Fluid dynamic properties of a soft shell float with open bottom

ABSTRACT:   A physical model of a soft shell underwater float with an openbottom was constructed and the float was subjected to sinusoidaloscillation in the vertical direction in order to investigate the relationsbetween the characteristic properties of the buoyancy and fluidforces in the movement of the float. No change in the fundamentalperiod of the float was seen in response to the imposed oscillation,but there was a lag in the phase of the float response of up toone-quarter wavelength. Various fluid force factors approached valuesreported for a globular buoy as the float was increasingly filledwith air, but hysteresis was very low. The drag coefficient showedmuch scatter. The dominant factor for control of vertical movementof a soft shell float with open bottom was buoyancy, not fluid resistanceforce. It was concluded that for the purposes of design and controlof these systems, only the float volumetric capacity and air capacitymust be considered.