Energy Losses at 90° Pipe Junctions

The loss coefficients and the power-loss coefficients for four smooth tees with diameter ratio of unity were determined experimentally for each of all configurations of flow through tees. Throughout the test the Reynolds number before the division or after the combination of flow was within the range of 10⁵–2x10⁵. The radius of curvature of the wall at the joining edge ranged from zero up to half the diameter of the straight pipe. Empirical formulas for loss coefficients and those for power-loss coefficients which are in good agreement with experiments were presented for each configuration of flow. Empirical formulas for loss coefficients for dead end tees were also given. The comparison of the proposed formulas with the experimental results of the previous investigations showed that the proposed formulas can be used to reliably estimate the energy losses at tees.