Fluid Mechanics is a sub-field in physics (specifically continuum mechanics) having to do with the physical properties of fluids. It is important to note that “fluids” in this sense include both gases AND liquids. Fluid mechanics is the counterpart of solid mechanics which, as you can probably guess, is the study of solids.
The difficult part about fluid mechanics and studying these matter states is that they are constantly changing. Their particles are always in flux and take the form to their containers, which means fluids are much more difficult to model than, say, a piece of structural steel moving through the atmosphere. Now, structural engineering has its own difficult concepts to understand, but removing pressure and volume from the equation greatly simplifies calculations.
If you are going to a college or university and plan on studying physics or engineering, there’s a very good chance you will need to take one or multiple of the following classes:
Fluid Mechanics
Thermodynamics
Hydrodynamics
Hydraulics
Hydrostatics
Aerodynamics
Aeronautics
And many, many more depending on your specialization.
Remember, -dynamics is the study related to object in movement while -statics is the study related to objects at rest.
Civil, Coastal, Mechanical and Aerospace Engineering majors are probably the ones that will end up taking the bulk of these classes as it pertains to their fields in much more detail than, say, Nuclear or Chemical Engineering ( though they need to have a basic understanding of these principles as well). Graduate students studying advanced topics will also need to have a firm grasp on these concepts, and will take more specialized and advanced classes that dive into sub-fields of these sub-fields.
If you are just starting out in your engineering studies you will probably start with a general introductory course in Fluid Mechanics (after your introductory Physics classes, of course) where you will learn the basics of the two fields, fluid statics and fluid dynamics which lead to the more advanced classes listed above.
The only field listed above that doesn’t quite fit with the others is Thermodynamics which is the study of heat exchange. Not only is it important to understand for HVAC design and principles, but it also plays a major role in the designs of Aeronautic and Hydraulic systems and how each is affected by the temperature.
Hydrodynamics and Aerodynamics are your building blocks for understanding the physical properties of moving fluids and gases to pave the way to Hydraulics and Aeronautics which explain how machines and systems interact with gases and fluids. Examples of these might include the design of dams or airplane wings.
The obvious difference between fluids and gases are different states of matter. The underlying difference, however, is the assumption that liquids for most applications are incompressible – unlike gases, they do not change volumes.
Students are required to use complex and advanced mathematics to solve problems in these classes. If you want to truly understand pipe systems from an advanced design perspective you will need a comprehensive understanding of these principles. Good luck!
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