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Stokes Law and The Idea of Terminal Velocity

Stokes law describes the forces acting on a solid sphere moving through a fluid, including form drag, friction drag, gravity, and buoyancy. The relationship between these forces determines the sphere's terminal velocity, which is reached when drag forces equal the force of gravity minus buoyancy. If the fluid velocity exceeds the terminal velocity, the fluid will carry particles out of the bed in a process called elutriation. Terminal velocity is described by an equation that includes sphere diameter, fluid and solid densities, and gravitational acceleration.

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Olajide Emmanuel Olorunfemi
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309 views

Stokes Law and The Idea of Terminal Velocity

Stokes law describes the forces acting on a solid sphere moving through a fluid, including form drag, friction drag, gravity, and buoyancy. The relationship between these forces determines the sphere's terminal velocity, which is reached when drag forces equal the force of gravity minus buoyancy. If the fluid velocity exceeds the terminal velocity, the fluid will carry particles out of the bed in a process called elutriation. Terminal velocity is described by an equation that includes sphere diameter, fluid and solid densities, and gravitational acceleration.

Uploaded by

Olajide Emmanuel Olorunfemi
Copyright
© Attribution Non-Commercial (BY-NC)
We take content rights seriously. If you suspect this is your content, claim it here.
Available Formats
Download as PPT, PDF, TXT or read online on Scribd
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Stokes Law and the Idea of Terminal velocity

For Laminar flow, there are three forces that can be calculated to act
On a solid sphere moving vertically through a fluid.

Form Drag Friction Drag


4
⋅ π ⋅ R ⋅ ( ∆ ρ) ⋅ g
3
Gravity
3
Or Buoyancy

Form Drag 2⋅ π ⋅ η ⋅ R ⋅ v t

4⋅ π ⋅ η ⋅ R⋅ v t
Friction Drag Gravity
Falling sphere with velocity Vt

Form Drag Friction Drag

4
3
⋅ π ⋅ R ⋅ ( ∆ ρ) ⋅ g
3
( 4⋅ π ⋅ η ⋅ R⋅ v t) + 2⋅ π ⋅η ⋅ R⋅ v t
ρ solid > ρ fluid

2 2 g
Gravity vt ⋅ R ⋅ ∆ ρ⋅
9 η

Motionless Sphere in Moving Fluid

What Happens if Vfluid>Vt? Fluid velocity=Vt

Gravity
Stokes Law for Turbulent and Laminar Flow

d⋅ V FluidRelativeToSphere
⋅ρ
Re sphere
η

Laminar  Turbulent when Re>0.1 to 1

24
f1 ( Rethat
As the pressure exceeds sphere) := Re for when
required minimum fluidization,
Resphere <1 a second empirical equati
necessary to describe the relationship sphere Ga and Resphere and pore fraction,ω, given as
between
18.5
4.7 ( )
f2 Resphere :=
3
when 1 < Resphere < 500
1.687
ω ⋅ Ga 18⋅ Resphere + 2.7⋅ Resphere
5
Resphere
As the increasing fluid velocities are considered,
the fluid velocity eventually reaches the te
velocity of the particles and blows the particles out of the bed.5 This process is referred to a
f3 ( Resphere
'elutriation', where the terminal ) := 0.44is when
velocity 500 < Resphere
described by the< 2familiar
⋅ 10 equation

vt
(
 4⋅ d⋅ ρ s − ρ ⋅ g 

) 
2


3⋅f⋅ ρ 
where f is the friction factor.The friction factor will have three ranges of dependence on the

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