18th Australasian Fluid Mechanics Conference: An experimental study of knitted fabrics used in elite sports

摘要

It is important to measure the aerodynamic properties (drag and lift) contributed by fabric in order to design aerodynamically efficient sports garments for higher speed sports. The primary objective of this study is to investigate the aerodynamic properties of fabric over a range of Reynolds numbers varied by speeds. Specially developed cylindrical methodology was used to quantify the effects of aerodynamic properties and fabrics' surface parameters. The study was undertaken experimentally in a wind tunnel environment for a range of five commercial knitted fabrics used in speed sports. Additionally, the electron microscopic analysis was undertaken to study the fabric physical parameters. A correlation between the surface parameter from microscopic studies and the aerodynamic properties of knitted fabric with different roughness was established. The findings indicated that the aerodynamic properties are dependent the fabric's surface structure, and hence can be optimised.