Physics 526: Fluid Mechanics

To be taught, spring 2001; offered alternate years

Basic equations, potential flow, effects of viscosity, scaling. Compressible flow including characteristics and shock waves. Magnetohydrodynamics, including MHD waves, shocks, and confinement. Fluid and MHD instabilities. Turbulence.

Text: notes by J. Eilek, which will appear on-line here during the course of the term.

OUTLINE of Course Notes

Course outline and schedule (as of January 2001):

Section I: INTRODUCTION AND INCOMPRESSIBLE FLOW

Weeks 1, 2, 3

Basic Concepts and Tools

notes: Chapter 1

Potential Flow

notes: Chapter 2

Vorticity

notes: Chapter 3

Laminar Flow: basics

notes: Chapter 4

Laminar Flow: applications

notes: Chapter 5

Section II: COMPRESSIBLE FLOW

Weeks 4-8

Compressible Flow: basics

notes: Chapter 6

Signal Propagation

notes: Chapter 7

One-Dimensional Steady Flow

notes: Chapter 8

Shocks & Jump Conditions

notes: Chapter 9

One-Dimensional Unsteady Flow

notes: Chapter 10

Two-Dimensional Steady Flow

notes: Chapter 11

Similarity Solutions

notes: Chapter 12

Section 3: MAGNETOHYDRODYNAMICS

Weeks 9,10,11

Foundations of MHD

notes: Chapter 13

MHD: Simple Applications

notes: Chapter 14

Shocks in MHD

notes: Chapter 15

MHD Confinement & Equilibrium

notes: Chapter 16

Force-Free Magnetic Fields

notes: Chapter 17

Section 4: INSTABILITIES

Weeks 12,13

Fluid Instabilities

notes: Chapter 18

Ideal MHD Instabilities

notes: Chapter 19

Resistive MHD Instabilities

notes: Chapter 20

Magnetic Reconnection

notes: Chapter 21

Section 5: TURBULENCE

Week 14

Fluid Turbulence

notes: Chapter 22

notes: Chapter 23

MHD Turbulence

notes: Chapter 24

Section 6: STUDENT TALKS

Week 15

Courses