
Problems—Chapter 3 115
3.3 It is sometimes convenient to regard a uniform flow as a source at minus
infinity and a sink at plus infinity, To demonstrate this, consider the potential for a
source of strength m at −a 0 and a sink of equal strength at a 0. Fix z, and expand
the complex potential in a Taylor series of z/a. Show that as a and m each go to infinity
such that their ratio remains constant, the result is a uniform stream of speed U =m/a.
3.4 Show that, if w
1
z represents the complex potential of a two-dimensional
irrotational flow and has no singularities in
z
<a, then wz = w
1
z +w
1
∗
a
2
/z
represents the same flow with a circle of radius a introduced at the origin. The
star represents that the complex conjugate of w
1
z is to be taken. This is known
as the circle theorem. It is a two-dimensional counterpart of the Weiss sphere
theorem.
3.5 Use the circle theorem to find the complex potential for a circular cylinder of
radius a in a flow field produced by a counterclockwise vortex of strength located
at the point z = b, where b>a. Also find the location of the stagnation points on the
circle.
3.6 a. Write the complex potential for a uniform stream, a source of strength 2m
at −a 0, and sinks of strength m at (0, 0) and (a, 0).
b. Find the equation of the closed streamline.
c. What is the length of the closed body when m/2aU =2/3a=2?
3.7 A line vortex with circulation 10 is placed in a corner at (2, 3). There are walls
at x = 0 and at y =0.
a. Write the complex potential for the vortex and two corners.
b. Find the induced velocity at the vortex.
3.8 Find the complex velocity potential for a line vortex at the origin and between
two parallel walls at x = 0y±a. Hint: Multiple mirrors are frequently encountered in
clothing stores, generating multiple reflections.
3.9 Show that the flow past a flat plate on the real z-axis is given by wz =
Ua cosh −i+
i
2
, where z =a cosh and U represents a uniform stream. The angle
is the angle between the plate and the uniform stream. The plate is at 0 ≤Imag
≤1
in the plane.
3.10 Show that the flow of fluid inside a rotating elliptical cylinder with semimajor
axes a and b is given by wz =iAz
2
. Find A in terms of the geometry and angular rate
of rotating. Hint: The boundary condition is =
1
2
x
2
+y
2
+constant.
3.11 Show that the flow of fluid outside a rotating elliptical cylinder with semi-
major axes a and b is given by wz = iAe
−2
, where z = c cosh . Find A in terms
of the geometry and angular rate of rotating. Hint: The boundary condition is =
1
2
x
2
+y
2
+constant.
3.12 a. Write the complex potential for a line vortex of circulation located at
z =ih and a line vortex of circulation − located at z =−ih. Show that the
x-axis is a streamline and so can be considered an infinite flat plate.
b. Calculate the pressure on the surface of the plate from the Bernoulli equation,
letting the pressure at infinity be zero. Integrate this pressure over the entire
length of the plate in order to find the force acting on the plate due to the
vortex.