Do shallow waves propagate at the same speed in all fluids? Explain why or why not.

Short Answer

Expert verified
No, shallow waves do not propagate at the same speed in all fluids. The wave speed principally depends on the fluid's depth and the effect of gravity, not the nature of the fluid itself.

Step by step solution

01

Understanding Wave Propagation

Wave propagation indicates how waves move through a medium. In this situation, the mediums under consideration are fluids. Fluids can take the shape of their containers and include both gases and liquids. Shallow waves refer to waves that occur in a fluid medium with relatively lower depths compared to their wavelengths.
02

Examining the Speed Factors

The speed of wave propagation in a fluid, specifically shallow waves, depends on a few key factors. The gravity that pulls the wave downwards and the depth of the fluid are both pivotal influencers. The depth, in the context of shallow waves, implies that the speed will be governed by the square root of the product of the gravitational constant (g) and the depth (h): \(v = \sqrt{gh}\). Hence, the fluid's nature or characteristics don't explicitly feature into this equation.
03

Conclusion

Given that the speed equation doesn't reference any specific fluid characteristics, it can be gathered that shallow waves will propagate at the same speed in all fluids, assuming the depth and gravity remain the same across these different mediums. The fluid density or other fluid properties are not directly influencing the speed of the shallow wave.

Unlock Step-by-Step Solutions & Ace Your Exams!

  • Full Textbook Solutions

    Get detailed explanations and key concepts

  • Unlimited Al creation

    Al flashcards, explanations, exams and more...

  • Ads-free access

    To over 500 millions flashcards

  • Money-back guarantee

    We refund you if you fail your exam.

Over 30 million students worldwide already upgrade their learning with Vaia!

One App. One Place for Learning.

All the tools & learning materials you need for study success - in one app.

Get started for free

Most popular questions from this chapter

A rectangular brick-lined channel has a bottom slope of 0.0025 and is designed to carry a uniform water flow rate of \(300 \mathrm{ft}^{3} / \mathrm{s}\). Would the channel need fewer bricks if the channel were 2 ft wide, 6 ft wide, or \(10 \mathrm{ft}\) wide? Explain.

Water flows in a rectangular channel with a flowrate per unit width of \(q=1.5 \mathrm{m}^{2} / \mathrm{s}\) and a depth of \(0.5 \mathrm{m}\) at section \((1) .\) The head loss between sections (1) and (2) is \(0.03 \mathrm{m}\). Plot the specific energy diagram for this flow and locate states (1) and (2) on this diagram. Is it possible to have a head loss of \(0.06 \mathrm{m} ?\) Explain.

A round concrete storm sewer pipe used to carry rainfall runoff from a parking lot is designed to be half full when the rainfall rate is a steady 1 in. $/ \mathrm{hr}$. Will this pipe be able to handle the flow from a 2 -in./hr rainfall without water backing up into the parking lot? Support your answer with appropriate calculations.

An 8 -ft-diameter concrete drainage pipe that flows half full is to be replaced by a concrete-lined V-shaped open channel having an interior angle of \(90^{\circ} .\) Determine the depth of fluid that will exist in the \(V\) -shaped channel if it is laid on the same slope and carries the same discharge as the drainage pipe.

Supercritical, uniform flow of water occurs in a 5.0 -m-wide. rectangular, horizontal channel. The flow has a depth of \(1.5 \mathrm{m}\) and a flow rate of \(45.0 \mathrm{m}^{3} / \mathrm{s}\). The water flow encounters a 0.25 -m rise in the channel bottcm. Find the normal depth after the rise in the channel bottom. Is the flow after the rise subcritical, critical, or supercritical? Assume frictionless flow.

See all solutions

Recommended explanations on Physics Textbooks

View all explanations

What do you think about this solution?

We value your feedback to improve our textbook solutions.

Study anywhere. Anytime. Across all devices.

Sign-up for free