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CHAPTER 10
DIMENSIONLESS NUMBERS
10.1 FLUID MECHANICS
10.1.1 ARCHIMEDES NUMBER

The Archimedes number, named after the ancient Greek scientist Archimedes
is used to determine the motion of fluids due to density differences. It is a
dimensionless number defined as the ratio of gravitational forces to viscous forces
and has the form:
Where:
g = gravitational acceleration (9.81 m/s),
l = density of the fluid,
= density of the body,
= dynamic viscosity,
L = characteristic length of body, m
When analyzing potentially mixed convection of a liquid, the Archimedes
number parametrizes the relative strength of free and forced convection. When Ar >>
1 natural convection dominates, i.e. less dense bodies rise and denser bodies sink,
and when Ar << 1 forced convection dominates. When the density difference is due
to heat transfer (e.g. fluid being heated and causing a temperature difference
between different parts of the fluid), then we may write
Where:
= is the volumetric expansion coefficient
T = is temperature
T0 = refers to a reference point within the fluid body
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Doing this gives the Grashof number, i.e. the Archimedes and Grashof
numbers are equivalent but suited to describing situations where there is a material
difference in density and heat transfer causes the density difference respectively.
The Archimedes number is related to both the Richardson number and Reynolds
number via
10.1.2 CAPILLARY NUMBER

In fluid dynamics, the capillary number represents the relative effect of
viscous forces versus surface tension acting across an interface between a liquid
and a gas, or between two immiscible liquids. It is defined as
Where is the viscosity of the liquid, V is a characteristic velocity and is the

surface or interfacial tension between the two fluid phases. For low capillary
numbers (a rule of thumb says less than 105), flow in porous media is dominated by
capillary forces.
10.1.3 CAUCHY NUMBER

The Cauchy number, Ca is a dimensionless number in fluid dynamics used in
the study of compressible flows. It is named after the French mathematician
Augustin Louis Cauchy. When the compressibility is important the elastic forces must
be considered along with inertial forces for dynamic similarity. Thus, the Cauchy
Number is defined as the ratio between inertial and the compressibility force (elastic
force) in a flow and can be expressed as
Where
= density of fluid, (SI units: kg/m3)
= local fluid velocity, (SI units: m/s)
K = bulk modulus of elasticity, (SI units: Pa)
10.1.4 RELATION BETWEEN CAUCHY NUMBER AND MACH NUMBER

For isentropic processes, the Cauchy number may be expressed in terms of
Mach number. The isentropic bulk modulus Ks = p , where is the specific heat
capacity ratio and p is the fluid pressure. If the fluid obeys the ideal gas law, we have
Where
a=
= speed of sound, (SI units: m/s)
R = characteristic gas constant, (SI units: J/(kg K) )

T = temperature, (SI units: K)
Substituting K (K_s) in the equation for Ca yields
.
Thus, the Cauchy number is square of the Mach number for isentropic flow of
a perfect gas
10.1.5 EULER NUMBER

The Euler number is a dimensionless number used in fluid flow calculations. It
expresses the relationship between a local pressure drop e.g. over a restriction and
the kinetic energy per volume, and is used to characterize losses in the flow, where a
perfect frictionless flow corresponds to an Euler number of 1.
It is defined as
Where
= is the density of the fluid.
p(upstream) = is the upstream pressure.

p(downstream) =is the downstream pressure.
= is a characteristic velocity of the flow
10.1.6 FROUDE NUMBER

The Froude number is a dimensionless number defined as the ratio of a
characteristic velocity to a gravitational wave velocity. It may equivalently be defined
as the ratio of a body's inertia to gravitational forces. In fluid mechanics, the Froude
number is used to determine the resistance of a partially submerged object moving
through water, and permits the comparison of objects of different sizes. Named after
William Froude, the Froude number is based on the speedlength ratio as defined by
him.
The Froude number is defined as:
Where
= is a characteristic velocity,
c = is a characteristic water wave propagation velocity.
The Froude number is thus analogous to the Mach number. The greater the Froude
number, the greater the resistance.
10.1.7 GRAETZ NUMBER

In fluid dynamics, the Graetz number is a dimensionless number that
characterizes laminar flow in a conduit. The number is defined as:
Where
DH = is the diameter in round tubes or hydraulic diameter in arbitrary
cross-section ducts
L
= is the length
Re = is the Reynolds number and

Pr = is the Prandtl number.
This number is useful in determining the thermally developing flow entrance

length in ducts. A Graetz number of approximately 1000 or less is the point at which
flow would be considered thermally fully developed.
When used in connection with mass transfer the Prandtl number is replaced
by the Schmidt number Sc which expresses the ratio of the momentum diffusivity to
the mass diffusivity.
10.1.8 GRASHOF NUMBER

The Grashof number Gr is a dimensionless number in fluid dynamics and heat
transfer which approximates the ratio of the buoyancy to viscous force acting on a
fluid. It frequently arises in the study of situations involving natural convection. It is
named after the German engineer Franz Grashof.
Where
L and D subscripts indicates the length scale basis for the Grashof Number.
g = acceleration due to Earth's gravity
= volumetric thermal expansion coefficient (equal to approximately 1/T, for
ideal fluids, where
T is absolute temperature)
Ts = surface temperature
T = bulk temperature
L = length
D = diameter
= kinematic viscosity
The transition to turbulent flow occurs in the range 108 < GrL < 109 for natural
convection from vertical flat plates. At higher Grashof numbers, the boundary layer is
turbulent; at lower Grashof numbers, the boundary layer is laminar.
The product of the Grashof number and the Prandtl number gives the
Rayleigh number, a dimensionless number that characterizes convection problems
in heat transfer.
There is an analogous form of the Grashof number used in cases of natural
convection mass transfer problems.
Where
= acceleration due to Earth's gravity
Ca,s
= concentration of species a at surface
Ca,a
= concentration of species a in ambient medium
= characteristic length
= kinematic viscosity
= fluid density
Ca
= concentration of species a
= constant temperature
= constant pressure
10.1.9 MACH NUMBER

In fluid mechanics, Mach number (Ma or M) is a dimensionless quantity
representing the ratio of speed of an object moving through a fluid and the local
speed of sound.
Where
M = is the Mach number,
= is the velocity of the source relative to the medium, and
sound = is the speed of sound in the medium.
Mach number varies by the composition of the surrounding medium and also
by local conditions, especially temperature and pressure. The Mach number can be
used to determine if a flow can be treated as an incompressible flow. If M < 0.20.3
and the flow is (quasi) steady and isothermal, compressibility effects will be small
and a simplified incompressible flow model can be used.
10.1.10
CLASSIFICATION OF MACH REGIMES
While the terms "subsonic" and "supersonic" in the purest verbal sense refer
to speeds below and above the local speed of sound respectively, aerodynamicists
often use the same terms to talk about particular ranges of Mach values. This occurs
because of the presence of a "transonic regime" around M = 1 where approximations
of the Navier-Stokes equations used for subsonic design actually no longer apply,
the simplest of many reasons being that the flow locally begins to exceed M = 1 even
when the free stream Mach number is below this value.
Meanwhile, the "supersonic regime" is usually used to talk about the set of
Mach numbers for which linearised theory may be used, where for example the (air)
flow is not chemically reacting, and where heat-transfer between air and vehicle may
be reasonably neglected in calculations.
In the following table, the "regimes" or "ranges of Mach values" are referred
to, and not the "pure" meanings of the words "subsonic" and "supersonic".
Generally, NASA defines "high" hypersonic as any Mach number from 10 to 25, and
re-entry speeds as anything greater than Mach 25. Aircraft operating in this regime
include the Space Shuttle and various space planes in development.
10.1.11
PECLET NUMBER
The Peclet number is a dimensionless number relevant in the study of

transport phenomena in fluid flows. It is named after the French physicist Jean
Claude Eugne Peclet. It is defined to be the ratio of the rate of advection of a
physical quantity by the flow to the rate of diffusion of the same quantity driven by an
appropriate gradient. In the context of the transport of heat, the Peclet number is
equivalent to the product of the Reynolds number and the Prandtl number. In the
context of species or mass dispersion, the Peclet number is the product of the
Reynolds number and the Schmidt number.
For diffusion of heat (thermal diffusion), the Peclet number is defined as
For diffusion of particles (mass diffusion), it is defined as
Where
L = is the characteristic length,
U = is the velocity,
D = is the mass diffusion coefficient,
= is the thermal diffusivity,
Where
k
= is the thermal conductivity,
= is the density,
Cp
= is the heat capacity.
In engineering applications the Peclet number is often very large. In such

situations, the dependency of the flow upon downstream locations is diminished, and
variables in the flow tend to become 'one-way' properties. Thus, when modeling
certain situations with high Peclet numbers, simpler computational models can be
adopted.
A flow will often have different Peclet numbers for heat and mass. This can
lead to the phenomenon of double diffusive convection.
10.1.12
RAYLEIGH NUMBER
In fluid mechanics, the Rayleigh number for a fluid is a dimensionless number

associated with buoyancy driven flow (also known as free convection or natural
convection). When the Rayleigh number is below the critical value for that fluid, heat
transfer is primarily in the form of conduction; when it exceeds the critical value, heat
transfer is primarily in the form of convection.
The Rayleigh number is named after Lord Rayleigh and is defined as the
product of the Grashof number, which describes the relationship between buoyancy
and viscosity within a fluid, and the Prandtl number, which describes the relationship
between momentum diffusivity and thermal diffusivity. Hence the Rayleigh number
itself may also be viewed as the ratio of buoyancy and viscosity forces times the ratio
of momentum and thermal diffusivities.
For free convection near a vertical wall, the Rayleigh number is defined as
Where
x
= Characteristic length (in this case, the distance from the leading
Rax
= Rayleigh number at position x
Grx
= Grashof number at position x
Pr
= Prandtl number
= acceleration due to gravity
Ts
= Surface temperature (temperature of the wall)
edge)
T
object)
= Quiescent temperature (fluid temperature far from the surface of the
= Kinematic viscosity
= Thermal diffusivity
= Thermal expansion coefficient (equals to 1/T, for ideal gases, where

T is absolute temperature)
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10.1.13
REYNOLDS NUMBER
A vortex street around a cylinder. This occurs around cylinders, for any fluid,
cylinder size and fluid speed, provided that there is a Reynolds number of between
~40 and 103.
In fluid mechanics, the Reynolds number (Re) is a dimensionless number that
gives a measure of the ratio of inertial forces to viscous forces and consequently
quantifies the relative importance of these two types of forces for given flow
conditions.
The concept was introduced by George Gabriel Stokes in 1851, but the
Reynolds number is named after Osborne Reynolds (18421912), who popularized
its use in 1883.
Reynolds numbers frequently arise when performing dimensional analysis of
fluid dynamics problems, and as such can be used to determine dynamic similitude
between different experimental cases.
They are also used to characterize different flow regimes, such as laminar or
turbulent flow: laminar flow occurs at low Reynolds numbers, where viscous forces
are dominant, and is characterized by smooth, constant fluid motion; turbulent flow
occurs at high Reynolds numbers and is dominated by inertial forces, which tend to
produce chaotic eddies, vortices and other flow instabilities.
Reynolds number can be defined for a number of different situations where a
fluid is in relative motion to a surface. These definitions generally include the fluid
properties of density and viscosity, plus a velocity and a characteristic length or
characteristic dimension. This dimension is a matter of convention for example a
radius or diameter are equally valid for spheres or circles, but one is chosen by
convention. For aircraft or ships, the length or width can be used. For flow in a pipe
or a sphere moving in a fluid the internal diameter is generally used today. Other
shapes such as rectangular pipes or non-spherical objects have an equivalent
diameter defined. For fluids of variable density such as compressible gases or fluids
of variable viscosity such as non-Newtonian fluids, special rules apply. The velocity
may also be a matter of convention in some circumstances, notably stirred vessels.
With these conventions, the Reynolds number is defined as
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Where:
v
= is the mean velocity of the object relative to the fluid (SI units: m/s)
L
= is a characteristic linear dimension, (travelled length of the fluid;
hydraulic diameter when dealing with river systems) (m)
= is the dynamic viscosity of the fluid (Pas or Ns/m or kg/(ms))
= is the kinematic viscosity (/) (m/s)
= is the density of the fluid (kg/m).
10.1.14
RICHARDSON NUMBER
The Richardson number is named after Lewis Fry Richardson (1881 1953).
It is the dimensionless number that expresses the ratio of potential to kinetic energy
Where
g = is the acceleration due to gravity
h = a representative vertical length scale
u = representative speed.
When considering flows in which density differences are small (the
Boussinesq approximation), it is common to use the reduced gravity g' and the
relevant parameter is the densimetric Richardson number
Which is used frequently when considering atmospheric or oceanic flows.

If the Richardson number is much less than unity, buoyancy is unimportant in
the flow. If it is much greater than unity, buoyancy is dominant (in the sense that
there is insufficient kinetic energy to homogenize the fluids).
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If the Richardson number is of order unity, then the flow is likely to be

buoyancy-driven: the energy of the flow derives from the potential energy in the
system originally.
10.1.15
WEBER NUMBER
The Weber number is a dimensionless number in fluid mechanics that is often

useful in analyzing fluid flows where there is an interface between two different
fluids, especially for multiphase flows with strongly curved surfaces. It can be thought
of as a measure of the relative importance of the fluid's inertia compared to its
surface tension. The quantity is useful in analyzing thin film flows and the formation
of droplets and bubbles.
It is named after Moritz Weber (18711951) and may be written as:
Where
= is the density of the fluid (kg/m3).
l
= is its velocity (m/s).
= is its characteristic length, typically the droplet diameter (m).
= is the surface tension (N/m).
10.2 HEAT TRANSFER

10.2.1 BIOT NUMBER
The Biot number (Bi) is a dimensionless number used in heat transfer
calculations. It is named after the French physicist Jean Baptiste Biot (17741862),
and gives a simple index of the ratio of the heat transfer resistances inside of and at
the surface of a body. This ratio determines whether or not the temperatures inside a
body will vary significantly in space, while the body heats or cools over time, from a
thermal gradient applied to its surface. In general, problems involving small Biot
numbers (much smaller than 1) are thermally simple, due to uniform temperature
fields inside the body. Biot numbers much larger than 1 signal more difficult
problems due to non-uniformity of temperature fields within the object.
The Biot number has a variety of applications, including transient heat transfer
and use in extended surface heat transfer calculations.
13
The Biot number is defined as
Where:
h = film coefficient or heat transfer coefficient or convective heat transfer
coefficient
LC = characteristic length, which is commonly defined as the volume of the
body divided by the surface area of the body, such that
kb = Thermal conductivity of the body
The physical significance of Biot number can be understood by imagining the
heat flow from a small hot metal sphere suddenly immersed in a pool, to the
surrounding fluid. The heat flow experiences two resistances: the first within the solid
metal (which is influenced by both the size and composition of the sphere), and the
second at the surface of the sphere. If the thermal resistance of the fluid/sphere
interface exceeds that thermal resistance offered by the interior of the metal sphere,
the Biot number will be less than one. For systems where it is much less than one,
the interior of the sphere may be presumed always to have the same temperature,
although this temperature may be changing, as heat passes into the sphere from the
surface. The equation to describe this change in (relatively uniform) temperature
inside the object, is simple exponential one described in Newton's law of cooling.
In contrast, the metal sphere may be large, causing the characteristic length
to increase to the point that the Biot number is larger than one. Now, thermal
gradients within the sphere become important, even though the sphere material is a
good conductor. Equivalently, if the sphere is made of a thermally insulating (poorly
conductive) material, such as wood or styrofoam, the interior resistance to heat flow
will exceed that of the fluid/sphere boundary, even with a much smaller sphere. In
this case, again, the Biot number will be greater than one.
10.2.2 APPLICATIONS
Values of the Biot number smaller than 0.1 imply that the heat conduction
inside the body is much faster than the heat convection away from its surface, and
temperature gradients are negligible inside of it. This can indicate the applicability (or
inapplicability) of certain methods of solving transient heat transfer problems. For
example, a Biot number less than 0.1 typically indicates less than 5% error will be
present when assuming a lumped-capacitance model of transient heat transfer (also
called lumped system analysis). Typically this type of analysis leads to simple
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exponential heating or cooling behavior ("Newtonian" cooling or heating) since the

amount of thermal energy (loosely, amount of "heat") in the body is directly
proportional to its temperature, which in turn determines the rate of heat transfer into
or out of it. This leads to a simple first-order differential equation which describes
heat transfer in these systems.
Having a Biot number smaller than 0.1 labels a substance as thermally thin,
and temperature can be assumed to be constant throughout the materials volume.
The opposite is also true: A Biot number greater than 0.1 (a "thermally thick"
substance) indicates that one cannot make this assumption, and more complicated
heat transfer equations for "transient heat conduction" will be required to describe
the time-varying and non-spatially-uniform temperature field within the material body.
Together with the Fourier number, the Biot number can be used in transient
conduction problems in a lumped parameter solution which can be written as,,
10.2.3 BRINKMAN NUMBER

The Brinkman number is a dimensionless number related to heat conduction from
a wall to a flowing viscous fluid, commonly used in polymer processing. There are
several definitions; one is
Where
NBr = is the Brinkman number;
= is the fluid's dynamic viscosity;
U = is the fluid's velocity;
= is the thermal conductivity of the fluid;
T0 = is the bulk fluid temperature;

Tw = is the wall temperature.
It is the ratio between heat produced by viscous dissipation and heat
transported by molecular conduction. i.e, the ratio of viscous heat generation to
15
external heating. The higher the value of it, the lesser will be the conduction of heat
produced by viscous dissipation and hence larger the temperature rise.
Brinkman number can be considered as the product of Prandtl number and
Eckert number,
In, for example, a screw extruder, the energy supplied to the polymer melt
comes primarily from two sources:
viscous heat generated by shear between parts of the flow moving at different
velocities;
direct heat conduction from the wall of the extruder.
The former is supplied by the motor turning the screw, the latter by heaters.
The Brinkman number is a measure of the ratio of the two.
10.2.4 NUSSELT NUMBER

In heat transfer at a boundary (surface) within a fluid, the Nusselt number is
the ratio of convective to conductive heat transfer across (normal to) the boundary.
In this context, convection includes both advection and conduction. Named after
Wilhelm Nusselt, it is a dimensionless number. The conductive component is
measured under the same conditions as the heat convection but with a
(hypothetically) stagnant (or motionless) fluid.
A Nusselt number close to one, namely convection and conduction of similar
magnitude, is characteristic of "slug flow" or laminar flow. A larger Nusselt number
corresponds to more active convection, with turbulent flow typically in the 1001000
range.
The convection and conduction heat flows are parallel to each other and to
the surface normal of the boundary surface, and are all perpendicular to the mean
fluid flow in the simple case.
where:
L = characteristic length
kf = thermal conductivity of the fluid
16
h = convective heat transfer coefficient

Selection of the characteristic length should be in the direction of growth (or
thickness) of the boundary layer. Some examples of characteristic length are: the
outer diameter of a cylinder in (external) cross flow (perpendicular to the cylinder
axis), the length of a vertical plate undergoing natural convection, or the diameter of
a sphere. For complex shapes, the length may be defined as the volume of the fluid
body divided by the surface area. The thermal conductivity of the fluid is typically (but
not always) evaluated at the film temperature, which for engineering purposes may
be calculated as the mean-average of the bulk fluid temperature and wall surface
temperature. For relations defined as a local Nusselt number, one should take the
characteristic length to be the distance from the surface boundary to the local point
of interest. However, to obtain an average Nusselt number, one must integrate said
relation over the entire characteristic length.
Typically, for free convection, the average Nusselt number is expressed as a
function of the Rayleigh number and the Prandtl number, written as: Nu = f(Ra, Pr).
Else, for forced convection, the Nusselt number is generally a function of the
Reynolds number and the Prandtl number, or Nu = f(Re, Pr). Empirical correlations
for a wide variety of geometries are available that express the Nusselt number in the
aforementioned forms.
The mass transfer analog of the Nusselt number is the Sherwood number.
10.2.5 PRANDTL NUMBER

The Prandtl number is a dimensionless number; the ratio of momentum
diffusivity (kinematic viscosity) to thermal diffusivity. It is named after the German
physicist Ludwig Prandtl.
It is defined as:
Where
= kinematic viscosity, , (SI units : m2/s)
= thermal diffusivity, , (SI units : m2/s)
= dynamic viscosity, (SI units : Pa s = N s/m2
= thermal conductivity, (SI units : W/(m K) )
Cp
= specific heat, (SI units : J/(kg K) )
17
= density, (SI units : kg/m3)
Note that whereas the Reynolds number and Grashof number are
subscripted with a length scale variable, the Prandtl number contains no such length
scale in its definition and is dependent only on the fluid and the fluid state. As such,
the Prandtl number is often found in property tables alongside other properties such
as viscosity and thermal conductivity.
Typical values for Pr are:
(Low Pr - thermal diffusivity dominant)
around 0.015 for mercury

around 0.16-0.7 for mixtures of noble gases or noble gases with hydrogen
around 0.7-0.8 for air and many other gases,
between 4 and 5 for R-12 refrigerant
around 7 for water (At 20 degrees Celsius)
13.4 and 7.2 for seawater (At 0 degrees Celsius and 20 degrees Celsius
respectively)
between 100 and 40,000 for engine oil
around 11025 for Earth's mantle.
(High Pr - momentum diffusivity dominant)

For mercury, heat conduction is very effective compared to convection:
thermal diffusivity is dominant. For engine oil, convection is very effective in
transferring energy from an area, compared to pure conduction: momentum
diffusivity is dominant.
In heat transfer problems, the Prandtl number controls the relative thickness
of the momentum and thermal boundary layers. When Pr is small, it means that the
heat diffuses very quickly compared to the velocity (momentum). This means that for
liquid metals the thickness of the thermal boundary layer is much bigger than the
velocity boundary layer.
The mass transfer analog of the Prandtl number is the Schmidt number.
10.3 MASS TRANSFER
10.3.1 SCHMIDT NUMBER

Schmidt number is a dimensionless number defined as the ratio of momentum
diffusivity (viscosity) and mass diffusivity, and is used to characterize fluid flows in
which there are simultaneous momentum and mass diffusion convection processes.
18
It was named after the German engineer Ernst Heinrich Wilhelm Schmidt (18921975).
Schmidt number is the ratio of the shear component for diffusivity viscosity /
density to the diffusivity for mass transfer D. It physically relates the relative
thickness of the hydrodynamic layer and mass-transfer boundary layer.
It is defined as:
Where:
= is the kinematic viscosity or ( / ) in units of (m2/s)
= is the mass diffusivity (m2/s).
= is the dynamic viscosity of the fluid (Pas or Ns/m or kg/ms)
= is the density of the fluid (kg/m).
The heat transfer analog of the Schmidt number is the Prandtl number.
10.3.2 SHERWOOD NUMBER

The Sherwood number, Sh (also called the mass transfer Nusselt number) is
a dimensionless number used in mass-transfer operation. It represents the ratio of
convective to diffusive mass transport, and is named in honor of Thomas Kilgore
Sherwood.
It is defined as follows
Where
L = is a characteristic length (m)
D = is mass diffusivity (m2.s1)
K = is the mass transfer coefficient (m.s1)
19
Using dimensional analysis, it can also be further defined as a function of the

Reynolds and Schmidt numbers:
10.4 CHEMICAL REACTION ENGINEERING
10.4.1 DAMKHLER NUMBERS

The Damkhler numbers (Da) are dimensionless numbers used in chemical
engineering to relate chemical reaction timescale to other phenomena occurring in a
system. It is named after German chemist Gerhard Damkhler (19081944).
There are several Damkhler numbers, and their definition varies according to
the system under consideration.
For a general chemical reaction A B of nth order, the Damkhler number is
defined as
Where:
k = kinetics reaction rate constant
C0 = initial concentration
n = reaction order
t
= time
and it represents a dimensionless reaction time. It provides a quick estimate of the

degree of conversion (X) that can be achieved in continuous flow reactors.
Generally, if Da < 0.1, then X < 0.1. Similarly, if Da > 10, then X > 0.
In continuous or semi batch chemical processes, the general definition of the
Damkhler number is:
Or as
20
For example, in a continuous reactor, the Damkhler number is:
Where is the mean residence time or space time.

In reacting systems that include also inter phase mass transport, the second
Damkhler number (DaII) is defined as the ratio of the chemical reaction rate to the
mass transfer rate
Where
kg = is the global mass transport coefficient
a = is the interfacial area
10.5 MISCELLANEOUS
10.5.1 LEWIS NUMBER

Lewis number is a dimensionless number defined as the ratio of thermal
diffusivity to mass diffusivity. It is used to characterize fluid flows where there is
simultaneous heat and mass transfer by convection.
It is defined as:
Where
= is the thermal diffusivity
D = is the mass diffusivity.
21
The Lewis number can also be stated in terms of the Schmidt number and the
Prandtl number :
It is named after Warren K. Lewis (18821975), who was the first head of the
Chemical Engineering Department at MIT. Some workers in the field of combustion
assume (incorrectly) that the Lewis number was named for Bernard Lewis (1899
1993), who for many years was a major figure in the field of combustion research
10.5.2 STANTON NUMBER

The Stanton number, St, is a dimensionless number that measures the ratio
of heat transferred into a fluid to the thermal capacity of fluid. It is used to
characterize heat transfer in forced convection flows.
Where
h = convection heat transfer coefficient
= density of the fluid
cp = specific heat of the fluid
V = velocity of the fluid
It can also be represented in terms of the fluid's Nusselt, Reynolds, and
Prandtl numbers:
Where
Nu = is the Nusselt number
Re = is the Reynolds number
Pr = is the Prandtl number
The Stanton number arises in the consideration of the geometric similarity of
the momentum boundary layer and the thermal boundary layer, where it can be used
22
to express a relationship between the shear force at the wall (due to viscous drag)
and the total heat transfer at the wall (due to thermal diffusivity).
The Stanton number is named after Thomas Edward Stanton (18651931).
10.5.3 KNUDSEN NUMBER

The ratio of the mean free path length of the molecules of a fluid to a
characteristic length; used to describe the flow of low-density gases.
The Knudsen number is a dimensionless number defined as:
Where
= mean free path [L1]

= representative physical length scale
In gas dynamics, the ratio of the molecular mean free path to some
characteristic length L: Kn = /L. The length chosen will depend on the problem
under consideration. It may be, for example, the diameter of a pipe or an
object immersed in a flow, or the thickness of a boundary layer or a shock wave.
The magnitude of the Knudsen number determines the appropriate gas
dynamic regime. When the Knudsen number is small compared to unity, of the order
of Kn 0.1, the fluid can be treated as a continuous medium and described in terms
of the macroscopic variables: velocity, density, pressure, and temperature. In the
transition flow regime, for Knudsen numbers of the order of unity or greater,
a microscopic approach
is
required,
wherein
the
trajectories
of
individual
representative molecules are considered, and macroscopic variables are obtained

from the statistical properties of their motions. In both internal and external flows, for
Kn 10, intermolecular collisions in the region of interest are much less frequent
than molecular interactions with solid boundaries, and can be ignored. Flows under
such conditions are termed collisionless or free molecular. In the range 0.1 Kn
1.0, termed the slip flow regime, it is sometimes possible to obtain useful results by
treating the gas as a continuum, but allowing for discontinuities in velocity and
temperature at solid boundaries. See also Gas dynamics; Kinetic theory of matter.
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CHAPTER 10

10.1.1 ARCHIMEDES NUMBER

10.1.2 CAPILLARY NUMBER

Where is the viscosity of the liquid, V is a characteristic velocity and is the

10.1.3 CAUCHY NUMBER

10.1.4 RELATION BETWEEN CAUCHY NUMBER AND MACH NUMBER

= speed of sound, (SI units: m/s)

R = characteristic gas constant, (SI units: J/(kg K) )

10.1.5 EULER NUMBER

= is the density of the fluid.

p(upstream) = is the upstream pressure.

= is a characteristic velocity of the flow

10.1.6 FROUDE NUMBER

10.1.7 GRAETZ NUMBER

Re = is the Reynolds number and

This number is useful in determining the thermally developing flow entrance

10.1.8 GRASHOF NUMBER

= acceleration due to Earth's gravity

= concentration of species a at surface

= concentration of species a in ambient medium

10.1.9 MACH NUMBER

CLASSIFICATION OF MACH REGIMES

The Peclet number is a dimensionless number relevant in the study of

For diffusion of particles (mass diffusion), it is defined as

= is the thermal conductivity,

= is the heat capacity.

In engineering applications the Peclet number is often very large. In such

In fluid mechanics, the Rayleigh number for a fluid is a dimensionless number

= Rayleigh number at position x

= Grashof number at position x

= acceleration due to gravity

= Surface temperature (temperature of the wall)

= Quiescent temperature (fluid temperature far from the surface of the

= Thermal expansion coefficient (equals to 1/T, for ideal gases, where

= is the dynamic viscosity of the fluid (Pas or Ns/m or kg/(ms))

= is the kinematic viscosity (/) (m/s)

= is the density of the fluid (kg/m).

Which is used frequently when considering atmospheric or oceanic flows.

If the Richardson number is of order unity, then the flow is likely to be

The Weber number is a dimensionless number in fluid mechanics that is often

= is its velocity (m/s).

= is its characteristic length, typically the droplet diameter (m).

= is the surface tension (N/m).

10.2 HEAT TRANSFER

The Biot number is defined as

exponential heating or cooling behavior ("Newtonian" cooling or heating) since the

10.2.3 BRINKMAN NUMBER

= is the fluid's dynamic viscosity;

U = is the fluid's velocity;

= is the thermal conductivity of the fluid;

T0 = is the bulk fluid temperature;

10.2.4 NUSSELT NUMBER

h = convective heat transfer coefficient

10.2.5 PRANDTL NUMBER

= kinematic viscosity, , (SI units : m2/s)

= thermal diffusivity, , (SI units : m2/s)

= dynamic viscosity, (SI units : Pa s = N s/m2

= thermal conductivity, (SI units : W/(m K) )

= specific heat, (SI units : J/(kg K) )

= density, (SI units : kg/m3)

around 0.015 for mercury

(High Pr - momentum diffusivity dominant)

10.3 MASS TRANSFER