939 in 3

Example 10.]
A motorist equips his motorcycle with a relief type valve so that the pressure inside the tire will never
exceed 240 kPa (gage). He starts a trip with a pressure of 200 kPa (gage) and a temperature of 23 oC in the tires.
During the long drive the temperature of the air in the tires reaches 83 oC. Each tire contains 0.11 kg of air.
Determine a.) The mass of the air escaping each tire; b.) The pressure of the tire when the temperature returns to
23oC.

Solution:

Considering constant volume process, V = C.

P1 = 200 kPag + 101.325 kPa = 301.325 kPaa
T1 = 23oC + 273 = 296 K
T2 = 83oC + 273 = 356 K

a.) Find the mass of air escaping each tire.

Solving for P2:

P1 P2

T1 T2
301.325kPa P
 2
296 K 356 K
 P2  362.40kPaa  261.079kPag

Based upon the solution above, the final pressure is greater than the requirement of relief-type valve;
therefore P2 will remain at 240 kPag.

Solving for V1:

1 1  mRT1
PV
 kN   kJ 
 301.325 2   V1    0.11kg   0.287   296 K 
 m   kg  K 
V1  0.031m3
Take;
V1  V2  0.031m3
Solving for m after a long travel;

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2 2  mRT2
PV
 kJ 
 240kPag  101.325kPa   0.031m3   m  0.287   356 K 
 kg  K 
 m  0.10356kg
Therefore;
mass of air escape  0.11kg  0.10356 kg  0.00644 kg answer

b.) Find pressure of the tire when the temperature returns to 23oC.
PV  mRT
 kJ 
P  0.031m3    0.10356kg   0.287   296 K 
 kg  K 
 P  283.79kPaa  182.46kPag answer

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REVIEW PROBLEMS
1. A cylindrical tank 80 cm in diameter and 90 cm high is filled with a liquid. The tank and the liquid weighed
420 kg. The weight of the empty tank is 40 kg. Determine the following properties of the liquid:
a. Unit weight, in kN/m3
b. Mass Density, in kg/m3
c. Specific Gravity, SG
Ans. γ = 8.24 kN/m3; ρ = 839.96 kg/m3; SG = 0.839

2. Natural gas is stored in a spherical tank at a temperature of 10°C. At a given initial time, the pressure in the
tank is 100 kPa gage, and the atmospheric pressure is 100 kPa absolute. Some time later, after considerably
more gas is pumped into the tank, the pressure in the tank is 200 kPa gage, and the temperature is still 10°C.
What will be the ratio of the mass of natural gas in the tank when p = 200 kPa gage to that when the pressure
was 100 kPa gage?

3. Initially when 1000 ml of water at 10oC are poured into a glass cylinder the depth of the water column is 100
cm. the water and its container are heated to 80oC. Assuming no evaporation, what then will be the depth of
mm
the water column if the coefficient of thermal expansion for the glass is 3.6 x 10-6 ?
mm−° C

4. A block of weight W slides down an inclined plane while lubricated by a thin film of oil, as in Figure. The
film contact area is A and its thickness is h. Assuming a linear velocity distribution in the film, derive an
expression for the “terminal” (zero-acceleration) velocity V of the block.

5. An amazing number of commercial and laboratory devices have been developed to measure the viscosity of
fluids. The concentric rotating shaft is an example of a rotational viscometer. Let the inner and outer
cylinders have radii ri and ro, respectively, with total sleeve length L. Let the rotational rate be Ω (rad/s) and
the applied torque be M. Derive a theoretical relation for the viscosity of the clearance fluid,µ, in terms of
these parameters.

6. A dragonfly is suspended on the surface of a pond by surface tension (water does not wet the legs). The
dragonfly has six legs, and each leg is in contact with the water over a length of 5 mm. What is the maximum
mass (in grams) of the dragonfly if it is to avoid sinking?

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7. Nutrients dissolved in water are carried to upper parts of plants by tiny tubes partly because of the capillary
effect. Determine how high the water solution will rise in a tree in a 0.005-mm-diameter tube as a result of the
capillary effect. Treat the solution as water at 20°C with a contact angle of 15o.
Answer: 5.75 m

8. Contrary to what you might expect, a solid steel ball can float on water due to the surface tension effect.
Determine the maximum diameter of a steel ball that would float on water at 20 oC. What would your answer
be for an aluminum ball? Take the densities of steel and aluminum balls to be 7800 kg/m 3 and 2700 kg/m3,
respectively.

9. Calculate the change in enthalpy as 1 kg of Nitrogen is heated from 1000 K to 1500 K, assuming the Nitrogen
is an ideal gas at a constant pressure. The temperature dependent specific heat of Nitrogen is C p = 39.06 –
512.79T-1.5 + 1072.7T-2 – 820.4T-3 where Cp is in kJ/kg-mol, and T is in Kelvin.

10. Gas in a cylinder obeys Boyle’s Law: PV = C. at a certain instant there are 50 m 3 of gas in the container at a
pressure of 30 kPa. If the pressure is decreasing at the rate of 0.6 kPa/hr, find the rate of change of the
volume.

11. The adiabatic law: PV1.4 = C applies to the expansion of air. At a certain instant the volume is observed to be
2.0 m3, and the pressure is 15 kPa. If the volume is decreasing at the rate of 0.05 m 3/s. How fast is the
pressure changing?

12. A rigid cylinder of 200 mm diameter contains SAE 30 oil over water, as shown in Figure 4. If a force F of 1
MN is applied to the piston rod, how far will the piston move downward?
Ans: 17.4 mm

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13. A closed vessel A contains 3 ft 3 of air at PA = 500 psia and a temperature of TA = 120oF. This vessel connects
with vessel B, which contains an unknown volume of air V B at 15 psia and 50oF. After the valve separating
the two vessels is opened, the resulting pressure and temperature are P m = 200 psia and Tm = 70oF,
respectively. What is the volume VB?

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