Wake Flow Measurements Behind Rotating Smooth Spheres and Baseballs Near Critical Reynolds Numbers

The flow field behind spinning baseballs at two different seam orientations was investigated, and compared with a smooth sphere, to isolate effects of seams on the Magnus effect at Reynolds numbers of 5×104 and 1×105. The rotational speed of the three spheres varied from 0-2400 rpm, which are typical of spin rates imparted to a thrown baseball. These spin rates are represented non-dimensionally as a relative spin rate relating the surface tangential velocity to the freestream velocity, and varied between 0-0.94. Mean velocity profiles, streamline patterns, and power spectral density of the velocity signals were taken using hot-wire anemometry and/or stereoscopic particle image velocimetry in the wake region. The sphere wake orientation changed over a range of relative spin rates, indicating an inverse Magnus effect. Vortex shedding at a Strouhal number of 0.25 was present on the sphere at low relative spin rates. However, the seams on the baseball prevented any consequential change in wake orientation and, at most spin rates, suppressed the shedding frequency exhibited by the sphere. Instead, frequencies corresponding to the seam rotation rates were observed in the wake flow. It was concluded that the so-called inverse Magnus effect recorded by previous investigators at specific combinations of Reynolds number and relative spin rate on a sphere exists for a smooth sphere or an axisymmetrically dimpled sphere but not for a baseball near critical Reynolds numbers, where the wake flow pattern is strongly influenced by the raised seams.

On the Interaction of Viscoelasticity and Waviness in Enhancing the Pull-Off Force in Sphere/Flat Contacts

Motivated by roughness-induced adhesion enhancement (toughening and strengthening) in low modulus materials, we study the detachment of a sphere from a substrate in the presence of both viscoelastic dissipation at the contact edge, and roughness in the form of a single axisymmetric waviness. We show that the roughness-induced enhancement found by Guduru and coworkers for the elastic case (i.e. at very small detachment speeds) tends to disappear with increasing speeds, where the viscoelastic effect dominates and the problem approaches that of a smooth sphere. This is in qualitative agreement with the original experiments of Guduru’s group with gelatin. The cross-over velocity is where the two separate effects are comparable. Viscoelasticity effectively damps roughness-induced elastic instabilities and makes their effects much less important. Graphical Abstract

Flow Visualization of Footballs to Analyze the Factors Affecting their Aerodynamic Performance Using CFD

The motion of a football in air is influenced by the combination of various aerodynamic effects caused by the parameters such as velocity, surface roughness, panel orientation and shape. This paper analyzes the individual and combined effects of these parameters on the flight characteristics of various footballs using CFD Analysis. Four balls, a smooth sphere, a 32-panel conventional football, 14-panel Teamgeist and 6-panel Brazuca ball are subjected to different velocities of air flow over them, both in the laminar and turbulent regime, different surface roughness values and the influence of these parameters on the aerodynamics of the balls is evaluated by the drag force, drag coefficient and hydrodynamic boundary layer separation angle. The effect of the seam length, number of panels and panel orientation are also compared. The results of these effects are discussed later in the paper and are used to explain the knuckling effects and unpredictable trajectory of the Jabulani ball.

Comparing the Aerodynamic Behaviour of Real Footballs to a Smooth Sphere Using Tomographic PIV

Many studies have investigated the forces acting on a football in flight and how these change with the introduction or modification of surface features; however, these rarely give insight into the underlying fluid mechanics causing these changes. In this paper, force balance and tomographic particle image velocimetry (PIV) measurements were taken on a smooth sphere and a real Telstar18 football at a range of airspeeds. This was done under both static and spinning conditions utilizing a lower support through the vertical axis of the ball. It was found that the presence of the seams and texturing on the real ball were enough to cause a change from a reverse Magnus effect on the smooth ball to a conventional Magnus on the real ball in some conditions. The tomographic PIV data showed the traditional horseshoe-shaped wake structure behind the sphere and how this changed with the type of Magnus effect. It was found that the positioning of these vortices compared well with the measured side forces.

Experimental and CFD analysis of MHD flow around smooth sphere and sphere with dimples in subcritical and critical regimes

An overview of previous researches related to the problem of flow around a bluff-body, using experimental and numerical methods, is presented in the paper. Experimental investigation was performed by a Laser Doppler Anemometer (LDA), measuring velocity components of the water flow around a smooth sphere and a sphere with dimples in square channels. Measurement results in subcritical velocity flow field, velocity fluctuation components, lift, drag and pressure coefficients, and 2D Reynolds stress at quasi-stationary flow are conducted using 1D LDA probe. The obtained experimental results are compared with numerical simulations, which are performed using the ANSYS-CFX software. For the numerical simulations of quasi-steady-state flow, k-? turbulent model was used, while for numerical simulation of unsteady fluid flow and for the comparison of results related to the eddy structures, vortex shedding and Reynolds stresses, Detached Eddy Simulation were used. Since the obtained results of experimental and numerical investigation of flow around smooth sphere and sphere with dimples showed good agreement, the considered flow problem was expanded by introducing the influence of a transverse magnetic field with a slight modification of the electrical conductivity of the working fluid. The other physical properties of the fluid remained the same, which also corresponds to realistically possible physical conditions. Numerical simulations were performed for three different values of Hartmann number and very small values of Reynolds magnetic number (inductionless approximation). Comparisons and analyzes of the results were made for the cases containing a magnetic field and those with an absence of a magnetic field.

On the origin of the drag force on dimpled spheres

It is well established that dimples accelerate the drag crisis on a sphere. The result of the early drag crisis is a reduction of the drag coefficient by more than a factor of two when compared to a smooth sphere at the same Reynolds number. However, when the drag coefficients for smooth and dimpled spheres in the post-critical regime are compared, the latter is higher by a factor of two to three. To understand the origin of this behaviour, we conducted direct numerical simulations of the flow around a dimpled sphere, which is similar to commercially available golf balls, in the post-critical regime. By comparing the results to those for a smooth sphere, it is found that dimples, although effective in accelerating the drag crisis, impose a local drag penalty, which contributes significantly to the overall drag force. This finding challenges the broadly accepted view that dimples only indirectly affect the drag force on a sphere by energizing the near-wall flow and delaying global separation.

Experimental determination of the aerodynamic coefficients of spinning bodies

ABSTRACTTo accurately predict the probabilities of impact damage to aircraft from runway debris, it is important to understand and quantify the aerodynamic forces that contribute to runway debris lofting. These lift and drag forces were therefore measured in experiments with various bodies spun over a range of angular velocities and Reynolds numbers. For a smooth sphere, the Magnus effect was observed for ratios of spin speed to flow speed between 0.3 and 0.4, but a negative Magnus force was observed at high Reynolds numbers as a transitional boundary layer region was approached. Similar relationships between lift and spin rate were found for both cube- and cylinder-shaped test objects, particularly with a ratio of spin speed to flow speed above 0.3, which suggested comparable separation patterns between rapidly spinning cubes and cylinders. A tumbling smooth ellipsoid had aerodynamic characteristics similar to that of a smooth sphere at a high spin rate. Surface roughness in the form of attached sandpaper increased the average lift on the cylinder by 24%, and approximately doubled the lift acting on the ellipsoid in both rolling and tumbling configurations.

Wake Flow Patterns Behind Rotating Smooth Spheres and Baseballs

An experimental investigation into the flow field behind baseballs at two different seam orientations as well as a smooth sphere of the same diameter was undertaken at Reynolds numbers of 5 × 104 and 1 × 105. The rotational speed of the three spheres varied from 0 to 2400 rpm, with data collected in increments of 400 rpm which correspond to relative spin rates between 0 and 0.94. Mean velocity profiles, turbulence in intensity profiles, and power spectral density of the signals were taken using hot-wire anemometry. The smooth sphere wake was seen to change in orientation over a range of relative rotational speeds. The Strouhal number remained constant around 0.24 for relatively low spin rates. The seams on the baseball suppressed any measurable vortex shedding once rotation began, also eliminating any significant change in wake orientation as evidenced by the mean velocity deficit and turbulence intensity profiles. It was concluded that the so-called inverse Magnus effect recorded by previous investigators at a specific Reynolds number / relative rotational speed of a sphere exists only for a smooth sphere and not for a sphere where the boundary layer separation is governed by raised seams.