Aerodynamics of Parachute Opening

Abstract

The velocity field in the near wake of a small-scale, flexible, flat circular parachute canopy was measured by the particle image velocimetry method. The experiments were performed in a water tunnel with the Reynolds number ranging from 3.0-6.0 x10(4). Both a fully inflated canopy and the inflation phase were investigated. The fully inflated canopy experienced a cyclic "breathing" motion with a normalized frequency of 0.56 +/- 0.03, which corresponded to the shedding of vortex rings from the canopy. The boundary layer formed on the canopy surface begins to separate near the apex region when the diameter is approximately 68% of the fully inflated diameter.

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Document Details

Document Type
Technical Report
Publication Date
Jul 25, 2002
Accession Number
ADA411095

Entities

People

  • Hamid Johari
  • K. J. Desabrais

Organizations

  • Worcester Polytechnic Institute

Tags

Communities of Interest

  • Air Platforms
  • Weapons Technologies

DTIC Thesaurus Topics

  • Boundary Layer
  • Computational Fluid Dynamics
  • Flow Visualization
  • Fluid Dynamics
  • Fluid Flow
  • Fluid Mechanics
  • Frequency
  • Geometry
  • Mechanical Phenomena
  • Mechanical Properties
  • Mechanics
  • Physics Laboratories
  • Reynolds Number
  • Steady Flow
  • Three Dimensional
  • Turbulent Mixing
  • Water Tunnels

Fields of Study

  • Physics

Readers

  • Aerial Delivery - Logistics and Supply Chain Management.
  • Fluid Mechanics and Fluid Dynamics.