13.20: Bernoulli's Principle: Applications
There are many devices and situations in which fluid flows at a constant height and so can be analyzed using Bernoulli's principle. These devices include, but are not limited to, entrainment devices and fluid flow measuring devices.
Entrainment devices use a high fluid speed to create low pressures and, thus, entrain one fluid into another. Some examples of these devices are given below:
- A Bunsen burner uses an adjustable gas nozzle to entrain air for proper combustion.
- An atomizer uses a squeeze bulb to create a jet of air that entrains drops of perfume.
- Paint sprayers and carburetors use very similar techniques to move their respective liquids.
- A common aspirator uses a high-speed stream of water to create a lower-pressure region. Aspirators may be used as suction pumps in dental and surgical situations, for draining a flooded basement, or for reducing the pressure in a vessel.
- The chimney of a water heater is designed to entrain air into the pipe leading through the ceiling.
Some devices use Bernoulli's principle for the measurement of fluid speed. Examples of these devices include, Prandtl tubes, also known as pitot tubes, Venturi tubes, and a manometer connected to two tubes that are close together and small enough not to disturb the flow.
Suggested Reading
