BOUNDARY LAYER CONTROL BY "ARTIFICIAL DOLPHIN COATING"

In 1960 the Author reported for the first time about a friction drag reduction as obtained by the use of a simulated Dolphin skin. Two years later he had found out why the effectiveness of his first coating varied from test body to test body. He changed the design and obtained a reliable though moderate effectiveness. Seven years later he had developed a coating that was not only easy to manufacture, but also sufficiently rugged for practical use. In the past the coating was tested at "zero pressure gradient in flow direction", a flow direction which eases the research but is of limited practical use. In this paper the Author publishes for the first time measurements of the coating effectiveness at an "adverse pressure gradient" as it exists at the aft sections of all low-drag body shapes. Until now the coating research had to be guided by observations in nature. The complexity of nature's coating prevented the development of a theory capable of guiding the experiments. This situation has made the research difficult and time-consuming. A theory based upon nature's design would be, even when highly simplified, desirable to make the experimental research more evident.

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  • Corporate Authors:

    American Society of Naval Engineers

    Suite 507, 1012 14th Street, NW
    Washington, DC  United States  20005
  • Authors:
    • Kramer, M O
  • Publication Date: 1977-10

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Filing Info

  • Accession Number: 00168221
  • Record Type: Publication
  • Source Agency: Naval Engineers Journal
  • Files: TRIS
  • Created Date: Jan 30 1978 12:00AM