Duke University Aerodynamics Household Continuity Experiment Essay

Learning Goal: I’m working on a writing question and need guidance to help me learn.

Introduction
You will endeavor to undertake the momentous task of using the plumbing in your house/apartment/van-
down-by-the-river to explore the continuity equation and to write a paper detailing your exploits.
Experiment
The goal of the experiment is to calculate the volumetric flow rate of water from a faucet, to calculate the
water’s velocity at the faucet, and to use the continuity equation to calculate the water’s velocity at a given
distance below the faucet. You will begin the experiment by selecting a faucet and finding a setting that produces a
clear and steady stream. With this flow setting, you will measure the time it takes to fill a graduated measuring
container (cup, quart, liter, gallon, etc.). The larger the container, the more accurate the results will be. You will
also measure the diameter of the faucet’s opening and the diameter of the water stream at a measured distance
below the opening. Calculations to be made are as follows: 1) volumetric flow rate of water in cubic feet per
second (using appropriate unit conversions), 2) velocity of water at the faucet opening (using volume flow
equation), and 3) velocity of water at a chosen distance below the opening (using the continuity equation).
Report
You will submit an APA (7th Edition) formatted report describing the experiment to the appropriate D2L
dropbox by the deadline stated on D2L. Per APA guidelines, the report should begin with a title page (APA Manual,
section 2.3). The body of the report’s text is to use the provided, pre-APA formatted section headers (shown
below). The Purpose section should state why the test is being conducted (beyond it being a class assignment). It
should be in your own words not copy-and-pasted from what is written above! The Equipment section should
include descriptions of all of the items used to conduct your experiment. The more detail that you add the better.
You must include at least one image of your experimental setup. The Method section should include a step-by-step
description of how, where, and under what conditions the test was conducted in your own words. An uninformed
reader should be able to read this section and know exactly how to recreate the experiment that you conducted.
The Calculations section should include a presentation of the equations (APA Manual, section 6.47) used to
calculate volumetric flow rate, velocity at the opening, and velocity below the opening. The general equations
should precede equations with numeric inputs and results. Please pay careful attention to the new APA Manual’s
guidance for student papers. In addition to the sections of the manual describing the different elements of a paper,
the sample student paper (APA Manual, pgs 61-67) is an excellent visual aid to formatting. Let me know if you have
any questions. Happy home experimenting!
Purpose
Equipment
Method
Calculations

This

video provides an explanation of the experiment to be performed as well

as the calculations to be made for the Household Continuity paper. You

must first read the Household Continuity file before viewing this video.

Also the file for guidance of the experiment. Please be sure to watch

to video and do the calculations in the right english units.