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2.2 Compressibility

Chalmers University of Technology
Department of Mechanical Engineering
Division of Fluid Dynamics

If density fluctuations are significant, compressible effects needs to be accounted for, but the question is what significant means. Anderson suggests that fluctuations in the order of 5% (Δρ/ρ>0.05\Delta \rho/\rho > 0.05) could be used as a threshold value. The question is still what that means.

Let’s try to figure out...

The compressibility for isothermal process is defined as

τT=(1ρ)(ρp)T\tau_T=\left(\frac{1}{\rho}\right)\left(\frac{\partial \rho}{\partial p}\right)_T
τT=(1ρ)(ρp)T={p=ρRT, T=const}=(RTp)(p(pRT))T\tau_T=\left(\frac{1}{\rho}\right)\left(\frac{\partial \rho}{\partial p}\right)_T=\left\{p=\rho RT,\ T=const\right\}=\left(\frac{RT}{p}\right)\left(\frac{\partial}{\partial p}\left(\frac{p}{RT}\right)\right)_T

and thus

τT=1p\tau_T=\frac{1}{p}

We are trying to find an estimate of Δρ/ρ\Delta \rho/\rho. Using the equation of state with constant temperature, Δρ/ρ\Delta \rho/\rho can be expressed in terms of pressure

Δρρ=ΔpRTRTp={τT=1p}=τTΔp\frac{\Delta \rho}{\rho}=\frac{\Delta p}{RT}\frac{RT}{p}=\left\{\tau_T=\frac{1}{p}\right\}=\tau_T\Delta p

If we assume that compressible effects are not significant and use Bernoulli’s equation to get an estimate of the pressure fluctuations generated by a flow

Δp12ρU2\Delta p\approx \frac{1}{2}\rho_\infty U^2_\infty

With τT=1/p\tau_T=1/p_\infty, we can rewrite Eqn. (2.5) as

Δρρ1p(12ρU2)={p=ρRT}=ρU22ρRT=U22RT\frac{\Delta \rho}{\rho_\infty}\approx \frac{1}{p_\infty}\left(\frac{1}{2}\rho_\infty U^2_\infty\right)=\left\{p_\infty=\rho_\infty R T_\infty\right\}=\frac{\rho_\infty U^2_\infty}{2 \rho_\infty R T_\infty}=\frac{U^2_\infty}{2 R T_\infty}

The speed of sound in the freestream is obtained as a=γRTa_\infty=\sqrt{\gamma RT_\infty}, which gives

ΔρργU22a2=γ2M2\frac{\Delta \rho}{\rho_\infty}\approx\frac{\gamma U^2_\infty}{2 a^2_\infty}=\frac{\gamma}{2}M^2_\infty

For air (γ=1.4\gamma=1.4) and Δρ/ρ<0.05\Delta \rho/\rho_\infty<0.05 we get M<0.27M_\infty<0.27