Flow Loss Coefficient - Round Pipe With Single Groove
- \( D_0\) - Diameter
Round channels with a single internal groove are often used in specialty fluid transport systems, such as industrial cooling loops and sanitary piping with built-in flow disruptors. Grooved features can significantly alter local pressure loss behavior.
This tool provides K-factors and head loss coefficients for round pipes with a single groove, along with formulas for computing the equivalent hydraulic diameter. Round geometries remain the most widely studied, offering reliable data for design and analysis.
For pipes of non-round cross section, the flow loss coefficient is defined as:
$$ \lambda = \frac{\Delta p}{(\rho w_0^2 /2)(\ell/D_0)} = k_\mathrm{rd,1 ch}\lambda_\mathrm{round}$$
where \( \lambda_\mathrm{round}\) is the flow loss coefficient of an equivalent channel of round cross section. See associated calculators for a round channel that is smooth, has uniform sand grain roughness, or has non-uniform roughness.
In turbulent flows, a channel with a single groove has flow loss coefficient correction coefficient \( k_\mathrm{rd,1 ch} \approx 1 \). That is, flow loss coefficient is approximatelly the same as for a round channel.