- #1
WCL
- 13
- 2
I'm having trouble deriving the barometric equation using the force balance.
Say, for the simplest case with a tube of mercury inverted in the middle of a beaker full of mercury. For the sake of simplicity, both are cylinders, with the beaker having radius R, tube having radius r and height of the mercury h.
So, doing a force balance on the stationary system would give:
[tex]
\begin{gather*}
\sum F = P_\textrm{atm} \pi (R^2-r^2) - \rho g h \pi r^2 = 0
\\
P_\textrm{atm} = \frac{\rho g h r^2}{ R^2-r^2}
\end{gather*}
[/tex]
I do understand the force balance on the top and bottom areas of a control volume of fluid, which leads to the areas canceling out, but that doesn't happen in this case. Every book just says the pressures at the surface of the liquid must be equal and spits out a formula. I suppose that I could do a pressure balance and use the formula [itex]P = \rho g h[/itex] for a column of fluid, but the force balance should still make sense.
In the end, I don't see how the radii cancel. I don't think the barometric equation is an approximation, so I must be missing something.
Sorry for any sloppy LaTeX...I'm improvising the best I can.
Thanks.
Say, for the simplest case with a tube of mercury inverted in the middle of a beaker full of mercury. For the sake of simplicity, both are cylinders, with the beaker having radius R, tube having radius r and height of the mercury h.
So, doing a force balance on the stationary system would give:
[tex]
\begin{gather*}
\sum F = P_\textrm{atm} \pi (R^2-r^2) - \rho g h \pi r^2 = 0
\\
P_\textrm{atm} = \frac{\rho g h r^2}{ R^2-r^2}
\end{gather*}
[/tex]
I do understand the force balance on the top and bottom areas of a control volume of fluid, which leads to the areas canceling out, but that doesn't happen in this case. Every book just says the pressures at the surface of the liquid must be equal and spits out a formula. I suppose that I could do a pressure balance and use the formula [itex]P = \rho g h[/itex] for a column of fluid, but the force balance should still make sense.
In the end, I don't see how the radii cancel. I don't think the barometric equation is an approximation, so I must be missing something.
Sorry for any sloppy LaTeX...I'm improvising the best I can.
Thanks.