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+:Bernouli,Coand&Lift
WhatsWhatandWhat'sDoingWhat
verseesomeonedemonstrateliftbyblowingoverapiece
of paper? While this is fun and interesting, the usual
explanationgivenismisleadingbyclaimingit'saneffect
oftheBernoulliprinciplethecorrelationbetweenairspeed
andpressure,asspeedincreasespressuredecreases.Many
folks were taught this is how planes fly, and they pass this
"wisdom"along.Butthey'refoolingthemselves,andyou.
Aerodynamicengineershaveknowthecorrectexplanation
ofliftfordecades,yetthemisconceptionofBernoulliprinciple
liftlivesoninthepublicimagination.However,itisnothowan
airfoil generates lift. That's a whole different kettle of fish.
ReadeitherHowPlanesCanFlyforabreifovervieworSee
HowitFliestogetthecompleteskinnyonlift.
Bytheway,theillustrationsherearenottruediagrams,but
visual aids. Fluid behavior is a complicated business which
can seem like organised chaos, what with tumbling and
swirling, i.e., turbulence. We're not going to get into these
details,butconcentrateonsimplifiedbasics.
TheBernoulliPrinciple
What does this correlation between speed and pressure
mean? Here'sa wayto imagineit. Ifyou've everwatched a
roadraceyouknowthecarsslowdownandbunchupintight
turns.Speeding upout ofthe turnthey getstretched out.In
thepicture, araceofficial witha stopwatchatthe turntimes
the cars as they pass, they are one second apart, though
close together. A second officialtimes them on the straight
away, where they are also one second apart, though with
severalcarlengthsbetweenthem.
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+:Bernouli,Coand&Lift
Thecommonexplanationisthefastairstreamovertophas
lowerpressure(theBernoulliprinciple)whichsucksthepaper
up.Problemis,thispaperliftreallydemonstratestheCoand
effectratherthantheBernoulliprinciple.
TheCoandEffect
You can easily demonstrate the Coand effect for yourself
with a tablespoon and faucet.Conveniently, these are often
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+:Bernouli,Coand&Lift
foundtogetherinthekitchen,noneedforhighlytechnicallab
equipment. Follow the steps you see below. Gases behave
prettymuchlikeliquids,sowhenyouseethewaterbehaving
strangely with the spoon, that's what the air does with the
curvedpaper.
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Moremisleading"lift"explanations
ClashingBalloons:Hang twoballoons from stringsan inch
or so apart. Blow a stream of air between them and they
movetogether.Now,Ishowawindspriteinthepicture,butif
oneisnotarounddoityourself.
Theairflowacrossthesurfaceoftheroundobjectsinboth
casesgive youaCoand effectpullingthem together.Once
again,just aswiththepaper lift,theBernoullieffect aloneis
not doing the trick as advertised. Again, this does not
demonstratehowawinggenerateslifteither.
ConeandBallLevitation:Putalightballinanupsidedown
funnelorconeandblow throughthesmallend,orotherwise
getsomefastairflowthroughit.Theballwillnotbeblownout,
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getsomefastairflowthroughit.Theballwillnotbeblownout,
butwilllevitateintheconeasshown.
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OneLastDemonstrationWithaBitofEverything
Ball Levitation:Take a hair dryer blowing straight up and
introduceapingpongballintotheairstreamwhereitwillfloat.
Tilttheblowdryeruptoabout45degrees,theballdoesn'tfall
outbut"levitates"intheairstream.(I'vealsoseenitworkwith
avollyballandastrongleafblower.)
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Thepaperwadgetsmoreupwardpushfromtheairstream
because theirregular shape inhibitsflow and trapsmore air
underneath. Ona ball the airslips around the sidesand so
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there's less upward push and equal flow and pressure all
around keeping it centered in the stream. In fact, a ball is
about the only shape that will float this way in a vertical
airstream.
Whenyoutilt thestreamandget thedramatic"levitation"
effect, the ball doesn't stay in the center of the stream, it
hangs downwith theupper partin thefaster center(A) and
thebottomintheslowersectionofentrainedair(B).Theball
fallstoaspotwithdifferentairspeedsandpressureaboveand
belowwhereithasenoughparachutinglifttostayup.
Afteryoutiltthestreampastacertainangleyoureach"the
tippingpoint"and theballfallsoutofthe airstream.Ifyou've
ever done any house framing you'll understand the tipping
point concept.Once youget past45 degreesupright itgets
easierandeasiertotipupyourwallasmoreoftheweightis
transferred down vertically through the wall rather than on
you. One way to think of it, a vertical slab is a wall and a
horizontalone isa roof.At45 degreesit's halfwall andhalf
roof,that'sthetippingpoint.
Something like this happens to the levitating ball. The
more you tilt the more the flow pushes horizontally than
vertically, soyou're relying on thelift above moreand more
until you reach the tipping point. The ball falls out because
gravityovercomesthedecreasingupwardpush.(Itoldyouit
wasn'tallthatsimple.)
Onlya ballshape worksforthis demonstration.A wadof
paperorpuffofcottonofthesamesizeanweightsimplydon't
work.That'sbecauseit'snot justpressuredifferences,aball
createsparachutingliftandflies.
SummingUp
What's sometimes omitted inthe misleading explanations is
the confounding forcesbesides a pressure reductionas per
the Bernoulliprinciple. Thereis alsoan increasein dynamic
pressure. Plus,every bit of aparatuslike a funnel,a curved
shape,orsomethingredirectingtheflowwillhaveanimpact.
Youneedtolookatthewholepicture.
You can always count on increased air speed to reduce
pressure as described by the Bernoulli principle. However,
onceitencountersanewforce,likeawalloryousittingthere
being cooled off,additional principles also apply.How a fan
coolsyouisanothercanofwormswewon'tgointo.ButIwill
saythis,ithasnothingtodowiththeBernoulliprincipleorthe
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saythis,ithasnothingtodowiththeBernoulliprincipleorthe
Coandeffect.Atleast,I'mprettysureitdoesn't.I'lllookintoit
later.
TerryColon,2007
SpecialthankstoTerryDaywhoseinvaluableassistance,and
patience, helped me understand it. Mr. Day is a fluid
dynamicsengineeratNewFluidTechnology
How Planes Can Fly Forget Bernoulli and Coand, Think
LanchesterPrandtl
Adetailed,comprehensiveexplainationoflift:
SeeHowitFlies
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