ABSTRACT
This chapter looks at the thrust forces/pressures that are exerted by fluids at rest on immersed flat surfaces of regular shape and the nature of these forces on simple everyday engineering structures like sluice gates, lock gates and vertical separators. Like heat transfer, fluid mechanics is also considered to be a separate branch of the thermal sciences. Fluid mechanics is split into two major areas: fluid statics and fluid dynamics. A practical problem concerned with fluid pressure is encountered when finding the forces that act on a lock gate. The total fluid pressure force on a curved surface and the position of the centre of pressure can be obtained by considering the force polygon for the forces causing equilibrium. The ease with which a fluid flows is an indication of its viscosity. Equipment, machinery and systems that are lubricated or operated by oils and hydraulic fluids may need to operate at extremes of temperature.
