Pressure and Manometers
1.1
What will be the (a) the gauge pressure and (b) the absolute pressure
of water at depth 12m below the surface? rwater
= 1000 kg/m3, and p atmosphere = 101kN/m2.
[117.72 kN/m2, 218.72 kN/m2]
1.2
At what depth below the surface of oil, relative density 0.8,
will produce a pressure of 120 kN/m2? What depth of
water is this equivalent to?
[15.3m, 12.2m]
1.3
What would the pressure in kN/m2 be if the equivalent
head is measured as 400mm of (a) mercury g=13.6
(b) water ( c) oil specific weight 7.9 kN/m3 (d) a
liquid of density 520 kg/m3?
[53.4 kN/m2, 3.92 kN/m2, 3.16 kN/m2,
2.04 kN/m2]
1.4
A manometer connected to a pipe indicates a negative gauge pressure
of 50mm of mercury. What is the absolute pressure in the pipe
in Newtons per square metre if the atmospheric pressure is 1 bar?
[93.3 kN/m2]
1.5
What height would a water barometer need to be to measure atmospheric
pressure of 1 bar?
[>10.19m]
1.6
An inclined manometer is required to measure an air pressure of
3mm of water to an accuracy of +/- 3%. The inclined arm is 8mm
in diameter and the larger arm has a diameter of 24mm. The manometric
fluid has density 740 kg/m3 and the scale may be read
to +/- 0.5mm.
What is the angle required to ensure the desired accuracy may
be achieved?
[7.6]
1.7
Determine the resultant force due to the water acting on the 1m
by 2m rectangular area AB shown in the diagram below.
[43 560 N, 2.37m from O

1.8
Determine the resultant force due to the water acting on the 1.25m
by 2.0m triangular area CD shown in the figure above. The apex
of the triangle is at C.
[23.8103N, 2.821m from P]
Forces on submerged surfaces
2.1
Obtain an expression for the depth of the centre of pressure of
a plane surface wholly submerged in a fluid and inclined at an
angle to the free surface of the liquid.
A horizontal circular pipe, 1.25m diameter, is closed by a butterfly
disk which rotates about a horizontal axis through its centre.
Determine the torque which would have to be applied to the disk
spindle to keep the disk closed in a vertical position when there
is a 3m head of fresh water above the axis.
[1176 Nm]
2.2
A dock gate is to be reinforced with three horizontal beams. If
the water acts on one side only, to a depth of 6m, find the positions
of the beams measured from the water surface so that each will
carry an equal load. Give the load per meter.
[58 860 N/m, 2.31m, 4.22m, 5.47m]
2.3
The profile of a masonry dam is an arc of a circle, the arc having
a radius of 30m and subtending an angle of 60 at the centre of
curvature which lies in the water surface. Determine (a) the load
on the dam in N/m length, (b) the position of the line of action
to this pressure.
[4.28 106 N/m length at depth 19.0m]
2.4
The arch of a bridge over a stream is in the form of a semi-circle
of radius 2m. the bridge width is 4m. Due to a flood the water
level is now 1.25m above the crest of the arch. Calculate (a)
the upward force on the underside of the arch, (b) the horizontal
thrust on one half of the arch.
[263.6 kN, 176.6 kN]
2.5
The face of a dam is vertical to a depth of 7.5m below the water
surface then slopes at 30 to the vertical. If the depth of water
is 17m what is the resultant force per metre acting on the whole
face?
[1563.29 kN]
2.6
A tank with vertical sides is square in plan with 3m long sides.
The tank contains oil of relative density 0.9 to a depth of 2.0m
which is floating on water a depth of 1.5m. Calculate the force
on the walls and the height of the centre of pressure from the
bottom of the tank.
[165.54 kN, 1.15m]
Application of the Bernoulli Equation
3.1
In a vertical pipe carrying water, pressure gauges are inserted
at points A and B where the pipe diameters are 0.15m and 0.075m
respectively. The point B is 2.5m below A and when the flow rate
down the pipe is 0.02 cumecs, the pressure at B is 14715 N/m2
greater than that at A.
Assuming the losses in the pipe between A and B can be expressed
as
where v is the velocity at
A, find the value of k.
If the gauges at A and B are replaced by tubes filled with water
and connected to a U-tube containing mercury of relative density
13.6, give a sketch showing how the levels in the two limbs of
the U-tube differ and calculate the value of this difference in
metres.
[k = 0.319, 0.0794m]
3.2
A Venturimeter with an entrance diameter of 0.3m and a throat
diameter of 0.2m is used to measure the volume of gas flowing
through a pipe. The discharge coefficient of the meter is 0.96.
Assuming the specific weight of the gas to be constant at 19.62
N/m3, calculate the volume flowing when the pressure
difference between the entrance and the throat is measured as
0.06m on a water U-tube manometer.
[0.816 m3/s]
3.3
A Venturimeter is used for measuring flow of water along a pipe.
The diameter of the Venturi throat is two fifths the diameter
of the pipe. The inlet and throat are connected by water filled
tubes to a mercury U-tube manometer. The velocity of flow along
the pipe is found to be
m/s, where H
is the manometer reading in metres of mercury. Determine the loss
of head between inlet and throat of the Venturi when H
is 0.49m. (Relative density of mercury is 13.6).
[0.23m of water]
3.4
Water is discharging from a tank through a convergent-divergent
mouthpiece. The exit from the tank is rounded so that losses there
may be neglected and the minimum diameter is 0.05m.
If the head in the tank above the centre-line of the mouthpiece
is 1.83m. a) What is the discharge?
b) What must be the diameter at the exit if the absolute pressure
at the minimum area is to be 2.44m of water? c) What would the
discharge be if the divergent part of the mouth piece were removed.
(Assume atmospheric pressure is 10m of water).
[0.0752m, 0.0266m3/s, 0.0118m3/s]
3.5
A closed tank has an orifice 0.025m diameter in one of its vertical
sides. The tank contains oil to a depth of 0.61m above the centre
of the orifice and the pressure in the air space above the oil
is maintained at 13780 N/m2 above atmospheric. Determine
the discharge from the orifice.
(Coefficient of discharge of the orifice is 0.61, relative density
of oil is 0.9).
[0.00195 m3/s]
3.6
The discharge coefficient of a Venturimeter was found to be constant
for rates of flow exceeding a certain value. Show that for this
condition the loss of head due to friction in the convergent parts
of the meter can be expressed as KQ2 m where
K is a constant and Q is the rate of flow in cumecs.
Obtain the value of K if the inlet and throat diameter
of the Venturimeter are 0.102m and 0.05m respectively and the
discharge coefficient is 0.96.
[K=1060]
3.7
A Venturimeter is to fitted in a horizontal pipe of 0.15m diameter
to measure a flow of water which may be anything up to 240m3/hour.
The pressure head at the inlet for this flow is 18m above atmospheric
and the pressure head at the throat must not be lower than 7m
below atmospheric. Between the inlet and the throat there is an
estimated frictional loss of 10% of the difference in pressure
head between these points. Calculate the minimum allowable diameter
for the throat.
[0.063m]
3.8
A Venturimeter of throat diameter 0.076m is fitted in a 0.152m
diameter vertical pipe in which liquid of relative density 0.8
flows downwards. Pressure gauges are fitted to the inlet and to
the throat sections. The throat being 0.914m below the inlet.
Taking the coefficient of the meter as 0.97 find the discharge
a) when the pressure gauges read the same b)when the inlet gauge
reads 15170 N/m2 higher than the throat gauge.
[0.0192m3/s, 0.034m3/s]
Tanks emptying
4.1
A reservoir is circular in plan and the sides slope at an angle
of tan-1(1/5) to the horizontal. When the reservoir
is full the diameter of the water surface is 50m. Discharge from
the reservoir takes place through a pipe of diameter 0.65m, the
outlet being 4m below top water level. Determine the time for
the water level to fall 2m assuming the discharge to be
cumecs where a is the cross sectional area of the pipe
in m2 and H is the head of water above the outlet
in m.
[1325 seconds]
4.2
A rectangular swimming pool is 1m deep at one end and increases
uniformly in depth to 2.6m at the other end. The pool is 8m wide
and 32m long and is emptied through an orifice of area 0.224m2,
at the lowest point in the side of the deep end. Taking Cd
for the orifice as 0.6, find, from first principles,
a) the time for the depth to fall by 1m b) the time to empty the
pool completely.
[299 second, 662 seconds]
4.3
A vertical cylindrical tank 2m diameter has, at the bottom, a
0.05m diameter sharp edged orifice for which the discharge coefficient
is 0.6.
a) If water enters the tank at a constant rate of 0.0095 cumecs
find the depth of water above the orifice when the level in the
tank becomes stable.
b) Find the time for the level to fall from 3m to 1m above the
orifice when the inflow is turned off.
c) If water now runs into the tank at 0.02 cumecs, the orifice
remaining open, find the rate of rise in water level when the
level has reached a depth of 1.7m above the orifice.
[a) 3.314m, b) 881 seconds, c) 0.252m/min]
4.4
A horizontal boiler shell (i.e. a horizontal cylinder) 2m diameter
and 10m long is half full of water. Find the time of emptying
the shell through a short vertical pipe, diameter 0.08m, attached
to the bottom of the shell. Take the coefficient of discharge
to be 0.8.
[1370 seconds]
4.5
Two cylinders standing upright contain liquid and are connected
by a submerged orifice. The diameters of the cylinders are 1.75m
and 1.0m and of the orifice, 0.08m. The difference in levels of
the liquid is initially 1.35m. Find how long it will take for
this difference to be reduced to 0.66m if the coefficient of discharge
for the orifice is 0.605. (Work from first principles.)
[30.7 seconds]
4.6
A rectangular reservoir with vertical walls has a plan area of
60000m3. Discharge from the reservoir take place over
a rectangular weir. The flow characteristics of the weir is Q
= 0.678 H3/2 cumecs where H is the depth
of water above the weir crest. The sill of the weir is 3.4m above
the bottom of the reservoir. Starting with a depth of water of
4m in the reservoir and no inflow, what will be the depth of water
after one hour?
[3.98m]
Notches and weirs
5.1
Deduce an expression for the discharge of water over a right-angled
sharp edged V-notch, given that the coefficient of discharge
is 0.61.
A rectangular tank 16m by 6m has the same notch in one of its
short vertical sides. Determine the time taken for the head, measured
from the bottom of the notch, to fall from 15cm to 7.5cm.
[1399 seconds]
5.2
Derive an expression for the discharge over a sharp crested rectangular
weir. A sharp edged weir is to be constructed across a stream
in which the normal flow is 200 litres/sec. If the maximum flow
likely to occur in the stream is 5 times the normal flow then
determine the length of weir necessary to limit the rise in water
level to 38.4cm above that for normal flow. Cd=0.61.
[1.24m]
5.3
Show that the rate of flow across a triangular notch is given
by Q=CdKH5/2 cumecs, where
Cd is an experimental coefficient, K depends
on the angle of the notch, and H is the height of the
undisturbed water level above the bottom of the notch in metres.
State the reasons for the introduction of the coefficient.
Water from a tank having a surface area of 10m2 flows
over a 90 notch. It is found that the time taken to lower the
level from 8cm to 7cm above the bottom of the notch is 43.5seconds.
Determine the coefficient Cd assuming
that it remains constant during his period.
[0.635]
5.4
A reservoir with vertical sides has a plan area of 56000m2.
Discharge from the reservoir takes place over a rectangular weir,
the flow characteristic of which is Q=1.77BH3/2
m3/s. At times of maximum rainfall, water flows
into the reservoir at the rate of 9m3/s. Find a) the
length of weir required to discharge this quantity if head must
not exceed 0.6m; b) the time necessary for the head to drop from
60cm to 30cm if the inflow suddenly stops.
[10.94m, 3093seconds]
5.5
Develop a formula for the discharge over a 90 V-notch weir in
terms of head above the bottom of the V.
A channel conveys 300 litres/sec of water. At the outlet end there
is a 90 V-notch weir for which the coefficient of discharge is
0.58. At what distance above the bottom of the channel should
the weir be placed in order to make the depth in the channel 1.30m?
With the weir in this position what is the depth of water in the
channel when the flow is 200 litres/sec?
[0.755m, 1.218m]
5.6
Show that the quantity of water flowing across a triangular V-notch
of angle 2q is
.
Find the flow if the measured head above the bottom of the V is
38cm, when q=45 and Cd=0.6.
If the flow is wanted within an accuracy of 2%, what are the limiting
values of the head.
[0.126m3/s, 0.377m, 0.383m]
Application of the Momentum Equation
6.1
The figure below shows a smooth curved vane attached to a rigid
foundation. The jet of water, rectangular in section, 75mm wide
and 25mm thick, strike the vane with a velocity of 25m/s. Calculate
the vertical and horizontal components of the force exerted on
the vane and indicate in which direction these components act.
[Horizontal 233.4 N acting from right to left. Vertical 1324.6
N acting downwards]

6.2
A 600mm diameter pipeline carries water under a head of 30m with
a velocity of 3m/s. This water main is fitted with a horizontal
bend which turns the axis of the pipeline through 75 (i.e. the
internal angle at the bend is 105). Calculate the resultant force
on the bend and its angle to the horizontal.
[104.044 kN, 52 29']
6.3
A horizontal jet of water 2103 mm2 cross-section
and flowing at a velocity of 15 m/s hits a flat plate at 60 to
the axis (of the jet) and to the horizontal. The jet is such that
there is no side spread. If the plate is stationary, calculate
a) the force exerted on the plate in the direction of the jet
and b) the ratio between the quantity of fluid that is deflected
upwards and that downwards. (Assume that there is no friction
and therefore no shear force.)
[338N, 3:1]
6.4
A 75mm diameter jet of water having a velocity of 25m/s strikes
a flat plate, the normal of which is inclined at 30 to the jet.
Find the force normal to the surface of the plate.
[2.39kN]
6.5
The outlet pipe from a pump is a bend of 45 rising in the vertical
plane (i.e. and internal angle of 135). The bend is 150mm diameter
at its inlet and 300mm diameter at its outlet. The pipe axis at
the inlet is horizontal and at the outlet it is 1m higher. By
neglecting friction, calculate the force and its direction if
the inlet pressure is 100kN/m2 and the flow of water
through the pipe is 0.3m3/s. The volume of the pipe
is 0.075m3.
[13.94kN at 67 40' to the horizontal]
6.6
The force exerted by a 25mm diameter jet against a flat plate
normal to the axis of the jet is 650N. What is the flow in m3/s?
[0.018 m3/s]
6.7
A curved plate deflects a 75mm diameter jet through an angle of
45. For a velocity in the jet of 40m/s to the right, compute the
components of the force developed against the curved plate. (Assume
no friction).
[Rx=2070N, Ry=5000N down]
6.8
A 45 reducing bend, 0.6m diameter upstream, 0.3m diameter downstream,
has water flowing through it at the rate of 0.45m3/s
under a pressure of 1.45 bar. Neglecting any loss is head for
friction, calculate the force exerted by the water on the bend,
and its direction of application.
[R=34400N to the right and down, q
= 14]
Laminar Pipe Flow
7.1
The distribution of velocity, u, in metres/sec with radius r in
metres in a smooth bore tube of 0.025 m bore follows the law,
u = 2.5 - kr2. Where k is a constant. The flow is laminar
and the velocity at the pipe surface is zero. The fluid has a
coefficient of viscosity of 0.00027 kg/m s. Determine (a) the
rate of flow in m3/s (b) the shearing force between
the fluid and the pipe wall per metre length of pipe.
[6.14x10-4 m3/s, 8.49x10-3 N]
7.2
A liquid whose coefficient of viscosity is m flows below the critical
velocity for laminar flow in a circular pipe of diameter d and
with mean velocity u. Show that the pressure loss in a length
of pipe is 32um/d2.
Oil of viscosity 0.05 kg/ms flows through a pipe of diameter
0.1m with a velocity of 0.6m/s. Calculate the loss of pressure
in a length of 120m.
[11 520 N/m2]
7.3
A plunger of 0.08m diameter and length 0.13m has four small holes
of diameter 5/1600 m drilled through in the direction of its length.
The plunger is a close fit inside a cylinder, containing oil,
such that no oil is assumed to pass between the plunger and the
cylinder. If the plunger is subjected to a vertical downward force
of 45N (including its own weight) and it is assumed that the upward
flow through the four small holes is laminar, determine the speed
of the fall of the plunger. The coefficient of velocity of the
oil is 0.2 kg/ms.
[0.00064 m/s]
7.4
A vertical cylinder of 0.075 metres diameter is mounted concentrically
in a drum of 0.076metres internal diameter. Oil fills the space
between them to a depth of 0.2m. The rotque required to rotate
the cylinder in the drum is 4Nm when the speed of rotation is
7.5 revs/sec. Assuming that the end effects are negligible, calculate
the coefficient of viscosity of the oil.
[0.638 kg/ms]
Dimensional analysis
8.1
A stationary sphere in water moving at a velocity of 1.6m/s experiences
a drag of 4N. Another sphere of twice the diameter is placed in
a wind tunnel. Find the velocity of the air and the drag which
will give dynamically similar conditions. The ratio of kinematic
viscosities of air and water is 13, and the density of air 1.28
kg/m3.
[10.4m/s 0.865N]
8.2
Explain briefly the use of the Reynolds number in the interpretation
of tests on the flow of liquid in pipes.
Water flows through a 2cm diameter pipe at 1.6m/s. Calculate the
Reynolds number and find also the velocity required to give the
same Reynolds number when the pipe is transporting air. Obtain
the ratio of pressure drops in the same length of pipe for both
cases. For the water the kinematic viscosity was 1.3110-6
m2/s and the density was 1000 kg/m3.
For air those quantities were 15.110-6 m2/s
and 1.19kg/m3.
24427, 18.4m/s, 0.157]
8.3
Show that Reynold number, rud/m,
is non-dimensional. If the discharge Q through an orifice is a
function of the diameter d, the pressure difference p, the density
r, and the viscosity m,
show that Q = Cp1/2d2/r1/2
where C is some function of the non-dimensional group (dr1/2d1/2/m).
8.4
A cylinder 0.16m in diameter is to be mounted in a stream of water
in order to estimate the force on a tall chimney of 1m diameter
which is subject to wind of 33m/s. Calculate (A) the speed of
the stream necessary to give dynamic similarity between the model
and chimney, (b) the ratio of forces.
Chimney: r = 1.12kg/m3 m = 1610-6 kg/ms
Model: r = 1000kg/m3 m = 810-4 kg/ms
[11.55m/s, 0.057]
8.5
If the resistance to motion, R, of a sphere through a fluid is
a function of the density r and viscosity
m of the fluid, and the radius r and
velocity u of the sphere, show that R is given by

Hence show that if at very low velocities the resistance R is
proportional to the velocity u, then R = kmru
where k is a dimensionless constant.
A fine granular material of specific gravity 2.5 is in uniform
suspension in still water of depth 3.3m. Regarding the particles
as spheres of diameter 0.002cm find how long it will take for
the water to clear. Take k=6p and m=0.0013
kg/ms.
[218mins 39.3sec]