Flow Over an Inclined Plate

Abstract

A free-streamline theory for an inclined flat plate in an infinite flow field, at an arbitrary angle of attack, is presented. Measurements of the location of the free-vortex layers, of the vortex-street frequency, and of the pressure behind an inclined sharp-edge plate are reported as a function of both the angle of attack of the plate and the lateral constriction of the flow. The separation between free-vortex layers is found experimentally to be essentially independent of lateral flow constriction. A form of the Strouhal number, using this separation distance as the characteristic flow dimension, is shown to be independent of lateral constriction of the flow and of the inclination of the plate.