FLUID MECHANICS AND HYDRAULICS TERMS:  VISCOSITY – property of fluid which

determines the amount of resistance to

 FLUID MECHANICS – physical science
shearing forces
dealing with the action of fluids at rest
 KINEMATIC VISCOSITY – ratio of
or in motion, and with applications or
dynamic viscosity with mass density
devices in engineering using fluids
 SURFACE TENSION – membrane of skin
- branch of physics
that forms on the free surface of fluid
that studies fluids
due to intermolecular cohesive force
 FLUID STATICS – deals with fluid at rest
(raindrop)
 FLUID DYNAMICS – deals with fluids in
 CAPILLIARITY – formed by the liquid in a
motion
tube
 HYDRODYNAMICS – is applied to the
 COMPRESSIBILITY - fractional change in
flow of liquids or to low-velocity gas
volume of fluid per unit change in
flows where it is considered
pressure in constant temperature
incompressible
 BULK MODULUS OF ELASTICITY – ratio
 HYDRAULICS – deals with the
of the change in unit pressure to the
application of fluid mechanics to
corresponding volume change per unit
engineering devices
of volume
- science that deals with
 CELERITY OF PRESSURE WAVE – a.k.a
laws governing water or other liquids
sonic or acoustical velocity
 IDEAL FLUIDS – no viscosity,
-pressure
incompressible, uniform velo, no
disturbance usually in forms of wave
friction, no turbulence
 VAPOR PRESSURE – equilibrium
 REAL FLUIDS – infinite viscosity, non-
pressure exerted by molecules
uniform velo, compressible, with
 PRESSURE – force per unit area
friction
 WATER – clear, odorless, tasteless liquid
 MASS – property of a physical system or
 WEIGHT – force w/c body is attracted to
body giving rise to the phenomena of
Earth or other celestial body equal to
the body’s resistance to being
the product of object and gravitational
accelerated by a force
acceleration
 DENSITY – mass per unit volume
 PASCAL’S LAW – the process on a fluid
 SPECIFIC VOLUME – volume occupied
is equal in all direction and in all parts
by a unit mass of fluid
 GAGE PRESSURE – pressure above or
 SPECIFIC WEIGHT – a.k.a UNIT WT.
below the atmosphere
-weight occupied by
 MANOMETER – measures gage
unit volume
pressure, U shaped
 SPECIFIC GRAVITY – ratio of the mass of
o OPEN TYPE –measures gage
solid/liquid to the mass of an equal
o DIFFERENTIAL – measures
volume of an air hydrogen atom (ref.
difference
density is water at 4o C)
o PIEZOMETER – tube tapped on
- a.k.a relative
wall of a container or conduit
density
 ATMOSPHERIC PRESSURE – pressure at
any one point on the earth’s surface
from the weight above it
- pressure
exerted by the air to the atmosphere
 VACUUM – is a space that has all matter
removed from it
 ABSOLUTE PRESSURE – pressure above
vacuum
 PRESSURE HEAD – height of a column of
homogeneous liquid of unit weight that
will produce an intensity of pressure
 STRESS – strength per unit area
 CENTER OF GRAVITY – point where
weight of body is concentrated
 AXIAL STRESS – known as girth, hoop, or
circumferential stress
 DAMS – hydraulic structure that
impound water or underground stream
o GRAVITY – uses force of gravity
to resist water pressure
o EMBANKMENT – formed out of
loose rock, earth, or
combination
o ARCH – concrete or masonry
structures that curves
o BUTTRESS – wall, face
supported by buttresses
 METACENTER – point of intersection
between the axis of the body and the
line of action of buoyant force
 CENTER OF BUOYANCY – buoyant force
exertion of a body immersed
 ARCHIMEDES’ PRINCIPLE – any body
immersed in a fluid is acted upon an
upward force equal to the weight of the
displaced fluid
 DISCHARGE – amount of fluid passing
through a section per unit of time
 PATH LINE – a trajectory of a fluid
particle of fixed identity
 STREAM LINE – imaginary curve or line
in the flow field so that the tangent to
the curve at any point represents the
direction of the instantaneous velocity
o STEADY FLOW – discharge at a
given cross section is constant
o UNSTEADY – discharge varies
o UNIFORM – average velocity of
flow is the same at every cross
section
o NON-UNIFORM - velocity varies
o CONTINUOUS – any time,
discharge is the same at every
section (diff cross section)
o LAMINAR – path of individual
fluid particles do not intersect
o TURBULENT – path is irregular
and particles intersect
o ONE-DIMENSIONAL – occurs in
incompressible fluid, direction
magnitude and velocity of all
points are identical
o TWO-DIMENSIONAL – fluid
particles move in parallel
planes, streamline patterns are
identical in each plane
 STREAMTUBES – represents elementary
portions of a fluid bounded by group of
streamlines
 FLOW NETS – drawn to indicate flow
patterns in 2D or 3D flows
 HEAD – amount of energy per pound or
Newton of fluid
 POTENTIAL ENERGY – elevation +
pressure, a.k.a. pressure energy
 POWER – is the rate at which work is
done
 BERNOULLI’S PRINCIPLE (ENERGY
THEOREM) – as the speed of a moving
fluid increases, the pressure of that
fluid decreases
 PUMP – used to increase the head
 TURBINE/MOTOR – extract flow energy
to do mechanical work
 HYDRAULIC GRADE LINE – a.k.a. o SUPPRESSED WEIR – weirs
pressure gradient, graphical having its length equal to the
representation of total potential energy width
of flow o DROP-DOWN CURVE –
 ENERGY GRADE LINE – graphical downward curvature of the
representation of the total energy flow liquid surface before the weir
 COEFF. OF DISCHARGE – ratio of actual o HEAD – distance between liquid
discharge through the device to the surface and crest
ideal discharge  OPEN CHANNEL – is a conduit in which
 COEFF. OF VELOCITY – ratio of actual liquid flows with a free surface
discharge through the device to the subjected to atmospheric pressure
ideal discharge  SPECIFIC ENERGY – energy per unit
 COEFF. OF CONTRACTION – ratio of weight relative to the bottom of the
actual area of contracted section of channel
stream to the area of opening which the  NORMAL DEPTH – depth at which
fluid flows uniform flow will occur in open channel
 ORIFICE – an opening with a closed  CRITICAL DEPTH – depth where
perimeter through which fluid flows discharge is maximum, specific energy
o SHORT TUBE – orifice with is minimum
prolonged side  HYDRAULIC JUMP – abrupt increase in
o SHORT PIPES – can be also depth
longer tubes e.g. culverts  WATER HAMMER – the resulting shock
 VENTURIMETER – instrument used in caused by sudden decrease in the
measuring discharge through pipes, has velocity of fluid
converging tube which is connected to
the main pipe
 NOZZLE – a converging tube installed at
the end of a pipe or hose to increase
velocity of jet
 PITOT TUBE – is a bent L-shaped or U-
shaped tube with both ends open and is
used to measure velocity of fluid flow
 GATE – is an opening in a dam to
control the passage of water
 WEIR – are overflow structures which
are built across an open channel for
measuring or controlling the flow of
liquids
o NAPPE – the overflowing
stream in a weir
o CREST – edge or top surface
o CONTRACTED WEIR – weirs
having sides sharp-edged
GEOTECHNICAL ENGINEERING TERMS :  SEDIMENTARY ROCKS – formed by
compaction, deposition or cementation
 KARL TERZAGHI – father of Soil
of sediments
Mechanics
 METAMORPHIC ROCKS – formed by
 SOIL – uncemented products of
metamorphism (heat and pressure)
weathering
o METAMORPHISM – the process
 ROCKS – cemented and consolidated
of producing two or more rocks
products of weathering
due to the abundance of
 WEATHERING – process of breaking minerals upon cooling
down of rocks into smaller pieces
 IGNEOUS ROCKS – formed by cooling of
o MECHANICAL – caused by the
magma
expansion and contraction of
o INTRUSIVE – formed inside the
rocks, breaking down without
volcano
any change in composition
o EXTRUSIVE – formed outside
o CHEMICAL – rock minerals are
the volcano
transformed into new minerals
 SPECIFIC GRAVITY – says how heavy it is
by chemical reaction
compared to water, ratio of specific
 RESIDUAL SOIL – soils formed by the
weight to the specific weight of
weathered products at their place of
standard substance
origin
 MECHANICAL ANALYSIS – is the
o CREEP – residual soil in steep
determination of the size range of
natural slope, slowly moving
grains present in a soil, expressed as
downward, plastic adjustment
percentage of total dry weight
of soil fabric
o SIEVE ANALYSIS – consists of
o LANDSLIDE – movement is
shaking the soil sample with a
sudden or rapid
set of sieves, for sizes larger
 COLLUVIUM – soil
than 0.075mm in diameter
deposits from
o HYDROMETER TEST – for grains
landslides
smaller than 0.075mm, based
o MUD FLOWS – gravity-
on the principle of
transported soils
sedimentation of soil grains
 TRANSPORTED SOIL – soils formed
 EFFECTIVE GRAIN SIZE – diameter
though their mode of transportation
corresponding to 10% finer
and deposition
 UNIFORMLY GRADED – best for
o ALLUVIAL – running water,
concrete mixing, contains diff. diameter
streams
and % finer
o COLLUVIAL – gravity
 GAP GRADED – having diff. diameters
o AEOLIAN – wind
and same %finer
o GLACIAL – glaciers/ice
 POORLY GRADED – contains soil with
o MARINE – under the sea
the same diameter
o LACUSTRINE – lakes
 SIEVE #4 – sample for compaction test
o LITTORAL DEPOSITS – beaches
 SIEVE #10 – used for determination of
specific gravity
 SIEVE #20 and #30 – substitute for
Ottawa sand
 SIEVE #40 – Atterberg limits
 SIEVE #200 – coarse/fine grained
 MOISTURE CONTENT – ratio of wt. of
water to wt. of solids expressed in %
 DEGREE OF SATURATION – ratio of vol.
of water to vol. of voids (%)
 POROSITY – ratio of vol. of voids to total
vol.
 VOID RATIO – ratio of vol. of voids to
vol. of solids
 SPECIFIC WEIGHT – weight per unit
volume
 RELATIVE DENSITY – measures the
compactness or denseness of soil
 SHRINKAGE LIMIT – moisture at which
the transition from solid to semi solid
takes place, vol. of soil is constant
 PLASTIC LIMIT – semisolid to plastic
state, where soil can be formed to diff.
shapes, where soil can be rolled to 1/8”
diameter in 80-90 spm
 LIQUID LIMIT – plastic to liquid state,
moisture that will cause a goove closure
of ½” at 25 blows
 PLASTICITY INDEX – difference bet. LL
and PL
 LIQUIDITY INDEX – ratio where relative
consistency of a cohesive soil is in a
natural state
 ACTIVITY OF CLAY SOIL – ratio of PI to %
of clay size fraction
 FLOW INDEX – slope of an average line
 COMPACTION – densification of soil by
removal of air
 PROCTOR COMPACTION TEST – used to
obtain OMC and MDUW
o STANDARD PROCTOR TEST –
drop of 304.8mm, 24.4N
o MODIFIED PROCTOR TEST –
drop pf 457.2mm, 44.5N
 OPTIMUM MOISTURE CONTENT –
moisture content at which the max. dry
unit wt. is attained
 PERMEABILITY – property that permits
the passage of water under a gradient o
force
 AQUIFER – underground layer of water-
bearing permeable rock or
unconsolidated materials
 DARCY’S LAW – v=ki
 SEEPAGE VELOCITY – actual velocity
 HYDRAULIC CONDUCTIVITY – coeff. of
permeability
 CONSTANT HEAD TEST
 FALLING HEAD TEST
 FLOW NET – a combination of a number
of flow lines and equipotential lines
 FLOW LINE – line along w/c water
molecules will travel from the upstream
to downstream
 EQUIPOTENTIAL LINE – line along which
potential head at all points is equal
 EFFECTIVE STRESS – the sum of vertical
forces of the forces developed at the
points of contact of the soil particles
per unit cross-sectional area of the soil
mass
 CRITICAL HYDRAULIC GRADIENT – zero
effective stress, boiling or quick
condition
 PORE WATER PRESSURE
 ELASTIC SETTLEMENT – caused by
elastic deformation of dry soil
 CONSOLIDATION SETTLEMENT – result
of volume change in saturated soils
 NORMALLY CONSOLIDATED – the
present effective overburden pressure
is the max pressure to w/c the soil has
been subjected in the past
 OVERCONSOLIDATED – present eff.
Overburden pressure is less that past
 PRECONSOLIDATION PRESSURE – past
pressure
 COEFF. OF CONSOLIDATION – increases be supported by the soil in excess of the
as LL increases pressure caused by the surrounding soil
 POLE METHOD – used in finding at the foundation
stresses in soil mass
o MOHR’S CIRCLE
 DIRECT SHEAR TEST – oldest and
simplest form of shear arrangement
 ULTIMATE STRENGTH
 TRIAXIAL SHEAR TEST – most reliable for
determining shear strength
 DEVIATOR STRESS
 SENSITIVITY – ratio of undisturbed to
remolded
 ELASTIC EQUILIBRIUM – horizontal
strain is 0
 PLASTIC EQUILBRIUM – condition
where every point in a soil mass is at
the verge of failure
 FOUNDATION – lowest part of the
structure
 SPREAD FOOTING – enlargement of a
load-bearing wall or column, spread the
load
 MAT FOUNDATION – entire structure
on a concrete pad
 PILE – structural members made of
timber etc. that transmit the load of
superstructure to the lower layers of
soil
 SHAFT – drilled into subsoil and filled
with concrete
 ULTIMATE BEARING CAPACITY – load
per unit area
 GENERAL SHEAR FAILURE
 LOCAL SHEAR FAILURE
 PUNCHING SHEAR FAILURE
 SHALLOW – if depth is less than or
equal to width of foundation
 CONTINUOUS/STRIP FOUNDATION –
width to length ratio of foundation
approaches 0
 NET ULTIMATE BEARING CAPACITY –
ultimate pressure per unit area that can