Avortexis

aspinning, oftenturbulent, flow offluid. Anyspiralmotion with closedstreamlinesis vortex flow. The motion of the fluid swirling rapidly around a centeris vortex.

The speed and rate ofrotationof the fluid in a free (irrotational) vortex are greatest at the center, and decrease progressively with distance from the center, whereas the speed of a forced (rotational) vortex is zero at the center and increases proportional to the distance from the center. Both types of vortices exhibit a pressure minimum at the center, though the pressure minimum in a free vortex is much lower.

The tangential velocity is given by: where is theangular velocityand r is the radial distance from the center of the vortex.

1.All fluid particles rotate with the same angular velocity like a solid body. Hence a forced vortex flow is termed as a solid body rotation. 2.The vorticity for the flow field can be calculated as

Therefore, a forced vortex motion is not irrotational; rather it is a rotational flow with a constant vorticity 2. This equation is used to determine the distribution of mechanical energy across the radius as

Integrating the equation between the two radii on the same horizontal plane, we have,

Thus, we see from this eq. that the total head (total energy per unit weight) increases with an increase in radius. The total mechanical energy at any point is the sum of kinetic energy, flow work or pressure energy, and the potential energy

Therefore the difference in total head between any two points in the same horizontal plane can be written as,

Substituting this expression of H2-H1 in above Eq., we get

The same equation can also be obtained by integrating the equation of motion in a radial direction as

To maintain a forced vortex flow, mechanical energy has to be spent from outside and thus an external torque is always necessary to be applied continuously. Forced vortex can be generated by rotating a vessel containing a fluid so that the angular velocity is the same at all points.