Experiments on the Drag and Lift Coefficients of a Spinning Sphere

Abstract

The drag and lift coefficients are important parameters that affect the particle motion in a viscous fluid. In the present study, the drag and lift coefficients of a spinning sphere in a water tank were studied experimentally using a high-speed camera. To this end, 22 cases were studied to cover a wide range of dimensionless angular speeds (0.149 < Rr < 3.471) and Reynolds numbers (610 < Re < 3472). Based on the present experimental data and the results obtained from the literature, expressions were developed to calculate the lift and drag coefficients. The performed analyses on lift coefficient show that there is a critical Reynolds number (Rec) at each dimensionless angular speed. When 0 < Re < Rec, the lift coefficient decreases with increasing the Reynolds number, while it is constant when Rec < Re< 3500. The constant lift coefficient corresponding to different spin speeds was defined as the limit value of the lift coefficient. It is found that when 1 < Rr < 12, the limit value of the lift coefficient is 0.37, while the limit value of the lift coefficient increases with increasing dimensionless angular speed at 0 < Rr < 1. It is found that the spin increases the drag coefficient of a spinning sphere only when 0 < Rr < 10. Moreover, the performed analyses show that the drag coefficient of a spinning sphere is less than that of a non-spinning sphere when 10 < Rr < 25. Furthermore, the lift-to-drag ratio of a spinning sphere is discussed in this article.