Dorothy Fu, Alice Tang, Jade Cai

Jamie Gonzalez

Physics E

21 December 2020

Air Resistance on a Falling Balloon

Introduction

Every object in the universe is in relative motion, and there is constantly an opposite

force acting on the object. Drag force is a frictional force acting oppositely on an object in

relative motion.

Background Information

Drag force is equal to the magnitude of downward gravity acting on ab objent when the

object reaches its terminal velocity. There are two possible formulas to calculate the drag force

of an object that is shown below.

1
𝐹𝑑 = ρ𝑣 2 𝐶 A
2 𝑡 𝑑

𝐹𝑑 = 6µ𝜋𝑅𝑣𝑡

In these two equations, 𝐹𝑑 stands for drag force, ρ represents the relative fluid density, 𝑣𝑡

stands for terminal velocity, 𝐶𝑑 stands for drag force coefficient, A stands for cross-sectional

area, R stands for the radius of falling balloon, and µ is dynamic viscosity of the relative fluid.

2𝑚𝑔 𝑚𝑔
By solving terminal velocity, the equations become the followings, where √ρ𝐶 and 6𝜋µ can be
𝑑A

seen as slopes of the terminal velocity functions.

2𝑚𝑔 2𝑚𝑔 1
𝑣𝑡 = √ =√ ×
ρ𝐶𝑑 A ρ𝐶𝑑 𝜋 𝑅
 𝑚𝑔 1
𝑣𝑡 = ×
6𝜋µ 𝑅

The aim of this investigation is to identify which equation best describes the motion of a

falling balloon under the influence of air resistance.

Methods

To justify which formula best describes the motion of a falling balloon, the experiment
1
generates a graph of terminal velocity 𝑣𝑡 versus after collecting data, and compares the
𝑅

2𝑚𝑔 𝑚𝑔
gradient of the graph with the value of √ρ𝐶 and 6𝜋µ.
𝑑𝜋

The experiment alters the balloon's radius as an independent variable and analyzes the

terminal velocity of the falling object by Tracker, an application that allows users to track an

object's displacement and velocity. To reduce the quantity of effects produced by random errors,

the investigation tests multiple sets of data and alters the radius seven times from a small value to

a large value. The experiment tests balloon with the same radius twice and obtains the average

terminal velocity by dividing sum of terminal velocities by total testing number. The extensive

range of data and repetitious process of experimenting can largely decrease errors and maximally

assures the accuracy of results. The balloon's perimeter is measured by wrapping a cloth tape

around the center of the balloon, and the radius of the balloon equals circumference divided by 2.

The quantity of air the balloon contains inflates as its radius increases, and therefore, the mass of

the object also increases. However, since radius changes in a particular range, the falling object's

mass change only maintains slight differences, hence, it will not dramatically affect the results

and can be neglected.

Before beginning the investigation, the experiment requires weighting the falling object's

mass, including the balloon and materials on it, such as a rope to tile the balloon. The experiment
 2𝑚𝑔 𝑚𝑔
calculates the value of √ρ𝐶 and 6𝜋µ by substituting the value of mass. The investigation, views
𝑑𝜋

balloon’s mass m, density of air ρ, drag coefficient of 𝐶𝑑 , and dynamic viscosity of air µ as

control variables. Though the density of air varies as sea-level shifts, vertical displacement in the

investigation is limited. Thereby the value of air density will be a control variable, equaling

1.225 kilograms per cubic meter. The dynamic viscosity of air alters as the temperature of the

relative fluid changes. The experimental location maintains a temperature of 22 degrees Celsius,

so viscosity in the experiment equals 1.8 × 10−5 kilograms per meter-second and is also a

control variable. In addition, the drag coefficient of an object is determined by its shape. Since

the balloon's shape is similar to a sphere, the experiment uses 0.47, the drag coefficient of a

spherical object, as its coefficient.

The investigational location maintains a relatively closed surrounding to minimize effects

by the fluid flow on the balloon's track, ensuring it falls vertically instead of floating around. The

balloon descends as close as possible to a wall to make its trajectory perpendicular to the ground

as possible without contacting the wall. During the experimental process, one member records

videos of the balloon falling. One person drops the balloon at an initial velocity of zero. Another

person holds a one-meter measurement tool for calibration in Tracker. Each time, the balloon is

dropped at an initial speed at the exact heights and obtains its terminal velocity by Tracker. The

experiment discovers terminal velocities by analyzing slopes of the graph of vertical component

VS change in time in the Tracker instead of the map of vertical speed VS change in time due to

possible positioning mistakes. During the analyzing phase, the experiment is required to autofits

the function so that the best fit line coincides with the last point in the graph maximally. The

terminal velocity of the falling equals the slope of the best fit line that coincides with the last

point on the vertical component VS change graph change in time. Terminal velocity is closest to
the best-fit line slope coinciding with the last end in the graph because when terminal velocity is

reached, the net force is zero, meaning that the object must maintain a constant speed. The

vertical component function equals velocity times, where the slope is average velocity, and time

is the input of this function. Therefore, the best-fit line slope coincides with the last point in the

graph best estimated terminal velocity of the falling balloon.

1
After collecting statistics, the investigation and produces a graph of 𝑣𝑡 versus to
𝑅

identify the most adequate equation describing the motion of a free-falling balloon. In the graph
1 1
of 𝑅 VS 𝑣𝑡 , values of is plotted on the horizontal axis as an input of the terminal function, and
𝑅

terminal velocity 𝑣𝑡 is plotted on the vertical axis as an output. The experiment selects the most

2𝑚𝑔 𝑚𝑔
sufficient formula by comparing the value of the gradient to the value of √ρ𝐶 and 6𝜋µ after
𝑑𝜋

calculating the gradient of the terminal velocity function. Whichever value the gradient is closer

to, the equation with the closer will be the correct equation.

Define Variables

• Independent Variables: Radius of the balloon

• Dependent Variables: Terminal velocity of the falling balloon

• Controlled Variables: Mass of the falling object, air density, and coefficient of drag force

Raw Data

The drag coefficient of a sphere equals 0.47, air density equals to 1.225 kilogram per

cubic meter, the mass of the balloon is 9.86 gram, and viscosity of air equals to 1.829 × 10−5

2𝑚𝑔 𝑚𝑔
kilogram/meter-second. By substituting theses values, √ is equals to 0.327 and is equal
ρ𝐶𝑑 𝜋 6𝜋µ

to 275.494.

The following table shows the raw data of the experiment.

 Perimeter (cm) Perimeter (m) Radius (m)

39.100 0.391 0.062

45.800 0.458 0.073

53.100 0.531 0.085

64.000 0.640 0.102

71.100 0.711 0.113

81.200 0.812 0.129

93.800 0.938 0.149

The lab uses the meter as the standard unit, and all data keeps three decimal places since

the perimeter of the balloon in the meter unit contains three decimal places. The three decimal

places also assure the accuracy of the result because the calculation of radius can potentially

have a rounding and affects the experiment's accuracy.

To reduce the amount of impact caused random errors such as measurement of perimeter,

the lab does multiple trails of experiment and alter the perimeter of the balloon from a wide

range of 0.391m to a range of 0.938m. The extensive range of data and repetitious process of the

experiment can decrease errors and maximally assures the accuracy of the experimental result.

Processing Data

The following table shows the process data of the experiment.

1 Terminal Velocity 𝑣𝑡 (m/s)

𝑅

16.070 4.302

13.719 4.441
 11.833 3.470

9.817 2.954

8.837 2.246

7.738 1.665

6.698 1.621

After finishing collect statistics, the investigation finds terminal velocities by analyzing

slopes of the graph vertical component VS change in time in the Tracker. The experiment

analyzes the graph of vertical component VS change in time instead of vertical speed VS time to

avoid possible positioning errors by Tracker due to the balloon's slight mass.

Graph

Terminal Velocity Versus 1/R

y = 0.3338x - 0.6055
5 R² = 0.9235

4.5
Terninal Velocity (m/s)

3.5

2.5

1.5
6.500 7.500 8.500 9.500 10.500 11.500 12.500 13.500 14.500 15.500 16.500 17.500

One over Radius, 1/R

 The above graph reveals the relationship between 1/R and terminal velocity. As can be

seen, the value of terminal velocity increases as 1/R becomes larger, allowing the function to

maintain a positive gradient of 0.3338.

The investigation justifies which equations best describes the motion of a falling balloon

2𝑚𝑔 𝑚𝑔 2𝑚𝑔
by comparing the value of the gradient with the value of √ρ𝐶 , and 6𝜋µ. The value of√ρ𝐶 is
𝑑𝜋 𝑑𝜋

𝑚𝑔
equals to 0.327, and the value of 6𝜋µ is equal to 275.494. Compare these two values with 0.3338,

2𝑚𝑔
clearly, √ contains a closer value to the gradient of the graphed function. Therefore, the
ρ𝐶𝑑 𝜋

1
equation 𝐹𝑑 = ρ𝑣𝑡 2 𝐶𝑑 A best describes the motion of a falling balloon’s motion.
2

Data in the graph are not in perfectly straight line and the equation of the graphed

terminal velocity function maintains a y-intercept of negative 0.6055, while the theoretical graph

contains a y-intercept of zero since balloon is released at an initial velocity of zero. These

differences can be accounted for errors such as measuring of perimeter and calculation of radius.

Conclusion
1
In conclusion, equation 𝐹𝑑 = ρ𝑣𝑡 2 𝐶𝑑 A is the most sufficient equation describing
2

motions of a falling balloon under the influence of air resistance because gradient of the graphed

2𝑚𝑔
terminal velocity function is closer to the value of √ρ𝐶 . Though differences existed in the
𝑑𝜋

2𝑚𝑔
experimental graph of 1/R versus terminal velocity and the theoretical value of √ρ𝐶 𝜋, these
𝑑

differences, however, can be accounted for by experimental error.

 Bibliography

Engineering ToolBox, (2004). Drag Coefficient. [online] Available at:

https://www.engineeringtoolbox.com/drag-coefficient-d_627.html [Accessed Day Mo. Year].