Fluid Mechanics for Chemical Engineers : With Microfluidics and CFD

Since most chemical processing applications are conducted either partially or totally in the fluid phase, chemical engineers need a strong understanding of fluid mechanics. Such knowledge is especially valuable for solving problems in the biochemical, chemical, energy, fermentation, materials, mining, petroleum, pharmaceuticals, polymer, and waste-processing industries.

James O. Wilkes is Professor Emeritus of Chemical Engineering at the University of Michigan, and served as department chairman and assistant dean for admissions.

This text has evolved from a need for a single volume that embraces a wide range of topics in fluid mechanics. The material consists of two parts--four chapters on macroscopicor relatively large-scale phenomena, followed by ten chapters on microscopicor relatively small-scale phenomena. Throughout, I have tried to keep in mind topics of industrial importance to the chemical engineer. The scheme is summarized in the following list of chapters. Part I--Macroscopic Fluid Mechanics1. Introduction to Fluid Mechanics2. Mass, Energy, and Momentum Balances3. Fluid Friction in Pipes4. Flow in Chemical Engineering Equipment Part II--Microscopic Fluid Mechanics5. Differential Equations of Fluid Mechanics6. Solution of Viscous-Flow Problems7. Laplace''s Equation, Irrotational and Porous-Media Flows8. Boundary-Layer and Other Nearly Unidirectional Flows9. Turbulent Flow10. Bubble Motion, Two-Phase Flow, and Fluidization11. Non-Newtonian Fluids12. Microfluidics and Electrokinetic Flow Effects13. An Introduction to Computational Fluid Dynamics and FlowLab14. COMSOL (FEMLAB) Multi-physics for Solving Fluid Mechanics Problems In our experience, an undergraduate fluid mechanics course can be based on Part I plus selected parts of Part II, and a graduate course can be based on much of Part II, supplemented perhaps by additional material on topics such as approximate methods and stability. Second edition.I have attempted to bring the book up to date by the major addition of Chapters 12, 13, and 14--one on microfluidics and two on CFD (computational fluid dynamics). The choice of software for the CFD presented a difficulty; for various reasons, I selected FlowLab and COMSOL Multiphysics, but there was no intention of "promoting" these in favor of other excellent CFD programs.1The use of CFD examples in the classroom really makes the subject come "alive," because the previous restrictive necessities of "nice" geometries and constant physical properties, etc., can now be lifted. Chapter 9, on turbulence, has also been extensively rewritten; here again, CFD allows us to venture beyond the usual flow in a pipe or between parallel plates and to investigate further practical situations such as turbulent mixing and recirculating flows. Example problems.There is an average of about six completely worked examples in each chapter, including several involving COMSOL (dispersed throughout Part II) and FlowLab (all in Chapter 13). The end of each example is marked by a small, hollow square. All the COMSOL examples have been run on a Macintosh G4 computer using FEMLAB 3.1, but have also been checked on a PC; those using a PC or other releases of COMSOL/FEMLAB may encounter slightly different windows than those reproduced here. The format for each COMSOL example is: (a) problem statement, (b) details of COMSOL implementation, and (c) results and discussion (however, item (b) can easily be skipped for those interested only in the results). The numerous end-of-chapter problems have been classified roughly as easy (E), moderate (M), or difficult/lengthy (D). The University of Cambridge has given permission--kindly endorsed by Professor J.F. Davidson, F.R.S.--for several of their chemical engineering examination problems to be reproduced in original or modified form, and these have been given the additional designation of "(C)". Further information.The websitehttp://www.engin.umich.edu/~fmcheis maintained as a "bulletin board" for giving additional information about the book--hints for problem solutions, errata, how to contact the authors, etc.--as proves desirable. My own Internet address iswilkes@umich.edu. The text was composed on a Power Macintosh G4 computer using the TEXtures "typesetting" program. Eleven-point type was used for the majority of the text. Most of the figures were constructed using MacDraw Pro, Excel, and KaleidaGraph. Professor Terence Fox,to whom this book is dedicated, was a Cambridge engineering graduate who worked from 1933 to 1937 at Imperial Chemical Industries Ltd., Billingham, Yorkshire. Returning to Cambridge, he taught engineering from 1937 to 1946 before being selected to lead the Department of Chemical Engineering at the University of Cambridge during its formative years after the end of World War II. As a scholar and a gentleman, Fox was a shy but exceptionally brilliant person who had great insight into what was important and who quickly brought the department to a preeminent position. He succeeded in combining an industrial perspective with intellectual rigor. Fox relinquished the leadership of the department in 1959, after he had secured a permanent new building for it (carefully designed in part by himself). Fox was instrumental in bringing Peter Danckwerts, Kenneth Denbigh, John Davidson, and others into the department. He also accepted me in 1956 as a junior faculty member, and I spent four good years in the CambridgeUniversity Department of Chemical Engineering. Danckwerts subsequently wrote an appreciation2of Fox''s talents, saying, with almost complete accuracy: "Fox instigated no research and published nothing." How times have changed--today, unless he were known personally, his resume would probably be cast aside and he would stand little chance of being hired, let alone of receiving tenure! However, his lectures, meticulously written handouts, enthusiasm, genius, and friendship were a great inspiration to me, and I have much pleasure in acknowledging his positive impact on my career. James O. Wilkes August 18, 2005 1. The software name "FEMLAB" was changed to "COMSOL Multiphysics" in September 2005, the first release under the new name being COMSOL 3.2. 2. P.V. Danckwerts, "Chemical engineering comes to Cambridge," The Cambridge Review, pp. 53-55, February28, 1983.