Aerodynamics of a Rocket

Mentor: A/P Andrew Wee

Group Members:
Darwin Gosal
Martin Lee
Tan Hai Siong
Tan Kim Seng
Outline
Introduction
Theoretical Background
Procedure / Set Up
Results and Analysis
Conclusion
Improvements
Further Experiment
Introduction
These fin shapes with angle varying from 45 to
90

(in increasing steps of 5)

will be inserted onto the
rocket body shaft during the experiment. A wind tunnel
will be used to channel moving air currents upward
towards the rocket body. An empirical relation between
the resulting drag force and the angle would be
obtained from the experimental results. The
interdependence between the wind speed with these
two variables was investigated.
Introduction

ROCKET BODY
Viscous Drag :- drag due to skin friction

Form Drag :- drag due to the separation
of the flow from the body which results in the
alteration of pressure distribution.
Theoretical Background
The expressions for the coefficient of viscosity
and the shearing stress in terms of the
properties of the fluid & of the flow are:

= 1/3 c L

= u / y
Theoretical Background
The concept of a shearing stress is:
Rate of transfer of downstream
momentum in a direction lateral to the
flow.
The shearing stress at the surface :
= u / y is the skin friction (Force
per unit area.)
This is exerted by the fluid on the surface
in the tangential direction.
Theoretical Background
1. Eulers Equation may be written as:

2. After summing up the pressure and shear forces on an
element in a boundary layer : -

3. We thus obtain the boundary layer equation of motion:


Theoretical Background
4. The continuity equation for incompressible flow :-

5. The boundary layer equation of
motion and the continuity equation are
the equations available for the solution of
our aerodynamic problem.
Theoretical Background
Figure 3.3: - Boundary Layer on a
flat plate
y
Ue
y=
1. For the steady flow of the
incompressible viscous fluid
along a flat plate:

2. Upon solving these differential
equations, we obtained an expression
for the drag force:
drag per unit area =
where u
e
is the speed of wind of the wind tunnel
as measured by the anemometer.
2 / 1
2
4
1

vx
u
u A
e
e
Theoretical Background
Procedure / Set Up
F
2
F
3

Wind
Tunnel
F
1

Rocket Body
with Fins
Balance
Pan with
Standard
Weights
Voltmeter
Force
Transducer
Lever
pivot
Pulley
Connecting
Wires
Anemometer
Results & Analysis
F1 vs wind speed
0.0025
0.003
0.0035
0.004
0.0045
0.005
0.0055
0.006
0.0065
0.007
7 7.5 8 8.5 9 9.5 10 10.5 11
Wind speed (m/s)
F
1

(
N
)
45
50
55
60
65
70
75
80
85
90
Results & Analysis
Grap
hs

Velocity of
wind(m/s)

Total increase
(10
-4
N)

Gradient of Regression
line (10
-5
N degree
-1
)

A

7

3.72780

1.390

B

8

5.54694

1.909

C

9

8.91686

2.736

D

10

10.1992

3.029

E

11

20.8160

4.718

Results & Analysis
Graph A : V=7m/s
y = 0.0000139x + 0.0025471
0
0.0005
0.001
0.0015
0.002
0.0025
0.003
0.0035
0.004
0.0045
40 45 50 55 60 65 70 75 80 85 90 95
Angle
F
1
Results & Analysis
Graph B : V=8m/s
y = 0.00001909x + 0.00252356
0
0.0005
0.001
0.0015
0.002
0.0025
0.003
0.0035
0.004
0.0045
40 45 50 55 60 65 70 75 80 85 90 95
Angle
F
1
Results & Analysis
Graph C : V=9m/s
y = 0.0000273592x + 0.0023886791
0
0.001
0.002
0.003
0.004
0.005
0.006
40 45 50 55 60 65 70 75 80 85 90 95
Angle
F
1
Results & Analysis
Graph D : V=10m/s
y = 0.00003029x + 0.00267907
0
0.001
0.002
0.003
0.004
0.005
0.006
40 45 50 55 60 65 70 75 80 85 90 95
Angle
F
1
Results & Analysis
Graph E (V=11m/s)
y = 0.00004718x + 0.00221553
0
0.001
0.002
0.003
0.004
0.005
0.006
0.007
40 45 50 55 60 65 70 75 80 85 90 95
Angle
F
1
Results & Analysis
Graph

Angle (degrees)

Gradient of Regression Line (N m
-1
s)
F

45

0.000326

G

50

0.000270

H

55

0.000500

I

60

0.000429

J

65

0.000310

K

70

0.000515

L

75

0.000577

M

80

0.000516

N

85

0.000584

O

90

0.000715

Conclusion .
There is a clear, direct relationship between
resistive force and the variables and
furthermore more that it is an increasing
function of both of them.
It has also been observed that with higher
wind speed, the resistive force increases
more quickly with increasing angles.
Problems & Improvements
Problems & Improvements
Problems & Improvements
Problems & Improvements

Problems & Improvements
Further Experiment
P
Rocket
Fishing lines
connected to
the 4 corners
of the frame.
Frame to be
secured to
retort stand.
Wind
Tunnel
PART A
Pulley
Fishing
Line
Force
Transducer
Voltmeter
Further Experiment
Slack
String
Original
Position
Force F
acting
on string
To Force
transducer
Note that because of
4 taut strings holding
the rocket to the
frame, the rocket can
only turn in the frame
but cannot move up
or down in the frame.
Further Experiment
Upward force
acting on the
force
transducers rod.
Force transducer
Further Experiment
THE END
Weight Balance
Pulley
Anemometer
Rocket Body
Force Transducer
Wind Tunnel
Pivot