Rick, some numbers to discuss. I kept it in US standard units
which isn't as nice for the math but the end results are easier for us
to look at. :-) There are a lot of numbers here and there's
probably a mistake somewhere. But I assumed only:
A = 9 ft^2 (frontal area)
F = 60 lb (max propulsion thrust from 0 to 3.5 kts)
The drag varies a lot depending on the shape of the submerged body and
I did the numbers only with the drags of airship and compact car
shapes. But there's a web page below that lists some more drag
coefficients.
It seems to me that while underwater your drag would mainly be a
concern when dealing with a current and in prolonging your running time
- letting you cover more ground on a battery charge. With a more streamlined shape you could run at a lower power setting.
If you're interested in operating in currents you'd also want to look
at drag when the current hits you from the side or stern. Right? But it
doesn't take that long to accelerate your 6000lb so I don't think
that's much of a concern. I guess you would hit something a bit harder
with the extra mass...
take care-
Paul
================================== Acceleration:
F= m * a
m = 6000lb/32.2 = 186 slugs (mass value - not weight)
v = 3.5 kts = 5.8 ft/s
v = 1/2 * a * t^2
a = F / m
v = 1/2 * F / m * t^2
5.8 ft/s = 1/2 * 60 / 186 slug * t^2
t = ~6 seconds to accelerate 6K lb to 3.5 kts, ignoring the hydro drag
This is the simpler analysis that doesn't consider the hydrodynamic
drag of the sub. Sorry but I'm not up for digging out this equation
right now. Looking at the estimated drags below, I'd just do a
WAG that the hull drag would average 15lbs for the Ford Escort shape
over the 0 to 2.4kt range and come up with:
4.37 ft/s = 1/2 * (60-15) / 186 slug * t^2
t = 6 sec to accelerate to 2.4kts
This might be a reasonable
estimate. I'm guessing that you don't care too much about the
acceleration times so I didn't spend much time on this. :-)
================================== Top speed:
Here's the drag force at 3.5kts, first with a very streamlined shape, equivalent
to an airship:
F = 1/2 * density * V^2 * A * Cd
density = 1.94 slugs/ft^3
F= 1/2 * density * 33.6 * 9 * 0.02 = 5.9 lb drag at 3.5kts
That's not much drag, huh? But if you have a more practical
shape, like that of a Ford Escort, you'd have 104 lb of drag at
3.5kts. Oops, that's more drag than we have thrust!
Now I'd look at solving for top speed with a Ford Escort shape and 60lb thrust:
Here's a nice table of drag coefficients. You've got to love a
list that includes both tractor trailers and aircraft
wings. These are for higher speeds than what you're
running, but probably close enough. I think the main time you
really see a difference is with bluff bodies like a sphere or a pickup
truck where you get different vortices at different Reynolds numbers.
Rethinking fairings and have a
question. how much saving in hydrodynamic drag do i have to save to justify the
the entrained mass that i will carry in traped water? especially with a speed of
only 3.5 kts. diplacement about 6000 lbs