EngiRef / Fluids Engineering Formula

Drag Force

Drag Force: Aerodynamic or hydrodynamic drag force. A Fluid Dynamics formula in fluids engineering. Variables Fᴅ, ρ, v, Cᴅ and A, each with SI and imperial…

Fluid Dynamics

Specification

Name
Drag Force
Discipline
fluids
Category
Fluid Dynamics
LaTeX
F_D = \frac{1}{2} \rho v^2 C_D A
Description
Aerodynamic or hydrodynamic drag force
Can solve for
Fᴅ, ρ, v, Cᴅ, A
Tags
drag, force, aerodynamic, hydrodynamic

Variables

Variables for Drag Force
SymbolNameUnitSi UnitImperial Unit
FᴅDrag ForceNNlbf
ρFluid Densitykg/m³kg/m³ -
vVelocitym/sm/sft/s
CᴅDrag Coefficient - - -
AFrontal Areaft²

Common questions

What is the Drag Force formula?
Aerodynamic or hydrodynamic drag force. It sits under Fluid Dynamics, Fluids engineering in the EngiRef reference.
What do the symbols in the Drag Force formula mean?
In Drag Force, Fᴅ is drag force in N; ρ is fluid density in kg/m³; v is velocity in m/s; Cᴅ is drag coefficient; A is frontal area in m².