Paper presented to the 10th International Conference on Heat Transfer, Fluid Mechanics and Thermodynamics, Florida, 14-16 July 2014.
In a recently published article by Polihronov and
Straatman (Phys. Rev. Letters 109, 054504, 2012), the
thermodynamics of angular propulsion was presented and
a theoretical model of the energy transfer was proposed.
This article will show that the theoretical model leads to
the most basic element of a radial inflow device. It is
shown that Euler's work equation reduces to the same
theoretical result for this case. The system is then studied
as a self-governed device moving in a medium posing
external resistance. It is observed that the output power
from the device exhibits a peak at a certain characteristic
value of its peripheral velocity. In the presence of
resistance or loading, the system has motion, characterized
by the requirement of pre-rotation exhibiting maximum
power output and a terminal state. The points of
equilibrium and operational thresholds of the motion are
discussed, accompanied by a theoretical model of the
presented dynamical system. The presented angular
propulsion theory is then utilized to provide better
understanding of phenomena taking place in vortex tubes.
