The hull of this high-speed passenger ferry rises above the water riding on hydrofoils that create lift

due to the
relative motion between the ship and the water. (Source: Tentacle/Fotolia)
 Drag is the force on a body caused by the fluid
that resists motion in the direction of travel of
the body.
The most familiar application requiring the
study of drag are in the transportation field.
DRAG Wind resistance is the term often used to
describe the effects of drag on the aircraft,
automobiles, trucks and trains.
The drag force must be opposed by a propulsive
force in the opposite direction to maintain or
increase the velocity of the vehicle
Because the production of the propulsive force
requires added power, it is desirable to
minimize drag.
 Lift is a force caused by the fluid in a direction
perpendicular to the direction of travel of the
body.
LIFT
Its most important application is the design
and analysis of aircraft wings called airfoils.
The geometry of an airfoils is such that a lift
force is produced as air passes over and under
it.
Of course, the magnitude of the lift must at
least equal the weight of the aircraft in order
for it to fly.
Drag forces are usually expressed in the form
𝜌𝑣 2ൗ
𝐹𝐷 = 𝑑𝑟𝑎𝑔 = 𝐶𝐷 2 𝐴 (8-1)
The terms in this equation are as follows:
𝐶𝐷 is the drag coefficient.
ρ is the density of the fluid.
𝑣 is the velocity of the free stream of fluid relative to the body.
A is some characteristic area of the body.
𝜌𝑣 2ൗ
The combined term is 2 called the dynamic pressure.
 As a fluid stream flow a round a body,
it tends to adhere to the surface for a FIGURE 8.1 Sphere in a fluid stream showing

portion of the length of the body. the stagnation point on the front surface and
the turbulent wake behind.

Then at a certain point, the thin boundary layer separates from

the surface, causing a turbulent wake to be formed. (See Fig. 8.1).
The pressure in the wake is significantly lower than that at the
stagnation point at the front of the body.
A net force is thus created that acts in a direction opposite that of
the motion. This force is the pressure drag.
If the point of separation can be caused to occur farther back on
the body, the size of the wake can be decrease and the pressure
drag will be lower. This is the reasoning for streamlining.
Figure 8.2 illustrates the change in
the wake caused by the elongation
and tapering of the tail of the body
Thus the amount of pressure drag
is dependent on the form of the
body and the term from drag is FIGURE 8.2 Effect of streamlining on the
often used. wake.

The pressure drag force is

calculated from Eqn. (8-1) in which
A is taken to be maximum cross-
sectional area of the body
perpendicular to the flow. The
coefficient CD is the drag
coefficient.
Drag the bodies moving in air is often the goal for drag
analysis. To use Eqn. (8-1) to calculate the drag forces, we
need to know the density of the air.
As with all gases, the properties of air change drastically
with temperature.
In addition, as altitude above sea level increases, the
density decreases. Appendix E present the properties of
air at various temperatures and altitudes.
The magnitude of the drag coefficient for pressure drag
depends on many factors, most notably the shape of the
body, the Reynolds number of the flow, the surface
roughness, and the influence of other bodies or surface in
the vicinity.
Two of the simpler shapes, the sphere and the cylinder,
are discussed first.
Data plotted in Fig. 8.3 (Appendix –
Fig. 17.3, page 44) give the value of
the drag coefficient versus
Reynolds number for smooth
sphere and cylinders.
For sphere and cylinders, the
Reynolds number is computed
from the familiar-looking relation.
𝜌𝑣𝐷 𝑣𝐷
𝑁𝑅 = = (8-2)
𝜇 v
However, the diameter D is the
diameter of the body itself, rather
than the diameter of a flow
conduit, which D represented FIGURE 8.3 Drag coefficients for spheres
and cylinders.
earlier.
FIGURE 8.3 Drag coefficients for spheres
and cylinders.
Either roughening the
surface or increasing the
turbulent in the flow
stream can decrease the
value of the Reynolds
number at which the
transition from a laminar
to turbulent boundary
layer occur as illustrate
in Fig. 8.4.(Appendix – FIGURE 8.4 Effect of turbulence and roughness on
CD for spheres.
Fig. 17.4, page 45)
This graph is meant to
show typical curve
shaped only and should
not be used for
numerical values.
A square cylinder has a uniform square cross section and
is relatively long in relation to its height.
Shown in Figure 8.3 is the drag coefficient for a square
cylinder with a flat side perpendicular to the flow for
Reynolds numbers from 3.5×103 to 8×104.
The value range from approximately 1.60 to 2.05,
somewhat higher than for the circular cylinders.
Significant reduction can be obtained by using small to
moderate corner radii, bringing value of CD down to as
low as 0.55 at high Reynolds number.
However, the value tend to be highly affected by changes
in Reynolds numbers for such designs. Testing is advised.
Figure 8.5 .(Appendix – Fig. 17.5, page 45) give data for CD
for three versions of elliptical cylinders for Reynolds
numbers from 3.0 × 104 to 2 × 105.
These shapes have an ellipse for a cross section with
different ratio of cross-sectional length to maximum
thickness, sometimes called fitness ratio.
Note the dramatic reduction of drag coefficient to about
0.21 for the elliptical cylinders of high fineness ratio.
FIGURE 8.5 Drag coefficients for elliptical cylinders and struts.
Even more reduction in drag coefficient can be made with
the familiar “teardrop” shaped, also shown in Figure 8.5.
This standard shape called a Navy strut, which has values
for CD in the range of 0.07-0.11. Figure 8.6 shows the strut
geometry.
Table (Appendix – Table 17.1, page 42 and 43) lists values
of the drag coefficient for several simple shapes.
Noted the orientation of the shape relative to the
direction of the oncoming flow.
The CD values for such shapes are nearly independent of
Reynolds numbers because they have sharp edges that
cause the boundary layer to separate at the same place.
FIGURE 8.6 Geometry of the Navy strut.
Computation of the Reynolds number for the shapes in
Table 17.1 uses the length of the body parallel to the flow
(L) as characteristics dimension for the body.

𝜌𝑣𝐿 𝑣𝐿
𝑁𝑅 = = (8-2)
𝜇 𝑉
Compute the drag force on a 1.8 m square bar with a cross-
section of 0.1 m x 0.1 m when the bar is moving at 1.2 m/s
through water at 5°C. The long axis of the bar and a flat
face are placed perpendicular to the flow.
Solution:

𝑚
𝑣𝐿 (1.2 𝑠 )(0.1 𝑚)
𝑁𝑅 = = = 7.9 × 104 , thus 𝐶𝐷 = 2.05.
𝑉 1.52×10−6 𝑚2 /𝑠

𝜌𝑣 2ൗ (1000)(1.2)2
𝐹𝐷 = 𝐶𝐷 2 𝐴 = 2.05 × ( ) × 0.1 1.8 = 265.68 𝑁
2
A cylinder with 25 mm diameter is placed perpendicular to
a fluid stream with a velocity of 0.15 m/s. If the cylinder is
1 m long, calculate the total drag force if the fluid is
a) Water at 15°C (0.253N)

b) Air at 10°C (4.56x10-4N)

 Decreasing drag is a major goal in designing most kinds of
vehicles because a significant amount of energy is
required to overcome drag as vehicles move through
fluids.
 Factors affect the overall drag coefficient for vehicles
including the following:
 The shape of the forward end (nose) of the vehicle
 The smoothness of the surfaces of the body

 Such appendages as mirrors, door handles, antennas and etc.

 The shape of the tail section of the vehicle

 The effect of nearby surfaces, such as the ground beneath the

vehicle
 The effect of other vehicle nearby

 The direction of the vehicle with respect to prevailing winds

 Air intakes to provide engine cooling or ventilation

 The ultimate purpose of the vehicle (critical or commercial

trucks)
 The accommodation of the passenger

 Visibility afforded to operators and passengers

 Stability and control of the vehicle

Automobiles - The overall drag coefficient, as defines in
equation (8-1) based on the maximum projected frontal
area, varies widely for passenger cars. The nominal mean
value of drag coefficient is 0.45 with a range of 0.30-0.60.
Trucks – The shapes commonly used for trucks fall into
the category called bluff bodies. The drag coefficients for
trucks is in the range from 0.55 to 0.75
Trains – Early locomotives had drag coefficients in the
range of 0.80 to 1.05. High speed, streamlined trains can
have values approximately 0.40.
Aircraft – Subsonic aircraft (coefficient range around
0.12 to 0.22), at super sonic speed, the drag coefficient is
around 0.04.
Power is defined as the rate of doing work.
When a force is continuously exerted on an object while
the object is moving at a constant velocity, power equals
force times velocity. Then the power required to
overcome drag is

𝑃𝐷 = 𝐹𝐷 𝑣 (8-3)
A prototype automobile has an overall drag coefficient of
0.35. Calculate the power required to overcome the drag as
it moves at 25 m/s through still air at 20°C. The maximum
projected frontal area is 2.50 m2 .
Solution:
From Appendix E, density of the air at 20°C is 1.204 kg/m3
𝜌𝑣 2ൗ (1.204)(25)2
𝐹𝐷 = 𝐶𝐷 2 𝐴 = 0.35 ×( ) × 2.5 = 329 𝑁
2

m
𝑃𝐷 = 𝐹𝐷 𝑣 = 329 N 25 = 8230 W = 8.23 kW
s
Compute the power required to overcome drag on a truck
with a drag coefficient of 0. 75 when the truck moves at
105 km/h through still air at 10°C. The maximum cross
section of the truck is a rectangle 2.4 m wide and 3.7 m
high. (140 hp)