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The Application of Lifting Line Theory to an Upright Bermudan Mainsail

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  04 July 2016

T. Tanner*
Affiliation:
Southampton University

Summary

Using Glauert's analysis and taking into account the restraint due to the surface of the sea, lifting line theory is applied to calculate the distribution of loading, downwash velocity and vortex drag of a “Finn” dinghy's sail when upright. It appears that the loading can probably be represented with sufficient accuracy by

I=I0(sin θ+sin 2θ)

where k is largely dependent on the apparent twist in the sail and has a value generally of the order of 0-5, that the apparent twist may not be twist at all in the aerodynamic sense, and that the vortex drag is considerably greater than it would be if it were possible to make a sail to give elliptic loading.

Type
Research Article
Copyright
Copyright © Royal Aeronautical Society 1967

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References

1.Glauert, H.Elements of Aerofoil and Airscrew Theory. Cambridge University Press, 1948.Google Scholar
2.Lakshminarayana, B.Effects of a Chordwise Gap in an Aerofoil of Finite Span in a Free Stream. Journal of the Royal Aeronautical Society, April 1964.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
3.Milgram, J. H.The Design and Construction of Yacht Sails. MSc Thesis at MIT, 1962.Google Scholar
4.Marchaj, C. A. The Aerodynamic Characteristics of a 2/5-scale Finn Sail and its Efficiency when Sailing to Windward. Southampton University Yacht Research Report No 13, January 1964.Google Scholar