The Quest for the Ideal Darcy-Weisbach Friction Factor Equation from the Perspective of a Building Services Engineer

Abstract

The calculation of the friction factor involved in the Darcy-Weisbach equation has a key role in the accurate assessment of distributed head losses. For the turbulent flow regime, this friction factor was mathematically expressed in the form of the Colebrook-White (C-W) equation, widely accepted by engineers and scientists. Nevertheless, the C-W equation is an implicit one and must be solved using numerical methods. This is a major disadvantage for the average engineer, who always prefers an explicit equation which could be easily integrated into his familiar spreadsheet environment. The present paper is investigating some of the most used explicit alternatives to the C-W equation, with respect to several case scenarios taken from typical Building Services hydraulic calculations.