Research in cycling aerodynamics is performed using mannequins of different geometries, which are usually not shared, thus hampering the advancement of our understanding of the flow around a rider on the bike. The primary outcome of this work is to introduce and openly share two anthropometrically realistic generic cyclist models, one in time-trial and one in sprint position. These two models are obtained by averaging the scans of 14 male elite cyclists. The average cyclist geometries are published and openly accessible, making them unique in the field of cycling aerodynamic research. The second objective of this work is to better understand how the difference between the sprint and time-trial position affects the velocity and vortex topology in the wake of a cyclist and, in turn, the aerodynamic drag. Robotic volumetric particle image velocimetry measures the time-average velocity for each mannequin within a wind tunnel. One meter downstream of the lower back, the wakes of the two mannequins are dominated by strong hip/thigh streamwise counter-rotating vortices, which induce a downwash behind the riders’ backs. The strength of these vortices downstream of the sprint model is significantly larger than that of the vortices of the mannequin in the time-trial position. The same holds for a secondary vortex pair that originates from the upper arms and hips. In addition to the vortex strength, the aerodynamic drag area of the sprint model exceeds that of the time-trial model. Hence, it is presumed that stronger vortices relate to higher aerodynamic drag. In contrast to the drag area, the drag coefficient of the two models is the same. Further research is necessary to understand the relation between the cyclist position, the flow topology and the drag coefficient. Finally, the flow around the time-trial model is described in further detail to understand the origin of the different vortex structures. Through comparison to the literature, a vortex topology classification is postulated for the mid-wake and upper-wake. The arm spacing and shoulder width play a critical role in the development of this vortex system.

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The effect of drafting on the aerodynamic drag of a long-track speed skater is investigated in-field, at the 400m ice-rink of Thialf, Heerenveen. The Ring of Fire system is used to measure the flow downstream of an elite, isolated skater at approximately 11 m/s, transiting repeatedly through a tunnel filled with Helium-filled soap bubble flow tracers. Large-scale stereoscopic particle image velocimetry is used at an acquisition frequency of 500 Hz to obtain the near to far wake up to 11 m distance behind the skater. Over these 11 m, the center of gravity of the wake can shift up to 10 cm laterally, depending on the phase of the skating motion, and it moves about 15 cm to the floor. The former suggests that a trailing skater should slightly adapt its trajectory to achieve the lowest aerodynamic drag by drafting. The drag reduction of a trailing skater is estimated from the measurements on the isolated rider, assuming that the trailing rider's drag reduction only stems from the loss in total pressure in the wake of the first rider. The drag reduction is obtained with varying lateral and longitudinal distance between the leading and hypothetical trailing rider. It is observed that the peak reduction (∼40%) steeply decays with increasing lateral offset: at an offset of 50 cm the reduction is negligible. Instead, with increasing longitudinal offset, the decay is more gradual: at a distance of 11 m the reduction of 17% remains significant. The in-field estimations of the drag reduction are supported by wind tunnel measurements conducted on scaled skater models. Finally, the results obtained on the ice-rink indicate that a trailing skater should follow a slightly wider trajectory of about 20 cm, in comparison to the leading skater, to achieve the peak drag reduction during the entire skating stroke.@en

An aerodynamic assessment is presented of two elite skaters, each in two different skating postures, at the ice-rink Thialf in Heerenveen, the Netherlands, via on-site Ring of Fire (RoF) measurements. This experimental approach adopts stereoscopic Particle Image Velocimetry (Stereo-PIV) to measure the flow upstream and downstream of the skaters. Both skaters transit through the RoF 20 times, 10 in each skating configurations. Athlete A skates with two hands on the back and with one arm on the back and one loose. Athlete B skates with one arm loose in a normal deep sit and in an extreme deep sit. All tests are performed at a nominal skating speed of 11 m/s. Firstly, the wake velocity fields of skater A with two hands on the back are presented throughout five different phases of the skate stroke. Significant variations in the distribution of the velocity deficit downstream of the athlete are observed, which suggest corresponding variations in the skater's aerodynamic drag. These velocity fields are also compared to literature and the similarities and differences are discussed between the flow around a static skater and that in the natural skating motion. Secondly, average streamwise velocity and vorticity fields for all 4 different postures are presented and compared. It is observed that for all cases the maximum velocity deficit in the wake is in the range of 0.45 ≤ u_x^* ≤ 0.55 and is located behind the lower back and upper legs. Furthermore, a characteristic vortex pair is observed downstream of the skater's hips for all four skating configurations, indicating it is independent of the athlete, the posture, and skating phase. The ensemble average aerodynamic drag is evaluated via a control volume approach along the wake behind the skater, accounting for the non-uniform flow conditions prior to the skater's passage. The uncertainty of the average drag measurements from the present RoF is about 5%. The results show that the optimization of the deep sit, e.g. the trunk and knee angle, yields a reduction by 7.5% of the skater's aerodynamic drag. Conversely, the difference in drag between two arms loose and one arm loose is not statistically significant.

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Elite level cycling events are performed at speeds in excess of 50 km/h. At these speeds, over 90% of the resistance forces come from aerodynamic resistance (C_DA). Recently bicycle-mounted pitot tubes, such as the Notio Konect (NK) have become more commercially available making C_DA easier to measure. Its reliability and sensitivity would be useful for riders and coaches to be able to understand what constitutes as a change in C_DA. Accordingly, the aim of this study was to establish the intra- and inter-effort reliability and sensitivity of the C_DA measures of the NK. Seven elite level track riders were used in this study which was broken into two parts: (1) Reliability and (2) Sensitivity. For both parts of the experiment, riders performed identical efforts, riding at ∼50 km/h for six laps of a 250 m indoor velodrome. For reliability, the riders performed six efforts without any changes in position or resistance. For sensitivity, they performed the efforts with a rod with discs of a known diameters attached at each end to vary the C_DA by a known amount. For the reliability assessment, low coefficient of variation of intra–(0.47%) and inter-effort (0.9%) reliability were measured. With regards to sensitivity, the smallest changes in resistance (from 5–6 cm, i.e. 1.2% or 0.002 m²) was identified by the NK. The data in this experiment suggests that the NK is a highly reliable in measuring C_DA can detect changes up to at least 1.2% in an indoor velodrome using elite level track riders. Highlights The Notio Konect showed high levels of inter- and intra-effort reliability. The Notio Konect could detect a change as small as 1.2% in aerodynamic drag. The findings suggest that the Notio Konect is suitable for detecting small changes in aerodynamic drag in a velodrome setting.

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In this work, we investigate the flow field around speed skating helmets and their associated aerodynamic drag by means of computational fluid dynamics (CFD) simulations. An existing helmet frequently used in competition was taken as a baseline. Six additional helmet designs, as well as the bare-head configuration, were analysed. All the numerical simulations were performed via 3D RANS simulations using the SST k-w turbulence model. The results show that the use of a helmet always reduces the aerodynamic drag with respect to the bare head configuration. Besides, an optimised helmet design enables a reduction of the skaters aerodynamic drag by 5.9%, with respect to the bare-head configuration, and by 1.6% with respect to the use of the baseline Omega helmet.

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The Reynolds number effects on body limbs of a cyclist model, namely leg and arm, are investigated via robotic volumetric Particle Image Velocimetry measurements in the velocity range from 5 ​m/s to 25 ​m/s. The near wakes of such body limbs feature recirculation regions whose width and length are governed not only by the taper of the body parts, but also by the presence of coherent streamwise vortical structures. Moreover, the interaction with the wakes of the upstream body parts plays a role in the local wake properties. While reductions of the wake width are observed on both lower leg and arm with increasing free-stream velocity, the wake of the upper leg follows an opposite trend increasing in size at higher velocity. Such variations of wake width with the Reynolds number are related to the behaviour of the local drag coefficient, indicating a drag crisis behaviour on both leg and arm. The distribution of the so-called critical velocity upon these body segments is discussed, as it determines the freestream speed where a minimum value for the drag can occur.

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The use of large-scale particle image velocimetry (PIV) is proposed for cycling aerodynamic study to advance the general understanding of the flow around the rider and the bike, leading to new strategies for cycling aerodynamic drag reduction in the future. The investigation concentrates on the measurement of the wake velocity and its relation to the aerodynamic drag of stationary models in wind tunnels and of transiting models in the field. In the first part of this work, PIV measurements are conducted in a wind tunnel to capture the wake flow topology of a full-scale cyclist model and determine the cyclist aerodynamic drag. In-house built seeding systems are employed to inject Helium-filled soap bubble (HFSB) tracers upstream of an elite time-trial cyclist replica. The obtained flow topology compares well among different experimental repetitions and with literature, demonstrating the robustness of the PIV measurement approach. The aerodynamic drag is obtained by a so-called PIV wake rake approach, which relies on the conservation of momentum in a control volume surrounding the model. Comparison of the PIV wake rake aerodynamic drag against that of a force balance demonstrates that a drag accuracy of the latter below 1% is possible. The PIV wake rake measurements are conducted in a plane downstream of the bike’s rear wheel to avoid shadows and optical blockage. At this distance from the athlete, however, investigation of the separated and reverse flow regions, that are the main driver of the aerodynamic drag, is not possible. In the second part of this dissertation, therefore, robotic volumetric PIV measurements are conducted to retrieve the velocity description close to the cyclist. The near-wake of the cyclist limbs is presented, which somehow resembles that of isolated bluff bodies, such as cylinders, featuring a recirculation region bounded by two shear layers. The size of the recirculation region, however, is not only governed by the width of the limb, but also by the coherent vortical structures emanating from these limbs near the limb junctions (e.g. elbows and knees). Moreover, interaction of the limbs with the wakes of the upstream body parts also plays a role in the local wake properties. In addition to the measurement of the cyclist’s near wake at typical race speed, also the cyclist Reynolds number effects are investigated to understand how to reduce the aerodynamic drag by dedicated skinsuits designs in the future. This is achieved repeating the robotic volumetric PIV measurements in a wide range of freestream velocity. While reductions of the wake width are observed on both lower leg and arm with increasing free-stream velocity, the wake of the upper leg follows an opposite trend increasing in size at higher velocity. These variations of wake width with increasing freestream speed are related to the behaviour of the local drag coefficient, indicating a drag crisis behaviour on both leg and arm. The distribution of the so-called critical velocity upon these body segments is discussed, as it determines the freestream speed where a minimum value for the drag occurs. The third, and last part of this work, is dedicated to the development of quantitative flow visualisation and drag determination of cyclists in the field. This so-called Ring-of-Fire system allows, among others, aerodynamic studies that are practically impossible in the wind tunnel, such as model accelerations and model curved-linear trajectories. A tomographic PIV wake rake is employed to measure the flow around a simplified transiting bluff body, a towed 10 cm sphere. These scaled experiments serve as a proof-of-concept of this novel measurement system. The aerodynamic drag is obtained invoking the control volume momentum balance in a frame of reference moving with the object. The expression for the time-average drag consists of three terms, a momentum, Reynolds stress and pressure term, which are individually evaluated at increasing distance downstream of the sphere. It is shown that the aerodynamic drag is most accurately evaluated when the contribution of the momentum term dominates the overall drag and that the PIV pressure evaluation can be avoided five sphere diameters into the wake. The latter largely simplifies the data reduction procedures of the Ring-of-Fire. Finally, the present system estimates the aerodynamic drag with an accuracy of 20 drag counts. This is evaluated from repeated model passages in a range of Reynolds numbers in which the model’s drag coefficient is constant. This resolution is comparable to other aerodynamic drag measurement field techniques. It is rather poor, instead, in comparison to force balance measurements in wind tunnels. In contrast to the latter drag measurement techniques, the Ring-of-Fire also provides information about the flow yielding advanced insights into cyclist aerodynamics in the future. @en

Abstract: The Ring of Fire (RoF) measurement concept, introduced by Terra et al. (Exp Fluids 58:83. https://doi.org/10.1007/s00348-017-2331-0, 2017; Experiments in Fluids 59:120, 2018), is applied to real cyclists to enable the aerodynamic drag determination during sport action. This principle is based on large-scale stereoscopic particle image velocimetry (PIV) measurements over a plane crossed by the athlete during cycling. The momentum before and after the passage of the athlete poses the basis for the control volume analysis in the athlete’s frame of reference, which returns the aerodynamic drag. This approach extrapolates aerodynamic studies towards more realistic conditions, compared to experiments performed in wind tunnels with scaled or stationary athletes. The measurement concept is termed Ring of Fire as the rider crosses a region of intense light. Two experiments are conducted, indoor and outdoor, with attention placed on the effects of the environmental conditions and the confinement of the measurement region. Stereo-PIV measurements feature a plane of approximately 2 × 2 m ² , using neutrally buoyant sub-millimeter helium-filled soap bubbles (HFSB) as flow tracers. The drag measurement is obtained examining the wake produced by the athlete. It is observed that the drag value becomes independent of time after about 5 torso lengths from the passage. A statistical estimate of the drag is produced combining the results of several passages. Fluctuations of the drag value during a single passage are associated with the unsteady wake flow. Overall fluctuations among different transits are ascribed to the varying conditions of the airflow prior to the passage of the athlete. The experiments conducted outdoor exhibit significantly larger dispersion of the drag value, compared to the quieter conditions indoor. Repetition of the transit 10–30 times yields a basis for statistical convergence of the average drag value. The flow topology past the cyclist compares satisfactorily between both experiments and with wind tunnel experiments reported in literature. The current measurements clearly separate drag values from upright and time–trial athlete’s positions, indicating the suitability of this principle for aerodynamic analysis and optimization studies. Graphical abstract: [Figure not available: see fulltext.].

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Abstract: The aerodynamic drag of a human-scale wind tunnel model is obtained from large-scale particle tracking velocimetry measurements invoking the conservation of momentum in a control volume surrounding the model. Lagrangian particle tracking is employed to obtain the velocity and static pressure statistics in a thin volume in the wake of a cyclist mannequin at freestream velocities between 12.5 and 15 m/s, corresponding to Reynolds numbers from 5 × 10⁵ to 6 × 10⁵ based on the torso length. The spatial distributions of the time-average streamwise velocity and pressure coefficient match well with previous works reported in literature. The streamwise velocity fluctuations in the wake of the cyclist’s model are presented, clearly demonstrating the unsteady nature of the main wake flow structures. Furthermore, the obtained aerodynamic drag follows the expected quadratic increase with increasing freestream velocity. The accuracy of this drag estimation is evaluated by comparison to force balance data and corresponds to 30 drag counts. The three terms composing the overall drag force, ascribed to the mean and fluctuating streamwise velocity and the mean pressure, are also evaluated separately, demonstrating that the resistive force is dominated by the contribution of the mean streamwise momentum deficit, whereas the contribution of the pressure term is negligible.

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Large-scale particle image velocimetry (PIV) is used to characterize the dynamics of the unsteady wake of a non-pedalling full-scale cyclist. This to provide better understanding of the flow structures that generate the aerodynamic drag. Instantaneous flow fields are acquired and averaged to obtain the time-average flow topology. Afterwards, Proper Orthogonal Decomposition (POD) analysis is conducted using the instantaneous flow fields to identify the most energetic structures in the cyclists wake. The first mode is associated with a tilting of the main vortex pair emanating from the hip and thighs, while the second mode noticeably increases/decreases the strength of this vortex pair. This suggests that the main vortex pair rotates and shrinks/grows in time, which can be attributed to an unsteady separation location. From these results, it can be concluded that PIV has the potential to measure instantaneous velocity fields using aerodynamic investigation in cycling and allows an analysis of the instantaneous velocity fields by POD revealing the most energetic flow structures in the cyclist’s wake. Finally, application of the conservation of momentum enables the determination of the aerodynamic drag of the wind tunnel model. Although the absolute drag from the PIV wake rake is 5% off from the balance reading, the relative drag uncertainty is close to 1%.@en

The distribution of the critical velocity (point of minimum aerodynamic drag) is determined along the body of a time-trial cyclist by flow measurement in the model's near-wake.@en

The accuracy of the “PIV wake rake” method to measure the drag of transiting objects is evaluated. Tomographic particle image velocimetry measurements are conducted on a sphere towed at different speeds, within a Reynolds number range where the drag coefficient is constant. In contrast to PIV wake rake application on steady models in wind tunnels, where the upstream conditions can be accurately controlled and known a priori, measurement of the flow field prior to the passage of the model is essential for an accurate estimation of the drag for towed models when control of the undisturbed conditions is more challenging. The drag resolution of the technique is estimated to prospect the use of the technique in large-scale applications. A resolution of approximately 20 drag counts is obtained which is coarser than wind tunnel experiments but comparable to techniques used for field measurements. Graphical abstract: [Figure not available: see fulltext.].

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Large-scale Particle Tracking Velocimetry (PTV) measurements are cond ucted in the wake of a fu ll-scale cyclist model in time-trial position at freestream velocities between 12.5 and 15 m/ s, corresponding to Reynolds numbers of the order of 5×105. Lagrangian particle tracking is employed to determine the velocity and static pressure statistics in the wake plane, showing good agreement with previous results reported in literature. The aerodynamic drag is estimated from the large-scale PTV measurements invoking the conservation of momentum in a control volume enclosing the model (PIV wake rake approach). The estimated drag follows the expected quadratic increase with increasing freestream velocity. The accuracy of the drag estimate is evaluated by comparison to state-of-the-art force balance measurements, resulting in a resolution of the PIV wake rake approach of 30 drag counts. The three terms composing the overall drag force, associated with the time-average streamwise velocity, its fluctuations and the time-averaged pressure, respectively, are evaluated separately, demonstrating that the contribution of the pressure term is negligible and the resistive force is dominated by the time-average streamwise momentum deficit. @en

A novel measurement system, the Ring of Fire, is deployed which enables the aerodynamic drag estimation of transiting cyclists. The system relies upon the use of large-scale stereoscopic PIV and the conservation of momentum within a control volume in a frame of reference moving with the athlete. The rider cycles at a velocity of approximately 8 m/s, corresponding to a torso based Reynolds number of 3.2 × 105. The measurements upstream and in the wake of the athlete are conducted at a rate of 2 kHz within a measurement plane of approximately 1000 × 1700 mm2. The non-dimensional, ensemble-averaged streamwise velocity fields compare well to literature and the ensemble-averaged drag area shows a rather constant value along the wake with an uncertainty of 5%. A comparison with wind tunnel force balance measurements shows discrepancies which may be partly attributed to the bike supports and stationary floor in the wind tunnel measurements. The 25% drag difference measured between a rider in upright and time-trial position, however, matches literature well.@en

A procedure is proposed to reconstruct the instantaneous velocity field from full particle trajectories in a data assimilation framework that includes the vorticity transport equation. The technique is christened as time-segment assimilation (TSA). The work addresses the common problem of low seeding concentration in 3D experiments, usuallThe Ring of Fire measurement system is deployed for the measurement of the aerodynamic drag of transiting cyclists. The drag force is evaluated using large-scale stereoscopic PIV and invoking the conservation of momentum within a control volume in a frame of reference moving with the athlete. Two experiments are carried out that yield the cyclist aerodynamic drag in time-trial and upright position in indoor and outdoor conditions. The rider cycles at a velocity of approximately 5 m/s and 8 m/s for respectively the indoor and outdoor experiment, corresponding to a torso based Reynolds number of 2.1 × 105 and 3.2 × 105. The indoor measurements are conducted at a rate of 8 Hz within a measurement plane of approximately 1.8 × 2.4 m2. The outdoor measurements are conducted at a rate of 2000 Hz within a measurement plane of approximately 1.8 × 1.8 m2. Neutrally buoyant helium-filled soap bubbles are used as flow tracers. Despite the fact that two different cyclists and two different bikes were used and that the local angle of attack of the body was different, the streamwise velocity and vorticity fields compare well between both experiments and to literature. Results from both experiments show the same peak momentum deficit as well as the same main and secondary vortices. A clear distinction in upright vs. time-trial ensemble–averaged drag area is found for both experiments. Furthermore, the indoor experiment shows it is possible to distinguish smaller variations in the drag area between two postures, namely between a time-trial asymmetric and symmetric configuration. Small drag differences (≈ 5%) with less than twenty samples per case are detected. y leading to limited spatial resolution. In the present study the measurement fidelity and spatial resolution are increased by considering finite time-segments as a whole for instantaneous velocity reconstruction. The use of a time-segment for velocity field reconstruction from measurement data extends previously proposed data assimilation techniques that consider only instantaneous measurement data (e.g. VIC+ and FlowFit), to use finite measurement time-segments. The assessment with sinusoids indicates lower errors due to modulation. However, the appearance of a range of amplified peaks is not fully understood. In the case of a simulated turbulent boundary layer measurement more vortical structures are recovered when a longer time-segment is used for the velocity field reconstruction. @en

The accuracy of the “PIV wake rake” method to measure the drag of transiting objects is evaluated. Tomographic Particle Image Velocimetry measurements are conducted on a sphere towed at different speeds, within a Reynolds number range where the drag coefficient is constant. In contrast to PIV wake rake application on steady models in wind tunnels, where the upstream conditions can be accurately controlled and known a priori, measurement of the flow field prior to the passage of the model is essential for an accurate estimation of the drag for towed models when control of the undisturbed conditions is more challenging. The drag resolution of the technique is estimated to prospect the use of the technique in large scale applications. A resolution of approximately 20 drag counts is obtained which is coarser than wind tunnel experiments but comparable to techniques used for field measurements.@en

A new approach is introduced to evaluate the potential drag reduction by skin suit design in speed sport. The approach relies upon local flow information measured in the wake of a cyclist mannequin. Lagrangian Particle Tracking is employed to measure the distribution of time-average streamwise velocity in a cross-plane of 30 × 100 cm2 behind the stretched leg of the rider at a range of Reynolds numbers (0.4 × 105 < Re < 2.4 × 105). The expected Reynolds number effect is observed: a general wake narrowing at increasing speed. Unexpected local effects are also identified, which may be due to local variations in geometry of the rider’s leg. The conservation of momentum within a control volume containing the leg is used showing that the aerodynamic drag of the rider’s leg can be decreased by application of surface roughness. This outcome is validated by repeated measurements using zigzag tape on the legs’ surface. @en

A method is introduced to measure the aerodynamic drag of moving objects such as ground vehicles or athletes in speed sports. Experiments are conducted as proof-of-concept that yield the aerodynamic drag of a sphere towed through a square duct in stagnant air. The drag force is evaluated using large-scale tomographic PIV and invoking the time-average momentum equation within a control volume in a frame of reference moving with the object. The sphere with 0.1 m diameter moves at a velocity of 1.45 m/s, corresponding to a Reynolds number of 10,000. The measurements in the wake of the sphere are conducted at a rate of 500 Hz within a thin volume of approximately 3 × 40 × 40 cubic centimeters. Neutrally buoyant helium-filled soap bubbles are used as flow tracers. The terms composing the drag are related to the flow momentum, the pressure and the velocity fluctuations and they are separately evaluated. The momentum and pressure terms dominate the momentum budget in the near wake up to 1.3 diameters downstream of the model. The pressure term decays rapidly and vanishes within 5 diameters. The term due to velocity fluctuations contributes up to 10% to the drag. The measurements yield a relatively constant value of the drag coefficient starting from 2 diameters downstream of the sphere. At 7 diameters the measurement interval terminates due to the finite length of the duct. Error sources that need to be accounted for are the sphere support wake and blockage effects. The above findings can provide practical criteria for the drag evaluation of generic bluff objects with this measurement technique.

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Large-scale particle tracking velocimetry is conducted in the wake of a full-scale cyclist model at 14 m/s. Particle tracks are measured in a volume of 100 x 162 x 5 cm3, from which the velocity statistics are computed. The aerodynamic drag is evaluated using the control volume approach invoking the conservation of momentum. The drag obtained from the PTV measurements closely matches that measured by an external force balance. Furthermore, it is shown that the drag force is largely due to the streamwise velocity deficit, whereas the contribution of pressure and Reynolds stress terms is minor. Finally, the drag distribution in a cross-flow plane is used to identify three regions of large velocity deficits suited for future drag minimization: the lower legs and feet, the streamwise vortical structures and the separated region over the lower back.@en

Experiments are conducted that obtain the aerodynamic drag of a sphere towed within a rectangular duct from PIV. The drag force is obtained invoking the time-average momentum equation within a control volume in a frame of reference moving with the object. The sphere with 0.1 m diameter is towed at velocity of 1.5 m/s, corresponding to Re = 10,000. The tomographic PIV measurements are conducted at 500 Hz in a volume of approximately 3 x 40 x 40 cubic centimeters. The large-scale measurement is attained making use of neutrally buoyant Helium-filled soap bubbles of approximately 0.3 mm diameter as air-flow tracers, preluding to a potential upscale of the technique. The measured drag depends upon three terms, namely the flow momentum, the pressure and the velocity fluctuations. These individual terms vary largely at different distances behind the sphere, while the sum attains a relatively constant value. More than two diameters behind the object the drag only varies by about 1%, yielding a practical criterion for the drag evaluation of bluff objects with this technique.@en