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Hydromechanics of swimming propulsion. Part 1. Swimming of a two-dimensional flexible plate at variable forward speeds in an inviscid fluid

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  29 March 2006

T. Yao-Tsu Wu
T. Yao-Tsu Wu
Affiliation:
California Institute of Technology, Pasadena, California
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Abstract

The most effective movements of swimming aquatic animals of almost all sizes appear to have the form of a transverse wave progressing along the body from head to tail. The main features of this undulatory mode of propulsion are discussed for the case of large Reynolds number, based on the principle of energy conservation. The general problem of a two-dimensional flexible plate, swimming at arbitrary, unsteady forward speeds, is solved by applying the linearized in viscid flow theory. The large-time asymptotic behaviour of an initial-value harmonic motion shows the decay of the transient terms. For a flexible plate starting with a constant acceleration from at rest, the small-time solution is evaluated and the initial optimum shape is determined for the maximum thrust under conditions of fixed power and negligible body recoil.

Type
Research Article
Information
Journal of Fluid Mechanics , Volume 46 , Issue 2 , 29 March 1971 , pp. 337 - 355
Copyright
© 1971 Cambridge University Press

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