LINEAR MOMENTUM EQUATION

A/Prof Shaun Chan

https://research.unsw.edu.au/projects/advanced-combustion-diagnostics-
laboratory

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Problems like these cannot be solved using Bernoulli or Energy
Equation

Water Jet Striking a Stationary Plate Wind loading of a wind turbine

Force need to prevent the plate from Horizontal force exerted by the wind on
moving?? the supporting mast??

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Newton’s Laws
Newton’s second law: The acceleration of a body is proportional to the net force
acting on it and is inversely proportional to its mass.

Linear momentum: The product of the mass and the

velocity of a body.
Newton’s second law is also expressed as the rate of
change of the momentum of a body is equal to the net
Issac Newton (1642-1727) force acting on it.

Conservation of momentum principle: The momentum of a system remains constant only when
the net force acting on it is zero.

In fluid mechanics, the net force acting on a system is typically not zero, and we prefer to work
with the linear momentum equation rather than the conservation of momentum principle.
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Choosing a Control Volume
A control volume can be selected as any arbitrary region in space through which
fluid flows, and its bounding control surface can be fixed, moving, and even
deforming during flow.
Many flow systems involve stationary hardware firmly fixed to a stationary
surface, and such system are best analysed using fixed control volume.

Examples of a fixed control volume.

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Choosing a Control Volume
When analysing flow systems that are either moving or deforming, it is usually
more convenient to allow the control volume to move or deform.
In deforming control volume, part of the control surface moves relative to other
parts.

Examples of moving, and deforming control volumes.

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The Linear Momentum Equation

Reynolds Transport Theorem: the link

between the control volume approach
and system approach

Fixed CV:

The sum of all The time rate of change The net flow rate of
external forces of the linear momentum linear momentum out of the
acting on a CV content of the CV control surface by mass flow
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Flashback!!

For energy equation:

Steady
,

Momentum-Flux Correction Factor

The velocity across most inlets and

outlets is not uniform.
The control surface integral may be
converted into algebraic form using a
dimensionless correction factor .

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And if steady flow…

Steady

In this course, = 1 unless it is specified differently.

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Example W5-1 Centrifugal Pump
Fixed Control Volume
Water enters a centrifugal pump axially at atmospheric
pressure at a rate of 0.12 m3/s and at a velocity of 7 m/s, and
leaves in the normal direction along the pump casing.
Determine the force acting on the shaft in the axial direction.

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 Water rocket car 343.5 km/h in 2.5 sec
Powered by an ‘overheated’ water rocket. Water is heated to 260oC in a pressure vessel, which
generates 60 bar of pressure. The superheated water flashes to steam when released through a
rocket nozzle to atmospheric pressure.
The rocket uses 110 litres to do 80 meters.
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Example W5-2 Water Jet Striking a Moving Cart
Moving Control Volume
Water is accelerated by a nozzle to 35 m/s, strikes the vertical back surface of a cart moving
horizontally a constant velocity of 10 m/s relative to the ground, in the flow direction. The mass flow
rate of the water leaving the stationary nozzle is 30 kg/s. After the strike, the water stream splatters
off in all directions in the plane of the back surface,
(a) Determine the force that needs to be applied by the brakes of the cart to prevent it from
accelerating.
(b) If the mass of the cart is 400 kg and the brake fails, determine the initial acceleration of the cart
when the water first strikes it (Assume the mass of water that wets the back surface is negligible).
Hint:
, , ,

, , ,

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Flow with No External Force
For situations (i.e. satellites) where no external forces act on the body in the direction of
motion, the equation becomes…

In the absence of external forces, the rate of change of the momentum of a control
volume is equal to the difference between the rates of incoming and outgoing
momentum flow rates.
If the mass of control volume is nearly constant…

The thrust force acting on the body therefore becomes

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SpaceX Falcon 9 Landing

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Example W5-3 Deceleration of a Spacecraft
Falcon with a mass of 12,000 kg is dropping vertically towards the speed of 800 m/s. To slow down
the spacecraft, a solid rocket at the bottom is fired and the combustion gases leave the rocket at a
constant rate of 80 kg/s and at a velocity of 3000 m/s relative to the spacecraft motion and in the
direction of the spacecraft for 5 s.
Disregard the small change in mass, determine (a) the deceleration of the spacecraft during the
period, (b) the change in the velocity of the spacecraft, and (c) the thrust exerted on the spacecraft.

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Bernoulli Equation:

Energy Equation:

, ,

Linear Momentum Equation:

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Example W5-4 Linear Momentum + Bernoulli
90° Elbow
A 90° elbow in a horizontal pipe is used to direct water flow upward at a rate of 30 kg/s. The
diameter of the entire elbow is 10 cm. The elbow discharge water into the atmosphere. The
elevation difference between the centres of the exit and the inlet of the elbow is 40 cm. The weight
of the elbow and the water in it is considered to be negligible. Determine the gauge pressure at the
centre of the inlet of the elbow and the anchoring force needed to hold the elbow in place. Take the
to be 1.03.

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Example W5-5 Linear Momentum + Mass Balance
Floating Car
A car is mounted onto a square platform, with four 5 cm diameter nozzles attached to all four
corners. A water jet with a maximum 15 m/s velocity can be produced from each nozzle. The car,
the platform and the nozzles have a combined mass of 150 kg. Determine (a) the minimum water
jet velocity needed to raise the car, and (b) the time it takes to raise the car to reach 10 m height,
using the maximum jet velocity, (c) and the velocity of the platform at that instant.

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London, England (CNN) -- The world's largest offshore wind farm opened off the
British coast, with 100 wind turbines capable of supplying enough electricity for
200,000 homes a year.
The farm, off the coast of Kent in southern England, is part of a major renewable
energy initiative spearheaded by the previous British government.
Swedish energy company Vattenfall will operate the farm after having invested
around 880 million pounds ($1.38 billion).

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Example W5-6 Linear Momentum + Energy Equation
Wind Loading of a Wind Turbine
A wind generator with a 9-m-diameter blade span has a cut-in
wind speed of 11 km/h, at which velocity the turbine generates
0.4 kW of electric power. Take the density of air to be 1.22
kg/m3.
Determine the efficiency of the wind turbine-generator unit and
the horizontal force exerted by the wind on the supporting mast
of the wind turbine.
Hint:

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