CHAPTER 3

PRESSURE AND FLUID STATICS

PREPARED BY : FIKADU KIFLE
 Fluid Mechanics Overview
Fluid Mechanics

Gas Liquids Statics Dynamics

F  0i  F  0 , Flows
i

Water, Oils, Stability

Air, He, Ar,
N2, etc. Alcohols, Pressure Buoyancy Compressible/
etc.
Incompressible

Surface Laminar/
Turbulent
Tension
Steady/Unsteady
Compressibility Density Viscosity Vapor Viscous/Inviscid
Pressure
Chapter 2 Fluid Dynamics:
Chapter 3: Fluid Statics
Fluid properties Rest of Course
Outline the chapter
 This chapter deals with

 Forces applied by fluids at rest or in rigid-body motion.

 Detailed discussion of pressure, including absolute and gage pressures, the pressure at a point,
the variation of pressure with depth in a gravitational field,

 The manometer, the barometer, and pressure measurement devices.

 Discussion of the hydrostatic forces applied on submerged bodies with plane or curved
surfaces.

 buoyant force applied by fluids on submerged or floating bodies, and discuss the stability of
such bodies.

 Apply Newton’s second law of motion to a body of fluid in motion that acts as a rigid body
and analyze the variation of pressure in fluids that undergo linear acceleration and in
rotating containers.
Pressure

 Pressure is defined as a normal force exerted by a fluid per unit area.

 The property pressure is applied only for fluids (liquid, and gas), the
counterpart of pressure in solid is normal stress

 The SI unit for pressure is N/m2 which is also called Pascal, the dimension of
pressure is [MLT-2]

 The pressure unit Pascal is too small for pressures encountered in practice,
therefore, its multiples kilopascal (1 kPa =103 Pa) and megapascal (1 Mpa
= 106 Pa) are commonly used.
Pressure
 Three other pressure units commonly used in practice, especially in Europe,
are bar, standard atmosphere, and kilogram-force per square centimeter

 In English system, the pressure unit is pound-force per square inch (lbf/in2, or
psi), and 1 atm =14.696 psi.

 The actual pressure at a given position is called the absolute pressure, and
it is measured relative to absolute vacuum (i.e., absolute zero pressure).
Pressure
 Most pressure-measuring devices, however, are calibrated to read zero in
the atmosphere, and so they indicate the difference between the absolute
pressure and the local atmospheric pressure. This difference is called the
gage pressure.

 Pressures below atmospheric pressure are called vacuum pressures and

are measured by vacuum gages that indicate the difference between the
atmospheric pressure and the absolute pressure.

 Absolute, gage, and vacuum pressures are all positive quantities and are
related to each other by
Pressure
Absolute, gage, and vacuum pressures
Fluid Statics
 By definition, the fluid is at rest.

 Or, no there is no relative motion between adjacent

particles.

 No shearing forces is placed on the fluid.

 There are only pressure forces, and no shear.

 Results in relatively “simple” analysis

 Generally look for the pressure variation in the fluid

 Pressure at a Point: Pascal’s Law
Pressure is the normal force per unit area at a given point acting
on a given plane within a fluid mass of interest.
Blaise Pascal (1623-1662)
How does the pressure at a point vary with orientation of the plane
passing through the point?
Pressure Forces
F.B.D. Gravity Force Wedged Shaped Fluid
Mass

p is average pressure in the x, y, and z direction.

Ps is the average pressure on the surface
q is the plane inclination
 is the length is each coordinate direction, x, y, z
V = (1/2yz)*x
s is the length of the plane
g is the specific weight
 Pressure at a Point: Pascal’s Law

For simplicity in our Free Body Diagram, the x-pressure forces cancel and do not need
to be shown. Thus to arrive at our solution we balance only the y and z forces:
Pressure Force Rigid body
Pressure Force motion in the y-
in the y-direction
on the plane in direction
on the y-face
the y-direction

Pressure Force Pressure Force Rigid body

in the z-direction in the plane in Weight of the
motion in the z-
on the z-face the z-direction Wedge
direction
Now, we can simplify each equation in each direction, noting that y and z can
be rewritten in terms of s:
Pressure at a Point: Pascal’s Law
Substituting and rewriting the equations of motion, we obtain:

Math

Now, noting that we are really interested at point only, we let y and
z go to zero:

Pascal’s Law: the pressure at a point in a fluid at rest, or in motion, is

independent of the direction as long as there are no shearing stresses
present.
 Pressure at a Point: Pascal’s Law

p1xs
p2xs psxs

ps = p1 = p2

Note: In dynamic system subject to shear, the normal stress representing

the pressure in the fluid is not necessarily the same in all directions. In
such a case the pressure is taken as the average of the three directions.
Pressure Field Equations
How does the pressure vary in a fluid or from point to point when no shear stresses
are present?
Consider a Small Fluid Element
p is pressure
g is specific weight
Surface Forces

Taylor Series

Body Forces

V = yzx

For simplicity the x-direction surface forces are not shown

 Pressure Field Equations
Looking at the resultant surface forces in the y-direction:

Similarly, looking at the resultant surface forces in the x and z-direction, we

obtain:

Expressing these results in vector form:

Pressure Field Equations
Now, we note by definition, the “del” operator or gradient is the following :

Then,

Now, rewriting the surface force equation, we obtain the following:

Now, we return the body forces, and we will only consider weight:
Pressure Field Equations
Use Newton’s Second Law to Sum the Forces for a Fluid Element:

m is the mass of the fluid element, and a is acceleration.

Then summing the surface forces and the body forces:

m

“Most General Form”

for No Shear
Hydrostatic Condition: a = 0

Writing out the individual vector components:

This leads to the conclusion that for liquids or gases at rest, the
Pressure gradient in the vertical direction at any point in fluid
depends only on the specific weight of the fluid at that point. The
pressure does not depend on x or y.

Hydrostatic Equation
Hydrostatic Condition: Physical Implications

•Pressure changes with elevation

•Pressure does not change in the horizontal x-y plane
•The pressure gradient in the vertical direction is negative
•The pressure decreases as we move upward in a fluid at rest
•Pressure in a liquid does not change due to the shape of the container
•Specific Weight g does not have to be constant in a fluid at rest
•Air and other gases will likely have a varying g
•Thus, fluids could be incompressible or compressible statically
Hydrostatic Condition: Incompressible Fluids
The specific weight g changes either through r, density or g, gravity. The
change in g is negligible, and for liquids r does not vary appreciable, thus most
liquids will be considered incompressible.

Starting with the Hydrostatic Equation:

We can immediately integrate since g is a constant:

where the subscripts 1 and 2 refer two different vertical

levels as in the schematic

As in the schematic, noting the definition of h = z2 – z1

Hydrostatic Condition: Incompressible Fluids
If we are working exclusively with a liquid, then there is a free surface at the
liquid-gas interface. For most applications, the pressure exerted at the
surface is atmospheric pressure, po. Then the equation is written as follows:

The Pressure in a homogenous, incompressible fluid at rest depends on the

depth of the fluid relative to some reference and is not influenced by the shape
of the container.
Lines of constant Pressure

p = po
h1 p = p1
p = p2

For p2 = p = gh + po
For p1 = p = gh1 + po
Hydrostatic Application: Transmission of Fluid Pressure

A2
F2  F1
A1

• Mechanical advantage can be gained with equality of pressures, a consequence

of the pressure in a fluid remaining constant in the horizontal direction is that the
pressure applied to a confined fluid increases the pressure throughout by the same
amount.

•A small force applied at the small piston is used to develop a large force at the
large piston.

• This is the principle between hydraulic jacks, lifts, presses, and hydraulic controls
Hydrostatic Condition: Compressible Fluids
Gases such as air, oxygen and nitrogen are thought of as compressible, so
we must consider the variation of density in the hydrostatic equation:
dp
Note: g = rg and not a constant, then   rg
dz
p
r
R is the Gas Constant
By the Ideal gas law: Thus,  T is the temperature
RT r is the density

Then,

For Isothermal Conditions, T is constant, To:

Properties of U.S. Standard Atmosphere at Sea Level
Hydrostatic Condition: U.S. Standard Atmosphere

Idealized Representation of the Mid-Latitude Atmosphere

Standard Atmosphere is used in

the design of aircraft, missiles
and spacecraft.

Stratosphere:
Isothermal, T = To

Troposphere:
Linear Variation, T = Ta - bz
Hydrostatic Condition: U.S. Standard Atmosphere

Starting from,

Now, for the Troposphere, Temperature is not constant:

b is known as the lapse rate, 0.00650 K/m, and Ta is the temperature at

sea level, 288.15 K.

Substitute for temperature and Integrate:

pa is the pressure at sea level, 101.33 kPa, R is the gas constant, 286.9
J/kg.K
Pressure Distribution in the Atmosphere
Measurement of Pressure: Manometry

Manometry is a standard technique for measuring pressure using liquid

columns in vertical or inclined tubes. The devices used in this manner are
known as manometers.
The operation of three types of manometers will be discussed below:

1) The Piezometer Tube

2) The U-Tube Manometer
3) The Inclined Tube Manometer

The fundamental equation for manometers since they involve columns of

fluid at rest is the following:

h is positive moving downward, and negative moving upward, that is pressure

in columns of fluid decrease with gains in height, and increase with gain in
depth.
Measurement of Pressure: Piezometer Tube
po
Disadvantages:
1)The pressure in the container has to be
greater than atmospheric pressure.
Move Up the 2) Pressure must be relatively small to
Tube maintain a small column of fluid.
Closed End “Container” 3) The measurement of pressure must be
pA (abs) of a liquid.

Moving from left to right: pA(abs) - g1h1 = po

Rearranging: p A  po  g 1h1
Gage Pressure

Then in terms of gage pressure, the equation for a Piezometer Tube:

Note: pA = p1 because they are at the same level

 Measurement of Pressure: U-Tube Manometer
Note: in the same fluid we can
Closed End “jump” across from 2 to 3 as
“Container” they are at the same level, and
thus must have the same
pA pressure.

The fluid in the U-tube is known

as the gage fluid. The gage fluid
type depends on the application,
i.e. pressures attained, and
whether the fluid measured is a
gas or liquid.

Since, one end is open we can work entirely in gage pressure:

Moving from left to right: pA + g1h1 - g2h2 = 0
Then the equation for the pressure in the container is the following:

If the fluid in the container is a gas, then the fluid 1 terms can be ignored:
 Measurement of Pressure: U-Tube Manometer
Measuring a Pressure Differential
Closed End
pB “Container”
Final notes:
1)Common gage fluids are Hg and
Closed End Water, some oils, and must be
“Container” immiscible.
pA 2)Temp. must be considered in very
accurate measurements, as the gage
fluid properties can change.
3) Capillarity can play a role, but in
many cases each meniscus will cancel.

Moving from left to right: pA + g1h1 - g2h2 - g3h3 = pB

Then the equation for the pressure difference in the container is the following:
 Measurement of Pressure: Inclined-Tube Manometer

This type of manometer is used to measure small pressure changes.

pB
pA
h2

l2 h2
q

q sin q 
h2
h2  l2 sin q
l2
Moving from left to right: pA + g1h1 - g2h2 - g3h3 = pB
Substituting for h2:
Rearranging to Obtain the Difference:
If the pressure difference is between gases:
Thus, for the length of the tube we can measure a greater pressure differential.
Measurement of Pressure: Mechanical and Electrical Devices
Spring
Bourdon Gage:

Diaphragm: