Subject: Re: : Re: : Re: [harryproa] Rob's cheap wing sails
From: "Rick Willoughby rickwill@bigpond.net.au [harryproa]" <harryproa@yahoogroups.com.au>
Date: 6/12/2018, 7:12 PM
To: "harryproa@yahoogroups.com.au" <harryproa@yahoogroups.com.au>
Reply-to:
harryproa@yahoogroups.com.au

 

I am not speaking from a theoretical background.  It is something I have experienced.  


A rigid wing has rotational inertia and an air flow lift moment as well as a bearing support.  It is not possible to get them aligned longitudinally.  That means when a boat rolls the inertia will delay its alignment under the lift moment.  The delay means there is drive.  That drive adds to the roll.  As the roll reaches its peak, the wing is rotating into alignment and the boat gets to a point where it begins to right.  Now the wing overshoots the other way and accelerates the restoring force but that keeps driving the roll in the opposite direction and so it goes on.  In a given wind for a particular boat the process will pump itself into violent oscillation.

The cat Ozone with its two wing masts found the only way to keep it from sailing on the mooring was to lock the masts at opposing angles.  That is just masts.  In fact the owner cut 3m off the top of the masts to stop the boat dragging its mooring.

A plane in the air is different to a  boat on the water.  A plane on the ground is closer to a boat on the water and I know all airports where high winds can be expected have tie down points for light aircraft.   Wind at ground level is anything but stable laminar flow.  

There is no doubt a small rigid wing with a tail plane could have insufficient mass and rotational inertia to create the harmonic condition but that size wing is unlikely to have much influence in moving the boat in light air.

The force on a sail is a function of wind velocity squared.  A moored boat could reasonably expect winds to reach 60kts.  On the other hand there is some hope of the boat moving efficiently in 5kts of wind.  Most racing boats set sail area to begin reducing around 12kts.  Cruisers maybe 20 to 25kts.  So a wing of fixed area that can produce useful force in 5kts could easily experience 150 times that force on a mooring or at sea on long distance cruising.   

On 12 Jun 2018, at 11:45 pm, '.' eruttan@yahoo.com [harryproa] <harryproa@yahoogroups.com.au> wrote:

I am not sure how a rigid wing moves off alignment in wind, as it is the wind that creates the alignment. Perhaps bearing drag?

But lets just assume its reasonable and possible.

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Posted by: Rick Willoughby <rickwill@bigpond.net.au>
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