Experimental findings for velocity profiles and boundary layer thickness of Blasius flow

Abstract

Blasius flat plate flow theory is one of the basic fluid mechanics studies which deal with the flow properties inside boundary layer. In this work, Blasius flat plate flow was analyzed experimentally and velocity profiles and boundary layer thickness measurements were equated with theoretical findings. Moreover, the variation of velocity profiles along the length of plate were also analyzed. Boundary layer thickness and velocity values at different positions along the length of plate have been plotted in order to find the practicality of Blasius equations. The Boundary layer thickness variation has been determined by interpolation and extrapolation of the flow velocity. A lot of efforts have been done over a period of time to find analytical solution for Blasius nonlinear differential equations. The empirical findings of this work were then compared with one of the theoretical solution and comparison was drawn. This experimentation work is particularly helpful in relating theoretical concepts to experience and will facilitate in teaching core concepts of fluid mechanics to predict flow behavior from direct observations.