Volume flow rate is the volume crossing a section per second.
Difficulty
Beginner
Read time
5 min
Prerequisites
Basic algebra and consistent SI units
Source
OpenStax, College Physics 2e, §12.1 (Paul Peter Urone and Roger Hinrichs)Textbook reference retained from the OpenFormulaGraph dataset; adaptation credits and license are provided below.
Adapted from OpenFormulaGraph, under CC BY 4.0.
FormuLab adapted the notation, explanations, assumptions, and topic placement, and expanded the numerical check into a worked example.
Volume flow rate is the volume crossing a section per second. Multiplying area by the mean normal velocity gives this rate even when the velocity varies across that section.
| Symbol | Meaning | Units |
|---|---|---|
| Volume flow rate | ||
| Cross-sectional area | ||
| Mean normal flow speed |
Relate a flow rate to pipe area and mean speed.
Estimate the rate at which volume enters a tank.
A flow section has area 2.00 m² and mean normal speed 3.00 m/s. Find its volume flow rate.
Textbook reference retained from the OpenFormulaGraph dataset; adaptation credits and license are provided below.
Adapted from OpenFormulaGraph, under CC BY 4.0.
FormuLab adapted the notation, explanations, assumptions, and topic placement, and expanded the numerical check into a worked example.
Assumptions
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