If the viscosity of a fluid is doubled, what happens to the flow rate through a
Practice Questions
Q1
If the viscosity of a fluid is doubled, what happens to the flow rate through a pipe, assuming all other factors remain constant?
Doubles
Halves
Remains the same
Increases fourfold
Questions & Step-by-Step Solutions
If the viscosity of a fluid is doubled, what happens to the flow rate through a pipe, assuming all other factors remain constant?
Step 1: Understand what viscosity is. Viscosity is a measure of how thick or sticky a fluid is.
Step 2: Know that flow rate is how much fluid moves through a pipe in a certain amount of time.
Step 3: Remember that flow rate is inversely proportional to viscosity. This means that if viscosity increases, flow rate decreases.
Step 4: If the viscosity of the fluid is doubled, it means the fluid is now thicker.
Step 5: Since the viscosity is doubled, the flow rate will decrease. Specifically, it will become half of what it was before.
Step 6: Conclude that if viscosity is doubled, the flow rate through the pipe will halve.
Viscosity and Flow Rate Relationship – The flow rate of a fluid through a pipe is inversely proportional to its viscosity, meaning that as viscosity increases, flow rate decreases.