Chapter 3
Hydrostatic (Fluid Statics)
States of Matter
⚫ Solid
⚫ Has a definite volume and shape
⚫ Liquid
⚫ Has a definite volume but not a definite shape
⚫ Gas – unconfined
⚫ Has neither a definite volume nor shape
Density
The SI unit of density is the kilogram per
cubic meter (kg/m3)
The densest material found on earth is
the metal osmium (22 500 kg/m3)
Relative Density (specific gravity )
⚫ The specific gravity of a material is the ratio
of its density to the density of water at 4oC.
Density Notes
⚫ Density is defined as the mass per unit
volume of the substance
⚫ The values of density for a substance vary
slightly with temperature since volume is
temperature dependent
⚫ The various densities indicate the average
molecular spacing in a gas is much greater
than that in a solid or liquid
⚫ A homogeneous material such as ice or iron
has the same density throughout
Average Density
Density Table
Example 1
Solution
Fluids
⚫ A fluid is a collection of molecules that are
randomly arranged and held together by
weak cohesive forces and by forces exerted
by the walls of a container
⚫ Both liquids and gases are fluids
Statics and Dynamics with
Fluids
⚫ Fluid Statics
⚫ Describes fluids at rest
⚫ Fluid Dynamics
⚫ Describes fluids in motion
⚫ The same physical principles that have
applied to statics and dynamics up to this
point will also apply to fluids
Forces in Fluids
⚫ Fluids do not sustain shearing stresses or tensile
stresses
⚫ The only stress that can be exerted on an object
submerged in a static fluid is one that tends to
compress the object from all sides
⚫ The force exerted by a static fluid on an object is
always perpendicular to the surfaces of the object
Pressure
⚫ The pressure P of the
fluid at the level to
which the device has
been submerged is the
ratio of the force to the
area
F
P
A
Pressure vs. Force
⚫ Pressure is a scalar and force is a vector
⚫ The direction of the force producing a
pressure is perpendicular to the area of
interest
Pressure, cont
⚫ Pressure is a scalar quantity
⚫ Because it is proportional to the magnitude of the
force
⚫ If the pressure varies over an area, evaluate
F on a surface of area A as F = P A
⚫ Unit of pressure is pascal (Pa)
1Pa = 1 N/m2
Variation of Pressure with
Depth
⚫ Fluids have pressure that varies with depth
⚫ If a fluid is at rest in a container, all portions of the
fluid must be in static equilibrium
⚫ All points at the same depth must be at the same
pressure
⚫ Otherwise, the fluid would not be in equilibrium
Pressure and Depth
Measuring Pressure
⚫ The spring is calibrated
by a known force
⚫ The force due to the
fluid presses on the top
of the piston and
compresses the spring
⚫ The force the fluid
exerts on the piston is
then measured
Absolute Pressure and Gauge
Pressure
Absolute Pressure
Gauge Pressure
Atmospheric Pressure
⚫ If the liquid is open to the atmosphere, and P0
is the pressure at the surface of the liquid,
then P0 is atmospheric pressure
⚫ P0 = 1.00 atm = 1.013 x 105 Pa
Example 2
solution
Example 3
⚫ If the force on the tympanic membrane
(eardrum) increases by about 1.5 N above
the force from atmospheric pressure, the
membrane can be damaged. When you go
diving in the ocean, below what depth could
damage to your eardrum start to occur? The
eardrum is typically 8.2 mm in diameter
solution
Pascal’s Law
⚫ The pressure in a fluid depends on depth and
on the value of P0
⚫ An increase in pressure at the surface must
be transmitted to every other point in the fluid
⚫ This is the basis of Pascal’s law
Pascal’s Law, cont
⚫ Named for French scientist Blaise Pascal
⚫ A change in the pressure applied to a fluid
is transmitted undiminished to every point
of the fluid and to the walls of the
container
P1 = P2
F1 F2
=
A1 A2
Pascal’s Law, Example
⚫ Diagram of a hydraulic
press (right)
⚫ A large output force can be
applied by means of a
small input force
⚫ The volume of liquid
pushed down on the left
must equal the volume
pushed up on the right
Pascal’s Law, Example cont.
⚫ Since the volumes are equal,
A1x1 = A2 x2
⚫ Combining the equations,
⚫ F x = F x which means Work1 = Work2
1 1 2 2
⚫ This is a consequence of Conservation of Energy
Pascal’s Law, Other
Applications
⚫ Hydraulic brakes
⚫ Car lifts
⚫ Hydraulic jacks
⚫ Forklifts
Solution
Pressure Measurements:
Barometer
⚫ Invented by Torricelli
⚫ A long closed tube is filled
with mercury and inverted in
a dish of mercury
⚫ The closed end is nearly a
vacuum
⚫ Measures atmospheric
pressure as Po = rHggh
⚫ One 1 atm = 0.760 m (of Hg)
Pressure Measurements:
Manometer
⚫ A device for measuring the
pressure of a gas contained
in a vessel
⚫ One end of the U-shaped
tube is open to the
atmosphere
⚫ The other end is connected
to the pressure to be
measured
⚫ Pressure at B is P = P0+ρgh
Absolute vs. Gauge Pressure
⚫ P = P0 + rgh
⚫ P is the absolute pressure
⚫ The gauge pressure is P – P0
⚫ This is also rgh
⚫ This is what you measure in your tires
Buoyant Force
⚫ The buoyant force is
the upward force
exerted by a fluid on
any immersed object
⚫ The ball is in
equilibrium
⚫ There must be an
upward force to
balance the downward
gravitational force
Buoyant Force, cont
⚫ The magnitude of the upward (buoyant) force
must equal (in magnitude) the downward
gravitational force
⚫ The buoyant force is the resultant force due
to all forces applied by the fluid surrounding
the parcel
Archimedes's Principle:
Archimedes's Principle:
Totally Submerged Object
⚫ An object is totally submerged in a fluid of
density rfluid
⚫ The upward buoyant force is
B = rfluid g V = rfluid g Vobject
⚫ The downward gravitational force is
Fg = Mg = = robj g Vobj
⚫ The net force is B - Fg = (rfluid – robj) g Vobj
Archimedes’s Principle: Totally
Submerged Object, cont
⚫ If the density of the object is less
than the density of the fluid, the
unsupported object accelerates
upward
⚫ If the density of the object is
more than the density of the
fluid, the unsupported object
sinks
⚫ The direction of the motion of
an object in a fluid is
determined only by the
densities of the fluid and the
object
Archimedes’s Principle:
Floating Object
⚫ The object is in static equilibrium
⚫ The upward buoyant force is balanced by the
downward force of gravity
⚫ Volume of the fluid displaced corresponds to
the volume of the object beneath the fluid
level
Vfluid robj
=
Vobj rfluid
Archimedes’s Principle:
Floating Object, cont
⚫ The fraction of the
volume of a floating
object that is below
the fluid surface is
equal to the ratio of
the density of the
object to that of the
fluid
Archimedes’s Principle, Crown
Example, cont.
⚫ SF = B + T2 – Fg = 0
⚫ B = Fg – T2
(Weight in air – “weight” in
water)
⚫ Archimedes’s principle
says B = rgV
⚫ Find V
⚫ Then to find the material
of the crown, rcrown =
mcrown in air / V
Archimedes’s Principle,
Iceberg Example
⚫ What fraction of the iceberg is below water?
⚫ The iceberg is only partially submerged and
so Vseawater / Vice = rice / rseawater applies
⚫ The fraction below the water will be the ratio
of the volumes (Vseawater / Vice)
Archimedes’s Principle,
Iceberg Example, cont
⚫ Vice is the total volume
of the iceberg
⚫ Vwater is the volume of
the water displaced
⚫ This will be equal to the
volume of the iceberg
submerged
⚫ About 89% of the ice is
below the water’s
surface
Example
solution
Surface Tension
An object less dense than water, such as an air-
filled beach ball, floats with part of its volume
below the surface. Conversely, a paper clip can
rest atop a water surface even though its density
is several times that of water. This is an example
of surface tension.
⚫ The surface of the liquid behaves like a
membrane under tension. Thus the liquid
tends to minimize its surface area, just as a
stretched membrane does.
⚫ Surface tension explains why freely falling
raindrops are spherical (not teardrop-
shaped): A sphere has a smaller surface
area for its volume than any other shape.