Hydrodynamics of a human body moving through water

[paul_epner]

What science topics do I need to cover? I am trying to invent a battery operated propeller device to be secured on a persons arms to move them through water at about 2-4 MPH. Any help would be greatly appreciated!

[deleted-137707]

Hi, what an interesting topic! I am glad you are taking on such a challenge! Your project mainly deals with science topics such as physics and fluid dynamics. Fluid Dynamics is the study of fluids in motion. As for a human moving through the water, they have to deal with buoyancy. The pressure beneath the swimmer is greater than the pressure above which is why swimmers float. Resistance is another topic that occurs since water is almost 1000 times more resistant than air. Actually, the majority of a person's energy is lost through drag from resistance. Propulsion is another important topic as swimmers are propelled through the water by a combination of kicking the legs and pulling water with the arms. Swimmers actually propel more with their arms than their legs. Just by using their arms, a swimmer can travel at a rate of 1.25 m/s. It would be interesting to see how much their velocity increases with your propeller.
I would research more about the physics and fluid dynamics associated with propellers. It might be helpful to try to see how a boat propeller works and the science associated with them. Here are some useful links:
http://www.lcsc.edu/mcollins/Biomechani ... imming.htm
http://www.psychosnail.com/boatingartic ... propellers

Sincerely,
gmm15