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Bernoulli's principle

physical science Maturity 11-13 Next article →

Have you ever wondered how fluids move through a pipe or around a wing?

VenturiFlow
VenturiFlow

Bernoulli's principle is a very important rule in fluid dynamics. This field of science studies how liquids and gases behave. The principle explains how pressure, speed, and height all work together. For a fluid moving horizontally, there is a special link between speed and pressure. When the speed of the fluid increases, the pressure goes down at the same time. This discovery helps us understand many things in our world.

Venturi5
Venturi5

This rule works because of how energy is balanced. In a steady flow, the total energy stays the same at every point. This total energy includes kinetic energy, which is the energy of motion. It also includes potential energy and internal energy. If a fluid speeds up, its kinetic energy goes up. To keep the total energy constant, the pressure must drop.

BernoullisLawDerivationDiagram
BernoullisLawDerivationDiagram

You can also think about this using Newton's laws of motion. When fluid moves from high pressure to low pressure, it feels a push. This push acts like a force that makes the fluid move faster. This is why the highest speeds happen where the pressure is lowest.

A mathematician named Daniel Bernoulli first shared these ideas. He was from Switzerland and lived a long time ago. He published his findings in a book called Hydrodynamica in 1738. He mostly studied how liquids behaved in his experiments. Later, a scientist named Leonhard Euler helped improve the math. In 1752, Euler created the equation we use today. This equation helps scientists calculate exactly how much the pressure changes.

Scientists use specific terms to describe these different types of pressure. Static pressure is the actual pressure of the fluid. It is linked to the state of the fluid rather than its motion. Dynamic pressure is the pressure caused by the fluid's movement. When you add these two together, you get the total pressure.

Jet gripper air-flow
Jet gripper air-flow

In many cases, the total pressure stays constant throughout the flow. This is especially true if there is no friction to slow things down. Scientists call these types of flows "incompressible" if the density stays the same. This is common for most liquids and slow-moving gases.

You can see this principle in action in many places. One great example is how large aircraft fly through the air.

Cloud over A340 wing
Cloud over A340 wing

It also explains how ships move through open water. Even some tools, like a special air gripper, use this rule to work. The principle works well for large bodies of fluid moving past solid objects. However, it does not work well in narrow spaces like long pipes. This is because friction in those pipes can change the energy. Understanding these rules helps us build amazing machines.

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🖼️ Images & Media (7)
File:VenturiFlow.png
VenturiFlow.png
Venturi Tube en.webm
File:Venturi5.svg
Venturi5.svg
File:BernoullisLawDerivationDiagram.svg
BernoullisLawDerivationDiagram.svg
File:Cloud over A340 wing.JPG
Cloud over A340 wing.JPG
File:Jet_gripper_air-flow.jpg
Jet_gripper_air-flow.jpg
File:Equal transit-time NASA wrong1 en.svg
Equal transit-time NASA wrong1 en.svg
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