LAMINAR AND TURBULENT FLOW

If the velocity of fluid inside the pipe is small, streamlines will be in straight
parallel lines. As the velocity of fluid inside the pipe gradually increase,
streamlines will continue to be straight and parallel with the pipe wall until
velocity is reached when the streamlines will waver and suddenly break into
diffused patterns. The velocity at which this occurs is called “critical velocity”. At
velocities higher than “critical”, the streamlines are dispersed at random
throughout the pipe

S.No Laminar Flow Turbulent Flow

1 It is a fluid flow in which the fluid
layers move parallel to each other
and do not cross each other.
2 The laminar flow generally occurs
in the fluid flowing with low
velocity.
It is a fluid flow in which the fluid
layers cross each other and do not
move parallel to each other.
The turbulent flow occurs when the
fluid flows with high velocity.
 3 Laminar flow occurs in the small Turbulent flow occurs in large
diameter pipes in which fluid diameter pipes in which fluid flows
flows with high velocity.
with low velocity.

4 The fluid flow is laminar when the The fluid flow is turbulent when the
value of Reynolds number (Re) is value of Reynolds number is greater
less than 2000. than 4000.

5 Shear stress in laminar flow Shear stress in the turbulent flow

depends only on the viscosity of depends upon the density of the
the fluid and independent of the fluid.
density.

6 The fluid flow is very orderly i.e.
there is no mixing of adjacent
layers of the fluid and they move
parallel to each other and also
with the walls of the pipe.
The fluid flow is not orderly i.e.
there is mixing of adjacent layers of
fluid with each other and they do
not move parallel to each other and
also with the walls of the pipe.

Laminar flow:

 The fluid flow in which the adjacent layers of the fluid do not mix with each other
and moves parallel to each other, is called laminar flow.
 In the laminar flow, the fluid layer moves in straight line.
 The laminar flow always occurs when the fluid flow with low velocity and in small
diameter pipes.
 The fluid flow having Reynolds number less than 2000 is called laminar flow.
 The fluid flow is very orderly i.e. there is no mixing of adjacent layers of the fluid
and they move parallel to each other and also with the walls of the pipe.
 Shear stress in laminar flow depends only on the viscosity of the fluid and
independent of the density.

Turbulent Flow:

The fluid flow in which the adjacent layers of the fluid cross each other and do
not move parallel to each other, is called turbulent flow.
 In turbulent flow the fluid layers do not moves in straight line. They move
randomly in zigzag manner.
 The turbulent flow occurs when the velocity of the fluid is high and it flows
through larger diameter pipes.
 The fluid flow having Reynolds number greater than 4000 is called turbulent flow.
 The fluid does not flow in definite order. There is a mixing of different layers and
they do not move parallel to each other but crosses each other.
 The shear stress in turbulent flow depends upon its density.

Shear Stress and Shear Strain:

Concept of strain : if a bar is subjected to a direct load, and hence a stress the bar
will change in length. If the bar has an original length L and changes by an
amount dL, the strain produce is defined as follows:

Strain is thus, a measure of the deformation of the material and is a

nondimensional Quantity i.e. it has no units. It is simply a ratio of two quantities
with the same unit.
Since in practice, the extensions of materials under load are very very small, it is often convenient to
measure the strain in the form of strain x 10-6 i.e. micro strain, when the symbol used becomes .

Sign convention for strain:

Tensile strains are positive whereas compressive strains are negative. The strain defined earlier was
known as linear strain or normal strain or the longitudinal strain now let us define the shear strain.

Stress and Strain

Stress - force per area (Pa or kg/m-s2)

Strain - deformation of the solid due to stress (dimensionless)

Body forces and Surface forces

Body forces acts throughout the volume of a solid. E.g gravity

Deformation:
Deformation in continuum mechanics is the transformation of a body from
a referenceconfiguration to a current configuration. A configuration is a set containing
the positions of all particles of the body.
A deformation may be caused by external loads, body forces (such
as gravity or electromagnetic forces), or changes in temperature, moisture content, or
chemical reactions, etc.
Fully Developed Flow:
Fully developed flow occurs when the viscous effects due to the shear stress
between the fluid particles and pipe wall create a fully developed velocity
profile. In order for this to occur the fluid must travel through a length of a
straight pipe.