Fluid Mechanics (CLB 11003)

Experiment 4: Drag coefficient

Semester January 2017

Experiment 3
Drag Coefficient

Objective

 To analyze the phenomena of free-falling body in any fluid.

 To determine the terminal velocity.
 To measure the drag coefficient of spheres over several decades of particle
Reynolds number.

Overview

Any solid object moving through a viscous fluid will experience a resistance or 'drag
force'. This is one of the most important aspects of fluid mechanics and it must be
remembered that common fluids like air and water must be considered viscous in
this context. An understanding of fluid drag forces is therefore essential to the proper
design of aircraft, trains, automobiles, ships, submarines, tall structures, jetties and
off-shore structures of all kinds. It is equally relevant to the mechanics of particles
falling under gravity; raindrops and parachutes in air, sand grain in air or water and
the settlement of kinds of all suspended solid particles in water. The drag force
depends on a number of variables and one of the more important is the shape of the
moving body. In this experiment, only spherical objects are used. This enables the
relationships between more easily described parameters such as velocity, fluid
viscosity and body density to be explored experimentally. For spherical objects, the
radius is a sufficient description of the object although the specific weight of each
material used must be determined as well.

Experimental Procedure

1. Weigh the sphere. Measure the size by using verniercaliper to obtain the values of
diameter, D. Record the measurements in Table 1. Care must be taken not to over
tighten the gauge on the plastic spheres as this may result in flats, which will
spoil their shape.
2. Fill the two transparent vertical cylinders with clear liquids of different
viscosities.
3. The spheres provided of various sizes and material, are dropped ONE AT A
TIME from the top of the cylinders and allowed to fall to the bottom. Their

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 Fluid Mechanics (CLB 11003)
Experiment 4: Drag coefficient
Semester January 2017

passage between the 1m marks on the wall of the cylinders being timed with a
stopwatch and recorded in Table 2.
4. When each sphere has arrives at the recess in the base of the cylinders, it is
removed by turning the valve outward and turning the knob downward (to eject
the sphere).
5. After ejecting the sphere, the valve should be returned to the operating position
(the knob should be pushed in with the indicator mark uppermost).
6. Repeat the whole process (from Step 1 to 4) with other different sizes and material
of sphere.
7. It is important to remove each sphere as it reaches the valve, as two or more
larger spheres will prevent the valve from operating.

Note:
 Liquid should be drained from the equipment after use and the cylinders cleaned
/ flushed with water.
 To obtain reasonable accuracy with the larger spheres it is advisable to average a
number of t values obtained over repeated drops.

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 Fluid Mechanics (CLB 11003)
Experiment 4: Drag coefficient
Semester January 2017

Results

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 Fluid Mechanics (CLB 11003)
Experiment 4: Drag coefficient
Semester January 2017

Calculation

1. The specific weight of the sphere should be determined by first finding the mass
of a large sphere of each material (in kg) and then calculating the specific weight
from the relationship:

2. The terminal velocity of a sphere V is calculated as 1/t, where t is the time taken
by the sphere to fall between the 1 m marks.

3. The drag coefficient for a sphere can be shown to be:

4. The total drag force can be expressed as:

5. Stoke’s law can be used to find the viscosity of the fluid.

6. The Reynolds number can be calculated from:

and if the Re value is less than 1 the value of μ calculated from (5) is valid.

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 Fluid Mechanics (CLB 11003)
Experiment 4: Drag coefficient
Semester January 2017

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 Fluid Mechanics (CLB 11003)
Experiment 4: Drag coefficient
Semester January 2017

Discussion

Tutorial
1. Discuss whether the liquids used are Newtonian or Non-Newtonian.

2. What is the factor that might be cause error to the calculation of the viscosity?

3. What is the relationship between CD and the Reynolds number?

4. Briefly describe the following terms:

a. terminal velocity

b. drag coefficient

References

1. Fay, J. A. Introduction to Fluid Mechanics, MIT Press, Cambridge, 1994.

2. Debler, W. R. FluidMechanics Fundamentals, Prentice-Hall, London, 1990.

3. Bertin, J. J. Engineering Fluid Mechanics, Prentíce-Hall, London, 1984.

4. McCabe, W. L„ Smith, J. C. and Harriott, P. Unit Opemtions of Chemical

Engineering, 5th Ed., McGraw-Hill, New York, 1993.