Home
Back
Shear Stress Formula:
| From: | To: |
Shear Stress is defined as the force per unit area exerted by a fluid, defined as the product of the fluid's dynamic viscosity and the velocity gradient perpendicular to the flow direction. It represents the internal friction within a fluid when layers move relative to each other.
The calculator uses the Shear Stress formula:
Where:
Explanation: The formula calculates the shear stress by multiplying the fluid velocity by the dynamic viscosity and dividing by the distance between boundaries.
Details: Shear stress calculation is crucial in fluid dynamics for understanding flow behavior, designing piping systems, predicting erosion rates, and analyzing blood flow in medical applications.
Tips: Enter fluid velocity in m/s, dynamic viscosity in Pa·s, and space between boundaries in meters. All values must be positive numbers greater than zero.
Q1: What is the difference between dynamic and kinematic viscosity?
A: Dynamic viscosity measures a fluid's resistance to flow under an applied force, while kinematic viscosity is dynamic viscosity divided by density.
Q2: How does temperature affect viscosity and shear stress?
A: For most liquids, viscosity decreases with increasing temperature, which reduces shear stress at constant velocity and spacing.
Q3: What are typical shear stress values in engineering applications?
A: Shear stress values vary widely depending on the application, from fractions of a Pascal in biological systems to thousands of Pascals in industrial processes.
Q4: Can this formula be used for non-Newtonian fluids?
A: No, this formula is specifically for Newtonian fluids where viscosity is constant. Non-Newtonian fluids require more complex models.
Q5: What units should be used for accurate calculations?
A: Use consistent SI units: meters for distance, meters/second for velocity, and Pascal-seconds for viscosity to get results in Pascals.