Potential flow, also know as
incompressible flow or
irrotational flow in
fluid mechanics is flow defined by the equations
- <math> \nabla \times \mathbf{v} = 0</math> (zero rotation = no shear)
- <math> \nabla \cdot \mathbf{v} = 0</math> (zero divergence = continuity)
Equivalently,
- <math> \mathbf{v} = \nabla \Phi \; , </math>
where:
- v is the vector fluid velocity
- Φ is the fluid flow potential, scalar
- " ×" is curl
- " ·" is divergence
Together with the Navier-Stokes equations, these equations can be used to calculate solutions to many practical flow situations.
See also