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Drag coefficients in fluids with Reynolds number approximately 10 4 [1] [2] Shapes are depicted with the same projected frontal area. In fluid dynamics, the drag coefficient (commonly denoted as: , or ) is a dimensionless quantity that is used to quantify the drag or resistance of an object in a fluid environment, such as air or water.
is the drag coefficient – a dimensionless coefficient related to the object's geometry and taking into account both skin friction and form drag. If the fluid is a liquid, c d {\displaystyle c_{\rm {d}}} depends on the Reynolds number ; if the fluid is a gas, c d {\displaystyle c_{\rm {d}}} depends on both the Reynolds number and the Mach number .
A body is known as bluff or blunt when the source of drag is dominated by pressure forces, and streamlined if the drag is dominated by viscous forces. For example, road vehicles are bluff bodies. [8] For aircraft, pressure and friction drag are included in the definition of parasitic drag. Parasite drag is often expressed in terms of a ...
The Morison equation contains two empirical hydrodynamic coefficients—an inertia coefficient and a drag coefficient—which are determined from experimental data. As shown by dimensional analysis and in experiments by Sarpkaya, these coefficients depend in general on the Keulegan–Carpenter number, Reynolds number and surface roughness. [4] [5]
Stokes' law is important for understanding the swimming of microorganisms and sperm; also, the sedimentation of small particles and organisms in water, under the force of gravity. [ 5 ] In air, the same theory can be used to explain why small water droplets (or ice crystals) can remain suspended in air (as clouds) until they grow to a critical ...
Dimensionless numbers (or characteristic numbers) have an important role in analyzing the behavior of fluids and their flow as well as in other transport phenomena. [1] They include the Reynolds and the Mach numbers, which describe as ratios the relative magnitude of fluid and physical system characteristics, such as density, viscosity, speed of sound, and flow speed.
Skin friction drag is generally expressed in terms of the Reynolds number, which is the ratio between inertial force and viscous force. Total drag can be decomposed into a skin friction drag component and a pressure drag component, where pressure drag includes all other sources of drag including lift-induced drag. [1]
All the three aerodynamic coefficients are integrals of the pressure coefficient curve along the chord. The coefficient of lift for a two-dimensional airfoil section with strictly horizontal surfaces can be calculated from the coefficient of pressure distribution by integration, or calculating the area between the lines on the distribution.