HYDRAULIC LABORATORY

CIVIL ENGINEERING DEPARTMENT

POLYTECHNIC SULTAN AZLAN SHAH
EXPERIMENT : 1
TITLE : HYDROSTATIC FORCE EXPERIMENT
OBJECTIVES : 1. To determine experimentally the magnitude of the force of
pressure, its point of action (center of pressure) and the
resultant force a plane surface.
2. To compare the experimental result with the theoretical values
APPARATUS : Hydrostatic force apparatus HM 150.05
1.Water vessel
2.Dentent
3.Slider
4.Stop pin
5.Water level scale
6.Rider
7.Weights
8.Handles
HYDRAULIC LABORATORY
CIVIL ENGINEERING DEPARTMENT
POLYTECHNIC SULTAN AZLAN SHAH
EXPERIMENT : 1
TITLE : HYDROSTATIC FORCE EXPERIMENT
OBJECTIVES : 1. To determine experimentally the magnitude of the force of
pressure, its point of action (center of pressure) and the
resultant force a plane surface.
2. To compare the experimental result with the theoretical values
APPARATUS : Hydrostatic force apparatus HM 150.05
1.Water vessel
2.Dentent
3.Slider
4.Stop pin
5.Water level scale
6.Rider
7.Weights
8.Handles
HYDRAULIC LABORATORY
CIVIL ENGINEERING DEPARTMENT
POLYTECHNIC SULTAN AZLAN SHAH
EXPERIMENT : 1
TITLE : HYDROSTATIC FORCE EXPERIMENT
OBJECTIVES : 1. To determine experimentally the magnitude of the force of
pressure, its point of action (center of pressure) and the
resultant force a plane surface.
2. To compare the experimental result with the theoretical values
APPARATUS : Hydrostatic force apparatus HM 150.05
1.Water vessel
2.Dentent
3.Slider
4.Stop pin
5.Water level scale
6.Rider
7.Weights
8.Handles
THEORY
Centre of Pressure
The hydrostatic pressure of liquid is the gravitational pressure P
hyd.
It rises due to the
intrinsic weight as the depth t increases, and is calculated from:
P
hyd
= .g.t
Density of water,
g Acceleration due to gravity (g=9.81 m/s
2
),
t Distance from liquid surface
A linear pressure profile is acting on the active surface shown
in Fig. 1.1, because the hydrostatic pressure rises proportional
to the depth t. The resultant force F
p
is therefore not applied at the centre of force C of the active
surface, but always slightly below it, at the so-called centre of pressure D.
Resultant Force
The hydrostatic pressure acting on the active surface can be represented as resultant force
F
p
, of which the line of application leads through the centre of pressure D. the size of this
resultant force corresponds to the hydrostatic pressure at the planar centre of force C of the active
surface:
P
c
= .g.t
c
P
c
Hydrostatic pressure at the planar centre of force
of the active surface
t
c
Vertical distance of the planar centre of force from
the surface of the liquid
If the wall is tilted by an angle :
P
c
= .g.cos .
The resultant force F
p
can now be calculated: F = p . A
PROCEDURE
Case 1 : Center Of Pressure With Vertical Positioning Of The Water Vessel (=0
o
)
1. Set the water vessel (1) to an angle of =0
0
using the detent (2) as shown.
2. Counterbalance the unit with a rotating slider (3): The stop pin (4) must be precisely in the
middle of the hole for this.
3. Mount the rider (6), set the lever arm on the scale (e.g. l=150mm).
4. Top up with water until the unit is balanced (stop pin (4) at centre of hole).
5. Read off water level s and enter it in the prepared worksheet.
6. Increase the appended weights (7) in increments of 0.5 1N and repeat the measurement.
Case 2 : Center Of Pressure With Water Vessel Tilted (0
o
< <90
o
)
1. Set an angle
0
and counterbalance the water vessel as described under experiment 1.
2. Enter the characteristic values in the prepared worksheet: Lowest water level s
t
and highest
water level s
h
of the active surface.
3. Set the water vessel (1) to an angle of
0
using the detent (2) as shown in case 1.
4. Counterbalance the unit with a rotating slider (3): The stop pin (4) must be precisely in the
middle of the hole for this.
5. Mount the rider (6), set the lever arm on the scale (e.g. l=150mm).
6. Top up with water until the unit is balanced (stop pin (4) at centre of hole).
7. Read off water level s and enter it in the prepared worksheet.
8. Increase the appended weights (7) in increments of 0.5 1N and repeat the measurement.
DATA COLLECTION
Case 1
Angle (
o
) = _________
Lowest water level (mm) = _______________
Highest water level (mm) = _______________
Lever arm, I (mm) Appended weight , F
G
(N) Water level reading, s (mm)
Case 2
Angle (
o
) = _________
Lowest water level (mm) = _______________
Highest water level (mm) = _______________
Lever arm, I (mm) Appended weight , F
G
(N) Water level reading, s (mm)
ANALYSIS AND DATA CALCULATION
1. Calculate the resultant force and calculated lever arm.
2. Check the result with the balance of moments.
Angle (
o
) = _________
Lever arm, I
(mm)
Appended weight ,
F
G
(N)
Calculated lever
arm, I
D
(mm)
Resultant Force,
F
P
(N)
Angle (
o
) = _________
Lever arm, I
(mm)
Appended weight ,
F
G
(N)
Calculated lever
arm, I
D
(mm)
Resultant Force,
F
P
(N)
Appendix 1 ( Hydrostatic Force Experiment)
Case 1 : Center Of Pressure With Vertical Positioning Of The Water Vessel (=0
o
)
A. Evaluating the experiment
Measured values:
s - water level reading
I - lever arm of the force due to weight
F
G
- force due to weight of the appended weight
B. Determining the centre of pressure
At a water level s, below the 100mm mark, the height of the active surface changes with the
water level. If the water level is above that mark, the height of the active surface is always
100mm.
Meaning:
s- water level
e distance of centre of pressure D from planar centre of force C of the active surface
I
D
distance to centre of motion of the unit
For a water level s < 100mm(pressure has a triangular profile):
=
1
6
= 200
1
3
Appendix 2 ( Hydrostatic Force Experiment)
For a water level s > 100mm(pressure has a trapezoidal profile):
=
1
12
(100 )
50
= 200 +
C. Determining the resultant force
The resultant force corresponds to the hydrostatic pressure at the planar centre of force C of
the active surface. Thus, the height of water level s must again be differentiated:
Meaning:
A
act
superficial content of active surface
b = 75mm width of liquid vessel
p
c
hydrostat pressure at planar centre of force
F
p
resultant force for hydrostat. Pressure on active surface
For s < 100mm (triangular profile):
=
2
= .
For s > 100mm (trapezoidal profile):
= ( 50 ) = 100 .
Appendix 3 ( Hydrostatic Force Experiment)
The resultant force is produced as
= .
D. Balance of moments
Calculated variables:
F
G
Appended weight
I lever arm of appended weight referred to centre of motion O
To check the theory, a balance of moments around the centre of motion O can be established
and checked:
Mo = 0: F
G
.I = F
P
.I
D
Case 2 : Center Of Pressure With Water Vessel Tilted (0
o
< <90
o
)
A. Evaluating the experiment
The difference between evaluation of the tilted vessel and that of the vertical vessel lies in the
translation of the water levels onto the tilted active surface: A factor cos
0
must be taken into
account here.
B. Determining the centre of pressure
When the water vessel is at a tilt, too, a triangular pressure profile is produced when the
water level is below s
h
; above that level a trapezoidal profile is produced.
Appendix 4 ( Hydrostatic Force Experiment)
Measured values:
s - water level reading
tilt angle of vessel
Meaning:
s
t
water level at lowest point of vessel
s
h
water level of active surface at rim
e position of centre of pressure
h height of active surface
I
D
distance between centre of pressure / centre of motion
For a water level s<s
h
a triangular profile as follows applies:
=

=
1
6

= 200
1
3

For a water level s>s

h
a trapezoidal profile as follows applies:
Appendix 5 ( Hydrostatic Force Experiment)
=
1
12
(100 )

50
= 150 +
C. Determining the resultant force
Meaning:
A
act
superficial content of active surface
b = 75mm width of liquid vessel
p
c
hydrostat pressure at planar centre of force
F
p
resultant force for hydrostat. Pressure on active surface
For s < s
h
with h:
=

2
= .
For s > s
h
(trapezoidal profile):
= ( 50 . ) = 100 .
The resultant force is produced as:
= .
D. Balance of moments
Calculated variables:
F
G
Appended weight
I lever arm of appended weight referred to centre of motion O
To check the theory, a balance of moments around the centre of motion O can be established
and checked:
Mo = 0: F
G
.I = F
P
.I
D