MECH 361 Lecture Notes - Lecture 14: Conservative Vector Field, Potential Flow, Incompressible Flow
2 May 2016
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Document Summary
The theory of irrotational (or potential) flow is an important subject in fluid mechanics since this type flow is of instructional and engineering importance. Although, a real fluid in motion does not behave in an irrotational manner, some regions of actual flow fields can be adequately approximate by the potential flow theory. For example, the incompressible flow around a cylinder at a moderate. Reynolds numbers, can be divided into two distinct regions; the viscous region (the boundary layer plus the wake) indicated as region ii in fig. 7. 1. 1, and the flow domain, indicated as region i, that exists outside the former zone. The theory that we will be developing next, provides an acceptable approximation to the flow in region i. y region i region ii. Besides in fluid mechanics, this subject is also of interest to other classifications of scientific knowledge such as; electromagnetic field theory, heat transfer, meteorology, oceanography, astrophysics and others.
