{"status":"ok","message-type":"work","message-version":"1.0.0","message":{"indexed":{"date-parts":[[2026,5,20]],"date-time":"2026-05-20T00:49:13Z","timestamp":1779238153839,"version":"3.51.4"},"reference-count":35,"publisher":"MDPI AG","issue":"12","license":[{"start":{"date-parts":[[2025,12,18]],"date-time":"2025-12-18T00:00:00Z","timestamp":1766016000000},"content-version":"vor","delay-in-days":0,"URL":"https:\/\/creativecommons.org\/licenses\/by\/4.0\/"}],"funder":[{"DOI":"10.13039\/501100000038","name":"Natural Sciences and Engineering Research Council of Canada","doi-asserted-by":"crossref","id":[{"id":"10.13039\/501100000038","id-type":"DOI","asserted-by":"crossref"}]}],"content-domain":{"domain":[],"crossmark-restriction":false},"short-container-title":["Biomimetics"],"abstract":"<jats:p>Fish display remarkable swimming capabilities through the coordinated interaction of the body and caudal fin, yet the potential role of a passively pitching tail in enhancing hydrodynamic performance remains unresolved. In this work, we evaluate the performance of a carangiform swimmer equipped with either an actively pitching tail or a passively pitching tail. High-fidelity fluid\u2013structure interaction simulations are employed to assess how variations in joint stiffness, damping, and inertia influence thrust generation, power demand, and overall stability at two representative Reynolds numbers, 500 and 5000. The results reveal that actively pitching tails tend to generate greater thrust, while passively pitching tails deliver improved outcomes in terms of power demand at the lower Reynolds number. Larger pitching amplitudes contribute positively only when associated with higher swimming frequency; when produced by reduced inertia or more flexible joints, they lead to unfavorable effects. At the higher Reynolds number, active tails consistently outperform passive ones, although a small subset of passive cases still achieve favorable performance. Across all cases, a recurring balance emerges, with thrust production and power expenditure varying inversely. These findings clarify the hydrodynamic consequences of passive versus active tail motion and establish design principles for bio-inspired underwater vehicles, in which smaller swimmers may benefit from passive tail pitching, whereas larger swimmers are better served by active control.<\/jats:p>","DOI":"10.3390\/biomimetics10120847","type":"journal-article","created":{"date-parts":[[2025,12,18]],"date-time":"2025-12-18T11:08:28Z","timestamp":1766056108000},"page":"847","update-policy":"https:\/\/doi.org\/10.3390\/mdpi_crossmark_policy","source":"Crossref","is-referenced-by-count":2,"title":["Comparative Investigations on Hydrodynamic Performance of Active and Passive Tails of Undulating Swimmers"],"prefix":"10.3390","volume":"10","author":[{"ORCID":"https:\/\/orcid.org\/0009-0008-7501-2694","authenticated-orcid":false,"given":"Dev Pradeepkumar","family":"Nayak","sequence":"first","affiliation":[{"name":"Nature-Inspired Engineering Research Lab (NIERL), Department of Mechanical and Mechatronics Engineering, Lakehead University, 955 Oliver Road, Thunder Bay, ON P7B 5E1, Canada"},{"name":"Department of Mechanical and Mechatronics Engineering, Lakehead University, 955 Oliver Road, Thunder Bay, ON P7B 5E1, Canada"}],"role":[{"role":"author","vocabulary":"crossref"}]},{"ORCID":"https:\/\/orcid.org\/0000-0003-0028-0631","authenticated-orcid":false,"given":"Ali","family":"Tarokh","sequence":"additional","affiliation":[{"name":"Department of Mechanical and Mechatronics Engineering, Lakehead University, 955 Oliver Road, Thunder Bay, ON P7B 5E1, Canada"}],"role":[{"role":"author","vocabulary":"crossref"}]},{"ORCID":"https:\/\/orcid.org\/0000-0001-6595-6466","authenticated-orcid":false,"given":"Muhammad Saif Ullah","family":"Khalid","sequence":"additional","affiliation":[{"name":"Nature-Inspired Engineering Research Lab (NIERL), Department of Mechanical and Mechatronics Engineering, Lakehead University, 955 Oliver Road, Thunder Bay, ON P7B 5E1, Canada"}],"role":[{"role":"author","vocabulary":"crossref"}]}],"member":"1968","published-online":{"date-parts":[[2025,12,18]]},"reference":[{"key":"ref_1","doi-asserted-by":"crossref","first-page":"e81392","DOI":"10.7554\/eLife.81392","article-title":"In-line swimming dynamics revealed by fish interacting with a robotic mechanism","volume":"12","author":"Thandiackal","year":"2023","journal-title":"eLife"},{"key":"ref_2","doi-asserted-by":"crossref","first-page":"56","DOI":"10.1242\/jeb.062711","article-title":"A robotic fish caudal fin: Effects of stiffness and motor program on locomotor performance","volume":"215","author":"Esposito","year":"2012","journal-title":"J. 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