Pressure Drop Calculator

Formula

To calculate the Pressure Drop (P):

\[ P = f \times \left( \frac{L}{D} \right) \times \left( \frac{\rho \times V^2}{2} \right) \]

Where:

\(P\) is the pressure drop (pressure loss N/m²)
\(f\) is the friction factor
\(L\) is the length of the pipe (m)
\(D\) is the pipe diameter (m)
\(V\) is the fluid velocity (m/s)
\(ρ\) is the fluid density (kg/m³)

Pressure Drop Definition

A pressure drop is a change in pressure across a length of pipe that has fluid moving through it. The fluid flow causes a pressure differential across the length due to the forces of friction and flow.

Example Calculation 1

Let's assume the following values:

Friction Factor (\(f\)) = 0.02
Length of Pipe (\(L\)) = 100 meters
Pipe Diameter (\(D\)) = 0.5 meters
Fluid Velocity (\(V\)) = 2 meters/second
Fluid Density (\(ρ\)) = 1000 kg/m³

Using the formula:

\[ P = 0.02 \times \left( \frac{100}{0.5} \right) \times \left( \frac{1000 \times 2^2}{2} \right) = 0.02 \times 200 \times 2000 = 8000 \text{ N/m²} \]

The pressure drop is 8000 N/m².

Example Calculation 2

Let's assume the following values:

Friction Factor (\(f\)) = 0.015
Length of Pipe (\(L\)) = 50 meters
Pipe Diameter (\(D\)) = 0.3 meters
Fluid Velocity (\(V\)) = 1.5 meters/second
Fluid Density (\(ρ\)) = 850 kg/m³

Using the formula:

\[ P = 0.015 \times \left( \frac{50}{0.3} \right) \times \left( \frac{850 \times 1.5^2}{2} \right) = 0.015 \times 166.67 \times 956.25 \approx 2394.53 \text{ N/m²} \]

The pressure drop is approximately 2394.53 N/m².