Physics 430: Lecture 3

Linear Air Resistance

Dale E. Gary
NJIT Physics Department
 2.1 Air Resistance
 When a projectile moves through the air (or other medium—such
as gas or liquid), it experiences a drag force, which depends on
velocity and acts in the direction opposite the motion (i.e. it
always acts to slow the projectile). f  f (v) vˆ
 Quite generally, we can write this force as , where the
function f(v) can in general be any function of velocity.
 At relatively slow speeds, it is often
f (v) bv  cv 2  f lin a
 good
f quad approximation to write

where flin and fquad stand

f lin bvfor the
andlinearf quad
andcvquadratic
2 terms,
respectively:
As an aside, we introduce the Taylor Series expansion (see inside front cover
of the text). Any function f(x) can be expanded about the point x = a by
 The physical reasons for these two different terms are as follows:

f(x) = f(a) + f’(a)(x a) + 1/2! f’’(a)(x a)2 + 1/3!

 The linear term arises due to the viscous drag of themedium,
f’’’(a)(x a)3 + … and is
proportional to the viscosity of the medium and the linear size D of the
projectile.
Therefore, expanding f(v) about v = 0 gives f(v) = f(0) + f’(0)v + f’’(0)v2 + …
 The quadratic term arises from the projectile’s having to accelerate the
Since the force f(0) = 0, the above expression for f(v) can beSeptember
seen as just an
8, 2008
mass of air with which it is continually colliding, and is proportional to
expansion of the drag force into its leading terms.
the density of the medium and the cross-sectional area D2 of the
 2.1 Air Resistance, cont’d
 It is convenient to have parameters that do not depend on the
projectile’s size or area, but rather on intrinsic properties of the
medium. We therefore b Dwrite and c D 2

 For a spherical projectile in air at STP (Standard Temperature and

Pressure), for example, the 10  4 Ns/m 2 values of  and  are:
1.6approximate
 0.25 Ns 2 /m 4

 Although these values are only strictly valid for a sphere in air at
STP, nevertheless they give a good idea of the relative importance
of the linear and quadratic force terms even for non-spherical bodies
moving through gases other than air.
 When it comes time to do problems with air resistance, we are going
to want to neglect one or the other
f quad of cv
these
2
Dterms.

We can tell their
3 s 
relative importance by looking at theratio v  1.6 10 2  Dv
f lin bv   m 

September 8, 2008
 Example 2.1
 A Baseball and Some Drops of Liquid
 Assess the relative importance of the linear and quadratic drag forces
on a baseball of diameter D = 7 cm , traveling at a modest v = 5 m/s. Do
the same for a drop of rain (D = 1 mm and v = 0.6 m/s) and for a tiny
droplet of oil used in the Millikan oildrop experiment (D = 1.5 m and v =
5x105 m/s).
 Baseball f quad  1.6 103 s  (0.07 m)(5 m/s) 600
f lin  m2 
f  cv 2 vˆ
shows that flin is completely negligible for a baseball. Use
 Rain
f quad  s 
 1.6 103 2 
(0.001 m)(0.6 m/s) 1
f lin  m 
f  (bv  cv 2 ) vˆ
shows that both are needed. Must use full expression
 Oil Drop f quad  1.6 103 s  (1.5 10  6 m)(5 10  5 m/s) 10  7
f lin  m2 
f  bv vˆ
shows that fquad is completely negligible for the oil drop. Use
September 8, 2008
 Linear vs. Quadratic Drag
 The moral of the previous example is clear. There are some
objects for which the linear drag force dominates—namely very
small liquid drops in air, or somewhat larger objects in a very
viscous liquid (e.g. a ball bearing in molasses).
 For most projectiles we will meet, however, including baseballs,
cannon balls, even humans in free-fall, the appropriate drag force
to use is the quadratic one.
 This is unfortunate, since the linear drag force is much easier to
solve mathematically, and we will start with linear case because it
is easier, and it allows us to introduce some useful mathematics.
 There is a branch of physics called Fluid Mechanics that makes use
of a dimensionless number called the Reynolds number, which is
closely related to the ratio fquad/flin. It is R = Dv/, where  is the gas
or fluid density and  is the viscosity (see Problem 2.3). When the
Reynolds number is large, the quadratic term is important, and
when the Reynolds number is small, the linear term is important.

September 8, 2008
 2.2 Linear Air Resistance
 Let’s put the linear and quadratic drag forces into Newton’s 2 nd
Law to see what the character of the solutions are. As always, we
write Newton’s 2nd Law as the equation of motion:
mr  Forces v
x
flin=bv
 For a projectile with linear drag, the projectile experiences
y
both gravity and the drag force, the latter directed in the
opposite direction of its motion. Newton’s 2nd Law becomes mg
mr mg  bv
 Butr v
 , so we can write this as a first-order differential equation
for v: mv mg  bv

 mv x (in
This vector equation represents bv x two dimensions) two separate
equations for the x and y components
mv mg  bv
y y

 Notice that the two equations do not depend on one another.

September 8, 2008
 Contrast with Quadratic Air
Resistance
 For a projectile with quadratic drag, the situation is not so simple:
mr mg  cv 2 vˆ v x
 But sincev
v
ˆ , v 2 vˆ vv . We can also write v via f quad  cv 2 vˆ y
v
the Pythagorean Theoremv  v 2  v 2
x y
mg
 When separated into its two equations for x and y components
mv x  c v x2  v y2 v x

mv y mg  c v x2  v y2 v y

 Now these two equations do depend on one another—they are

coupled equations. That makes them considerably harder to
solve, which is why we are going to start with the simpler, linear
drag case.
 Let’s go back to the linear case and solve the horizontal and
vertical equations separately. First the horizontal case.
September 8, 2008
 Horizontal Motion with Linear
Drag-1
 Consider an object such as the cart in the figure, coasting
horizontally in a linearly resistive medium. Now gravity is not
important, so we can deal with the equation for the x component v
flin=bv
alone. mv  bv
x x

 We solved this first-order differential equation in Lecture 1

(Problem 1.24). Todv x refresh
b your memory,
dv x b we write
 v x   dt
dt m vx m
b
 log v x 
Then integrate both sides to get t c
m

v x  Ae  kt vTaking
where c is an arbitrary constant of integration. xo e
 kt
the inverse
log of both sides, and writing b/m = k, we have
where the arbitrary constant of integration has morphed into v = vxo
at t = 0. September 8, 2008
 Horizontal Motion with Linear
 v v e
All the solution
Drag-2  kt
says is that the cart starting out with
x xo
some velocity vxo slows down exponentially, approaching zero
velocity only after infinite time has passed.
 Since the argument of the exponential must have no units, the
units of the constant k must be inverse time, so 1/k can be
considered a time constant
 1 / k m / b [for linear drag]

 The solution is an equation for velocity. To find the equation for

the position oft the cart,t dxwe just x ( t integrate.
) The left side is
0 xo 0 dt  x (0)
v dt   dt   dx  x (t )  x ( 0)  x(t )



t
Here we assume v that
xo e d t   
 t /  the position
v xo e 
 t /  at
t
0
 
t v= 0 is
xo 1  e 
 t /  = 0. The right side
x(0)
is 0

x(t )  x 1  e  t / 
x v xo t 
 The final solution for the position is where we have
introduced the parameter , the value of September
x as 8, 2008
.
 Horizontal Motion with Linear

Drag-3
The final solutions for v(t) and x(t) are:
v x (t ) v xo e  t /  m / b [for linear drag]
x(t )  x 1  e  t /  x v xo
 Graphs of these functions are:
vx x
v x0 x
Make your own cart in
Phun and try it with/without
air resistance.
t t
 
This behavior should certainly not be surprising. But hopefully this helps you
get an appreciation for the power of mathematics for describing physical
behavior.

September 8, 2008
 Vertical Motion with Linear
Drag-1
 Let’s now consider the equation we derived for vertical (y-
direction) motion. mv y mg  bv y v
flin=bv
 In this case, because of the opposite directions of the forces,
you can see that if vy is small, gravity will dominate and the mg
projectile will accelerate downward, making the drag force grow
until eventually it equals the gravity force. At that point, the net
mg
force goes to zero and the projectile falls with a constant terminal
vy  vter
speed vter given by: b

 Looking at the dependence of the terminal speed, you can see

that a more massive object has a larger terminal speed.
Conversely, if air resistance is great (value of b is large), the
terminal speed is small.

September 8, 2008
Example 2.2—Terminal Speed of
Small Liquid Drops
 Statement of the problem:
 Find the terminal speed of a tiny oildrop in the Millikan oildrop
experiment (diameter D = 1.5 m and density  = 840 kg/m3). Do the same
for a small drop of mist with diameter D = 0.2 mm.
 Solution: mg mg
vter  
 To calculate the terminal speed , we need the mass of
b D
the drop. However, we are only given the density and size, from which
we have to calculate the mass.
m V  43  D / 2 
3

 The terminal speed is then

D 2 g
vter  [for linear drag]
6
 vter 6.110  5 m/s [for oil drop]
Putting in numbers for the oil drop, we get
and for the drop of mist vter 1.3 m/s [for drop of mist]
where we have used the previous value for beta
 1.6 10  4 Ns/m 2 More massive drops fall faster
September 8, 2008
 Vertical Motion with Linear
Drag-2
 mv y  bv y  vter 
Writing the original equation in terms of vter, we have
which is again a first-order differential equation which is not so
different from the one for horizontal motion.
 We can most easily see this by making a change of variable and
writing u v y  vter  u v y
mu  bu
mv x equation
 Then our  bv x becomes  Ae  ktis identical to our old
, uwhich
equation for vx: , with the same solution: .
 Ae  t / and again use  = 1/k, this
v y vtervariable,
 When we put back the original
becomes:
 To determine the integration constant A, as usualAwe vneed
yo  vter initial
 t /  t /
conditions. If the projectile
v y v ystarts
oe  vwith velocity
ter (1  e ) vy = vyo at t = 0, then
, so
t   v y (t ) vter

 As , as before (and as we expect).September 8, 2008

 Vertical Motion with Linear
Drag-3
 Let’s take a look at the solution for vyo = 0 (dropping the projectile
from rest). In this case, the equation is just
v y vter (1  e  t / ) A word about the
“characteristic
which is plotted below. vy time” . Note that
v yo by the time t = ,
vy
vter the projectile has
vter e  1 ) 0.63vter
y vter (1 reached
valready
v yo
v0ter
v yo  v yo  vter By the time t = 3,
the projectile
t t velocity is at 95%
  of vter.
 Note that it is not enough to simply derive an equation. To really
understand the motion you need to sketch such plots, or look at

limiting behavior (e.g. position andt velocity as ).

September 8, 2008
 Example 2.3—Characteristic
Time for Two Liquid Drops
 Statement of the problem:
 Find the characteristic times, , for the oildrop and drop of mist in
Example 2.2.
 Solution:
 The characteristic time was defined as  = m/b, while vter = mg/b, so we
vter  g
have the useful relation:

 This can be interpreted as saying that vter is the velocity the drop would
attain if it were accelerated for a time, , at constant acceleration equal
to g. In fact, the acceleration is less than g, because of the variable
5
vter 6.110
drag force acting in the opposing direction, m/sdrop does not quite
so the
attain speed vter after 6.1
vter time . 10  5 6
  6.2 10 s
 For the Milliken oildrop,
g we9found
.8 that , so

 After falling only 20 s, the oildrop attains 95% of its terminal speed!
 For the drop of mist, the characteristic time is 0.13September
s. After about
8, 2008 0.4 s,
the drop should have attained 95% of its terminal speed.
 Vertical Motion with Linear

Drag-4
We have obtained the general equation for the velocity as
v y v yo e  t /  vter (1  e  t / )
 To get the projectile’s position, we need to integrate this equation
to get t
 
y (t )  v yo e  t /  vter (1  e  t / ) dt 
0

vter t  v yo  vter  (1  e  t / )

where we have assumed the initial position y(0) = 0.

 We now have the equations for the projectile position for
horizontal and vertical motion, separately,

x(t ) v xo 1  e  t /
as:

y (t ) vter t  v yo  vter  (1  e  t / )
for x(0) = y(0) = 0, and y downward.

September 8, 2008
 2.3 Trajectory and Range
in a Linear Medium
 To get a trajectory including BOTH horizontal and vertical motion, we
should consider y position upward. The corresponding equation for
y(t) is the same as before, but we must reverse the sign of vter
(convince yourself that is the x(t )case). 
v xo 1 Thus,
e  t / our two equations are:
y (t ) v yo  vter  (1  e  t / )  vter t
 We can combine these into a single equation by solving the first for t
 x 

t   ln 1  
 v xo  y
no air drag
and substituting into the second:
v yo  vter   x
y x  vter ln 1 

v xo   v xo R vxo Rvac
 x
This is rather too complicated to understand easily,
air drag
but here is a plot of the trajectory compared with one
without air resistance.

September 8, 2008
 Horizontal Range-1
 You have already seen the method for finding the range of a
trajectory without air resistance, in Physics I. To remind you of the
solution, it is 2v xo v yo
Rvac  [ no air resistance]
g

 What is it in the case of linear air resistance? Recall that the range R
is the value of x whenvyyo as given by the
 vter  range
R  equation is zero:
y R  vter ln 1   0
v xo  v xo 

 This is a transcendental equation (because of the ln term) and cannot

be solved in terms of elementary functions. You need to use a
computer to solve it numerically (which you will do for the
homework). Meanwhile, you can solve it approximately by assuming
the argument of the ln function is small. R
ln 
1    
  
 To do this, you can use a Taylor expansion
2 
1 2
 3 
1 3
 where  
as we did earlier v(and
xo
which you will also do in the HW):
September 8, 2008
 Horizontal Range-2
 We can now substitute this approximation of the ln term into the
range equation to get:
 v yo  vter   R 1 R  1 R  
2 3

  R  vter         0
 v xo   v xo 2  v xo  3  v xo  
 We can simplify this by noting that the second term in the first
bracket cancels the first term in the second bracket, and after
factoring out a common  v yo R,1 vter R 1 vter  R  
2

  2
 3    R 0
v
 xo 2 v xo  3 
v xo   
g
2
2 v
 We can simplify further by 2v xorecalling R 2  vter/ = g, and dividing
2 that
xo
v yo
by :   R  R 0
 g 3 v xo 

2vxo v yo 2 R 2
 Right away we see thatRR= 0 gis a solution,
3 vxo but not an interesting one,
hence we have
September 8, 2008
 Horizontal Range-3
 The text goes through a rather unilluminating argument that for
small enough air resistance the range R  Rvac, hence we can get
away with substituting 2 2v xo v yo
Rvac  Rvac
g

for R2, and finally get: 2 2v xo v yo  4 v yo 

R R vac Rvac Rvac  1  
3v xo g  3 vter 

 This is only valid for low air resistance (v << vter).

 Example 2.4:
 I flick a tiny metal pellet with diameter D = 0.2 mm and v = 1 m/s at 45o. Find
its horizontal range assuming the pellet is gold (density  = 16 g/cm3). What
if it is aluminum (density  = 2.7 g/cm3)?
 Solution:
2v v 2
2v sin( 45) cos(45)
 Without airRresistance,

xo yo both
 pellets would have v 2 the
/ g same range:
10.2 cm
vac
g g
September 8, 2008
Example 2.4, Solution, Cont’d
 Recall from example 2.2 that the terminal speed in air is given by
D 2 g
vter  21 m/s [gold]
6
 Thus, the range correction term is
4 v yo 4 0.707
 0.05
3 vter 3 21
and the range is about 5% less than in vacuum.
 The density of aluminum is about 6 times smaller, so the terminal velocity
is likewise 6 times smaller so the correction is more like 30%.
 Thus, the gold pellet will sail about 9.6 cm while the aluminum pellet will
only go about 7 cm. Because the air resistance for aluminum is larger, we
can expect that the equation for the range is not so accurate.

September 8, 2008