Drag Reduction of Laminar Airflow in Circular Pipe With Magnetic Field

The drag friction of the laminar air flow in a steel pipe with permanent magnets attached was compared to that in a pipe without magnets. The drag reduction rate decreased as a function of the Reynolds number in the laminar flow regime, and it reduced to a low percentage when the Reynolds number was greater than 3000 in the turbulence air flow regime. These results suggest that the velocity of the boundary air flow on the pipe wall surface was accelerated by the magnetic field gradient produced by the permanent magnets attached to the outer pipe surface. The velocity of the boundary air flow, as roughly estimated by calculating the magnetic field distribution, could approximately express the experimental results.