Momentum–depth relationship in a rectangular channel Momentum–depth relationship in a rectangular channel In classical physics, momentum is the product of mass and velocity and is a vector quantity, but in fluid mechanics it is treated as a longitudinal quantity (i.e. one dimension) evaluated in the direction of flow. Additionally, it is evaluated as momentum per unit time, corresponding to the product of mass flow rate and velocity, and therefore it has units of force. The momentum forces considered in open channel flow are dynamic force – dependent of depth and flow rate – and static force – dependent of depth – both affected by gravity. The
Dispersive mass transfer is caused by random molecular motions (i.e. Brownian motion) and is a microscopic phenomenon. Dispersion is often more significant than diffusion in convection-diffusion problems. The dispersion coefficient is frequently modeled as the product of the fluid velocity, "U", and some characteristic length scale, "α": Dispersive mass transfer Dispersive mass transfer, in fluid dynamics, is the spreading of mass from highly concentrated areas to less concentrated areas. It is one form of mass transfer. Dispersive mass flux is analogous to diffusion, and it can also be described using Fick's first law: where c is mass concentration of the species being dispersed,