NATIONAL UNIVERSITY OF SINGAPORE

Department of Mechanical Engineering

Session 2017-2018, Semester I

ME2134 Fluid Mechanics I

Summary Feedback for Final Examination

Date and Time of Examination: 25 November 2017 (Saturday), 9 – 11am

Examination Venue: MPSH2

Prepared by: Teo Chiang Juay (Questions 1 and 2) and Prof. T. T. Lim (Questions 3 and 4)

Question 1

Question 1 consisted of 25 Multiple Choice Questions (MCQ). The performance of the

candidates for this question was average.

As the MCQ will not be released and will not be available in the Library’s Exam Database, it
will not be appropriate to discuss the answers to the MCQ in this summary feedback.
Candidates who have any conceptual queries may make an appointment to see me.

Question 2

The problem statement is appended at the end of the comments for this question.

Parts (a) and (b) of this question tested candidates on evaluating the magnitude and line of
action (center of pressure) of the resultant hydrostatic force acting on plane submerged
surfaces.

Part (a)

Candidates performed relatively well for this part of the question.

In this part of the problem, there are essentially two plane surfaces: a horizontal submerged
surface OE and a vertical surface OD. One approach for solving the problem is outlined as
follows:

 Locate the centroid and determine the depth of the centroid of the vertical surface OD
 H   gH 2 
 C
h   ; evaluate the magnitude of the resultant hydrostatic force  F  
 2  H 2 
 
which acts horizontally towards the right.
 Determine the line of action (center of pressure) of the resultant hydrostatic force FH
 2H 
acting on the vertical surface. The depth of the center of pressure is  hP   . FH
 3 
acting on OD has a clockwise moment about the hinge O.
 The horizontal surface is submerged at a uniform depth of H. It thus experiences a
uniform gage hydrostatic pressure of  gH . The resultant vertically upward

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 hydrostatic force acting on the horizontal surface is thus FV   gHL . Since the
pressure is uniform throughout, the line of action of FV is simply at a horizontal
distance of L/2 from the hinge O. FV acting on OE has an anticlockwise moment
about the hinge O.
 Take moments about the hinge O to determine when the clockwise moment due to FH
exceeds the anticlockwise moment due to FV to open the gate. Hence, determine the
depth H of liquid required.

Some of the common mistakes made by candidates in solving this problem are listed below:

 For the vertical surface OD:

o Some candidates located the centroid (H/2) wrongly or used the wrong area
(the correct area was H x 1).
o Some candidates wrongly assumed that the hydrostatic force passed through
the centroid instead of the center of pressure.
o In determining the depth of the center of pressure (2H/3), some candidates did
not calculate the second moment of area Ixx,C correctly. They were confused
whether to use H or 1 for a and b when they applied the formula
1
I xx,C  ba3 .
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o Some students got confused about the difference between the x- and the y-axes
when they were calculating the second moment of area Ixx,C. The x-axis is the
horizontal axis (parallel to the liquid surface), whereas the y-axis is
perpendicular to the x-axis and is inclined at an angle  with respect to the
liquid surface ( corresponds to the angle which the submerged plane surface
is inclined relative to the liquid surface).
 For the horizontal surface OE:
o It was indeed surprising that many candidates did not know how to correctly
evaluate the magnitude of the hydrostatic force and the line of action.
o Numerous candidates attempted to determine the “depth” of the centroid by
adding H to L/2. They subsequently proceeded to use this wrong centroid
depth to determine the magnitude of the hydrostatic force. Note that the entire
horizontal surface OE is submerged at a depth H and the depth of the centroid
is necessarily H.
o Since the pressure distribution on the horizontal surface is uniform, it is thus
intuitive that the resultant hydrostatic pressure force acts midway along the
horizontal surface. Some candidates attempted to determine the center of
pressure by determining the second moment of area Ixx,C and using the wrong
centroid depth.
o Quite a number of candidates attempted to determine the vertical and/or
horizontal component of the hydrostatic force acting on the quadrant below
the horizontal surface OE. Unfortunately, they did not correctly relate these
forces to the vertical force FV acting on the horizontal surface OE.
 When moments were taken about Point O, a large number of candidates did not use
the correct moment arm for the hydrostatic force acting on the vertical surface OD.
They used 2H/3 instead of H/3.
 Instead of taking moments about Point O, a handful of candidates considered
equilibrium of forces in the horizontal and vertical directions. This did not lead to any

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 meaningful results because they had incorrectly omitted the horizontal and vertical
hinge forces.
 A small number of candidates did not know the difference between pressure and the
force due to hydrostatic pressure.
 Some candidates substituted  = 1000 kg/m3 even though it was not stated explicitly
in the question that the liquid involved was water.
 Some candidates used a width of b even though the question mentioned “unit width”.

Part (b)

Candidates did not perform too well for this part of the question.

In this part of the problem, there are essentially two plane surfaces: a horizontal submerged
surface OE and a surface OF inclined at 45 to the horizontal.

The solution methodology for solving this part of the problem was essentially the same as
that for Part (a). The only slight difference (and additional level of difficulty) is to correctly
evaluate the magnitude and line of action (center of pressure) on the surface OF inclined at
45 to the horizontal.

Qualitatively and physically, in comparison to Part (a), the horizontal component and the line
of action (center of pressure) of the hydrostatic force remain unchanged for the same liquid
depth. However, for Part (b), there is an additional downward vertical hydrostatic force acting
on the inclined surface OF due to the weight of the triangular wedge of liquid above OF. This
vertical hydrostatic force contributes to an additional clockwise moment about the hinge O
which has a tendency to rotate the gate clockwise (i.e. open the gate). Hence, the depth of
liquid required to open the gate for Part (b) is expected to less than that for Part (a).

The common mistakes made by candidates for this Part (b) were similar to those for Part (a).

In addition, the following mistakes were commonly made:

 Many candidates made errors in the trigonometry.
 Many candidates did not determine the depth of the centroid for the sloping surface
OF correctly. The correct depth was hC = H1/2. As a consequence, the magnitude of
the resultant hydrostatic force FR acting on the sloping surface OF was incorrectly
calculated. Some candidates also used the wrong area (the correct area was 2 H1  1 ).
 Numerous candidates did not correctly calculate the second moment of area Ixx,C of
the sloping surface OF and the location of the center of pressure yP . In fact,
H13 hC H1
I xx,C  and yC   .
3
12sin 45 sin 45 2sin 45

Another valid approach which quite a handful of candidates adopted was to evaluate the
magnitudes and lines of action of the horizontal and vertical components of the hydrostatic
force acting on the sloping surface OF. The horizontal component and its line of action
(center of pressure) have already been determined in Part (a). The vertical component of the
 gH12 H1
hydrostatic force had a magnitude of and acted at a horizontal distance of to the
2 3

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right of the hinge O. A considerable number of candidates did not calculate the magnitude
and/or the moment arm correctly.

Part (c)

This part of the question tested students on the application of Bernoulli equation along
streamlines and normal to streamlines.

Part (i)

Since the flow is inviscid, incompressible and steady, Bernoulli equation may be applied
along the streamline between Points 2 and F to determine the fluid velocity at Point F. Many
candidates answered this part of the question correctly.

Some of the common mistakes made include the following:

 In applying the Bernoulli equation, some candidates used the absolute pressure at
Point 2 but the gage pressure at Point F, or vice versa.
 Some candidates did not correctly evaluate the difference in elevation between Points
2 and F and made mistakes in the trigonometry.
 Some candidates did not correctly determine the velocity at Point 2.
 There was no need to apply the Continuity equation (Conservation of Mass) for this
problem. Some candidates attempted to apply the Continuity equation which did not
lead to any meaningful results.

Part (ii)

This part of the problem required candidates to apply the Bernoulli equation normal to or
across streamlines to determine the (gage) pressure at Point 3. This may be applied between
Points 2 and 3:
V2
 gdz  dP    dn
R
cos 30 P3 5
25r 2
  gdz   dP   
r
dr
0 P2 4

A significant number of candidates were unable to correctly apply the Bernoulli equation
normal to streamlines. Some of the common mistakes made are listed as follows:
 A handful of candidates simply wrote down the governing equation without knowing
what the symbols n and R actually meant.
 The unit normal direction n̂ which points radially inwards towards the center of the
circle O is directed opposite to the radially outwards direction r. Hence, dn   dr .
Some candidates left out the negative sign.
 The fluid velocity V varies radially with r according to V  5r and is not a constant.
Many candidates assumed that the velocity was constant and thus ended up with
logarithms after preforming the integration, which was incorrect.
 Some candidates did not correctly evaluate the difference in elevation between Points
2 and 3 and made mistakes in the trigonometry. Some candidates were unaware that z
was positive upwards and thus the elevation of Point 3 was greater than that at Point
2.

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 V2
 Some candidates omitted the effects of gravity and simply used dP    dn . As
R
previously mentioned many times in class, the effects of gravity had to be taken into
account when the diagram shows a downward pointing arrow labeled with “g”.

QUESTION 2

(a) As shown in Figure 2.1, liquid of density  is trapped by a gate DOE of unit width
into the plane of the page. The gate is hinged at O, and consists of a horizontal
section OE of length L and a vertical section OD. Estimate the height H of liquid
required to open the gate (i.e. turn the gate clockwise about the hinge O). Neglect
the weight of the gate and friction in the hinge. Some geometric properties of a
rectangle are provided in Figure 2.2, where the symbols have their usual
meanings.
(8 marks)

Figure 2.1

Figure 2.2

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(b) An error was made in the manufacturing of the gate. As shown in Figure 2.3, the
gate FOE hinged at O now consists of a horizontal section OE of length L and a
section OF inclined at an angle of 45 with respect to the horizontal. Estimate the
height H1 of liquid required to open the gate. Neglect the weight of the gate and
friction in the hinge. How does your answer for H1 compare to your answer for H
in Part (a)?
(8 marks)

Figure 2.3

(c) As shown in Figure 2.3, water (density  = 1000 kg/m3) flows through a two-
dimensional curved channel bounded by the curved sections of two circular
quadrants AB and CD of radii 3 m and 5 m, respectively, centred at O. Along
Section 1-2-3 which is inclined at an angle of 30 with respect to the vertical, the
water’s tangential or circumferential velocity distribution (in m/s) is given by
V  5r , where r corresponds to the radial distance from O in m. Points 1 and 3 lie
along the circular arcs AB and CD, respectively. Point 2 lies along the circular
streamline EF of radius 4 m. The horizontal section BFD is exposed to the
ambient atmospheric pressure. The gage pressure at Point 2 is 50 kPa. Assume
the flow to be steady, incompressible and inviscid.

(i) Determine the water velocity at Point F.

(ii) Determine the water gage pressure at Point 3.
(9 marks)

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Figure 2.3

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QUESTION 3

The problem statement is appended at the end of the comments for this question.

(a) This part of the problem is to assess candidates’ ability to apply principle of fluid
equilibrium in rotation to fluid columns in the two U-tubes rotating at a constant
angular velocity and located at known radial distances from axis of rotation. A
minority of candidates did very well for this part of the problem, but most did not
perform so well and quite a number of candidates did not attempt this question

(i) To determine the difference in fluid level between the two arms of a U-tube
(h), one can use the equation for the pressure distribution in a rotating fluid.
p  gz  z o   2 r 2  p o
1
(1)
2
Alternatively, one can use the equation for the free surface
1 2 2
z  r  zo (2)
2g
One approach is as follow: For each U-tube, since radial distances of the arms
of the U-tube are known, the height of fluid column in the “left arm” (zL) and
“right arm” (zR) can be determined separately using equation (2) in terms of zo.
The difference in the fluid level between the two arms (h) can then be
determined from (zR-zL). Quite a number of candidates made the mistake by
equating z-zo to “h” for each U-tube.

(ii) To determine the pressure difference between point A and B, one approach is
to use the height of fluid columns in the U-tubes since the fluid is in solid
body rotation.

(iii) Replacing water in U-tube 1 with oil does not affect h1 since it is independent
of fluid density. However, it does affect the pressure difference between
point A and B. In fact, (pBpA) for this case can be shown to be higher than
that in (ii).

(b) This part of the problem is to assess candidates’ ability to apply momentum
equation to determine forces acting on a vertical plate caused by an impinging jet of
water. Compared to part (a), a higher number of candidates did very well for this
part of the problem, but most did not perform so well and some made mistakes in
determining the component of the force on the plate when it is inclined to the
vertical axis. Also, quite a number of candidates did not attempt this question.

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(a) Two identical U-tube manometers, both partially filled with equal volume of
water, are mounted on a rotating arm as shown in Figure 3.1(a). The legs of each
manometer are 70 mm apart and the centres of the first and the second
manometer are located at 200 mm and 400 mm, respectively from the axis of
rotation. If the arm rotates at an angular velocity of 1 revolution per second and
the fluid has established an equilibrium state, answer the following questions:

(i) Do you expect the height difference h1 for manometer 1 to be the same as
h2 for manometer 2 since they are both filled with equal volume of water
and subjected to the same angular velocity? Note: You must support your
answer with detail calculations (i.e. explicitly compare h1 and h2).
No mark will be given to “yes” or “no” answer alone.
(7 marks)

(ii) What is the difference in pressure between point A and point B; both
located at the bottom of the right-hand side leg of the respective
manometers (see figure 3.1(a)).
(3 marks)

(iii) If the water in manometer 1 is completely replaced with equal volume of

oil (specific density 0.92) (see Figure 3.1(b)), what would be the new h1 and
the pressure difference between point A and point B?
(4 marks)

Note: In all cases, you many assume the diameter of the U-tube to be very small so that
the air/fluid interface in each leg of the tube is nearly horizontal.

U-tube U-tube U-tube U-tube

manometer 1 manometer 2 manometer 1 manometer 2

Oil Water
Water Water
h1 h1 h2
h2
35 35 35 35
 =1 r.p.s
35 35 35 35  =1 r.p.s
B A B
A

200 mm 200 mm

400 mm 400 mm

(a) (b)
All dimensions in
mm
Drawing not to scale

Figure 3.1

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(b) A rectangular metal plate is suspended vertically by a hinge and can swing freely
about a horizontal axis at the upper horizontal edge of the plate as shown in
Figure 3.2. The mass of the plate is 8 kg and its centre of gravity (CG) is located
at 150 mm below the hinge. A horizontal jet of water 25 mm in diameter with it
axis perpendicular to and 220 mm below the hinge impinges on the plate with a
velocity of 7.0 m/s.

(i) Determine the horizontal force R needed to be applied at the CG of the

plate to hold the plate vertically as shown in Figure 3.2 (a)
(4 marks)

(ii) If the force R is removed, what will be the inclination angle () of the plate
(see Figure 3.2(b)).
(7 marks)

In all cases, you many assume that when the jet fluid strikes the plate, it does not
rebound but flows out over it in all direction, and that the jet leaves the surface
tangentially.

Hinge Hinge

Jet fluid

150 mm
C.G Gravity 
220 mm C.G
R

Nozzle D=25 mm Nozzle D=25 mm

V= 7.0 m/s
V= 7.0 m/s
Water

(a) (b)

Figure 3.2

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QUESTION 4

(a) The problem statement is appended at the end of the comments for this question.

(i) This part of the problem is to assess candidates’ ability to apply

Buckingham’s Pi the theorem to determine dimensionless group of the flight
of a golf ball. Since there are nine dimensional parameters and three
primary dimensions (M, L, T), therefore, there are altogether six
dimensionless groups that candidates need to determine using , V, D as
repeating variables. While most candidates did well for this part of the
problem, quite a few did not attempt this problem. One common mistake that
candidates made is that they did not check the dimensionless groups that
they had determined are indeed dimensionless. Also, some candidates had
difficulty determining the dimensionless group that involved tee angle .
Since  has no dimension, therefore it is a dimensionless group.

(ii) This part of the problem is to assess candidates’ ability to apply their
knowledge on pipe analysis to the problem of parallel pipes that involved
laminar flow. Most candidates did not perform so well for this part of the
problem, partly because they had difficulty determining the volume flow rate
Q1 and Q2.

(i) To determine Q1 and Q2, two independent equations are required: one of
them is from conservation of volume flow rate, i.e. Q= Q1 + Q2 and the
other equation is from the fact both pipe 1 and pipe 2 suffer the same head
loss since there are parallel pipes. For laminar pipe flow, the head loss in
each pipe can expressed in terms of volume flow rate through the pipe,
since the length and diameter of each pipe are known, and the density and
viscosity fluid are given. With the above two equations, the unknown Q1
and Q2 can be determined.

(ii) With Q1 determined, the pressure loss in pipe 1 can be determined using
the equation for pressure loss for a laminar pipe flow derived in the
lecture. Alternatively, the problem can be solved by using Darcy-
Weisbach equation for head loss in a pipe since the friction factor for a
laminar flow is 64/Re.

(iii) The power of the pump required to force the fluid through the two pipes
can be determined by dividing the total power loss through the two pipes
by the efficiency of the pump. This power loss is given by gQhL where the
symbols have their usual meaning.

From the volume flow rates Q1 and Q2 determined, it can be shown that the
Reynolds numbers in both the pipes are less than 2300. Therefore, the
assumption of laminar flow is valid.

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(a) When a golfer hits a golf ball, the flight of the ball after teed off and the distance
where the ball lands on the green (L) is a function of tee angle (), initial flight
velocity of the ball (V), the diameter of the ball (D), depth of dimples (d’) on the
ball, weight of the ball (W), spin velocity (), density of air () and dynamic
viscosity of air (). Using Buckingham’s Pi theorem and selecting , V, D as
repeating variables, express the above relationship in non-dimensional form
(10 marks)

Golf
ball
V


(b) A total of 1.3 × 102 m3 per second of oil (Q), with the kinematic viscosity of 9.0
104 m2/s and specific gravity of 0.92, is pumped through two parallel pipes as
shown in Figure 4.2. One pipe has a diameter of 0.13 m and the other pipe has a
diameter of 0.10 m, and both the pipes are 1000 m long. Assuming laminar flow
in both pipes,

(i) determine the volume flow rate Q1 and Q2 in the pipes,

(ii) pressure drop across the pipe (BC), and
(iii) horsepower needed for the pump if the overall efficiency of the pump is 70%.
Based on the results obtained, is the assumption of laminar flow valid? You need to
support your answer with detail calculations.
(15 marks)

You may assume the head loss through the semi-circular bend and the short pipe
upstream of it (i.e. between section A-B) to be negligible in comparison to the total loss
in the two pipes.

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 A B C
1000 m
Q1
d1= 0.130 m
Pump Q
d2= 0.100 m
Q2
1000 m
Semi-circular
bend

Figure 4.2

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