Segment V8.1: Laminar/Turbulent Pipe Flow

(Related to Textbook Section 8.1.1 - Laminar or Turbulent Flow)

Whether flow in a pipe is laminar, transitional, or turbulent depends on the value of the Reynolds number.

In this experiment water flows through a clear pipe with increasing speed. Dye is injected through a small diameter tube at the left portion of the screen. Initially, at low speed (Re <2100) the flow is laminar and the dye stream is stationary. As the speed (Re) increases, the transitional regime occurs and the dye stream becomes wavy (unsteady, oscillatory laminar flow). At still higher speeds (Re>4000) the flow becomes turbulent and the dye stream is dispersed randomly throughout the flow.