VIV Suppression and Drag Reduction With Pivoted Control Plates on a Circular Cylinder

Experiments have been carried out on two-dimensional devices fitted to a rigid length of circular cylinder to investigate the efficiency of pivoting control plates as VIV suppressors. Measurements are presented for a circular cylinder with low mass and damping which is free to respond in the cross-flow direction. It is shown how vortex-induced vibration can be practically eliminated by using free to rotate, two-dimensional control plates. Unlike helical strakes, the devices achieve VIV suppression with drag reduction. The device producing the largest drag reduction was found to have a drag coefficient equal to about 70% of that for a plain cylinder at the same Reynolds number.