Part II, 2005
Write down the Navier-Stokes equations for an incompressible fluid.
Explain the concepts of the Euler and Prandtl limits applied to the Navier-Stokes equations near a rigid boundary.
A steady two-dimensional flow given by far upstream flows past a semi-infinite flat plate, held at . Derive the boundary layer equation
for the stream-function near the plate, explaining any approximations made.
Show that the appropriate solution must be of the form
and determine the dimensionless variable .
Derive the equation and boundary conditions satisfied by . [You need not solve them.]
Suppose now that the plate has a finite length in the direction of the flow. Show that the force on the plate (per unit width perpendicular to the flow) is given by