ME 331
INTRODUCTORY FLUID MECHANICS

Course Description

Introduction to the concepts and applications of fluid mechanics and dimensional analysis with an emphasis on fluid behavior, internal and external flows, analysis of engineering applications of incompressible pipe systems, and external aerodynamics.

Topics

• Review of fluid properties and hydrostatics
  
• Fluid kinematic descriptions
  
• Reynolds transport theorem
  
• Control volume conservation of mass, momentum, and energy
  
• Differential analysis
  
• Viscous internal flows
  
• Pipe flow networks
  
• External flows and boundary layer concepts

Learning Outcomes

The student, upon completion of this course, will be able to:

• Formulate the principles of conservations of mass, momentum, and energy as applied to a variety of internal and external flows.
  
• Formulate solutions to flow problems, including those based on differential analysis, using appropriate fluid properties, flow conditions (i.e., laminar or turbulent), and coordinate representations (i.e., Cartesian or cylindrical).
  
• Solve conservation equations using a systematic approach based on different and/or integral analyses of conservation equations. The analyses will include concepts of fluid friction, momentum-force relationships, lift and drag, boundary layer theory, and pipe networks.
  
• Apply the principles of dimensional analysis and similitude to establish functional relations between important relevant parameters, and apply these to design of experiments.
  
• Apply the fundamental and engineering concepts to design pipe flow networks including fluid machinery.