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In fluid dynamics, the entrance length is the distance a flow travels after entering a pipe before the flow becomes fully developed. [1] Entrance length refers to the length of the entry region, the area following the pipe entrance where effects originating from the interior wall of the pipe propagate into the flow as an expanding boundary layer.
In engineering, the Moody chart or Moody diagram (also Stanton diagram) is a graph in non-dimensional form that relates the Darcy–Weisbach friction factor f D, Reynolds number Re, and surface roughness for fully developed flow in a circular pipe. It can be used to predict pressure drop or flow rate down such a pipe.
For flow in a pipe of diameter D, experimental observations show that for "fully developed" flow, [n 2] laminar flow occurs when Re D < 2300 and turbulent flow occurs when Re D > 2900. [ 13 ] [ 14 ] At the lower end of this range, a continuous turbulent-flow will form, but only at a very long distance from the inlet of the pipe.
In that case, the velocity of flow varies from zero at the walls to a maximum along the cross-sectional centre of the vessel. The flow profile of laminar flow in a tube can be calculated by dividing the flow into thin cylindrical elements and applying the viscous force to them. [5] Another example is the flow of air over an aircraft wing.
In laminar flow, friction loss arises from the transfer of momentum from the fluid in the center of the flow to the pipe wall via the viscosity of the fluid; no vortices are present in the flow. Note that the friction loss is insensitive to the pipe roughness height ε: the flow velocity in the neighborhood of the pipe wall is zero.
The laminar flow through a pipe of uniform (circular) cross-section is known as Hagen–Poiseuille flow. The equations governing the Hagen–Poiseuille flow can be derived directly from the Navier–Stokes momentum equations in 3D cylindrical coordinates ( r , θ , x ) by making the following set of assumptions:
A good estimate of a fully developed velocity profile can be used for those without adequate equipment to actually measure the flow velocities within the pipe. The following straight pipe equivalent length in eq.(3) was utilized to ensure a fully developed flow profile exists. [6]
Couette flow – Model of viscous fluid flow between two surfaces moving relative to each other; Effusive limit; Free molecular flow – Gas flow with a relatively large mean free molecular path; Incompressible flow – Fluid flow in which density remains constant; Inviscid flow – Flow of fluids with zero viscosity (superfluids)