Circular Cylinder Pressure Visualization
Explore the symmetrical pressure distribution on a circular cylinder. For an ideal cylinder, the pressure pattern remains constant regardless of its orientation.
Key Concepts
- High Pressure: Occurs at the front and back of the cylinder (stagnation points).
- Low Pressure: Occurs on the sides where air speed is highest.
- Symmetry: The pressure distribution is symmetrical, resulting in zero net lift.
- Ideal Flow: In a perfect, non-viscous fluid, the pressure distribution is perfectly symmetrical.
How it Works
As air flows around the cylinder, it is forced to slow down at the front and rear, creating areas of high pressure. Conversely, the air speeds up on the top and bottom surfaces, causing a drop in pressure. This pressure pattern is symmetrical, meaning the pressure forces cancel each other out, and no lift is generated. The visualization simulates the pressure magnitude using the theoretical pressure coefficient for an ideal fluid, where $C_p = 1 - 4 \sin^2(\theta)$.
Fluid Flow & Pressure on a Cylinder
An interactive simulation of ideal fluid dynamics.
Red: Max Pressure
Blue: Min Pressure
Controls
0 degrees
Note: In this ideal fluid simulation, changing the angle of attack rotates the flow, but the pressure distribution pattern relative to the flow direction remains constant due to the cylinder's symmetry.