The Draining of a Tank: A Lab Experiment in Fluid Mechanics

Abstract

An improved apparatus has been constructed and employed in the fluids laboratory for the draining of a tank through a sharp-edged orifice and, with minor modifications, other orifices of interest. The experiment was operated at steady state to accurately determine the discharge coefficient, CD, with only a 2-5% deviation from literature values. In addition, transient data were collected and compared to model data generated from a combined Bernoulli balance and mass balance, again with minimal deviations between the experimental and model data. The experiment meets all requirements for a well-designed lab experiment.