Assignment 2 – Fluid Statics
1. Consider a heavy car submerged in water in a lake with a flat bottom. The driver’s side
door of the car is 1.1 m high and 0.9 m wide, and the top edge of the door is 8 m
below the water surface. Determine the net force acting on the door (normal to its surface)
and the location of the presure center if (a) the car is well-sealed, and it contains air at
atmospheric pressure and (b) the car is filled with water.
2. Consider a 4-m-long, 4-m-wide, and 1.5-m-high aboveground swimming pool that is filled
with water to the rim. (a) Determine the hydrostatic force on each wall and the
distance of the line of action of this force from the ground. (b) If the height of the walls of
the pool is doubled and the pool is filled, will the hydrostatic force on each wall double
or quadruple? Why? Answer: (a) 44.1 kN
3. A crane is used to lower weights into a lake for an underwater construction project.
Determine the tension in the rope of the crane due to a 3-ft-diameter spherical steel block
(density 494 lbm/ft3) when it is (a) suspended in the air and (b) completely immersed in
water.
4. Consider a large cubic ice block floating in seawater. The specific gravities of ice and
seawater are 0.92 and 1.025, respectively. If a 10-cm-high portion of the ice block extends
above the surface of the water, determine the height of the ice block below the surface.
Answer: 87.6 cm
5. The density of a liquid is to be determined by an old 1-cm-diameter cylindrical hydrometer
whose division marks are completely wiped out. The hydrometer is first dropped in water, and
the water level is marked. The hydrometer is then dropped into the other liquid, and it is
observed that the mark for water has risen 0.5 cm above the liquid–air interface. If
the height of the water mark is 10 cm, determine the density of the liquid. (Refer to example
3.10 from Cengel’s book)
6. Consider two water tanks filled with water. The first tank is 8 m high and is stationary, while
the second tank is 2 m high and is moving upward with an acceleration of 5 m/s2. Which tank
will have a higher pressure at the bottom?
7. A water tank is being towed by a truck on a level road, and the angle the free surface makes
with the horizontal is measured to be 15°. Determine the acceleration of the truck
8. A 2-ft-diameter vertical cylindrical tank open to the atmosphere contains 1-ft-high water. The
tank is now rotated about the centerline, and the water level drops at the center
while it rises at the edges. Determine the angular velocity at which the bottom of the tank will
first be exposed. Also determine the maximum water height at this moment. (Refer to “Rotation
in a Cylindrical container” in section 3.8 of Cengel’s book)
Optional Questions
1. A water tank is being towed on an uphill road that makes 20° with the horizontal with a constant
acceleration of 5 m/s2 in the direction of motion. Determine the angle the free surface of water
makes with the horizontal. What would your answer be if the direction of motion were
downward on the same road with the same acceleration?
2. The water side of the wall of a 100-m-long dam is a quarter circle with a radius of 10 m.
Determine the hydrostatic force on the dam and its line of action when the dam is
filled to the rim.
3. It is said that Archimedes discovered his principle during a bath while thinking about how he
could determine if King Hiero’s crown was actually made of pure gold. While in
the bathtub, he conceived the idea that he could determine the average density of an
irregularly shaped object by weighing it in air and also in water. If the crown weighed 3.20
kgf (31.4 N) in air and 2.95 kgf ( 28.9 N) in water, determine if the crown is made of pure
gold. The density of gold is 19,300 kg/m3. Discuss how you can solve this problem
without weighing the crown in water but by using an ordinary bucket with no calibration for
volume. You may weigh anything in air.
4. A long, solid cylinder of radius 2 ft hinged at point A is used as an automatic gate, as shown in
figure. When the water level reaches 15 ft, the cylindrical gate opens by turning about the hinge
at point A. Determine (a) the hydrostatic force acting on the cylinder and its line of action when
the gate opens and (b) the weight of the cylinder per ft length of the cylinder.
Questions for thought (not to be submitted)
1. Define the resultant hydrostatic force acting on a submerged surface, and the centre of
pressure.
2. A submerged horizontal flat plate is suspended in water by a string attached at the centroid
of its upper surface. Now the plate is rotated 45° about an axis that passes through its
centroid. Discuss the change on the hydrostatic force acting on the top surface of this plate
as a result of this rotation. Assume the plate remains submerged at all times.
3. You may have noticed that dams are much thicker at the bottom. Explain why dams are
built that way.
4. What is buoyant force? What causes it? What is the magnitude of the buoyant force acting
on a submerged body whose volume is V? What are the direction and the line of action of
the buoyant force?
5. Consider a 3-kg copper cube and a 3-kg copper ball submerged in a liquid. Will the buoyant
forces acting on these two bodies be the same or different? Explain
6. Under what conditions can a moving body of fluid be treated as a rigid body?
7. Consider two identical glasses of water, one stationary and the other moving on a
horizontal plane with constant acceleration. Assuming no splashing or spilling occurs,
which glass will have a higher pressure at the (a) front, (b) midpoint, and (c) back of the
bottom surface?
