 Specific weight γ of a fluid is its weight, W =mg , per unit volume.

Density and specific weight are related by

gravity. In the British Gravitational (BG) system (Sec. 1.5) Specific weight γ represents the force exerted by
gravity on a unit volume of fluid, and therefore must have the units of force per unit volume, such as pounds
per cubic foot ( N /m 3in SI units).

γ = ρg

 Pressure p is the (compression) force exerted by a fluid per unit area.

F
P=
A
In fluids, gases and liquids, we speak of pressure; in solids this is normal stress. For a fluid at rest, the
pressure at a given point is the same in all directions.

 Temperature T is a measure of the internal energy; it is also a pointer for the direction of energy transfer as
heat. When the temperatures of two bodies are the same, thermal equilibrium is reached. The equality of
temperature is the only requirement for thermal equilibrium. Experimentally obtained Temperature Scales,
the Celsius and Fahrenheit scales, are based on the melting and boiling points of water. They are also called
two‐point scales. Conventional thermometry depends on material properties e.g. mercury expands with
temperature in a repeatable and predictable way. Thermodynamic Temperature Scales (independent of the
material), the Kelvin and Rankine scales, are determined using a constant volume gas thermometer. The
relationships between these scales are:

T ( K )=T ( ° C ) +273.15
T ( R )=T ( ° F ) + 459.67

T ( R )=1.8 T (K )
T ( ° F )=1.8 T ( ° C ) +32
 Viscosity is a measure of a fluid’s resistance to flow. It determines the fluid strain rate that is generated by a
given applied shear stress.

A Newtonian fluid has a linear relationship between shear stress and velocity gradient:

du
τ =μ
dy
The shear stress is proportional to the slope of the velocity profile and is greatest at the wall. The shear
stress is proportional to the slope of the velocity profile and is greatest at the wall.
PROCEDURE:

A: DETERMINATION OF SPECIFIC GRAVITY

Materials: U-tube, ruler, dropper, kerosene/gasoline, water, various liquids

Steps:

1. Set the U-tube apparatus on the table and prepare the liquids that will be used. There
should be water, a liquid provided (i.e. kerosene, gasoline or oil), and a minimum of 4
other liquids.
2. Drop an amount of water into the U-tube using the dropper/ syringe. Make sure that the
amount of water is enough to occupy the lowest part of the U-tube. The water level in
the left and right legs of the U-tube should almost be the same.
3. Drop an amount of the liquid provided (Liquid 1) into the left leg of
the U-tube, and then into the right leg. Make sure they are of unequal
heights, one obviously greater than the other. Tap the tube to
remove bubbles formed or use a long stick to poke them out to the
surface.
4. Using your ruler, measure the height of Liquid 1 on the left leg of the
U-tube and then the right leg. Record the greater height as h1 and
smaller as h2 (See Figure). Take note that the h1 should always be
the greater height.
5. Measure the difference in level between the interfaces (where Liquid 1and water meet
but do not mix) and record it as h3.
h3
6. Compute the specific gravity (SG) of liquid 1 using the formula: SG liquid1 =
h 1−h2
7. Repeat steps 2 to 6 until 4 trials. Compute for the average SG of the Liquid 1.
8. With the known specific gravity of Liquid 1, this will now be used as the gage liquid to
determine the specific gravity of the other 5 liquids. Using water will not work since it mixes
with most liquids leaving no interface to read from.
9. Empty the U-tube. Repeat steps 1 to 7 using liquids 1 and 2 this time. Note that Liquid 1 is
still the gage liquid.
If the Liquid 2 floats on the Liquid 1, the formula for SG of Liquid 2 is:

If the Liquid 2 sinks beneath Liquid 1, the formula changes to:

10. Do four (4) trials. Record.

11. Repeat the procedure to determine the SG of the remaining liquids still using Liquid 1 as
the gage liquid.
12. Compute and record the average specific gravity of the other liquids.

B: DETERMINATION OF UNIT WEIGHT

Materials: Graduated cylinder, Triple Beam Balance, Beaker, String with object, water and
various liquids

METHOD 1: DIRECT METHOD

Steps:
1. Take the mass of an empty graduated cylinder. Convert this to weight record as W cyl.
2. Fill this in with water to any predetermined volume and record as V.
3. Weigh the filled up graduated cylinder and record as W cyl+ liquid.
 4. Compute the unit weight γ of the liquid using the formula:

Make the needed conversion so that your final answer is in N/m3

METHOD 1: DISPLACEMENT METHOD

Steps:

1. Fill the graduated cylinder with water. Jot down

of this initial volume of water as V i .
2. Attach the object under the triple beam
balance by a string and measure its weight.
Record this as weight of object in air W air. See
figure.
3. Immerse the object in the graduated cylinder with water while still suspended from the
triple beam balance, measure the weight of the same object. Record this as its weight in
water W water .
4. Note the final volume of water while the object is submerged in the graduated cylinder.
Record this as V f .

W air −W water
5. Calculate the unit weight γ of water by the formula: γ=
V f −V i
6. Repeat the procedure for 5 other liquids.
C: DETERMINATION OF VISCOUSITY OF WATER
Materials: viscometer, triple beam balance, steel ball, vernier caliper, meterstick or ruler,
stopwatch, water
Steps:
m
1. Measure the mass m and diameter D of the steel ball. Calculate the density using ρball = . Record as
v
ρball .
2. Fill the viscometer water up to about a meter full. Mark two horizontal lines on the
viscometer of a predetermined distance.
3. Drop the metal ball into the water and record the time it takes for the sphere to fall the
specified distance. Since the fall time is short, it is important to measure the time as
accurately as possible. Start the stopwatch as soon as the bottom of the sphere hits the
first mark on the cylinder and stop as soon as the bottom of the ball hits the second mark.
Assign at least two people to handle the stopwatch and agree on the value of time to
be recorded.
4. Solve for the terminal velocity by dividing the specified distance with the recorded time
d
of travel v= . Repeat for 4 more trials and compute the average terminal velocity v ave.
t
5. The kinetic viscosity of water is computed using the formula expressed as:

kg m
Note that density of water ρwater =1000 3 ,
g=9.81 2 . Apply the needed conversion ratios to arrive at
m s
2
cm
a viscosity with units or what is known as Stoke.
s
DATA AND RESULTS

A. DETERMINATION OF SPECIFIC GRAVITY.

T LIQUID 1 LIQUID 2 LIQUID 3 LIQUID 4

R WATER AND KEROSENE WATER AND BABY OIL WATER AND COOKING KEROSENE AND SOY
I OIL SAUCE
A h1, h2, h3, SG h1, h2, h3, SG h1, h2, h3, SG h1, h2, h3, SG
L mm m mm m mm m mm m mm mm mm m
m m m m m
1 79 42 27 0.7297 125 50 60 0.8 100 43 53 0.929 89 50 26 0.6667
8
2 91 57 28 0.8235 65 50 12 0.8 120 66 50 0.925 115 72 28 0.6512
9
3 84 53 28 0.9032 135 67 56 0.8235 160 82 72 0.923 105 43 43 0.6935
1
4 92 54 31 0.8158 165 85 67 0.8375 215 125 82 0.911 275 115 111 0.6938
1
AVERAGE SG: 0.8181 0.8153 0.922 0.6763
5

B. DETERMINATION OF UNIT WEIGHT BY METHOD 1: DIRECT METHOD

LIQUID 1 LIQUID 2 LIQUID 3 LIQUID 4

WATER SOY SAUCE COOKING OIL VINEGAR
Weight of empty 1.2576 N 1.2576N 1.2576N 1.2576N
Cylinder Wcyl, N
Weight of Cylinder 1.2576N+1.0242N 1.2576N+1.4274N 1.2576N+1.4872N 1.2576n+1.4872N
+ liquid =2.2818N =2.685N =2.7448N =2.7448N
Wcyl+liquid, N
Volume V, m^3 7.6 x10-5 m3 1.6= x10-5 m3 3.6 x10-5 m3 2.4 x10-5 m3
Unit Weight of 13476.3158 N/ m3 89212.5N /m3 41311.1111 N/ m3 61966.6667N/ m3
Liquid
Y=W/V, N/m^3

DETERMINATION OF UNIT WEIGHT BY METHOD 2: DISPLACEMENT METHOD

LIQUID 1 LIQUID 2 LIQUID 3 LIQUID 4

WATER SOY COOKING OIL ALCOHOL
Weight of object in 0.1942N 0.1942N 0.1942N 0.1942N
Air Wair,N

Weight of object in 0.1727N 0.1687N 0.1746N 0.1746N

the liquid, Wliquid,N
Initial Volume V, 8.2x10-5 m3 3.9x10-5 m3 3.8x10-5 m3 1x10-5 m3
 m^3
Unit Weight of 10750N/ m3 6375N/ m3 6533.3333N/ m3 2177.7778N/ m3
Liquid
Y=Wair-Wh2O/
Vf-Vi, N/m^3

Diameter of steel ball, D, m 0.019 m

Radius of steel bar, r, m 09.53x10-3 m
Specified distance, d, m 0.65 m
Average terminal velocity, v, cm/s 108.819cm/s
Kinematic viscosity of water, µ, St or cm^2/s cm
2
50.375
s
C. DETERMINATIONOF THE VISCOSITY OF WATER
DISTANCE = 0.65cm

TRIAL 1 2 3 4
Specific distance, d, cm 65cm 0.65cm 65cm 65cm
Time, t, s 0.63s 0.59s 0.54s 0.64s
Terminal velocity, 103.175cm/s 110.169cm/s 120.37cm/s 101.563cm/s
v = d/t, cm/s

OBSERVATIONS:

INTERPRETATIONS:

CONCLUSIONS:

PROBLEM SET:

1. A U-tube manometer is connected to a closed tank containing air and

water is shown. At the closed end of the manometer the air pressure is
16 psia. Determine the reading on the pressure gage for a differential
reading of 4 ft on the manometer. Express your answer in psi (gage).
Assume standard atmospheric pressure and neglect the weight of the air
columns in the manometer.

Sol’n:

P1 +γ gage fluid ( 4 ft )+ γ water ( 2 ft )=P gage

lb 2
2
∗1 ft
lb ft
P gage=672 2 =672 2
=4.67 psi
ft 144 ¿
 2. Two pipes are connected by a manometer as shown.
Determine the pressure difference, between the pipes in kPa.

Sol’n:

P A + γ water ( 0.5 m+ 0.6 m )−γ gage fluid ( 0.6 m ) + γ water ( 1.3 m−0.5 m) =PB

P A −PB =γ gage fluid ( 0.6 m )−γ water ( 0.5 m+ 0.6 m+1.3 m−0.5 m )

KN KN
P A −PB =(2.6)(9.81 3
) ( 0.6 m )−9.81 3 (1.9 m )
m m
P A −PB =−3.32 KPa

3. If a cup of cream with a density of 1005 kg/m3 is turned into 3 cups of whipped cream, determine the unit
weight of the whipped cream(wc).

Sol’n:

kg
1005 ∗V
mwc m
3
kg
ρwc = = =335 3
V (3) V (3) m
kg
335
ρwc m
3
SG wc= = =0.33 5
ρwater kg
1000 3
m
kg m N
γ wc =ρwc g=335 3
∗9.81 2 =3290 3
m s m
4. If 6 m3 of oil weighs 47 kN, calculate its specific weight γ, density ρ, and specific gravity.

W 47 KN KN
γ oil = = =7.833 3
V 6m
3
m
47 KN
W 9.81 m
2
m g s kg
ρoil = = = 3
=7 98.5 3
V V 6m m
KN
7.833
γ oil m
3
SG oil = = =0.8
γ water KN
9.81 3
m

REFFERENCES:

 Properties of fluids. (n.d.). McGraw Hill GO. Retrieved September 16, 2023,
from https://www.mhhe.com/engcs/civil/finnemore/graphics/ch02.pdf
 Bahrami, M. (2009). Introduction and Properties of Fluids. Simon Fraser University. Retrieved September 16,
2023, from https://www.sfu.ca/~mbahrami/ENSC%20283/Notes/Intro%20and%20Fluid%20Properties.pdf
 Lane-Serff, G. F. (2009). HydraulicsNotes. The University of Manchester. Retrieved September 16, 2023,
from https://personalpages.manchester.ac.uk/staff/gregory.f.lane-serff/teaching/
hydraulicsnotes0809rev.pdf
 Admin. (2022). Properties Of Fluids - Surface Tension, Pressure, Temperature &
Density. BYJUS. https://byjus.com/physics/properties-of-fluids/
