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Relative Equilibrium Word 123

This document discusses relative equilibrium of liquids, which occurs when a liquid and its containing vessel are in uniform accelerated motion with respect to the earth. It defines two cases of relative equilibrium: 1) When a vessel moves horizontally with constant linear acceleration, the liquid surface forms an inclined plane at an angle related to the acceleration. 2) When a vessel undergoes vertical acceleration, the pressure at points within the liquid is altered from static pressure depending on the direction and magnitude of acceleration.

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Christian Dave Rone
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651 views

Relative Equilibrium Word 123

This document discusses relative equilibrium of liquids, which occurs when a liquid and its containing vessel are in uniform accelerated motion with respect to the earth. It defines two cases of relative equilibrium: 1) When a vessel moves horizontally with constant linear acceleration, the liquid surface forms an inclined plane at an angle related to the acceleration. 2) When a vessel undergoes vertical acceleration, the pressure at points within the liquid is altered from static pressure depending on the direction and magnitude of acceleration.

Uploaded by

Christian Dave Rone
Copyright
© © All Rights Reserved
We take content rights seriously. If you suspect this is your content, claim it here.
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Download as DOCX, PDF, TXT or read online on Scribd
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RELATIVE EQUILIBRIUM OF LIQUIDS

Relative Equilibrium Defined In the preceding chapters liquids have been


assumed to be in equilibrium and at rest with respect both to the earth and to
the containing vessel. The present chapter treats of the condition where every
particle of a liquid is at rest with respect to every other particle and to the
containing vessel, but the whole mass, including vessel, has uniformly
accelerated motion with respect to the earth. The liquid is then in equilibrium
and at rest with respect to the vessel, but it is neither in equilibrium nor at rest
with respect to the earth. In this condition a liquid is said to be in relative
equilibrium. Since there is no motion of the liquid with respect to the vessel
and no movement between the fluid particles themselves there can be no
friction.

Hydrokinetics, which is treated in the following chapters, deals with liquid that
are in motion with respect both to the earth and to their containers. In this
case the retarding effects of friction must be considered.

Relative equilibrium may be considered as an intermediate state between


hydrostatics and hydrokinetics. Two cases of relative equilibrium will be
discussed.

Vessel moving with Constant Linear


Acceleration If a vessel partly filled with any
liquid moves horizontally along a straight line
with a constant acceleration a, the surface of
the liquid will assume an angle Ɵ with the
horizontal as shown in Fig. 32. To determine the
value of Ɵ for any value of a, consider the forces
acting on a small mass of liquid M, at any point
O on the surface. This mass is moving with a
constant horizontal acceleration a, and the force
producing the acceleration is the resultant of all
the other forces acting upon the mass. These
forces are the forces of gravity W, acting
vertically downward, and the pressure of all the
contiguous particles of the liquid. The resultant
F of the pressure produced by these particles of
liquid must be normal
Fig. 32
To the free surface AB. Since forces equals mass times acceleration,
Wa
P= Ma = g (1)

From the figure

P= W tan Ɵ (2)
Solving these equations simultaneously,
a
tan Ɵ = g (3)

which gives the slope that the surface AB will assume for any constant
acceleration of the vessel.

Since O was assumed to be anywhere on the surface and the values of a


and g are the same for all points, it follows that tan Ɵ is constant at all points
at all points on the surface, or, in the words, AB is a straight line.

The same value of Ɵ will hold or a vessel moving to the right with a positive
acceleration as for a vessel moving to the left with a negative acceleration or a
retardation.

To determine the intensity of pressure at any point b at a depth h below


the free surface, consider the vertical forces acting on a vertical prims bb’ (Fig
32).

Since there is no acceleration vertically the only vertical forces acting are
atmospheric pressure at b’ gravity, and the upward pressure on the base of the
prism at b. Hence if the cross-sectional area is dA,

pb d A = wh dA + pb dA (4)

pb = wh + pa (5)
Or neglecting atmospheric pressure which acts throughout,

pb = wh (6)
Therefore, in a body of liquid moving with a horizontal acceleration the relative
pressure at any point is that caused by the head of liquid directly over the
point, as in hydrostatics. In this case, however, all points of equal pressure lie
in an inclined plane parallel with the surface of liquid.
In equation 3, if a were zero, tan Ɵ would equal zero; or, in other words, if the
vessel were moving with a constant velocity the surface of the liquid would be
horizontal. Also if the acceleration were vertical, the surface would be
horizontal.

To determine the relative pressure at any


point b in a vessel with an acceleration upward,
consider the forces acting on a vertical prism of
liquid bb’ of height h and Cross-sectional area dA
(Fig. 33). The force P, producing the acceleration,
is the resultant of all the forces acting on the
prism, consisting of gravity equal to wh dA,
acting downward, and the pressure in the lower
end of the filament at b, equal to p dA, acting
b

upward. Therefore

wh dA
P= pbdA – whdA = Ma = g a

Fig.33. Vessel with vertical


From which acceleration

a
pb = wh + wh (7)
g

This shows that the intensity of pressure at any point within a liquid contained
in a vessel having an upward acceleration a is greater than the static pressure
wha
by an amount equal to .Evidently, if the acceleration were downward, the
g
sign of the last term in the above expression would become negative, and if a =
g, pb=0 In other words, if a vessel containing any liquid falls freely in a vacuum,
so as not to be retarded by air friction, the pressure will be zero at all points
throughout the vessel.

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