Topological structures of vortex flow on a flying wing aircraft, controlled by a nanosecond pulse discharge plasma actuator

Science.gov (United States)

Du, Hai; Shi, Zhiwei; Cheng, Keming; Wei, Dechen; Li, Zheng; Zhou, Danjie; He, Haibo; Yao, Junkai; He, Chengjun

2016-06-01

Vortex control is a thriving research area, particularly in relation to flying wing or delta wing aircraft. This paper presents the topological structures of vortex flow on a flying wing aircraft controlled by a nanosecond plasma dielectric barrier discharge actuator. Experiments, including oil flow visualization and two-dimensional particle image velocimetry (PIV), were conducted in a wind tunnel with a Reynolds number of 0.5 × 106. Both oil and PIV results show that the vortex can be controlled. Oil topological structures on the aircraft surface coincide with spatial PIV flow structures. Both indicate vortex convergence and enhancement when the plasma discharge is switched on, leading to a reduced region of separated flow.

Flow around a corrugated wing over the range of dragonfly flight

Science.gov (United States)

Padinjattayil, Sooraj; Agrawal, Amit

2017-11-01

The dragonfly flight is very much affected by the corrugations on their wings. A PIV based study is conducted on a rigid corrugated wing for a range of Reynolds number 300-12000 and three different angles of attack (5°-15°) to understand the mechanism of dragonfly flight better. The study revealed that the shape of the corrugation plays a key role in generating vortices. The vortices trapped in the valleys of corrugation dictates the shape of a virtual airfoil around the corrugated wing. A fluid roller bearing effect is created over the virtual airfoil when the trapped vortices merge with each other. A travelling wave produced by the moving virtual boundary around the fluid roller bearings avoids the formation of boundary layer on the virtual surface, thereby leading to high aerodynamic performance. It is found that the lift coefficient increases as the number of vortices increases on the suction surface. Also, it is shown that the partially merged co- rotating vortices give higher lift as compared to fully merged vortices. Further, the virtual airfoil formed around the corrugated wing is compared with a superhydrophobic airfoil which exhibits slip on its surface; several similarities in their flow characteristics are observed. The corrugated airfoil performs superior to the superhydrophobic airfoil in the aerodynamic efficiency due to the virtual slip caused by the travelling wave.

Reactive Flow Control of Delta Wing Vortex (Postprint)

Science.gov (United States)

2006-08-01

wing aircraft. A substantial amount of research has been dedicated to the control of aerodynamic flows using both passive and active control mechanisms...Passive vortex control devices such as vortex generators and winglets attach to the wing and require no energy input. Passive vortex control...leading edges is also effective for changing the aerodynamic characteristics of delta wings [2] [3]. Gutmark and Guillot [5] proposed controlling

Unsteady surface pressure measurements on a slender delta wing undergoing limit cycle wing rock

Science.gov (United States)

Arena, Andrew S., Jr.; Nelson, Robert C.

1991-01-01

An experimental investigation of slender wing limit cycle motion known as wing rock was investigated using two unique experimental systems. Dynamic roll moment measurements and visualization data on the leading edge vortices were obtained using a free to roll apparatus that incorporates an airbearing spindle. In addition, both static and unsteady surface pressure data was measured on the top and bottom surfaces of the model. To obtain the unsteady surface pressure data a new computer controller drive system was developed to accurately reproduce the free to roll time history motions. The data from these experiments include, roll angle time histories, vortex trajectory data on the position of the vortices relative to the model's surface, and surface pressure measurements as a function of roll angle when the model is stationary or undergoing a wing rock motion. The roll time history data was numerically differentiated to determine the dynamic roll moment coefficient. An analysis of these data revealed that the primary mechanism for the limit cycle behavior was a time lag in the position of the vortices normal to the wing surface.

Flow structure and vorticity transport on a plunging wing

Science.gov (United States)

Eslam Panah, Azar

due to spanwise flow was approximately half that of the shear layer flux because of the significantly greater three-dimensionality in the flow. Increased tilting at the 25% and 75% spanwise locations suggests increasing three-dimensionality at those locations compared to the symmetry plane of the arch (50% spanwise location). The deviation between the LEV circulation and integrated convective vorticity fluxes at the 50% spanwise location suggests that entrainment of secondary vorticity plays a similar role in regulating LEV circulation as in the 2D case. While the wing surface flux of vorticity could not be measured in that case, the significant difference between LEV circulation and the known integrated fluxes is comparable to that for the 2D plate, suggesting that a significant boundary flux of secondary vorticity may exist.

Unsteady transonic flow analysis for low aspect ratio, pointed wings.

Science.gov (United States)

Kimble, K. R.; Ruo, S. Y.; Wu, J. M.; Liu, D. Y.

1973-01-01

Oswatitsch and Keune's parabolic method for steady transonic flow is applied and extended to thin slender wings oscillating in the sonic flow field. The parabolic constant for the wing was determined from the equivalent body of revolution. Laplace transform methods were used to derive the asymptotic equations for pressure coefficient, and the Adams-Sears iterative procedure was employed to solve the equations. A computer program was developed to find the pressure distributions, generalized force coefficients, and stability derivatives for delta, convex, and concave wing planforms.

Three-dimensional flow about penguin wings

Science.gov (United States)

Noca, Flavio; Sudki, Bassem; Lauria, Michel

2012-11-01

Penguins, contrary to airborne birds, do not need to compensate for gravity. Yet, the kinematics of their wings is highly three-dimensional and seems exceedingly complex for plain swimming. Is such kinematics the result of an evolutionary optimization or is it just a forced adaptation of an airborne flying apparatus to underwater swimming? Some answers will be provided based on flow dynamics around robotic penguin wings. Updates will also be presented on the development of a novel robotic arm intended to simulate penguin swimming and enable novel propulsion devices.

Fluid drag reduction and efficient self-cleaning with rice leaf and butterfly wing bioinspired surfaces

Science.gov (United States)

Bixler, Gregory D.; Bhushan, Bharat

2013-08-01

Researchers are continually inspired by living nature to solve complex challenges. For example, unique surface characteristics of rice leaves and butterfly wings combine the shark skin (anisotropic flow leading to low drag) and lotus leaf (superhydrophobic and self-cleaning) effects, producing the so-called rice and butterfly wing effect. In this paper, we present an overview of rice leaf and butterfly wing fluid drag and self-cleaning studies. In addition, we examine two other promising aquatic surfaces in nature known for such properties, including fish scales and shark skin. Morphology, drag, self-cleaning, contact angle, and contact angle hysteresis data are presented to understand the role of wettability, viscosity, and velocity. Liquid repellent coatings are utilized to recreate or combine various effects. Discussion is provided along with conceptual models describing the role of surface structures related to low drag, self-cleaning, and antifouling properties. Modeling provides design guidance when developing novel low drag and self-cleaning surfaces for applications in the medical, marine, and industrial fields.

Sensitivity Analysis of Transonic Flow over J-78 Wings

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Alexander Kuzmin

2015-01-01

Full Text Available 3D transonic flow over swept and unswept wings with an J-78 airfoil at spanwise sections is studied numerically at negative and vanishing angles of attack. Solutions of the unsteady Reynolds-averaged Navier-Stokes equations are obtained with a finite-volume solver on unstructured meshes. The numerical simulation shows that adverse Mach numbers, at which the lift coefficient is highly sensitive to small perturbations, are larger than those obtained earlier for 2D flow. Due to the larger Mach numbers, there is an onset of self-exciting oscillations of shock waves on the wings. The swept wing exhibits a higher sensitivity to variations of the Mach number than the unswept one.

Unsteady Aerodynamics of Flapping Wing of a Bird

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

M. Agoes Moelyadi

2013-04-01

Full Text Available The unsteady flow behavior and time-dependent aerodynamic characteristics of the flapping motion of a bird’s wing were investigated using a computational method. During flapping, aerodynamic interactions between bird wing surfaces and surrounding flow may occur, generating local time-dependent flow changes in the flow field and aerodynamic load of birds. To study the effect of flapping speed on unsteady aerodynamic load, two kinds of computational simulations were carried out, namely a quasi-steady and an unsteady simulation. To mimic the movement of the down-stroke and the upstroke of a bird, the flapping path accorded to a sinus function, with the wing attitude changing in dihedral angle and time. The computations of time-dependent viscous flow were based on the solution of the Reynolds Averaged Navier-Stokes equations by applying the k-e turbulence model. In addition, the discretization for the computational domain around the model used multi-block structured grid to provide more accuracy in capturing viscous flow, especially in the vicinity of the wing and body surfaces, to obtain a proper wing-body geometry model. For this research, the seagull bird was chosen, which has high aspect ratio wings with pointed wing-tips and a high camber wing section. The results include mesh movement, velocity contours as well as aerodynamic coefficients of the flapping motion of the bird at various flapping frequencies.

Electro-Magnetic Flow Control to Enable Natural Laminar Flow Wings

Data.gov (United States)

National Aeronautics and Space Administration — This research team has developed a solid-state electromagnetic device that, when embedded along the leading edge of an aircraft wing, can disrupt laminar air flow on...

Control of Flow Structure on Non-Slender Delta Wing: Bio-inspired Edge Modifications, Passive Bleeding, and Pulsed Blowing

Science.gov (United States)

Yavuz, Mehmet Metin; Celik, Alper; Cetin, Cenk

2016-11-01

In the present study, different flow control approaches including bio-inspired edge modifications, passive bleeding, and pulsed blowing are introduced and applied for the flow over non-slender delta wing. Experiments are conducted in a low speed wind tunnel for a 45 degree swept delta wing using qualitative and quantitative measurement techniques including laser illuminated smoke visualization, particle image velocimety (PIV), and surface pressure measurements. For the bio-inspired edge modifications, the edges of the wing are modified to dolphin fluke geometry. In addition, the concept of flexion ratio, a ratio depending on the flexible length of animal propulsors such as wings, is introduced. For passive bleeding, directing the free stream air from the pressure side of the planform to the suction side of the wing is applied. For pulsed blowing, periodic air injection through the leading edge of the wing is performed in a square waveform with 25% duty cycle at different excitation frequencies and compared with the steady and no blowing cases. The results indicate that each control approach is quite effective in terms of altering the overall flow structure on the planform. However, the success level, considering the elimination of stall or delaying the vortex breakdown, depends on the parameters in each method.

Vortical flows over delta wings and numerical prediction of vortex breakdown

Science.gov (United States)

Ekaterinaris, J. A.; Schiff, Lewis B.

1990-01-01

Navier-Stokes solutions of subsonic vortical flow over a 75 deg sweep delta wing with a sharp leading edge are presented. The sensitivity of the solution to the numerical scheme is examined using both a partially upwind scheme and a scheme with central differencing in all directions. At moderate angles of attack, no vortex breakdown is observed, whereas the higher angle-of-attack cases exhibit breakdown. The effect of numerical grid density is investigated, and solutions that are obtained with various grid densities are compared with experimental data. An embedded grid approach is implemented to enable higher resolution in selected isolated flow regions, such as the leeward-side surface, the leading-edge vortical flow, and the vortex breakdown region.

Effect of delta wing on the particle flow in a novel gas supersonic separator

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Wen, Chuang; Yang, Yan; Walther, Jens Honore

2016-01-01

The present work presents numerical simulations of the complex particle motion in a supersonic separator with a delta wing located in the supersonic flow. The effect of the delta wing on the strong swirling flow is analysed using the Discrete Particle Method. The results show that the delta wings...

Flow Structure and Surface Topology on a UCAV Planform

Science.gov (United States)

Elkhoury, Michel; Yavuz, Metin; Rockwell, Donald

2003-11-01

Flow past a X-45 UCAV planform involves the complex generation and interaction of vortices, their breakdown and occurrence of surface separation and stall. A cinema technique of high-image-density particle image velocimetry, in conjunction with dye visualization, allows characterization of the time-averaged and instantaneous states of the flow, in terms of critical points of the near-surface streamlines. These features are related to patterns of surface normal vorticity and velocity fluctuation. Spectral analysis of the naturally occurring unsteadiness of the flow allows definition of the most effective frequencies for small-amplitude perturbation of the wing, which leads to substantial alterations of the aforementioned patterns of flow structure and topology adjacent to the surface.

Effects of wing locations on wing rock induced by forebody vortices

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Ma Baofeng

2016-10-01

Full Text Available Previous studies have shown that asymmetric vortex wakes over slender bodies exhibit a multi-vortex structure with an alternate arrangement along a body axis at high angle of attack. In this investigation, the effects of wing locations along a body axis on wing rock induced by forebody vortices was studied experimentally at a subcritical Reynolds number based on a body diameter. An artificial perturbation was added onto the nose tip to fix the orientations of forebody vortices. Particle image velocimetry was used to identify flow patterns of forebody vortices in static situations, and time histories of wing rock were obtained using a free-to-roll rig. The results show that the wing locations can affect significantly the motion patterns of wing rock owing to the variation of multi-vortex patterns of forebody vortices. As the wing locations make the forebody vortices a two-vortex pattern, the wing body exhibits regularly divergence and fixed-point motion with azimuthal variations of the tip perturbation. If a three-vortex pattern exists over the wing, however, the wing-rock patterns depend on the impact of the highest vortex and newborn vortex. As the three vortices together influence the wing flow, wing-rock patterns exhibit regularly fixed-points and limit-cycled oscillations. With the wing moving backwards, the newborn vortex becomes stronger, and wing-rock patterns become fixed-points, chaotic oscillations, and limit-cycled oscillations. With further backward movement of wings, the vortices are far away from the upper surface of wings, and the motions exhibit divergence, limit-cycled oscillations and fixed-points. For the rearmost location of the wing, the wing body exhibits stochastic oscillations and fixed-points.

Development of an aerodyanmic theory capable of predicting surface loads on slender wings with vortex flow

Science.gov (United States)

Gloss, B. B.; Johnson, F. T.

1976-01-01

The Boeing Commercial Airplane Company developed an inviscid three-dimensional lifting surface method that shows promise in being able to accurately predict loads, subsonic and supersonic, on wings with leading-edge separation and reattachment.

Flow structures around a flapping wing considering ground effect

Science.gov (United States)

Van Truong, Tien; Kim, Jihoon; Kim, Min Jun; Park, Hoon Cheol; Yoon, Kwang Joon; Byun, Doyoung

2013-07-01

Over the past several decades, there has been great interest in understanding the aerodynamics of flapping flight, namely the two flight modes of hovering and forward flight. However, there has been little focus on the aerodynamic characteristics during takeoff of insects. In a previous study we found that the Rhinoceros Beetle ( Trypoxylusdichotomus) takes off without jumping, which is uncommon for other insects. In this study we built a scaled-up electromechanical model of a flapping wing and investigated fluid flow around the beetle's wing model. In particular, the present dynamically scaled mechanical model has the wing kinematics pattern achieved from the real beetle's wing kinematics during takeoff. In addition, we could systematically change the three-dimensional inclined motion of the flapping model through each stroke. We used digital particle image velocimetry with high spatial resolution, and were able to qualitatively and quantitatively study the flow field around the wing at a Reynolds number of approximately 10,000. The present results provide insight into the aerodynamics and the evolution of vortical structures, as well as the ground effect experienced by a beetle's wing during takeoff. The main unsteady mechanisms of beetles have been identified and intensively analyzed as the stability of the leading edge vortex (LEV) during strokes, the delayed stall during upstroke, the rotational circulation in pronation periods, and wake capture in supination periods. Due to the ground effect, the LEV was enhanced during half downstroke, and the lift force could thus be increased to lift the beetle during takeoff. This is useful for researchers in developing a micro air vehicle that has a beetle-like flapping wing motion.

Recent developments in rotary-wing aerodynamic theory

Science.gov (United States)

Johnson, W.

1986-01-01

Current progress in the computational analysis of rotary-wing flowfields is surveyed, and some typical results are presented in graphs. Topics examined include potential theory, rotating coordinate systems, lifting-surface theory (moving singularity, fixed wing, and rotary wing), panel methods (surface singularity representations, integral equations, and compressible flows), transonic theory (the small-disturbance equation), wake analysis (hovering rotor-wake models and transonic blade-vortex interaction), limitations on computational aerodynamics, and viscous-flow methods (dynamic-stall theories and lifting-line theory). It is suggested that the present algorithms and advanced computers make it possible to begin working toward the ultimate goal of turbulent Navier-Stokes calculations for an entire rotorcraft.

Flow Measurements of a Plunging Wing in Unsteady Environment

Science.gov (United States)

Wengel, Jesse; Nathan, Rungun; Cheng, Bo; Eslam-Panah, Azar

2017-11-01

Despite the great progress in their design and control, Unmanned Aerial Vehicles (UAVs) are tremendously troubled while flying in turbulent environments, which are common in the lower atmospheric boundary layer (ABL). A nominally 2D plunging wing was developed and tested in the presence of unsteady wake to investigate the effect of the flow disturbances on vorticity fields. The experiments were conducted in a water channel facility with test section width of 0.76 m, and a water depth of 0.6 m. The unsteady wake in the form of von Kármán Vortex Street was generated by a cylinder located upstream of the plunging wing. The plunge amplitude and frequency of the oscillation were adjusted to bracket the range of Strouhal numbers relevant to the biological locomotion (0.25PIV) was employed to quantitatively study the effect of unsteady wake on the flow measurements of the plunging wing.

Characterization of the Effect of Wing Surface Instrumentation on UAV Airfoil Performance

Science.gov (United States)

Ratnayake, Nalin A.

2009-01-01

Recently proposed flight research at NASA Dryden Flight Research Center (DFRC) has prompted study into the aerodynamic effects of modifications made to the surfaces of laminar airfoils. The research is focused on the high-aspect ratio, laminar-flow type wings commonly found on UAVs and other aircraft with a high endurance requirement. A broad range of instrumentation possibilities, such as structural, pressure, and temperature sensing devices may require the alteration of the airfoil outer mold line as part of the installation process. This study attempts to characterize the effect of installing this additiona1 instrumentation on key airfoil performance factors, such as transition location, lift and drag curves, and stall point. In particular, the general case of an airfoil that is channeled in the spanwise direction is considered, and the impact on key performance characteristics is assessed. Particular attention is focused on exploring the limits of channel depth and low-Reynolds number on performance and stall characteristics. To quantify the effect of increased skin friction due to premature transition caused by protruding or recessed instrumentation, two simplified, conservative scenarios are used to consider two potential sources of diaturbance: A) that leading edge alterations would cause linearly expanding areas (triangles) of turbulent flow on both surfaces of the wing upstream of the natural transition point, and B) that a channel or bump on the upper surface would trip turbulent flow across the whole upper surface upstream of the natural transition point. A potentially more important consideration than the skin friction drag increment is the change in overall airfoil performance due to the installation of instrumentation along most of the wingspan. To quantify this effect, 2D CFD simulations of the flow over a representative mid-span airfoil section were conducted in order to assess the change in lift and drag curves for the airfoil in the presence of

Analysis of Low Speed Stall Aerodynamics of a Swept Wing with Laminar Flow Glove

Science.gov (United States)

Bui, Trong T.

2014-01-01

Reynolds-Averaged Navier-Stokes (RANS) computational fluid dynamics (CFD) analysis was conducted to study the low-speed stall aerodynamics of a GIII aircraft's swept wing modified with a laminar-flow wing glove. The stall aerodynamics of the gloved wing were analyzed and compared with the unmodified wing for the flight speed of 120 knots and altitude of 2300 ft above mean sea level (MSL). The Star-CCM+ polyhedral unstructured CFD code was first validated for wing stall predictions using the wing-body geometry from the First American Institute of Aeronautics and Astronautics (AIAA) CFD High-Lift Prediction Workshop. It was found that the Star-CCM+ CFD code can produce results that are within the scattering of other CFD codes considered at the workshop. In particular, the Star-CCM+ CFD code was able to predict wing stall for the AIAA wing-body geometry to within 1 degree of angle of attack as compared to benchmark wind-tunnel test data. Current results show that the addition of the laminar-flow wing glove causes the gloved wing to stall much earlier than the unmodified wing. Furthermore, the gloved wing has a different stall characteristic than the clean wing, with no sharp lift drop-off at stall for the gloved wing.

Analysis of Low-Speed Stall Aerodynamics of a Swept Wing with Laminar-Flow Glove

Science.gov (United States)

Bui, Trong T.

2014-01-01

Reynolds-Averaged Navier-Stokes (RANS) computational fluid dynamics (CFD) analysis was conducted to study the low-speed stall aerodynamics of a GIII aircraft's swept wing modified with a laminar-flow wing glove. The stall aerodynamics of the gloved wing were analyzed and compared with the unmodified wing for the flight speed of 120 knots and altitude of 2300 ft above mean sea level (MSL). The Star-CCM+ polyhedral unstructured CFD code was first validated for wing stall predictions using the wing-body geometry from the First American Institute of Aeronautics and Astronautics (AIAA) CFD High-Lift Prediction Workshop. It was found that the Star-CCM+ CFD code can produce results that are within the scattering of other CFD codes considered at the workshop. In particular, the Star-CCM+ CFD code was able to predict wing stall for the AIAA wing-body geometry to within 1 degree of angle of attack as compared to benchmark wind-tunnel test data. Current results show that the addition of the laminar-flow wing glove causes the gloved wing to stall much earlier than the unmodified wing. Furthermore, the gloved wing has a different stall characteristic than the clean wing, with no sharp lift drop-off at stall for the gloved wing.

Investigation of Surface Enhanced Coherent Raman Scattering on Nano-patterned Insect Wings

Science.gov (United States)

Ujj, Laszlo; Lawhead, Carlos

2015-03-01

Many insect wings (cicadas, butterflies, mosquitos) poses nano-patterned surface structure. Characterization of surface morphology and chemical composition of insect wings is important to understand the extreme mechanical properties and the biophysical functionalities of the wings. We have measured the image of the membrane of a cicada's wing with the help of Scanning Electron Microscopy (SEM). The results confirm the existing periodic structure of the wing measured previously. In order to identify the chemical composition of the wing, we have deposited silver nanoparticles on it and applied Coherent anti-Stokes Raman Spectroscopy to measure the vibrational spectra of the molecules comprising the wing for the first time. The measured spectra are consistent with the original assumption that the wing membrane is composed of protein, wax, and chitin. The results of these studies can be used to measure other nano-patterned surfaces and to make artificial materials in the future. Authors grateful for financial support from the Department of Physics of the College of Sciences Engineering and Health of UWF and the Pall Corporation for SEM imaging.

Cellular Structures in the Flow Over the Flap of a Two-Element Wing

Science.gov (United States)

Yon, Steven A.; Katz, Joseph

1997-01-01

Flow visualization information and time dependent pressure coefficients were recorded for the flow over a two-element wing. The investigation focused on the stall onset; particularly at a condition where the flow is attached on the main element but separated on the flap. At this condition, spanwise separation cells were visible in the flow over the flap, and time dependent pressure data was measured along the centerline of the separation cell. The flow visualizations indicated that the spanwise occurrence of the separation cells depends on the flap (and not wing) aspect ratio.

Navier-Stokes Computations of a Wing-Flap Model With Blowing Normal to the Flap Surface

Science.gov (United States)

Boyd, D. Douglas, Jr.

2005-01-01

A computational study of a generic wing with a half span flap shows the mean flow effects of several blown flap configurations. The effort compares and contrasts the thin-layer, Reynolds averaged, Navier-Stokes solutions of a baseline wing-flap configuration with configurations that have blowing normal to the flap surface through small slits near the flap side edge. Vorticity contours reveal a dual vortex structure at the flap side edge for all cases. The dual vortex merges into a single vortex at approximately the mid-flap chord location. Upper surface blowing reduces the strength of the merged vortex and moves the vortex away from the upper edge. Lower surface blowing thickens the lower shear layer and weakens the merged vortex, but not as much as upper surface blowing. Side surface blowing forces the lower surface vortex farther outboard of the flap edge by effectively increasing the aerodynamic span of the flap. It is seen that there is no global aerodynamic penalty or benefit from the particular blowing configurations examined.

Divergence and gene flow in the globally distributed blue-winged ducks

Science.gov (United States)

Nelson, Joel; Wilson, Robert E.; McCracken, Kevin G.; Cumming, Graeme; Joseph, Leo; Guay, Patrick-Jean; Peters, Jeffrey

2017-01-01

The ability to disperse over long distances can result in a high propensity for colonizing new geographic regions, including uninhabited continents, and lead to lineage diversification via allopatric speciation. However, high vagility can also result in gene flow between otherwise allopatric populations, and in some cases, parapatric or divergence-with-gene-flow models might be more applicable to widely distributed lineages. Here, we use five nuclear introns and the mitochondrial control region along with Bayesian models of isolation with migration to examine divergence, gene flow, and phylogenetic relationships within a cosmopolitan lineage comprising six species, the blue-winged ducks (genus Anas), which inhabit all continents except Antarctica. We found two primary sub-lineages, the globally-distributed shoveler group and the New World blue-winged/cinnamon teal group. The blue-winged/cinnamon sub-lineage is composed of sister taxa from North America and South America, and taxa with parapatric distributions are characterized by low to moderate levels of gene flow. In contrast, our data support strict allopatry for most comparisons within the shovelers. However, we found evidence of gene flow from the migratory, Holarctic northern shoveler (A. clypeata) and the more sedentary, African Cape shoveler (A. smithii) into the Australasian shoveler (A. rhynchotis), although we could not reject strict allopatry. Given the diverse mechanisms of speciation within this complex, the shovelers and blue-winged/cinnamon teals can serve as an effective model system for examining how the genome diverges under different evolutionary processes and how genetic variation is partitioned among highly dispersive taxa.

Blowing jets as a circulation flow control to enhancement the lift of wing or generated power of wind turbine

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Alexandru DUMITRACHE

2014-06-01

Full Text Available The goal of this paper is to provide a numerical flow analysis based on RANS equations in two directions: the study of augmented high-lift system for a cross-section airfoil of a wing up to transonic regime and the circulation control implemented by tangentially blowing jet over a highly curved surface due to Coanda effect on a rotor blade for a wind turbine. This study were analyzed the performance, sensitivities and limitations of the circulation control method based on blowing jet for a fixed wing as well as for a rotating wing. Directions of future research are identified and discussed.

Blockage and flow studies of a generalized test apparatus including various wing configurations in the Langley 7-inch Mach 7 Pilot Tunnel

Science.gov (United States)

Albertson, C. W.

1982-03-01

A 1/12th scale model of the Curved Surface Test Apparatus (CSTA), which will be used to study aerothermal loads and evaluate Thermal Protection Systems (TPS) on a fuselage-type configuration in the Langley 8-Foot High Temperature Structures Tunnel (8 ft HTST), was tested in the Langley 7-Inch Mach 7 Pilot Tunnel. The purpose of the tests was to study the overall flow characteristics and define an envelope for testing the CSTA in the 8 ft HTST. Wings were tested on the scaled CSTA model to select a wing configuration with the most favorable characteristics for conducting TPS evaluations for curved and intersecting surfaces. The results indicate that the CSTA and selected wing configuration can be tested at angles of attack up to 15.5 and 10.5 degrees, respectively. The base pressure for both models was at the expected low level for most test conditions. Results generally indicate that the CSTA and wing configuration will provide a useful test bed for aerothermal pads and thermal structural concept evaluation over a broad range of flow conditions in the 8 ft HTST.

Aerodynamic Interaction between Delta Wing and Hemisphere-Cylinder in Supersonic Flow

Science.gov (United States)

Nishino, Atsuhiro; Ishikawa, Takahumi; Nakamura, Yoshiaki

As future space vehicles, Reusable Launch Vehicle (RLV) needs to be developed, where there are two kinds of RLV: Single Stage To Orbit (SSTO) and Two Stage To Orbit (TSTO). In the latter case, the shock/shock interaction and shock/boundary layer interaction play a key role. In the present study, we focus on the supersonic flow field with aerodynamic interaction between a delta wing and a hemisphere-cylinder, which imitate a TSTO, where the clearance, h, between the delta wing and hemisphere-cylinder is a key parameter. As a result, complicated flow patterns were made clear, including separation bubbles.

Extension of analytical indicial aerodynamics to generic trapezoidal wings in subsonic flow

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Andrea DA RONCH

2018-04-01

Full Text Available Analytical indicial aerodynamic functions are calculated for several trapezoidal wings in subsonic flow, with a Mach number 0.3 ≤ Ma ≤ 0.7. The formulation herein proposed extends well-known aerodynamic theories, which are limited to thin aerofoils in incompressible flow, to generic trapezoidal wing planforms. Firstly, a thorough study is executed to assess the accuracy and limitation of analytical predictions, using unsteady results from two state-of-the-art computational fluid dynamics solvers as cross-validated benchmarks. Indicial functions are calculated for a step change in the angle of attack and for a sharp-edge gust, each for four wing configurations and three Mach numbers. Then, analytical and computational indicial responses are used to predict dynamic derivatives and the maximum lift coefficient following an encounter with a one-minus-cosine gust. It is found that the analytical results are in excellent agreement with the computational results for all test cases. In particular, the deviation of the analytical results from the computational results is within the scatter or uncertainty in the data arising from using two computational fluid dynamics solvers. This indicates the usefulness of the developed analytical theories. Keywords: Analytical approach, CFD, Compressible flow, Gust response, Indicial aerodynamics, Trapezoidal wing

Development of advanced stability theory suction prediction techniques for laminar flow control. [on swept wings

Science.gov (United States)

Srokowski, A. J.

1978-01-01

The problem of obtaining accurate estimates of suction requirements on swept laminar flow control wings was discussed. A fast accurate computer code developed to predict suction requirements by integrating disturbance amplification rates was described. Assumptions and approximations used in the present computer code are examined in light of flow conditions on the swept wing which may limit their validity.

Adaptive computations of flow around a delta wing with vortex breakdown

Science.gov (United States)

Modiano, David L.; Murman, Earll M.

1993-01-01

An adaptive unstructured mesh solution method for the three-dimensional Euler equations was used to simulate the flow around a sharp edged delta wing. Emphasis was on the breakdown of the leading edge vortex at high angle of attack. Large values of entropy, which indicate vortical regions of the flow, specified the region in which adaptation was performed. The aerodynamic normal force coefficients show excellent agreement with wind tunnel data measured by Jarrah, and demonstrate the importance of adaptation in obtaining an accurate solution. The pitching moment coefficient and the location of vortex breakdown are compared with experimental data measured by Hummel and Srinivasan, showing good agreement in cases in which vortex breakdown is located over the wing.

3-D flow and scour near a submerged wing dike: ADCP measurements on the Missouri River

Science.gov (United States)

Jamieson, E.C.; Rennie, C.D.; Jacobson, R.B.; Townsend, R.D.

2011-01-01

Detailed mapping of bathymetry and three-dimensional water velocities using a boat-mounted single-beam sonar and acoustic Doppler current profiler (ADCP) was carried out in the vicinity of two submerged wing dikes located in the Lower Missouri River near Columbia, Missouri. During high spring flows the wing dikes become submerged, creating a unique combination of vertical flow separation and overtopping (plunging) flow conditions, causing large-scale three-dimensional turbulent flow structures to form. On three different days and for a range of discharges, sampling transects at 5 and 20 m spacing were completed, covering the area adjacent to and upstream and downstream from two different wing dikes. The objectives of this research are to evaluate whether an ADCP can identify and measure large-scale flow features such as recirculating flow and vortex shedding that develop in the vicinity of a submerged wing dike; and whether or not moving-boat (single-transect) data are sufficient for resolving complex three-dimensional flow fields. Results indicate that spatial averaging from multiple nearby single transects may be more representative of an inherently complex (temporally and spatially variable) three-dimensional flow field than repeated single transects. Results also indicate a correspondence between the location of calculated vortex cores (resolved from the interpolated three-dimensional flow field) and the nearby scour holes, providing new insight into the connections between vertically oriented coherent structures and local scour, with the unique perspective of flow and morphology in a large river.

A study of high alpha dynamics and flow visualization for a 2.5-percent model of the F-18 HARV undergoing wing rock

Science.gov (United States)

Quast, Thomas; Nelson, Robert C.; Fisher, David F.

1991-01-01

Free-to-roll experiments and flow visualization studies have been conducted for a 2.5-percent model of the F-18 undergoing unsteady wing rock oscillations. Data have been acquired in the form of roll angle time histories as well as video recordings and 35 mm photography of the forebody and leading edge extension vortices. The time histories were differentiated to produce angular velocity and angular acceleration. From this the roll moment as a function of time and/or roll angle could be estimated. A thorough analysis of the data has revealed a genuine wing-rock phenomenon. Off-surface flow visualization was used to identiify the forebody and LEX vortex core positions and their interaction in both static and dynamic configurations. A direct correlation between the dynamic data and visualized vortex activity during the wing-rock motion has been made.

Effects of external influences in subsonic delta wing vortices

Science.gov (United States)

Washburn, Anthony E.

1992-01-01

An experimental investigation was conducted to examine inconsistencies in reported studies for the vortical flow over highly-swept delta wings. A 76-deg swept delta wing was tested in three facilities with open and closed test sections and different model-support systems. The results obtained include surface oil-flow patterns, off-body laser-light-sheet flow visualization, and aerodynamic load measurements. Parameters such as the wall boundaries and model-support systems can drastically alter the loads. The effect of a high level of free-stream turbulence on the delta-wing flowfield was also examined and found to be significant. The increase in free-stream turbulence caused boundary-layer transition, unsteadiness in the vortex core positions, and altered the loads and moments.

Experimental and numerical analysis of the wing rock characteristics of a 'wing-body-tail' configuration

Science.gov (United States)

Suarez, Carlos J.; Smith, Brooke C.; Malcolm, Gerald N.

1993-01-01

Free-to-roll wind tunnel tests were conducted and a computer simulation exercise was performed in an effort to investigate in detail the mechanism of wing rock on a configuration that consisted of a highly-slender forebody and a 78 deg swept delta wing. In the wind tunnel test, the roll angle and wing surface pressures were measured during the wing rock motion. A limit cycle oscillation was observed for angles of attack between 22 deg and 30 deg. In general, the wind tunnel test confirmed that the main flow phenomena responsible for the wing-body-tail wing rock are the interactions between the forebody and the wing vortices. The variation of roll acceleration (determined from the second derivative of the roll angle time history) with roll angle clearly showed the energy balance necessary to sustain the limit cycle oscillation. Pressure measurements on the wing revealed the hysteresis of the wing rock process. First, second and nth order models for the aerodynamic damping were developed and examined with a one degree of freedom computer simulation. Very good agreement with the observed behavior from the wind tunnel was obtained.

Aerodynamic forces and flow structures of the leading edge vortex on a flapping wing considering ground effect

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Truong, Tien Van; Yoon, Kwang Joon; Byun, Doyoung; Kim, Min Jun; Park, Hoon Cheol

2013-01-01

The aim of this work is to provide an insight into the aerodynamic performance of the beetle during takeoff, which has been estimated in previous investigations. We employed a scaled-up electromechanical model flapping wing to measure the aerodynamic forces and the three-dimensional flow structures on the flapping wing. The ground effect on the unsteady forces and flow structures were also characterized. The dynamically scaled wing model could replicate the general stroke pattern of the beetle's hind wing kinematics during takeoff flight. Two wing kinematic models have been studied to examine the influences of wing kinematics on unsteady aerodynamic forces. In the first model, the angle of attack is asymmetric and varies during the translational motion, which is the flapping motion of the beetle's hind wing. In the second model, the angle of attack is constant during the translational motion. The instantaneous aerodynamic forces were measured for four strokes during the beetle's takeoff by the force sensor attached at the wing base. Flow visualization provided a general picture of the evolution of the three-dimensional leading edge vortex (LEV) on the beetle hind wing model. The LEV is stable during each stroke, and increases radically from the root to the tip, forming a leading-edge spiral vortex. The force measurement results show that the vertical force generated by the hind wing is large enough to lift the beetle. For the beetle hind wing kinematics, the total vertical force production increases 18.4% and 8.6% for the first and second strokes, respectively, due to the ground effect. However, for the model with a constant angle of attack during translation, the vertical force is reduced during the first stroke. During the third and fourth strokes, the ground effect is negligible for both wing kinematic patterns. This finding suggests that the beetle's flapping mechanism induces a ground effect that can efficiently lift its body from the ground during takeoff

Hovering hummingbird wing aerodynamics during the annual cycle. I. Complete wing.

Science.gov (United States)

Achache, Yonathan; Sapir, Nir; Elimelech, Yossef

2017-08-01

The diverse hummingbird family (Trochilidae) has unique adaptations for nectarivory, among which is the ability to sustain hover-feeding. As hummingbirds mainly feed while hovering, it is crucial to maintain this ability throughout the annual cycle-especially during flight-feather moult, in which wing area is reduced. To quantify the aerodynamic characteristics and flow mechanisms of a hummingbird wing throughout the annual cycle, time-accurate aerodynamic loads and flow field measurements were correlated over a dynamically scaled wing model of Anna's hummingbird ( Calypte anna ). We present measurements recorded over a model of a complete wing to evaluate the baseline aerodynamic characteristics and flow mechanisms. We found that the vorticity concentration that had developed from the wing's leading-edge differs from the attached vorticity structure that was typically found over insects' wings; firstly, it is more elongated along the wing chord, and secondly, it encounters high levels of fluctuations rather than a steady vortex. Lift characteristics resemble those of insects; however, a 20% increase in the lift-to-torque ratio was obtained for the hummingbird wing model. Time-accurate aerodynamic loads were also used to evaluate the time-evolution of the specific power required from the flight muscles, and the overall wingbeat power requirements nicely matched previous studies.

Aeroelasticity of morphing wings using neural networks

Science.gov (United States)

Natarajan, Anand

In this dissertation, neural networks are designed to effectively model static non-linear aeroelastic problems in adaptive structures and linear dynamic aeroelastic systems with time varying stiffness. The use of adaptive materials in aircraft wings allows for the change of the contour or the configuration of a wing (morphing) in flight. The use of smart materials, to accomplish these deformations, can imply that the stiffness of the wing with a morphing contour changes as the contour changes. For a rapidly oscillating body in a fluid field, continuously adapting structural parameters may render the wing to behave as a time variant system. Even the internal spars/ribs of the aircraft wing which define the wing stiffness can be made adaptive, that is, their stiffness can be made to vary with time. The immediate effect on the structural dynamics of the wing, is that, the wing motion is governed by a differential equation with time varying coefficients. The study of this concept of a time varying torsional stiffness, made possible by the use of active materials and adaptive spars, in the dynamic aeroelastic behavior of an adaptable airfoil is performed here. Another type of aeroelastic problem of an adaptive structure that is investigated here, is the shape control of an adaptive bump situated on the leading edge of an airfoil. Such a bump is useful in achieving flow separation control for lateral directional maneuverability of the aircraft. Since actuators are being used to create this bump on the wing surface, the energy required to do so needs to be minimized. The adverse pressure drag as a result of this bump needs to be controlled so that the loss in lift over the wing is made minimal. The design of such a "spoiler bump" on the surface of the airfoil is an optimization problem of maximizing pressure drag due to flow separation while minimizing the loss in lift and energy required to deform the bump. One neural network is trained using the CFD code FLUENT to

Hovering hummingbird wing aerodynamics during the annual cycle. II. Implications of wing feather moult

Science.gov (United States)

Sapir, Nir; Elimelech, Yossef

2018-01-01

Birds usually moult their feathers in a particular sequence which may incur aerodynamic, physiological and behavioural implications. Among birds, hummingbirds are unique species in their sustained hovering flight. Because hummingbirds frequently hover-feed, they must maintain sufficiently high flight capacities even when moulting their flight feathers. A hummingbird wing consists of 10 primary flight feathers whose absence during moult may strongly affect wing performance. Using dynamic similarity rules, we compared time-accurate aerodynamic loads and flow field measurements over several wing geometries that follow the natural feather moult sequence of Calypte anna, a common hummingbird species in western North America. Our results suggest a drop of more than 20% in lift production during the early stages of the moult sequence in which mid-wing flight feathers are moulted. We also found that the wing's ability to generate lift strongly depended on the morphological integrity of the outer primaries and leading-edge. These findings may explain the evolution of wing morphology and moult attributes. Specifically, the high overlap between adjacent wing feathers, especially at the wing tip, and the slow sequential replacement of the wing feathers result in a relatively small reduction in wing surface area during moult with limited aerodynamic implications. We present power and efficiency analyses for hover flight during moult under several plausible scenarios, suggesting that body mass reduction could be a compensatory mechanism that preserves the energetic costs of hover flight. PMID:29515884

Automatic analysis and characterization of the hummingbird wings motion using dense optical flow features

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Martínez, Fabio; Romero, Eduardo; Manzanera, Antoine

2015-01-01

A new method for automatic analysis and characterization of recorded hummingbird wing motion is proposed. The method starts by computing a multiscale dense optical flow field, which is used to segment the wings, i.e., pixels with larger velocities. Then, the kinematic and deformation of the wings were characterized as a temporal set of global and local measures: a global angular acceleration as a time function of each wing and a local acceleration profile that approximates the dynamics of the different wing segments. Additionally, the variance of the apparent velocity orientation estimates those wing foci with larger deformation. Finally a local measure of the orientation highlights those regions with maximal deformation. The approach was evaluated in a total of 91 flight cycles, captured using three different setups. The proposed measures follow the yaw turn hummingbird flight dynamics, with a strong correlation of all computed paths, reporting a standard deviation of 0.31 rad/frame 2 and 1.9 (rad/frame) 2 for the global angular acceleration and the global wing deformation respectively. (paper)

Wind tunnel investigation of the interaction and breakdown characteristics of slender wing vortices at subsonic, transonic, and supersonic speeds

Science.gov (United States)

Erickson, Gary E.

1991-01-01

The vortex dominated aerodynamic characteristics of a generic 65 degree cropped delta wing model were studied in a wind tunnel at subsonic through supersonic speeds. The lee-side flow fields over the wing-alone configuration and the wing with leading edge extension (LEX) added were observed at M (infinity) equals 0.40 to 1.60 using a laser vapor screen technique. These results were correlated with surface streamline patterns, upper surface static pressure distributions, and six-component forces and moments. The wing-alone exhibited vortex breakdown and asymmetry of the breakdown location at the subsonic and transonic speeds. An earlier onset of vortex breakdown over the wing occurred at transonic speeds due to the interaction of the leading edge vortex with the normal shock wave. The development of a shock wave between the vortex and wing surface caused an early separation of the secondary boundary layer. With the LEX installed, wing vortex breakdown asymmetry did not occur up to the maximum angle of attack in the present test of 24 degrees. The favorable interaction of the LEX vortex with the wing flow field reduced the effects of shock waves on the wing primary and secondary vortical flows. The direct interaction of the wing and LEX vortex cores diminished with increasing Mach number. The maximum attainable vortex-induced pressure signatures were constrained by the vacuum pressure limit at the transonic and supersonic speeds.

Hydrophobic durability characteristics of butterfly wing surface after freezing cycles towards the design of nature inspired anti-icing surfaces.

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Tingkun Chen

Full Text Available The hydrophobicity and anti-icing performance of the surfaces of some artificial hydrophobic coatings degraded after several icing and de-icing cycles. In this paper, the frost formation on the surfaces of butterfly wings from ten different species was observed, and the contact angles were measured after 0 to 6 frosting/defrosting cycles. The results show that no obvious changes in contact angle for the butterfly wing specimens were not obvious during the frosting/defrosting process. Further, the conclusion was inferred that the topography of the butterfly wing surface forms a special space structure which has a larger space inside that can accommodate more frozen droplets; this behavior prevents destruction of the structure. The findings of this study may provide a basis and new concepts for the design of novel industrially important surfaces to inhibit frost/ice growth, such as durable anti-icing coatings, which may decrease or prevent the socio-economic loss.

Hydrophobic durability characteristics of butterfly wing surface after freezing cycles towards the design of nature inspired anti-icing surfaces.

Science.gov (United States)

Chen, Tingkun; Cong, Qian; Qi, Yingchun; Jin, Jingfu; Choy, Kwang-Leong

2018-01-01

The hydrophobicity and anti-icing performance of the surfaces of some artificial hydrophobic coatings degraded after several icing and de-icing cycles. In this paper, the frost formation on the surfaces of butterfly wings from ten different species was observed, and the contact angles were measured after 0 to 6 frosting/defrosting cycles. The results show that no obvious changes in contact angle for the butterfly wing specimens were not obvious during the frosting/defrosting process. Further, the conclusion was inferred that the topography of the butterfly wing surface forms a special space structure which has a larger space inside that can accommodate more frozen droplets; this behavior prevents destruction of the structure. The findings of this study may provide a basis and new concepts for the design of novel industrially important surfaces to inhibit frost/ice growth, such as durable anti-icing coatings, which may decrease or prevent the socio-economic loss.

Flow-around modes for a rhomboid wing with a stall vortex in the shock layer

Science.gov (United States)

Zubin, M. A.; Maximov, F. A.; Ostapenko, N. A.

2017-12-01

The results of theoretical and experimental investigation of an asymmetrical hypersonic flow around a V-shaped wing with the opening angle larger than π on the modes with attached shockwaves on forward edges, when the stall flow is implemented on the leeward wing cantilever behind the kink point of the cross contour. In this case, a vortex of nonviscous nature is formed in which the velocities on the sphere exceeding the speed of sound and resulting in the occurrence of pressure shocks with an intensity sufficient for the separation of the turbulent boundary layer take place in the reverse flow according to the calculations within the framework of the ideal gas. It is experimentally established that a separation boundary layer can exist in the reverse flow, and its structure is subject to the laws inherent to the reverse flow in the separation region of the turbulent boundary layer arising in the supersonic conic flow under the action of a shockwave incident to the boundary layer.

Static and Dynamic Flow Visualization Studies of Two Double-Delta Wing Models at High Angles of Attack

Science.gov (United States)

1992-03-01

body, ft U.= free-stream velocity, ft/sec In the case of a wing pitching about its mid-chord location, it can be interpreted as the ratio of the...Over Moderately Swept Delta Wings," HTP -5 Workshop On Vortical Flow Breakdown and Structural Interactions, NASA Langley Research Center, August 15-16...January 6- 9,1992/Reno,Nevada. 18. User’s Manual , Flow Visualization Water Tunnel Operation for Model 1520, Eidelic International, Inc., Torrance

EFFECT OF SWEEP ANGLE ON THE VORTICAL FLOW OVER DELTA WINGS AT AN ANGLE OF ATTACK OF 10°

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

JAMES BRETT

2014-12-01

Full Text Available CFD simulations have been used to analyse the vortical flows over sharp edged delta wings with differing sweep angles under subsonic conditions at an angle of attack of 10°. RANS simulations were validated against experimental data for a 65° sweep wing, with a flat cross-section, and the steadiness of the flow field was assessed by comparing the results against unsteady URANS and DES simulations. To assess the effect of sweep angle on the flow field, a range of sweep angles from 65° to 43° were simulated. For moderate sweep wings the primary vortex was observed to detach from the leading edge, undergoing vortex breakdown, and a weaker, replacement, "shadow" vortex was formed. The shadow vortex was observed for sweep angles of 50° and less, and resulted in reduced lift production near the wing tips loss of the stronger primary vortex.

AMELIA CESTOL Test: Acoustic Characteristics of Circulation Control Wing with Leading- and Trailing-Edge Slot Blowing

Science.gov (United States)

Horne, William C.; Burnside, Nathan J.

2013-01-01

The AMELIA Cruise-Efficient Short Take-off and Landing (CESTOL) configuration concept was developed to meet future requirements of reduced field length, noise, and fuel burn by researchers at Cal Poly, San Luis Obispo and Georgia Tech Research Institute under sponsorship by the NASA Fundamental Aeronautics Program (FAP), Subsonic Fixed Wing Project. The novel configuration includes leading- and trailing-edge circulation control wing (CCW), over-wing podded turbine propulsion simulation (TPS). Extensive aerodynamic measurements of forces, surfaces pressures, and wing surface skin friction measurements were recently measured over a wide range of test conditions in the Arnold Engineering Development Center(AEDC) National Full-Scale Aerodynamics Complex (NFAC) 40- by 80-Ft Wind Tunnel. Acoustic measurements of the model were also acquired for each configuration with 7 fixed microphones on a line under the left wing, and with a 48-element, 40-inch diameter phased microphone array under the right wing. This presentation will discuss acoustic characteristics of the CCW system for a variety of tunnel speeds (0 to 120 kts), model configurations (leading edge(LE) and/or trailing-edge(TE) slot blowing, and orientations (incidence and yaw) based on acoustic measurements acquired concurrently with the aerodynamic measurements. The flow coefficient, Cmu= mVSLOT/qSW varied from 0 to 0.88 at 40 kts, and from 0 to 0.15 at 120 kts. Here m is the slot mass flow rate, VSLOT is the slot exit velocity, q is dynamic pressure, and SW is wing surface area. Directivities at selected 1/3 octave bands will be compared with comparable measurements of a 2-D wing at GTRI, as will as microphone array near-field measurements of the right wing at maximum flow rate. The presentation will include discussion of acoustic sensor calibrations as well as characterization of the wind tunnel background noise environment.

Comparison of Experimental Surface and Flow Field Measurements to Computational Results of the Juncture Flow Model

Science.gov (United States)

Roozeboom, Nettie H.; Lee, Henry C.; Simurda, Laura J.; Zilliac, Gregory G.; Pulliam, Thomas H.

2016-01-01

Wing-body juncture flow fields on commercial aircraft configurations are challenging to compute accurately. The NASA Advanced Air Vehicle Program's juncture flow committee is designing an experiment to provide data to improve Computational Fluid Dynamics (CFD) modeling in the juncture flow region. Preliminary design of the model was done using CFD, yet CFD tends to over-predict the separation in the juncture flow region. Risk reduction wind tunnel tests were requisitioned by the committee to obtain a better understanding of the flow characteristics of the designed models. NASA Ames Research Center's Fluid Mechanics Lab performed one of the risk reduction tests. The results of one case, accompanied by CFD simulations, are presented in this paper. Experimental results suggest the wall mounted wind tunnel model produces a thicker boundary layer on the fuselage than the CFD predictions, resulting in a larger wing horseshoe vortex suppressing the side of body separation in the juncture flow region. Compared to experimental results, CFD predicts a thinner boundary layer on the fuselage generates a weaker wing horseshoe vortex resulting in a larger side of body separation.

Large eddy simulation of a wing-body junction flow

Science.gov (United States)

Ryu, Sungmin; Emory, Michael; Campos, Alejandro; Duraisamy, Karthik; Iaccarino, Gianluca

2014-11-01

We present numerical simulations of the wing-body junction flow experimentally investigated by Devenport & Simpson (1990). Wall-junction flows are common in engineering applications but relevant flow physics close to the corner region is not well understood. Moreover, performance of turbulence models for the body-junction case is not well characterized. Motivated by the insufficient investigations, we have numerically investigated the case with Reynolds-averaged Naiver-Stokes equation (RANS) and Large Eddy Simulation (LES) approaches. The Vreman model applied for the LES and SST k- ω model for the RANS simulation are validated focusing on the ability to predict turbulence statistics near the junction region. Moreover, a sensitivity study of the form of the Vreman model will also be presented. This work is funded under NASA Cooperative Agreement NNX11AI41A (Technical Monitor Dr. Stephen Woodruff)

Global Skin-Friction Measurements Using Particle Image Surface FLow Visualization and a Luminescent Oil-Film

Science.gov (United States)

Husen, Nicholas; Roozeboom, Nettie; Liu, Tianshu; Sullivan, John P.

2015-01-01

A quantitative global skin-friction measurement technique is proposed. An oil-film is doped with a luminescent molecule and thereby made to fluoresce in order to resolve oil-film thickness, and Particle Image Surface Flow Visualization is used to resolve the velocity field of the surface of the oil-film. Skin-friction is then calculated at location x as (x )xh, where x is the displacement of the surface of the oil-film and is the dynamic viscosity of the oil. The data collection procedure and data analysis procedures are explained, and preliminary experimental skin-friction results for flow over the wing of the CRM are presented.

Distribution of the characteristics of barbs and barbules on barn owl wing feathers.

Science.gov (United States)

Weger, Matthias; Wagner, Hermann

2017-05-01

Owls are known for the development of a silent flight. One conspicuous specialization of owl wings that has been implied in noise reduction and that has been demonstrated to change the aerodynamic behavior of the wing is a soft dorsal wing surface. The soft surface is a result of changes in the shape of feather barbs and barbules in owls compared with other bird species. We hypothesized that as the aerodynamic characteristics of a wing change along its chordwise and spanwise direction, so may the shape of the barbs and barbules. Therefore, we examined in detail the shapes of the barbs and barbules in chordwise and spanwise directions. The results showed changes in the shapes of barbs and barbules at the anterior and distal parts of the wing, but not at more posterior parts. The increased density of hook radiates at the distalmost wing position could serve to stiffen that vane part that is subject to the highest forces. The change of pennulum length in the anterior part of the wing and the uniformity further back could mean that a soft surface may be especially important in regions where flow separation may occur. © 2017 Anatomical Society.

Proportional fuzzy feed-forward architecture control validation by wind tunnel tests of a morphing wing

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Michel Joël Tchatchueng Kammegne

2017-04-01

Full Text Available In aircraft wing design, engineers aim to provide the best possible aerodynamic performance under cruise flight conditions in terms of lift-to-drag ratio. Conventional control surfaces such as flaps, ailerons, variable wing sweep and spoilers are used to trim the aircraft for other flight conditions. The appearance of the morphing wing concept launched a new challenge in the area of overall wing and aircraft performance improvement during different flight segments by locally altering the flow over the aircraft’s wings. This paper describes the development and application of a control system for an actuation mechanism integrated in a new morphing wing structure. The controlled actuation system includes four similar miniature electromechanical actuators disposed in two parallel actuation lines. The experimental model of the morphing wing is based on a full-scale portion of an aircraft wing, which is equipped with an aileron. The upper surface of the wing is a flexible one, being closed to the wing tip; the flexible skin is made of light composite materials. The four actuators are controlled in unison to change the flexible upper surface to improve the flow quality on the upper surface by delaying or advancing the transition point from laminar to turbulent regime. The actuators transform the torque into vertical forces. Their bases are fixed on the wing ribs and their top link arms are attached to supporting plates fixed onto the flexible skin with screws. The actuators push or pull the flexible skin using the necessary torque until the desired vertical displacement of each actuator is achieved. The four vertical displacements of the actuators, correlated with the new shape of the wing, are provided by a database obtained through a preliminary aerodynamic optimization for specific flight conditions. The control system is designed to control the positions of the actuators in real time in order to obtain and to maintain the desired shape of the

Flow Field Characteristics and Lift Changing Mechanism for Half-Rotating Wing in Hovering Flight

Science.gov (United States)

Li, Q.; Wang, X. Y.; Qiu, H.; Li, C. M.; Qiu, Z. Z.

2017-12-01

Half-rotating wing (HRW) is a new similar-flapping wing system based on half-rotating mechanism which could perform rotating-type flapping instead of oscillating-type flapping. The characteristics of flow field and lift changing mechanism for HRW in hovering flight are important theoretical basis to improve the flight capability of HRW aircraft. The driving mechanism and work process of HRW were firstly introduced in this paper. Aerodynamic simulation model of HRW in hovering flight was established and solved using XFlow software, by which lift changing rule of HRW was drawn from the simulation solution. On the other hand, the development and shedding of the distal vortex throughout one stroke would lead to the changes of the lift force. Based on analyzing distribution characteristics of vorticity, velocity and pressure around wing blade, the main features of the flow field for HRW were further given. The distal attached vortex led to the increase of the lift force, which would gradually shed into the wake with a decline of lift in the later downstroke. The wake ring directed by the distal end of the blade would generate the downward accelerating airflow which produced the upward anti-impulse to HRW. The research results mentioned above illustrated that the behavior characteristics of vortex formed in flow field were main cause of lift changing for HRW.

Vortex Lattice Simulations of Attached and Separated Flows around Flapping Wings

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Thomas Lambert

2017-04-01

Full Text Available Flapping flight is an increasingly popular area of research, with applications to micro-unmanned air vehicles and animal flight biomechanics. Fast, but accurate methods for predicting the aerodynamic loads acting on flapping wings are of interest for designing such aircraft and optimizing thrust production. In this work, the unsteady vortex lattice method is used in conjunction with three load estimation techniques in order to predict the aerodynamic lift and drag time histories produced by flapping rectangular wings. The load estimation approaches are the Katz, Joukowski and simplified Leishman–Beddoes techniques. The simulations’ predictions are compared to experimental measurements from wind tunnel tests of a flapping and pitching wing. Three types of kinematics are investigated, pitch-leading, pure flapping and pitch lagging. It is found that pitch-leading tests can be simulated quite accurately using either the Katz or Joukowski approaches as no measurable flow separation occurs. For the pure flapping tests, the Katz and Joukowski techniques are accurate as long as the static pitch angle is greater than zero. For zero or negative static pitch angles, these methods underestimate the amplitude of the drag. The Leishman–Beddoes approach yields better drag amplitudes, but can introduce a constant negative drag offset. Finally, for the pitch-lagging tests the Leishman–Beddoes technique is again more representative of the experimental results, as long as flow separation is not too extensive. Considering the complexity of the phenomena involved, in the vast majority of cases, the lift time history is predicted with reasonable accuracy. The drag (or thrust time history is more challenging.

Navier-Stokes prediction of a delta wing in roll with vortex breakdown

Science.gov (United States)

Chaderjian, Neal M.; Schiff, Lewis B.

1993-01-01

The three-dimensional, Reynolds-averaged, Navier-Stokes (RANS) equations are used to numerically simulate vortical flow about a 65 degree sweep delta wing. Subsonic turbulent flow computations are presented for this delta wing at 30 degrees angle of attack and static roll angles up to 42 degrees. This work is part of an on going effort to validate the RANS approach for predicting high-incidence vortical flows, with the eventual application to wing rock. The flow is unsteady and includes spiral-type vortex breakdown. The breakdown positions, mean surface pressures, rolling moments, normal forces, and streamwise center-of-pressure locations compare reasonably well with experiment. In some cases, the primary vortex suction peaks are significantly underpredicted due to grid coarseness. Nevertheless, the computations are able to predict the same nonlinear variation of rolling moment with roll angle that appeared in the experiment. This nonlinearity includes regions of local static roll instability, which is attributed to vortex breakdown.

The effect of aspect ratio on the leading-edge vortex over an insect-like flapping wing.

Science.gov (United States)

Phillips, Nathan; Knowles, Kevin; Bomphrey, Richard J

2015-10-09

Insect wing shapes are diverse and a renowned source of inspiration for the new generation of autonomous flapping vehicles, yet the aerodynamic consequences of varying geometry is not well understood. One of the most defining and aerodynamically significant measures of wing shape is the aspect ratio, defined as the ratio of wing length (R) to mean wing chord (c). We investigated the impact of aspect ratio, AR, on the induced flow field around a flapping wing using a robotic device. Rigid rectangular wings ranging from AR = 1.5 to 7.5 were flapped with insect-like kinematics in air with a constant Reynolds number (Re) of 1400, and a dimensionless stroke amplitude of 6.5c (number of chords traversed by the wingtip). Pseudo-volumetric, ensemble-averaged, flow fields around the wings were captured using particle image velocimetry at 11 instances throughout simulated downstrokes. Results confirmed the presence of a high-lift, separated flow field with a leading-edge vortex (LEV), and revealed that the conical, primary LEV grows in size and strength with increasing AR. In each case, the LEV had an arch-shaped axis with its outboard end originating from a focus-sink singularity on the wing surface near the tip. LEV detachment was observed for AR > 1.5 around mid-stroke at ~70% span, and initiated sooner over higher aspect ratio wings. At AR > 3 the larger, stronger vortex persisted under the wing surface well into the next half-stroke leading to a reduction in lift. Circulatory lift attributable to the LEV increased with AR up to AR = 6. Higher aspect ratios generated proportionally less lift distally because of LEV breakdown, and also less lift closer to the wing root due to the previous LEV's continuing presence under the wing. In nature, insect wings go no higher than AR ~ 5, likely in part due to architectural and physiological constraints but also because of the reducing aerodynamic benefits of high AR wings.

Clap and Fling Interaction of Bristled Wings: Effects of Varying Reynolds Number and Bristle Spacing on Force Generation and Flow Structures

Science.gov (United States)

Kasoju, Vishwa Teja

The smallest flying insects with body lengths under 1 mm, such as thrips and fairyflies, typically show the presence of long bristles on their wings. Thrips have been observed to use wing-wing interaction via 'clap and fling' for flapping flight at low Reynolds number (Re) on the order of 10, where a wing pair comes into close contact at the end of upstroke and fling apart at the beginning of downstroke. We examined the effects of varying the following parameters on force generation and flow structures formed during clap and fling: (1) Re ranging from 5 to 15 for a bristled wing pair (G/D = 17) and a geometrically equivalent solid wing pair; and (2) ratio of spacing between bristles to bristle diameter (G/D) for Re = 10. The G/D ratio in 70 thrips species were quantified from published forewing images. Scaled-up physical models of three bristled wing pairs of varying G/D (5, 11, 17) and a solid wing pair (G/D = 0) were fabricated. A robotic model was used for this study, in which a wing pair was immersed in an aquarium tank filled with glycerin and driven by stepper motors to execute clap and fling kinematics. Dimensionless lift and drag coefficients were determined from strain gauge measurements. Phase-locked particle image velocimetry (PIV) measurements were used to examine flow through the bristles. Chordwise PIV was used to visualize the leading edge vortex (LEV) and trailing edge vortex (TEV) formed over the wings during clap and fling. With increasing G/D, larger reduction was observed in peak drag coefficients as compared to reduction in peak lift coefficients. Net circulation, defined as the difference in circulation (strength) of LEV and TEV, diminished with increasing G/D. Reduction in net circulation resulted in reducing lift generated by bristled wings as compared to solid wings. Leaky, recirculating flow through the bristles provided large drag reduction during fling of a bristled wing pair. If flight efficiency is defined as the ratio of lift to drag

Method for solving an inverse problem of wing type by using a simple panel method; Kanbenna panel ho ni yoru yokugata gyaku mondai no ichikaiho

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Ando, J; Matsumoto, D; Maita, S; Nakatake, K [Kyushu University, Fukuoka (Japan). Faculty of Engineering

1997-10-01

This paper describes one method for solving an inverse problem of wing type based on the source and quasi continuous vortex lattice method (SQCM) in designing marine propellers and underwater wings. With the SQCM, vortices and control points are distributed on wing camber according to the QCM, and wing surface is divided into certain number of panels. This is the method to decide vortex intensity and blow-out intensity simultaneously from the condition that vertical speed on the camber and the wing surface is zero, upon having distributed blow-out with certain intensity inside the panel. The method solves the inverse problem with the following process: specific point distribution is so determined that the targeted velocity on the wing surface is satisfied when wing surface pressure distribution and uniform flow velocity are given; and then the panels are so rearranged as in parallel with direction of the flow on the surface of the wing calculated by using these specific points to derive the targeted wing shape. This paper describes the problem solving procedure in great detail. It also introduces examples of numerical calculations. It shows one method for solving the inverse problem in wing type using the SQCM as a simple panel method, whereas its good convergence and stability were verified. Considerations on effects of free surface and expansion of the method into three-dimensional problems will be implemented in the future. 11 refs., 8 figs.

Flow structures in end-view plane of slender delta wing

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Sahin Besir

2017-01-01

Full Text Available Present investigation focuses on unsteady flow structures in end-view planes at the trailing edge of delta wing, X/C=1.0, where consequences of vortex bursting and stall phenomena vary according to angles of attack over the range of 25° ≤ α ≤ 35° and yaw angles, β over the range of 0° ≤ β ≤ 20°. Basic features of counter rotating vortices in end-view planes of delta win with 70° sweep angle, Λ are examined both qualitatively and quantitatively using Rhodamine dye and the PIV system. In the light of present experiments it is seen that with increasing yaw angle, β symmetrical flow structure is disrupted continuously. Dispersed wind-ward side leading edge vortices cover a large part of flow domain, on the other hand, lee-ward side leading edge vortices cover only a small portion of flow domain.

On the structure, interaction, and breakdown characteristics of slender wing vortices at subsonic, transonic, and supersonic speeds

Science.gov (United States)

Erickson, Gary E.; Schreiner, John A.; Rogers, Lawrence W.

1989-01-01

Slender wing vortex flows at subsonic, transonic, and supersonic speeds were investigated in a 6 x 6 ft wind tunnel. Test data obtained include off-body and surface flow visualizations, wing upper surface static pressure distributions, and six-component forces and moments. The results reveal the transition from the low-speed classical vortex regime to the transonic regime, beginning at a freestream Mach number of 0.60, where vortices coexist with shock waves. It is shown that the onset of core breakdown and the progression of core breakdown with the angle of attack were sensitive to the Mach number, and that the shock effects at transonic speeds were reduced by the interaction of the wing and the lead-edge extension (LEX) vortices. The vortex strengths and direct interaction of the wing and LEX cores (cores wrapping around each other) were found to diminish at transonic and supersonic speeds.

Shock/shock interactions between bodies and wings

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Gaoxiang XIANG

2018-02-01

Full Text Available This paper examines the Shock/Shock Interactions (SSI between the body and wing of aircraft in supersonic flows. The body is simplified to a flat wedge and the wing is assumed to be a sharp wing. The theoretical spatial dimension reduction method, which transforms the 3D problem into a 2D one, is used to analyze the SSI between the body and wing. The temperature and pressure behind the Mach stem induced by the wing and body are obtained, and the wave configurations in the corner are determined. Numerical validations are conducted by solving the inviscid Euler equations in 3D with a Non-oscillatory and Non-free-parameters Dissipative (NND finite difference scheme. Good agreements between the theoretical and numerical results are obtained. Additionally, the effects of the wedge angle and sweep angle on wave configurations and flow field are considered numerically and theoretically. The influences of wedge angle are significant, whereas the effects of sweep angle on wave configurations are negligible. This paper provides useful information for the design and thermal protection of aircraft in supersonic and hypersonic flows. Keywords: Body and wing, Flow field, Hypersonic flow, Shock/shock interaction, Wave configurations

Anti-fouling properties of microstructured surfaces bio-inspired by rice leaves and butterfly wings.

Science.gov (United States)

Bixler, Gregory D; Theiss, Andrew; Bhushan, Bharat; Lee, Stephen C

2014-04-01

Material scientists often look to biology for new engineering solutions to materials science problems. For example, unique surface characteristics of rice leaves and butterfly wings combine the shark skin (antifouling) and lotus leaf (self-cleaning) effects, producing the so-called rice and butterfly wing effect. In this paper, we study antifouling properties of four microstructured surfaces inspired by rice leaves and fabricated with photolithography and hot embossing techniques. Anti-biofouling effectiveness is determined with bioassays using Escherichia coli whilst inorganic fouling with simulated dirt particles. Antifouling data are presented to understand the role of surface geometrical features resistance to fouling. Conceptual modeling provides design guidance when developing novel antifouling surfaces for applications in the medical, marine, and industrial fields. Copyright © 2013 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

AERODYNAMICS OF WING TIP SAILS

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

MUSHTAK AL-ATABI

2006-06-01

Full Text Available Observers have always been fascinated by soaring birds. An interesting feature of these birds is the existence of few feathers extending from the tip of the wing. In this paper, small lifting surfaces were fitted to the tip of a NACA0012 wing in a fashion similar to that of wing tip feathers. Experimental measurements of induced drag, longitudinal static stability and trailing vortex structure were obtained.The tests showed that adding wing tip surfaces (sails decreased the induced drag factor and increased the longitudinal static stability. Results identified two discrete appositely rotated tip vortices and showed the ability of wing tip surfaces to break them down and to diffuse them.

Experimental and Computational Study of the Flow past a Simplified Geometry of an Engine/Pylon/Wing Installation at low velocity/moderate incidence flight conditions

Science.gov (United States)

Bury, Yannick; Lucas, Matthieu; Bonnaud, Cyril; Joly, Laurent; ISAE Team; Airbus Team

2014-11-01

We study numerically and experimentally the vortices that develop past a model geometry of a wing equipped with pylon-mounted engine at low speed/moderate incidence flight conditions. For such configuration, the presence of the powerplant installation under the wing initiates a complex, unsteady vortical flow field at the nacelle/pylon/wing junctions. Its interaction with the upper wing boundary layer causes a drop of aircraft performances. In order to decipher the underlying physics, this study is initially conducted on a simplified geometry at a Reynolds number of 200000, based on the chord wing and on the freestream velocity. Two configurations of angle of attack and side-slip angle are investigated. This work relies on unsteady Reynolds Averaged Navier Stokes computations, oil flow visualizations and stereoscopic Particle Image Velocimetry measurements. The vortex dynamics thus produced is described in terms of vortex core position, intensity, size and turbulent intensity thanks to a vortex tracking approach. In addition, the analysis of the velocity flow fields obtained from PIV highlights the influence of the longitudinal vortex initiated at the pylon/wing junction on the separation process of the boundary layer near the upper wing leading-edge.

A PIV Study of Baseline and Controlled Flow over the Highly Deflected Flap of a Generic Low Aspect Ratio Trapezoidal Wing

Science.gov (United States)

Tewes, Philipp; Genschow, Konstantin; Little, Jesse; Wygnanski, Israel

2017-11-01

A detailed flow survey using PIV was conducted over a highly-deflected flap (55°) of a low-aspect ratio trapezoidal wing. The wing section is a NACA 0012 with 45° sweep at both the leading and trailing edges, an aspect ratio of 1.5 and a taper ratio of 0.27. The main element is equipped with 7 equally spaced fluidic oscillators, covering the inner 60 % of the span, located near the flap hinge. Experiments were carried out at 0° and 8° incidence at a Reynolds number of 1.7 .106 for both baseline and active flow control (AFC) cases. Velocity ISO-surfaces, x-vorticity and streamlines are analyzed / discussed. A flap leading edge vortex governs the baseline flow field for 0°. This vortical structure interacts with the jets emitted by the actuators (Cμ = 1 %). Its development is hampered and the vortex is redirected toward the trailing edge resulting in a CL increase. At 8°, the dominant flap leading edge vortex could not be detected and is believed to have already merged with the tip vortex. AFC attached the flow over the flap and enhanced the lift by up to 20 % while maintaining longitudinal stability. The dominant flow features in the AFC cases are actuator-generated streamwise vortices which appear stronger at 8°. This work was supported by the Office of Naval Research under ONR Grant No. N00014-14-1-0387.

Effects of Coupled Rolling and Pitching Oscillations on Transonic Shock-Induced Vortex-Breakdown Flow of a Delta Wing

Science.gov (United States)

Kandil, Osama A.; Menzies, Margaret A.

1996-01-01

Unsteady, transonic vortex-breakdown flow over a 65 deg. sharp edged, cropped-delta wing of zero thickness undergoing forced coupled pitching and rolling oscillations is investigated computationally. The initial condition of the flow is characterized by a transverse terminating shock which induces of the leading edge vortex cores to breakdown. The computational investigation uses the time-accurate solution of the laminar, unsteady, compressible, full Navier-Stokes equations with the implicit, upwind, Roe flux-difference splitting, finite-volume scheme. The main focus is to analyze the effects of coupled motion on the wing response and vortex-breakdown flow by varying oscillation frequency and phase angle while keeping the maximum pitch and roll amplitude equal.

Forced Rolling Oscillation of a 65 deg-Delta Wing in Transonic Vortex-Breakdown Flow

Science.gov (United States)

Menzies, Margaret A.; Kandil, Osama A.; Kandil, Hamdy A.

1996-01-01

Unsteady, transonic, vortex dominated flow over a 65 deg. sharp-edged, cropped-delta wing of zero thickness undergoing forced rolling oscillations is investigated computationally. The wing angle of attack is 20 deg. and the free stream Mach number and Reynolds number are 0.85 and 3.23 x 10(exp 6), respectively. The initial condition of the flow is characterized by a transverse terminating shock which induces vortex breakdown of the leading edge vortex cores. The computational investigation uses the time accurate solution of the laminar, unsteady, compressible, full Navier-Stokes equations with the implicit, upwind, Roe flux difference splitting, finite-volume scheme. While the maximum roll amplitude is kept constant at 4.0 deg., both Reynolds number and roll frequency are varied covering three cases of forced sinusoidal rolling. First, the Reynolds number is held at 3.23 x 10(exp 6) and the wing is forced to oscillate in roll around the axis of geometric symmetry at a reduced frequency of 2(pi). Second, the Reynolds number is reduced to 0.5 x 10(exp 6) to observe the effects of added viscosity on the vortex breakdown. Third, with the Reynolds number held at 0.5 x 10(exp 6), the roll frequency is reduced to 1(pi) to complete the study.

Simulation of wing-body junction flows with hybrid RANS/LES methods

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Fu Song; Xiao Zhixiang; Chen Haixin; Zhang Yufei; Huang Jingbo

2007-01-01

In this paper, flows past two wing-body junctions, the Rood at zero angle of attack and NASA TN D-712 at 12.5 o angle of attack, are investigated with two Reynolds-Averaged Navier-Stokes (RANS) and large eddy simulation (LES) hybrid methods. One is detached eddy simulation (DES) and the other is delayed-DES, both are based on a weakly nonlinear two-equation k-ω model. While the RANS method can predict the mean flow behaviours reasonably accurately, its performance for the turbulent kinetic energy and shear stress, as compared with available experimental data, is not satisfactory. DES, through introducing a length scale in the dissipation terms of the turbulent kinetic energy equation, delivers flow separation, a vortex or the onset of vortex breakdown too early. DDES, with its delayed effect, shows a great improvement in flow structures and turbulence characteristics, and agrees well with measurements

Membrane wing aerodynamics for micro air vehicles

Science.gov (United States)

Lian, Yongsheng; Shyy, Wei; Viieru, Dragos; Zhang, Baoning

2003-10-01

The aerodynamic performance of a wing deteriorates considerably as the Reynolds number decreases from 10 6 to 10 4. In particular, flow separation can result in substantial change in effective airfoil shape and cause reduced aerodynamic performance. Lately, there has been growing interest in developing suitable techniques for sustained and robust flight of micro air vehicles (MAVs) with a wingspan of 15 cm or smaller, flight speed around 10 m/ s, and a corresponding Reynolds number of 10 4-10 5. This paper reviews the aerodynamics of membrane and corresponding rigid wings under the MAV flight conditions. The membrane wing is observed to yield desirable characteristics in delaying stall as well as adapting to the unsteady flight environment, which is intrinsic to the designated flight speed. Flow structures associated with the low Reynolds number and low aspect ratio wing, such as pressure distribution, separation bubble and tip vortex are reviewed. Structural dynamics in response to the surrounding flow field is presented to highlight the multiple time-scale phenomena. Based on the computational capabilities for treating moving boundary problems, wing shape optimization can be conducted in automated manners. To enhance the lift, the effect of endplates is evaluated. The proper orthogonal decomposition method is also discussed as an economic tool to describe the flow structure around a wing and to facilitate flow and vehicle control.

Wind Tunnel Investigation of Passive Vortex Control and Vortex-Tail Interactions on a Slender Wing at Subsonic and Transonic Speeds

Science.gov (United States)

Erickson, Gary E.

2013-01-01

A wind tunnel experiment was conducted in the NASA Langley 8-Foot Transonic Pressure Tunnel to determine the effects of passive porosity on vortex flow interactions about a slender wing configuration at subsonic and transonic speeds. Flow-through porosity was applied in several arrangements to a leading-edge extension, or LEX, mounted to a 65-degree cropped delta wing as a longitudinal instability mitigation technique. Test data were obtained with LEX on and off in the presence of a centerline vertical tail and twin, wing-mounted vertical fins to quantify the sensitivity of the aerodynamics to tail placement and orientation. A close-coupled canard was tested as an alternative to the LEX as a passive flow control device. Wing upper surface static pressure distributions and six-component forces and moments were obtained at Mach numbers of 0.50, 0.85, and 1.20, unit Reynolds number of 2.5 million, angles of attack up to approximately 30 degrees, and angles of sideslip to +/-8 degrees. The off-surface flow field was visualized in cross planes on selected configurations using a laser vapor screen flow visualization technique. Tunnel-to-tunnel data comparisons and a Reynolds number sensitivity assessment were also performed. 15.

An Ingenious Super Light Trapping Surface Templated from Butterfly Wing Scales

Science.gov (United States)

Han, Zhiwu; Li, Bo; Mu, Zhengzhi; Yang, Meng; Niu, Shichao; Zhang, Junqiu; Ren, Luquan

2015-08-01

Based on the super light trapping property of butterfly Trogonoptera brookiana wings, the SiO2 replica of this bionic functional surface was successfully synthesized using a simple and highly effective synthesis method combining a sol-gel process and subsequent selective etching. Firstly, the reflectivity of butterfly wing scales was carefully examined. It was found that the whole reflectance spectroscopy of the butterfly wings showed a lower level (less than 10 %) in the visible spectrum. Thus, it was confirmed that the butterfly wings possessed a super light trapping effect. Afterwards, the morphologies and detailed architectures of the butterfly wing scales were carefully investigated using the ultra-depth three-dimensional (3D) microscope and field emission scanning electronic microscopy (FESEM). It was composed by the parallel ridges and quasi-honeycomb-like structure between them. Based on the biological properties and function above, an exact SiO2 negative replica was fabricated through a synthesis method combining a sol-gel process and subsequent selective etching. At last, the comparative analysis of morphology feature size and the reflectance spectroscopy between the SiO2 negative replica and the flat plate was conducted. It could be concluded that the SiO2 negative replica inherited not only the original super light trapping architectures, but also the super light trapping characteristics of bio-template. This work may open up an avenue for the design and fabrication of super light trapping materials and encourage people to look for more super light trapping architectures in nature.

Shape optimisation and performance analysis of flapping wings

KAUST Repository

Ghommem, Mehdi

2012-09-04

In this paper, shape optimisation of flapping wings in forward flight is considered. This analysis is performed by combining a local gradient-based optimizer with the unsteady vortex lattice method (UVLM). Although the UVLM applies only to incompressible, inviscid flows where the separation lines are known a priori, Persson et al. [1] showed through a detailed comparison between UVLM and higher-fidelity computational fluid dynamics methods for flapping flight that the UVLM schemes produce accurate results for attached flow cases and even remain trend-relevant in the presence of flow separation. As such, they recommended the use of an aerodynamic model based on UVLM to perform preliminary design studies of flapping wing vehicles Unlike standard computational fluid dynamics schemes, this method requires meshing of the wing surface only and not of the whole flow domain [2]. From the design or optimisation perspective taken in our work, it is fairly common (and sometimes entirely necessary, as a result of the excessive computational cost of the highest fidelity tools such as Navier-Stokes solvers) to rely upon such a moderate level of modelling fidelity to traverse the design space in an economical manner. The objective of the work, described in this paper, is to identify a set of optimised shapes that maximise the propulsive efficiency, defined as the ratio of the propulsive power over the aerodynamic power, under lift, thrust, and area constraints. The shape of the wings is modelled using B-splines, a technology used in the computer-aided design (CAD) field for decades. This basis can be used to smoothly discretize wing shapes with few degrees of freedom, referred to as control points. The locations of the control points constitute the design variables. The results suggest that changing the shape yields significant improvement in the performance of the flapping wings. The optimisation pushes the design to "bird-like" shapes with substantial increase in the time

Coupled Rolling and Pitching Oscillation Effects on Transonic Shock-Induced Vortex-Breakdown Flow of a Delta Wing

Science.gov (United States)

Kandil, Osama A.; Menzies, Margaret A.

1996-01-01

Unsteady, transonic vortex dominated flow over a 65 deg. sharp edged, cropped-delta wing of zero thickness undergoing forced coupled pitching and rolling oscillations is investigated computationally. The wing mean angle of attack is 20 deg. and the free stream Mach number and Reynolds number are 0.85 and 3.23 x 10(exp 6), respectively. The initial condition of the flow is characterized by a transverse terminating shock and vortex breakdown of the leading edge vortex cores. The computational investigation uses the time-accurate solution of the laminar, unsteady, compressible, full Navier-Stokes equations with the implicit, upwind, Roe flux-difference splitting, finite volume scheme. The main focus is to analyze the effects of coupled motion on the wing response and vortex breakdown flow by varying oscillation frequency and phase angle while the maximum pitch and roll amplitude is kept constant at 4.0 deg. Four cases demonstrate the following: simultaneous motion at a frequency of 1(pi), motion with a 90 deg. phase lead in pitch, motion with a rolling frequency of twice the pitching frequency, and simultaneous motion at a frequency of 2(pi). Comparisons with single mode motion at these frequencies complete this study and illustrate the effects of coupling the oscillations.

AFM study of structure influence on butterfly wings coloration

OpenAIRE

Dallaeva, Dinara; Tománek, Pavel

2012-01-01

This study describes the structural coloration of the butterfly Vanessa Atalanta wings and shows how the atomic force microscopy (AFM) can be applied to the study of wings morphology and wings surface behavior under the temperature. The role of the wings morphology in colors was investigated. Different colors of wings have different topology and can be identified by them. AFM in semi-contact mode was used to study the wings surface. The wing surface area, which is close to the butterfly body,...

Aerodynamic control of NASP-type vehicles through vortex manipulation. Volume 3: Wing rock experiments

Science.gov (United States)

Suarez, Carlos J.; Smith, Brooke C.; Kramer, Brian R.; Ng, T. Terry; Ong, Lih-Yenn; Malcolm, Gerald N.

1993-01-01

Free-to-roll tests were conducted in water and wind tunnels in an effort to investigate the mechanisms of wing rock on a NASP-type vehicle. The configuration tested consisted of a highly-slender forebody and a 78 deg swept delta wing. In the water tunnel test, extensive flow visualization was performed and roll angle histories were obtained. In the wind tunnel test, the roll angle, forces and moments, and limited forebody and wing surface pressures were measured during the wing rock motion. A limit cycle oscillation was observed for angles of attack between 22 deg and 30 deg. In general, the experiments confirmed that the main flow phenomena responsible for the wing-body-tail wing rock are the interactions between the forebody and the wing vortices. The variation of roll acceleration (determined from the second derivative of the roll angle time history) with roll angle clearly slowed the energy balance necessary to sustain the limit cycle oscillation. Different means of suppressing wing rock by controlling the forebody vortices using small blowing jets were also explored. Steady blowing was found to be capable of suppressing wing rock, but significant vortex asymmetrices are created, causing the model to stop at a non-zero roll angle. On the other hand, alternating pulsed blowing on the left and right sides of the fore body was demonstrated to be a potentially effective means of suppressing wing rock and eliminating large asymmetric moments at high angles of attack.

Application of slender wing benefits to military aircraft

Science.gov (United States)

Polhamus, E. C.

1983-01-01

A review is provided of aerodynamic research conducted at the Langley Research Center with respect to the application of slender wing benefits in the design of high-speed military aircraft, taking into account the supersonic performance and leading-edge vortex flow associated with very highly sweptback wings. The beginning of the development of modern classical swept wing jet aircraft is related to the German Me 262 project during World War II. In the U.S., a theoretical study conducted by Jones (1945) pointed out the advantages of the sweptback wing concept. Developments with respect to variable sweep wings are discussed, taking into account early research in 1946, a joint program of the U.S. with the United Kingdom, the tactical aircraft concept, and the important part which the Langley variable-sweep research program played in the development of the F-111, F-14, and B-1. Attention is also given to hybrid wings, vortex flow theory development, and examples of flow design technology.

Conical Euler solution for a highly-swept delta wing undergoing wing-rock motion

Science.gov (United States)

Lee, Elizabeth M.; Batina, John T.

1990-01-01

Modifications to an unsteady conical Euler code for the free-to-roll analysis of highly-swept delta wings are described. The modifications involve the addition of the rolling rigid-body equation of motion for its simultaneous time-integration with the governing flow equations. The flow solver utilized in the Euler code includes a multistage Runge-Kutta time-stepping scheme which uses a finite-volume spatial discretization on an unstructured mesh made up of triangles. Steady and unsteady results are presented for a 75 deg swept delta wing at a freestream Mach number of 1.2 and an angle of attack of 30 deg. The unsteady results consist of forced harmonic and free-to-roll calculations. The free-to-roll case exhibits a wing rock response produced by unsteady aerodynamics consistent with the aerodynamics of the forced harmonic results. Similarities are shown with a wing-rock time history from a low-speed wind tunnel test.

AFM Study of Structure Influence on Butterfly Wings Coloration

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Dinara Sultanovna Dallaeva

2012-01-01

Full Text Available This study describes the structural coloration of the butterfly Vanessa Atalanta wings and shows how the atomic force microscopy (AFM can be applied to the study of wings morphology and wings surface behavior under the temperature. The role of the wings morphology in colors was investigated. Different colors of wings have different topology and can be identified by them. AFM in semi-contact mode was used to study the wings surface. The wing surface area, which is close to the butterfly body, has shiny brown color and the peak of surface roughness is about 600 nm. The changing of morphology at different temperatures is shown.

The leading-edge vortex of swift-wing shaped delta wings

Science.gov (United States)

Muir, Rowan; Arredondo-Galeana, Abel; Viola, Ignazio Maria

2017-11-01

Recent investigations on the aerodynamics of natural fliers have illuminated the significance of the Leading-Edge Vortex (LEV) for lift generation in a variety of flight conditions. In this investigation, a model non-slender delta shaped wing with a sharp leading-edge is tested at low Reynolds Number, along with a delta wing of the same design, but with a modified trailing edge inspired by the wing of a common swift Apus apus. The effect of the tapering swift wing on LEV development and stability is compared with the flow structure over the un-modified delta wing model through particle image velocimetry. For the first time, a leading-edge vortex system consisting of a dual or triple LEV is recorded on a swift-wing shaped delta wing, where such a system is found across all tested conditions. It is shown that the spanwise location of LEV breakdown is governed by the local chord rather than Reynolds Number or angle of attack. These findings suggest that the trailing-edge geometry of the swift wing alone does not prevent the common swift from generating an LEV system comparable with that of a delta shaped wing. This work received funding from the Engineering and Physical Sciences Research Council [EP/M506515/1] and the Consejo Nacional de Ciencia y Tecnología (CONACYT).

Flexible wings in flapping flight

Science.gov (United States)

Moret, Lionel; Thiria, Benjamin; Zhang, Jun

2007-11-01

We study the effect of passive pitching and flexible deflection of wings on the forward flapping flight. The wings are flapped vertically in water and are allowed to move freely horizontally. The forward speed is chosen by the flapping wing itself by balance of drag and thrust. We show, that by allowing the wing to passively pitch or by adding a flexible extension at its trailing edge, the forward speed is significantly increased. Detailed measurements of wing deflection and passive pitching, together with flow visualization, are used to explain our observations. The advantage of having a wing with finite rigidity/flexibility is discussed as we compare the current results with our biological inspirations such as birds and fish.

The leading-edge vortex of swift wing-shaped delta wings.

Science.gov (United States)

Muir, Rowan Eveline; Arredondo-Galeana, Abel; Viola, Ignazio Maria

2017-08-01

Recent investigations on the aerodynamics of natural fliers have illuminated the significance of the leading-edge vortex (LEV) for lift generation in a variety of flight conditions. A well-documented example of an LEV is that generated by aircraft with highly swept, delta-shaped wings. While the wing aerodynamics of a manoeuvring aircraft, a bird gliding and a bird in flapping flight vary significantly, it is believed that this existing knowledge can serve to add understanding to the complex aerodynamics of natural fliers. In this investigation, a model non-slender delta-shaped wing with a sharp leading edge is tested at low Reynolds number, along with a delta wing of the same design, but with a modified trailing edge inspired by the wing of a common swift Apus apus . The effect of the tapering swift wing on LEV development and stability is compared with the flow structure over the unmodified delta wing model through particle image velocimetry. For the first time, a leading-edge vortex system consisting of a dual or triple LEV is recorded on a swift wing-shaped delta wing, where such a system is found across all tested conditions. It is shown that the spanwise location of LEV breakdown is governed by the local chord rather than Reynolds number or angle of attack. These findings suggest that the trailing-edge geometry of the swift wing alone does not prevent the common swift from generating an LEV system comparable with that of a delta-shaped wing.

Wing aeroelasticity analysis based on an integral boundary-layer method coupled with Euler solver

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Ma Yanfeng

2016-10-01

Full Text Available An interactive boundary-layer method, which solves the unsteady flow, is developed for aeroelastic computation in the time domain. The coupled method combines the Euler solver with the integral boundary-layer solver (Euler/BL in a “semi-inverse” manner to compute flows with the inviscid and viscous interaction. Unsteady boundary conditions on moving surfaces are taken into account by utilizing the approximate small-perturbation method without moving the computational grids. The steady and unsteady flow calculations for the LANN wing are presented. The wing tip displacement of high Reynolds number aero-structural dynamics (HIRENASD Project is simulated under different angles of attack. The flutter-boundary predictions for the AGARD 445.6 wing are provided. The results of the interactive boundary-layer method are compared with those of the Euler method and experimental data. The study shows that viscous effects are significant for these cases and the further data analysis confirms the validity and practicability of the coupled method.

Twin Tail/Delta Wing Configuration Buffet Due to Unsteady Vortex Breakdown Flow

Science.gov (United States)

Kandil, Osama A.; Sheta, Essam F.; Massey, Steven J.

1996-01-01

The buffet response of the twin-tail configuration of the F/A-18 aircraft; a multidisciplinary problem, is investigated using three sets of equations on a multi-block grid structure. The first set is the unsteady, compressible, full Navier-Stokes equations. The second set is the coupled aeroelastic equations for bending and torsional twin-tail responses. The third set is the grid-displacement equations which are used to update the grid coordinates due to the tail deflections. The computational model consists of a 76 deg-swept back, sharp edged delta wing of aspect ratio of one and a swept-back F/A-18 twin-tails. The configuration is pitched at 32 deg angle of attack and the freestream Mach number and Reynolds number are 0.2 and 0.75 x 10(exp 6) respectively. The problem is solved for the initial flow conditions with the twin tail kept rigid. Next, the aeroelastic equations of the tails are turned on along with the grid-displacement equations to solve for the uncoupled bending and torsional tails response due to the unsteady loads produced by the vortex breakdown flow of the vortex cores of the delta wing. Two lateral locations of the twin tail are investigated. These locations are called the midspan and inboard locations.

Experimental investigation into wing span and angle-of-attack effects on sub-scale race car wing/wheel interaction aerodynamics

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Diasinos, S. [Toyota F1, Koeln (Germany); Gatto, A. [Brunel University, Department of Mechanical Engineering, School of Engineering and Design, Uxbridge (United Kingdom)

2008-09-15

This paper details a quantitative 3D investigation using LDA into the interaction aerodynamics on a sub-scale open wheel race car inverted front wing and wheel. Of primary importance to this study was the influence of changing wing angle of attack and span on the resulting near-field and far-field flow characteristics. Results obtained showed that both variables do have a significant influence on the resultant flow-field, particularly on wing vortex and wheel wake development and propagation. (orig.)

Experimental investigation into wing span and angle-of-attack effects on sub-scale race car wing/wheel interaction aerodynamics

Science.gov (United States)

Diasinos, S.; Gatto, A.

2008-09-01

This paper details a quantitative 3D investigation using LDA into the interaction aerodynamics on a sub-scale open wheel race car inverted front wing and wheel. Of primary importance to this study was the influence of changing wing angle of attack and span on the resulting near-field and far-field flow characteristics. Results obtained showed that both variables do have a significant influence on the resultant flow-field, particularly on wing vortex and wheel wake development and propagation.

Gliding Swifts Attain Laminar Flow over Rough Wings

NARCIS (Netherlands)

Lentink, D.; Kat, de R.

2014-01-01

Swifts are among the most aerodynamically refined gliding birds. However, the overlapping vanes and protruding shafts of their primary feathers make swift wings remarkably rough for their size. Wing roughness height is 1–2% of chord length on the upper surface—10,000 times rougher than sailplane

Transonic steady- and unsteady-pressure measurements on a high-aspect-ratio supercritical-wing model with oscillating control surfaces

Science.gov (United States)

Sandford, M. C.; Ricketts, R. H.; Cazier, F. W., Jr.

1980-01-01

A supercritical wing with an aspect ratio of 10.76 and with two trailing-edge oscillating control surfaces is described. The semispan wing is instrumented with 252 static orifices and 164 in situ dynamic-pressure gages for studying the effects of control-surface position and motion on steady- and unsteady-pressures at transonic speeds. Results from initial tests conducted in the Langley Transonic Dynamics Tunnel at two Reynolds numbers are presented in tabular form.

Comparison of analytical and experimental subsonic steady and unsteady pressure distributions for a high-aspect-ratio-supercritical wing model with oscillating control surfaces

Science.gov (United States)

Mccain, W. E.

1982-01-01

The results of a comparative study using the unsteady aerodynamic lifting surface theory, known as the Doublet Lattice method, and experimental subsonic steady- and unsteady-pressure measurements, are presented for a high-aspect-ratio supercritical wing model. Comparisons of pressure distributions due to wing angle of attack and control-surface deflections were made. In general, good correlation existed between experimental and theoretical data over most of the wing planform. The more significant deviations found between experimental and theoretical data were in the vicinity of control surfaces for both static and oscillatory control-surface deflections.

Subsonic and transonic pressure measurements on a high-aspect-ratio supercritical-wing model with oscillating control surfaces

Science.gov (United States)

Sandford, M. C.; Ricketts, R. H.; Watson, J. J.

1981-01-01

A high aspect ratio supercritical wing with oscillating control surfaces is described. The semispan wing model was instrumented with 252 static orifices and 164 in situ dynamic pressure gases for studying the effects of control surface position and sinusoidal motion on steady and unsteady pressures. Data from the present test (this is the second in a series of tests on this model) were obtained in the Langley Transonic Dynamics Tunnel at Mach numbers of 0.60 and 0.78 and are presented in tabular form.

Wind-tunnel Tests of a Hall High-life Wing

Science.gov (United States)

Weick, Fred E; Sanders, Robert

1932-01-01

Wind-tunnel tests have been made to find the lift, drag, and center-of-pressure characteristics of a Hall high-lift wing model. The Hall wing is essentially a split-flap airfoil with an internal air passage. Air enters the passage through an opening in the lower surface somewhat back of and parallel to the leading edge, and flows out through an opening made by deflecting the rear portion of the under surface downward as a flap. For ordinary flight conditions the front opening and the rear flap can be closed, providing in effect a conventional airfoil (the Clark Y in this case). The tests were made with various flap settings and with the entrance to the passage both open and closed. The highest lift coefficient found, C(sub L) = 2.08, was obtained with the passage closed.

DRE-Enhanced Swept-Wing Natural Laminar Flow at High Reynolds Numbers

Science.gov (United States)

Malik, Mujeeb; Liao, Wei; Li, Fe; Choudhari, Meelan

2013-01-01

Nonlinear parabolized stability equations and secondary instability analyses are used to provide a computational assessment of the potential use of the discrete roughness elements (DRE) technology for extending swept-wing natural laminar flow at chord Reynolds numbers relevant to transport aircraft. Computations performed for the boundary layer on a natural laminar flow airfoil with a leading-edge sweep angle of 34.6deg, free-stream Mach number of 0.75 and chord Reynolds numbers of 17 x 10(exp 6), 24 x 10(exp 6) and 30 x 10(exp 6) suggest that DRE could delay laminar-turbulent transition by about 20% when transition is caused by stationary crossflow disturbances. Computations show that the introduction of small wavelength stationary crossflow disturbances (i.e., DRE) also suppresses the growth of most amplified traveling crossflow disturbances.

Leading-edge vortex shedding from rotating wings

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Kolomenskiy, Dmitry [Centre de Recherches Mathématiques (CRM), Department of Mathematics and Statistics, McGill University, 805 Sherbrooke W., Montreal, QC H3A 0B9 (Canada); Elimelech, Yossef [Faculty of Aerospace Engineering, Technion-Israel Institute of Technology, Haifa 32000 (Israel); Schneider, Kai, E-mail: dkolom@gmail.com [M2P2–CNRS, Université d' Aix-Marseille, 39, rue Frédéric Joliot-Curie, F-13453 Marseille Cedex 13 (France)

2014-06-01

This paper presents a numerical investigation of the leading-edge vortices generated by rotating triangular wings at Reynolds number Re = 250. A series of three-dimensional numerical simulations have been carried out using a Fourier pseudo-spectral method with volume penalization. The transition from stable attachment of the leading-edge vortex to periodic vortex shedding is explored, as a function of the wing aspect ratio and the angle of attack. It is found that, in a stable configuration, the spanwise flow in the recirculation bubble past the wing is due to the centrifugal force, incompressibility and viscous stresses. For the flow outside of the bubble, an inviscid model of spanwise flow is presented. (papers)

Aerostructural optimization of a morphing wing for airborne wind energy applications

Science.gov (United States)

Fasel, U.; Keidel, D.; Molinari, G.; Ermanni, P.

2017-09-01

Airborne wind energy (AWE) vehicles maximize energy production by constantly operating at extreme wing loading, permitted by high flight speeds. Additionally, the wide range of wind speeds and the presence of flow inhomogeneities and gusts create a complex and demanding flight environment for AWE systems. Adaptation to different flow conditions is normally achieved by conventional wing control surfaces and, in case of ground generator-based systems, by varying the reel-out speed. These control degrees of freedom enable to remain within the operational envelope, but cause significant penalties in terms of energy output. A significantly greater adaptability is offered by shape-morphing wings, which have the potential to achieve optimal performance at different flight conditions by tailoring their airfoil shape and lift distribution at different levels along the wingspan. Hence, the application of compliant structures for AWE wings is very promising. Furthermore, active gust load alleviation can be achieved through morphing, which leads to a lower weight and an expanded flight envelope, thus increasing the power production of the AWE system. This work presents a procedure to concurrently optimize the aerodynamic shape, compliant structure, and composite layup of a morphing wing for AWE applications. The morphing concept is based on distributed compliance ribs, actuated by electromechanical linear actuators, guiding the deformation of the flexible—yet load-carrying—composite skin. The goal of the aerostructural optimization is formulated as a high-level requirement, namely to maximize the average annual power production per wing area of an AWE system by tailoring the shape of the wing, and to extend the flight envelope of the wing by actively alleviating gust loads. The results of the concurrent multidisciplinary optimization show a 50.7% increase of extracted power with respect to a sequentially optimized design, highlighting the benefits of morphing and the

Development of Advanced High Lift Leading Edge Technology for Laminar Flow Wings

Science.gov (United States)

Bright, Michelle M.; Korntheuer, Andrea; Komadina, Steve; Lin, John C.

2013-01-01

This paper describes the Advanced High Lift Leading Edge (AHLLE) task performed by Northrop Grumman Systems Corporation, Aerospace Systems (NGAS) for the NASA Subsonic Fixed Wing project in an effort to develop enabling high-lift technology for laminar flow wings. Based on a known laminar cruise airfoil that incorporated an NGAS-developed integrated slot design, this effort involved using Computational Fluid Dynamics (CFD) analysis and quality function deployment (QFD) analysis on several leading edge concepts, and subsequently down-selected to two blown leading-edge concepts for testing. A 7-foot-span AHLLE airfoil model was designed and fabricated at NGAS and then tested at the NGAS 7 x 10 Low Speed Wind Tunnel in Hawthorne, CA. The model configurations tested included: baseline, deflected trailing edge, blown deflected trailing edge, blown leading edge, morphed leading edge, and blown/morphed leading edge. A successful demonstration of high lift leading edge technology was achieved, and the target goals for improved lift were exceeded by 30% with a maximum section lift coefficient (Cl) of 5.2. Maximum incremental section lift coefficients ( Cl) of 3.5 and 3.1 were achieved for a blown drooped (morphed) leading edge concept and a non-drooped leading edge blowing concept, respectively. The most effective AHLLE design yielded an estimated 94% lift improvement over the conventional high lift Krueger flap configurations while providing laminar flow capability on the cruise configuration.

Practice in multi-disciplinary computing. Transonic aero-structural dynamics of semi-monocoque wing

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Onishi, Ryoichi; Guo, Zhihong; Kimura, Toshiya; Iwamiya, Toshiyuki

2000-01-01

Japan Atomic Energy Research Institute is currently involved in expanding the application areas of its distributed parallel computing facility. One of the most anticipated areas of applications is multi-disciplinary interaction problem. This paper introduces the status quo of the system for fluid-structural interaction analysis on the institute's parallel computers by exploring multi-disciplinary engineering methodology. Current application is focused on a transonic aero-elastic analysis of a three dimensional wing. The distinctive features of the system are: (1) Simultaneous executions of fluid and structural codes by exploiting distributed-and-parallel processing technologies. (2) Construction of a computational fluid (aero)-structural dynamics model which combines flow-field grid with a wing structure composed of the external surface and the internal reinforcements. The purpose of this paper is to summarize the basic concepts, analytical methods, and their implementations along with the computed aero-structural properties of a swept-back wing at March, 7 flow condition. (author)

Control-surface hinge-moment calculations for a high-aspect-ratio supercritical wing

Science.gov (United States)

Perry, B., III

1978-01-01

The hinge moments, at selected flight conditions, resulting from deflecting two trailing edge control surfaces (one inboard and one midspan) on a high aspect ratio, swept, fuel conservative wing with a supercritical airfoil are estimated. Hinge moment results obtained from procedures which employ a recently developed transonic analysis are given. In this procedure a three dimensional inviscid transonic aerodynamics computer program is combined with a two dimensional turbulent boundary layer program in order to obtain an interacted solution. These results indicate that trends of the estimated hinge moment as a function of deflection angle are similar to those from experimental hinge moment measurements made on wind tunnel models with swept supercritical wings tested at similar values of free stream Mach number and angle of attack.

Unified aeroacoustics analysis for high speed turboprop aerodynamics and noise. Volume 2: Development of theory for wing shielding

Science.gov (United States)

Amiet, R. K.

1991-01-01

A unified theory for aerodynamics and noise of advanced turboprops is presented. The theory and a computer code developed for evaluation at the shielding benefits that might be expected by an aircraft wing in a wing-mounted propeller installation are presented. Several computed directivity patterns are presented to demonstrate the theory. Recently with the advent of the concept of using the wing of an aircraft for noise shielding, the case of diffraction by a surface in a flow has been given attention. The present analysis is based on the case of diffraction of no flow. By combining a Galilean and a Lorentz transform, the wave equation with a mean flow can be reduced to the ordinary equation. Allowance is also made in the analysis for the case of a swept wing. The same combination of Galilean and Lorentz transforms lead to a problem with no flow but a different sweep. The solution procedures for the cases of leading and trailing edges are basically the same. Two normalizations of the solution are given by the computer program. FORTRAN computer programs are presented with detailed documentation. The output from these programs compares favorably with the results of other investigators.

Experimental Investigations on Leading-Edge Vortex Structures for Flow over Non-Slender Delta Wings

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Jin-Jun, Wang; Wang, Zhang

2008-01-01

The dye injection and hydrogen bubble visualization techniques are used to investigate the dual-vortex structure including its development, breakdown and the spatial location of vortex core over nonslender delta wings. It is concluded that the dual-vortex structure can be affected significantly by sweep angle and Reynolds number, and generated only at small angle of attack. The angle between the projection of outer vortex core on delta wing surface and the root chord line has nothing to do with the Reynolds Number and angle of attack, but has simple linear relation with the sweep angle of the model tested. (fundamental areas of phenomenology (including applications))

Mechanisms of Wing Beat Sound in Flapping Wings of Beetles

Science.gov (United States)

Allen, John

2017-11-01

While the aerodynamic aspects of insect flight have received recent attention, the mechanisms of sound production by flapping wings is not well understood. Though the harmonic structure of wing beat frequency modulation has been reported with respect to biological implications, few studies have rigorously quantified it with respect directionality, phase coupling and vortex tip scattering. Moreover, the acoustic detection and classification of invasive species is both of practical as well scientific interest. In this study, the acoustics of the tethered flight of the Coconut Rhinoceros Beetle (Oryctes rhinoceros) is investigated with four element microphone array in conjunction with complementary optical sensors and high speed video. The different experimental methods for wing beat determination are compared in both the time and frequency domain. Flow visualization is used to examine the vortex and sound generation due to the torsional mode of the wing rotation. Results are compared with related experimental studies of the Oriental Flower Beetle. USDA, State of Hawaii.

Wake patterns of the wings and tail of hovering hummingbirds

Science.gov (United States)

Altshuler, Douglas L.; Princevac, Marko; Pan, Hansheng; Lozano, Jesse

The flow fields of slowly flying bats and fasterflying birds differ in that bats produce two vortex loops during each stroke, one per wing, and birds produce a single vortex loop per stroke. In addition, the circulation at stroke transition approaches zero in bats but remains strong in birds. It is unknown if these difference derive from fundamental differences in wing morphology or are a consequence of flight speed. Here, we present an analysis of the horizontal flow field underneath hovering Anna's hummingbirds (Calypte anna) to describe the wake of a bird flying at zero forward velocity. We also consider how the hummingbird tail interacts with the wake generated by the wings. High-speed image recording and analysis from three orthogonal perspectives revealed that the wing tips reach peak velocities in the middle of each stroke and approach zero velocity at stroke transition. Hummingbirds use complex tail kinematic patterns ranging from in phase to antiphase cycling with respect to the wings, covering several phase shifted patterns. We employed particle image velocimetry to attain detailed horizontal flow measurements at three levels with respect to the tail: in the tail, at the tail tip, and just below the tail. The velocity patterns underneath the wings indicate that flow oscillates along the ventral-dorsal axis in response to the down- and up-strokes and that the sideways flows with respect to the bird are consistently from the lateral to medial. The region around the tail is dominated by axial flows in dorsal to ventral direction. We propose that these flows are generated by interaction between the wakes of the two wings at the end of the upstroke, and that the tail actively defects flows to generate moments that contribute to pitch stability. The flow fields images also revealed distinct vortex loops underneath each wing, which were generated during each stroke. From these data, we propose a model for the primary flow structures of hummingbirds that more

Instability and Transition of Flow at, and Near, an Attachment-line - Including Control by Surface Suction

Science.gov (United States)

Smith, A.

1996-01-01

Advances in aviation during and following the Second World War led to an enormous improvement in the performance of aircraft. The push for enhanced efficiency brought cruise speeds into the transonic range, where the associated drag rise due to the appearance of shock-waves became a limiting factor. Wing sweep was adopted to delay the onset of this drag rise, but with this development came several new and unforeseen problems. Preliminary theoretical work assumed that the boundary layer transition characteristics of a swept wing would be subject to the independence principle, so the chordwise transition position could be predicted from two-dimensional work Gas turbine development has now reached a point where additional increases in efficiency are both difficult and expensive to achieve. Consequently, aircraft manufacturers are looking elsewhere for ways to reduce Direct Operating Costs (DOC's) or increase military performance. The attention of industry is currently focusing on Hybrid Laminar Flow Control (HLFC) as a possible method of reducing DOC's for civil aircraft. Following this study and discussions with NASA Langley and Boeing a different series of questions have been addressed in the present work. There are five areas of interest: Relaminarisation of the attachment-line boundary layer when the value of R exceeds 600. The effects of large suction levels on transition in the attachment-line boundary layer (ie critical oversuction). The transition characteristics of a relaminarised attachment-line flow which encounters a non-porous surface. The effect of attachment-line suction on the spanwise propagation of gross disturbances emanating from the wing-fuselage junction. The attachment-line transition caused by surface blowing.

Nonlinear Dynamics of Wind Turbine Wings

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Larsen, Jesper Winther

, large wind turbines become increasingly flexible and dynamically sensitive. This project focuses on the structural analysis of highly flexible wind turbine wings, and the aerodynamic loading of wind turbine wings under large changes in flow field due to elastic deformations and changing wind conditions....

The evaluation of hierarchical structured superhydrophobic coatings for the alleviation of insect residue to aircraft laminar flow surfaces

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Kok, Mariana [Department of Mechanical, Aeronautical and Biomedical Engineering, University of Limerick, Limerick (Ireland); Materials and Surface Science Institute, University of Limerick, Limerick (Ireland); Young, Trevor M., E-mail: Trevor.Young@ul.ie [Department of Mechanical, Aeronautical and Biomedical Engineering, University of Limerick, Limerick (Ireland); Materials and Surface Science Institute, University of Limerick, Limerick (Ireland)

2014-09-30

Surface contamination caused by insects on laminar flow wing surfaces causes a disruption of the flow, resulting in an increase in drag and fuel consumption. Consequently, the use of superhydrophobic coatings to mitigate insect residue adhesion was investigated. A range of hierarchical superhydrophobic coatings with different surface chemistry and topography was examined. Candidate coatings were characterized in terms of their morphology and hydrophobic properties by scanning electron microscopy (SEM) and static and dynamic contact angle measurements, respectively. Arithmetic mean surface roughness (R{sub a}) values were measured using profilometry. Only superhydrophobic coatings with a specific topography showed complete mitigation against insect residue adhesion. A surface which exhibited a specific microstructure (R{sub a} = 5.26 μm) combined with a low sliding angle (SA = 7.6°) showed the best anti-contamination properties. The dynamics of an insect impact event and its influence on the wetting and adhesion mechanisms of insect residue to a surface were discussed.

Pitot-pressure distributions of the flow field of a delta-wing orbiter

Science.gov (United States)

Cleary, J. W.

1972-01-01

Pitot pressure distributions of the flow field of a 0.0075-scale model of a typical delta wing shuttle orbiter are presented. Results are given for the windward and leeward sides on centerline in the angle-of-attack plane from wind tunnel tests conducted in air. Distributions are shown for three axial stations X/L = .35, .60, and .98 and for angles of attack from 0 to 60 deg. The tests were made at a Mach number of 7.4 and for Reynolds numbers based on body length from 1,500,000 to 9,000,000. The windward distributions at the two survey stations forward of the body boat tail demonstrate the compressive aspects of the flow from the shock wave to the body. Conversely, the distributions at the aft station display an expansion of the flow that is attributed to body boat tail. On the lee side, results are given at low angles of attack that illustrate the complicating aspects of the canopy on the flow field, while results are given to show the effects of flow separation at high angles of attack.

Wings as impellers: honey bees co-opt flight system to induce nest ventilation and disperse pheromones.

Science.gov (United States)

Peters, Jacob M; Gravish, Nick; Combes, Stacey A

2017-06-15

Honey bees ( Apis mellifera ) are remarkable fliers that regularly carry heavy loads of nectar and pollen, supported by a flight system - the wings, thorax and flight muscles - that one might assume is optimized for aerial locomotion. However, honey bees also use this system to perform other crucial tasks that are unrelated to flight. When ventilating the nest, bees grip the surface of the comb or nest entrance and fan their wings to drive airflow through the nest, and a similar wing-fanning behavior is used to disperse volatile pheromones from the Nasonov gland. In order to understand how the physical demands of these impeller-like behaviors differ from those of flight, we quantified the flapping kinematics and compared the frequency, amplitude and stroke plane angle during these non-flight behaviors with values reported for hovering honey bees. We also used a particle-based flow visualization technique to determine the direction and speed of airflow generated by a bee performing Nasonov scenting behavior. We found that ventilatory fanning behavior is kinematically distinct from both flight and scenting behavior. Both impeller-like behaviors drive flow parallel to the surface to which the bees are clinging, at typical speeds of just under 1 m s -1 We observed that the wings of fanning and scenting bees frequently contact the ground during the ventral stroke reversal, which may lead to wing wear. Finally, we observed that bees performing Nasonov scenting behavior sometimes display 'clap-and-fling' motions, in which the wings contact each other during the dorsal stroke reversal and fling apart at the start of the downstroke. We conclude that the wings and flight motor of honey bees comprise a multifunctional system, which may be subject to competing selective pressures because of its frequent use as both a propeller and an impeller. © 2017. Published by The Company of Biologists Ltd.

A Test for Gene Flow among Sympatric and Allopatric Hawaiian Picture-Winged Drosophila.

Science.gov (United States)

Kang, Lin; Garner, Harold R; Price, Donald K; Michalak, Pawel

2017-06-01

The Hawaiian Drosophila are one of the most species-rich endemic groups in Hawaii and a spectacular example of adaptive radiation. Drosophila silvestris and D. heteroneura are two closely related picture-winged Drosophila species that occur sympatrically on Hawaii Island and are known to hybridize in nature, yet exhibit highly divergent behavioral and morphological traits driven largely through sexual selection. Their closest-related allopatric species, D. planitibia from Maui, exhibits hybrid male sterility and reduced behavioral reproductive isolation when crossed experimentally with D. silvestris or D. heteroneura. A modified four-taxon test for gene flow was applied to recently obtained genomes of the three Hawaiian Drosophila species. The analysis indicates recent gene flow in sympatry, but also, although less extensive, between allopatric species. This study underscores the prevalence of gene flow, even in taxonomic groups considered classic examples of allopatric speciation on islands. The potential confounding effects of gene flow in phylogenetic and population genetics inference are discussed, as well as the implications for conservation.

Review Results on Wing-Body Interference

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Frolov Vladimir

2016-01-01

Full Text Available The paper presents an overview of results for wing-body interference, obtained by the author for varied wing-body combinations. The lift-curve slopes of the wing-body combinations are considered. In this paper a discrete vortices method (DVM and 2D potential model for cross-flow around fuselage are used. The circular and elliptical cross-sections of the fuselage and flat wings of various forms are considered. Calculations showed that the value of the lift-curve slopes of the wing-body combinations may exceed the same value for an isolated wing. This result confirms an experimental data obtained by other authors earlier. Within a framework of the used mathematical models the investigations to optimize the wing-body combination were carried. The present results of the optimization problem for the wing-body combination allowed to select the optimal geometric characteristics for configuration to maximize the values of the lift-curve slopes of the wing-body combination. It was revealed that maximums of the lift-curve slopes for the optimal mid-wing configuration with elliptical cross-section body had a sufficiently large relative width of the body (more than 30% of the span wing.

Recent progress in the analysis of iced airfoils and wings

Science.gov (United States)

Cebeci, Tuncer; Chen, Hsun H.; Kaups, Kalle; Schimke, Sue

1992-01-01

Recent work on the analysis of iced airfoils and wings is described. Ice shapes for multielement airfoils and wings are computed using an extension of the LEWICE code that was developed for single airfoils. The aerodynamic properties of the iced wing are determined with an interactive scheme in which the solutions of the inviscid flow equations are obtained from a panel method and the solutions of the viscous flow equations are obtained from an inverse three-dimensional finite-difference boundary-layer method. A new interaction law is used to couple the inviscid and viscous flow solutions. The newly developed LEWICE multielement code is amplified to a high-lift configuration to calculate the ice shapes on the slat and on the main airfoil and on a four-element airfoil. The application of the LEWICE wing code to the calculation of ice shapes on a MS-317 swept wing shows good agreement with measurements. The interactive boundary-layer method is applied to a tapered iced wing in order to study the effect of icing on the aerodynamic properties of the wing at several angles of attack.

A comparison of multicopter and fixed-wing unmanned aerial systems (UAS) applied to mapping debris flows in small alpine catchments

Science.gov (United States)

Sotier, Bernadette; Lechner, Veronika

2016-04-01

The use of unmanned aerial systems (UAS) for documenting natural hazard events (e.g. debris flows) is becoming increasingly popular, as UAS allow on-demand, flexible and cost-efficient data acquisition. In this paper, we present the results of a comparison of multicopter and fixed-wing UAS. They were employed in the summer of 2015 to map two small alpine catchments located in Western Austria, where debris flows had occurred recently: The first event took place in the Seigesbach (Tyrol), the second occurred in the Plojergraben (Salzburg). For the Seigesbach mission, a fixed-wing UAS (Multiplex Mentor), equipped with a Sony NEX5 (50 mm prime lens, 14 MP sensor resolution) was employed to acquire approximately 4,000 images. In the Plojergraben an AustroDrones X18 octocopter was used, carrying a Sony ILCE-7R (35 mm prime lens, 36 MP sensor resolution) to record 1,700 images. Both sites had a size of approximately 2km². 20 ground control points (GCP) were distributed within both catchments, and their location was measured (Trimble GeoXT, expected accuracy 0.15 m). Using standard structure-from-motion photogrammetry software (AgiSoft PhotoScan Pro, v. 1.1.6), orthophotos (5 cm ground sampling distance - GSD) and digital surface models (DSM) (20 cm GSD) were calculated. Volume differences caused by the debris flow (i.e. deposition heights and erosion depths) computed by subtracting post-event from pre-event DSMs. Even though the terrain conditions in the two catchments were comparable, the challenges during the field campaign and the evaluation of the aerial images were very different. The main difference between the two campaigns was the number of flights required to cover the catchment: only four were needed by the fixed-wing UAS, while the multicopter required eleven in the Plojergraben. The fixed-wing UAS is specially designed for missions in hardly accessible regions, requiring only two people to carry the whole equipment, while in this case a car was needed for the

CFD Analysis of a T-38 Wing Fence

Science.gov (United States)

2007-06-01

or making major adjustments to the existing airframe. The answer lies in flow control. Flow control devices like vortex generators, winglets , and wing...fences have been used to improve the aerodynamic performance of hundreds of aircraft. Flow control is commonly added after the final phase of design...proposed by the Air Force Test Pilot School. The driving force for considering a wing fence as opposed to vane vortex generators or winglets 3 was a row of

Beetle wings are inflatable origami

Science.gov (United States)

Chen, Rui; Ren, Jing; Ge, Siqin; Hu, David

2015-11-01

Beetles keep their wings folded and protected under a hard shell. In times of danger, they must unfold them rapidly in order for them to fly to escape. Moreover, they must do so across a range of body mass, from 1 mg to 10 grams. How can they unfold their wings so quickly? We use high-speed videography to record wing unfolding times, which we relate to the geometry of the network of blood vessels in the wing. Larger beetles have longer unfolding times. Modeling of the flow of blood through the veins successfully accounts for the wing unfolding speed of large beetles. However, smaller beetles have anomalously short unfolding times, suggesting they have lower blood viscosity or higher driving pressure. The use of hydraulics to unfold complex objects may have implications in the design of micro-flying air vehicles.

Optimized aerodynamic design process for subsonic transport wing fitted with winglets. [wind tunnel model

Science.gov (United States)

Kuhlman, J. M.

1979-01-01

The aerodynamic design of a wind-tunnel model of a wing representative of that of a subsonic jet transport aircraft, fitted with winglets, was performed using two recently developed optimal wing-design computer programs. Both potential flow codes use a vortex lattice representation of the near-field of the aerodynamic surfaces for determination of the required mean camber surfaces for minimum induced drag, and both codes use far-field induced drag minimization procedures to obtain the required spanloads. One code uses a discrete vortex wake model for this far-field drag computation, while the second uses a 2-D advanced panel wake model. Wing camber shapes for the two codes are very similar, but the resulting winglet camber shapes differ widely. Design techniques and considerations for these two wind-tunnel models are detailed, including a description of the necessary modifications of the design geometry to format it for use by a numerically controlled machine for the actual model construction.

A two-dimensional iterative panel method and boundary layer model for bio-inspired multi-body wings

Science.gov (United States)

Blower, Christopher J.; Dhruv, Akash; Wickenheiser, Adam M.

2014-03-01

The increased use of Unmanned Aerial Vehicles (UAVs) has created a continuous demand for improved flight capabilities and range of use. During the last decade, engineers have turned to bio-inspiration for new and innovative flow control methods for gust alleviation, maneuverability, and stability improvement using morphing aircraft wings. The bio-inspired wing design considered in this study mimics the flow manipulation techniques performed by birds to extend the operating envelope of UAVs through the installation of an array of feather-like panels across the airfoil's upper and lower surfaces while replacing the trailing edge flap. Each flap has the ability to deflect into both the airfoil and the inbound airflow using hinge points with a single degree-of-freedom, situated at 20%, 40%, 60% and 80% of the chord. The installation of the surface flaps offers configurations that enable advantageous maneuvers while alleviating gust disturbances. Due to the number of possible permutations available for the flap configurations, an iterative constant-strength doublet/source panel method has been developed with an integrated boundary layer model to calculate the pressure distribution and viscous drag over the wing's surface. As a result, the lift, drag and moment coefficients for each airfoil configuration can be calculated. The flight coefficients of this numerical method are validated using experimental data from a low speed suction wind tunnel operating at a Reynolds Number 300,000. This method enables the aerodynamic assessment of a morphing wing profile to be performed accurately and efficiently in comparison to Computational Fluid Dynamics methods and experiments as discussed herein.

Insect Analogue to the Lotus Leaf: A Planthopper Wing Membrane Incorporating a Low-Adhesion, Nonwetting, Superhydrophobic, Bactericidal, and Biocompatible Surface.

Science.gov (United States)

Watson, Gregory S; Green, David W; Cribb, Bronwen W; Brown, Christopher L; Meritt, Christopher R; Tobin, Mark J; Vongsvivut, Jitraporn; Sun, Mingxia; Liang, Ai-Ping; Watson, Jolanta A

2017-07-19

Nature has produced many intriguing and spectacular surfaces at the micro- and nanoscales. These small surface decorations act for a singular or, in most cases, a range of functions. The minute landscape found on the lotus leaf is one such example, displaying antiwetting behavior and low adhesion with foreign particulate matter. Indeed the lotus leaf has often been considered the "benchmark" for such properties. One could expect that there are animal counterparts of this self-drying and self-cleaning surface system. In this study, we show that the planthopper insect wing (Desudaba danae) exhibits a remarkable architectural similarity to the lotus leaf surface. Not only does the wing demonstrate a topographical likeness, but some surface properties are also expressed, such as nonwetting behavior and low adhering forces with contaminants. In addition, the insect-wing cuticle exhibits an antibacterial property in which Gram-negative bacteria (Porphyromonas gingivalis) are killed over many consecutive waves of attacks over 7 days. In contrast, eukaryote cell associations, upon contact with the insect membrane, lead to a formation of integrated cell sheets (e.g., among human stem cells (SHED-MSC) and human dermal fibroblasts (HDF)). The multifunctional features of the insect membrane provide a potential natural template for man-made applications in which specific control of liquid, solid, and biological contacts is desired and required. Moreover, the planthopper wing cuticle provides a "new" natural surface with which numerous interfacial properties can be explored for a range of comparative studies with both natural and man-made materials.

Unsteady fluid dynamics around a hovering wing

Science.gov (United States)

Krishna, Swathi; Green, Melissa; Mulleners, Karen

2017-11-01

The unsteady flow around a hovering flat plate wing has been investigated experimentally using particle image velocimetry and direct force measurements. The measurements are conducted on a wing that rotates symmetrically about the stroke reversal at a reduced frequency of k = 0.32 and Reynolds number of Re = 220 . The Lagrangian finite-time Lyapunov exponent method is used to analyse the unsteady flow fields by identifying dynamically relevant flow features such as the primary leading edge vortex (LEV), secondary vortices, and topological saddles, and their evolution within a flapping cycle. The flow evolution is divided into four stages that are characterised by the LEV (a)emergence, (b)growth, (c)lift-off, and (d)breakdown and decay. Tracking saddle points is shown to be helpful in defining the LEV lift-off which occurs at the maximum stroke velocity. The flow fields are correlated with the aerodynamic forces revealing that the maximum lift and drag are observed just before LEV lift-off. The end of wing rotation in the beginning of the stroke stimulates a change in the direction of the LEV growth and the start of rotation at the end of the stroke triggers the breakdown of the LEV.

Evaluation of the Thorax of Manduca Sexta for Flapping Wing Micro Air Vehicle Applications

Science.gov (United States)

2012-12-01

subject to the effects of low Reynolds number flight. These effects extend from wind gusts to unstable aerodynamic flow and viscous dominated flow (Shyy...operate as a mechanical spring damper at resonance during flapping flight (Bolsman 2010). For wing actuation, the M.sexta has two fairly simple and...freshly eclosed moth a surface to climb up, which is an absolute necessity. The moth must climb off of the ground in order to pump fluids through

Spanwise drag variation on low Re wings -- revisited

Science.gov (United States)

Yang, Shanling; Spedding, Geoffrey

2011-11-01

Aerodynamic performance measurement and prediction of airfoils and wings at chord Reynolds numbers below 105 is both difficult and increasingly important in application to small-scale aircraft. Not only are the aerodynamics strongly affected by the dynamics of the unstable laminar boundary layer but the flow is decreasingly likely to be two-dimensional as Re decreases. The spanwise variation of the flow along a two-dimensional geometry is often held to be responsible for the large variations in measured profile drag coefficient. Here we measure local two-dimensional drag coefficients along a finite wing using non-intrusive PIV methods. Variations in Cd (y) can be related to local flow variations on the wing itself. Integrated values can be compared with force balance data, and the proper description of drag components at low Re will be discussed.

Prediction of Aerodynamic Characteristics of Fighter Wings at High Angles of Attack.

Science.gov (United States)

1984-03-01

potential distribution throughout the network of four points on a body surface great- ly facilitates the flow analysis procedure. Tangential velocity...expensive of computer time. For example, as quoted by McLean, using this coarsest grid network , each 0 surface of the 727-200 wing required 10 minutes of...1980. 19. Le Balleur, J.C. and Neron , M., "Calcul D’Ecoulements3 Visqueux Decolles sur Profils D’Ailes par une Approche de Couplage", AGARn CP-291

Wing Tip Drag Reduction at Nominal Take-Off Mach Number: An Approach to Local Active Flow Control with a Highly Robust Actuator System

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Matthias Bauer

2016-10-01

Full Text Available This paper discusses wind tunnel test results aimed at advancing active flow control technology to increase the aerodynamic efficiency of an aircraft during take-off. A model of the outer section of a representative civil airliner wing was equipped with two-stage fluidic actuators between the slat edge and wing tip, where mechanical high-lift devices fail to integrate. The experiments were conducted at a nominal take-off Mach number of M = 0.2. At this incidence velocity, separation on the wing section, accompanied by increased drag, is triggered by the strong slat edge vortex at high angles of attack. On the basis of global force measurements and local static pressure data, the effect of pulsed blowing on the complex flow is evaluated, considering various momentum coefficients and spanwise distributions of the actuation effort. It is shown that through local intensification of forcing, a momentum coefficient of less than c μ = 0.6 % suffices to offset the stall by 2.4°, increase the maximum lift by more than 10% and reduce the drag by 37% compared to the uncontrolled flow.

Flow structure and aerodynamic performance of a hovering bristled wing in low Re

Science.gov (United States)

Lee, Seunghun; Lahooti, Mohsen; Kim, Daegyoum

2017-11-01

Previous studies on a bristled wing have mainly focused on simple kinematics of the wing such as translation or rotation. The aerodynamic performance of a bristled wing in a quasi-steady phase is known to be comparable to that of a smooth wing without a gap because shear layers in the gaps of the bristled wing are sufficiently developed to block the gaps. However, we point out that, in the starting transient phase where the shear layers are not fully developed, the force generation of a bristled wing is not as efficient as that of a quasi-steady state. The performance in the transient phase is important to understand the aerodynamics of a bristled wing in an unsteady motion. In the hovering motion, due to repeated stroke reversals, the formation and development of shear layers inside the gaps is repeated in each stroke. In this study, a bristled wing in hovering is numerically investigated in the low Reynolds number of O(10). We especially focus on the development of shear layers during a stroke reversal and its effect on the overall propulsive performance. Although the aerodynamic force generation is slightly reduced due to the gap vortices, the asymmetric behavior of vortices in a gap between bristles during a stroke reversal makes the bristled wing show higher lift to drag ratio than a smooth wing.

Comparative Analysis of Uninhibited and Constrained Avian Wing Aerodynamics

Science.gov (United States)

Cox, Jordan A.

The flight of birds has intrigued and motivated man for many years. Bird flight served as the primary inspiration of flying machines developed by Leonardo Da Vinci, Otto Lilienthal, and even the Wright brothers. Avian flight has once again drawn the attention of the scientific community as unmanned aerial vehicles (UAV) are not only becoming more popular, but smaller. Birds are once again influencing the designs of aircraft. Small UAVs operating within flight conditions and low Reynolds numbers common to birds are not yet capable of the high levels of control and agility that birds display with ease. Many researchers believe the potential to improve small UAV performance can be obtained by applying features common to birds such as feathers and flapping flight to small UAVs. Although the effects of feathers on a wing have received some attention, the effects of localized transient feather motion and surface geometry on the flight performance of a wing have been largely overlooked. In this research, the effects of freely moving feathers on a preserved red tailed hawk wing were studied. A series of experiments were conducted to measure the aerodynamic forces on a hawk wing with varying levels of feather movement permitted. Angle of attack and air speed were varied within the natural flight envelope of the hawk. Subsequent identical tests were performed with the feather motion constrained through the use of externally-applied surface treatments. Additional tests involved the study of an absolutely fixed geometry mold-and-cast wing model of the original bird wing. Final tests were also performed after applying surface coatings to the cast wing. High speed videos taken during tests revealed the extent of the feather movement between wing models. Images of the microscopic surface structure of each wing model were analyzed to establish variations in surface geometry between models. Recorded aerodynamic forces were then compared to the known feather motion and surface

HYDRODYNAMICS OF OSCILLATING WING ON THE PITCH ANGLE

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Vitalii Korobov

2017-07-01

Full Text Available Purpose: research of the hydrodynamic characteristics of a wing in a nonstationary stream. Methods: The experimental studies of the hydrodynamic load acting on the wing of 1.5 elongation, wich harmonically oscillated respect to the transversal axis in the frequency range of 0.2-2.5 Hz. The flow speed in the hydrodynamic tunnel ranged of 0.2-1.5 m/s. Results: The instantaneous values of the coefficients of lift and drag / thrust on the pitch angle at unsteady flow depends on the Strouhal number.Discussion: with increasing oscillation frequency coefficients of hydrodynamic force components significantly higher than the data for the stationary blowing out of the wing.

An experimental investigation into the deployment of 3-D, finned wing and shape memory alloy vortex generators in a forced air convection heat pipe fin stack

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Aris, M.S.; McGlen, R.; Owen, I.; Sutcliffe, C.J.

2011-01-01

Forced air convection heat pipe cooling systems play an essential role in the thermal management of electronic and power electronic devices such as microprocessors and IGBT's (Integrated Gate Bipolar Transistors). With increasing heat dissipation from these devices, novel methods of improving the thermal performance of fin stacks attached to the heat pipe condenser section are required. The current work investigates the use of a wing type surface protrusions in the form of 3-D delta wing tabs adhered to the fin surface, thin wings punched-out of the fin material and TiNi shape memory alloy delta wings which changed their angles of attack based on the fin surface temperature. The longitudinal vortices generated from the wing designs induce secondary mixing of the cooler free stream air entering the fin stack with the warmer fluid close to the fin surfaces. The change in angle of the attack of the active delta wings provide heat transfer enhancement while managing flow pressure losses across the fin stack. A heat transfer enhancement of 37% compared to a plain fin stack was obtained from the 3-D tabs in a staggered arrangement. The punched-out delta wings in the staggered and inline arrangements provided enhancements of 30% and 26% respectively. Enhancements from the active delta wings were lower at 16%. However, as these devices reduce the pressure drop through the fin stack by approximately 19% in the de-activate position, over the activated position, a reduction in fan operating cost may be achieved for systems operating with inlet air temperatures below the maximum inlet temperature specification for the device. CFD analysis was also carried out to provide additional detail of the local heat transfer enhancement effects. The CFD results corresponded well with previously published reports and were consistent with the experimental findings. - Highlights: → Heat transfer enhancements of heat pipe fin stacks was successfully achieved using fixed and active delta

Flexible micro flow sensor for micro aerial vehicles

Science.gov (United States)

Zhu, Rong; Que, Ruiyi; Liu, Peng

2017-12-01

This article summarizes our studies on micro flow sensors fabricated on a flexible polyimide circuit board by a low-cost hybrid process of thin-film deposition and circuit printing. The micro flow sensor has merits of flexibility, structural simplicity, easy integrability with circuits, and good sensing performance. The sensor, which adheres to an object surface, can detect the surface flow around the object. In our study, we install the fabricated micro flow sensors on micro aerial vehicles (MAVs) to detect the surface flow variation around the aircraft wing and deduce the aerodynamic parameters of the MAVs in flight. Wind tunnel experiments using the sensors integrated with the MAVs are also conducted.

Discrete-Roughness-Element-Enhanced Swept-Wing Natural Laminar Flow at High Reynolds Numbers

Science.gov (United States)

Malik, Mujeeb; Liao, Wei; Li, Fei; Choudhari, Meelan

2015-01-01

Nonlinear parabolized stability equations and secondary-instability analyses are used to provide a computational assessment of the potential use of the discrete-roughness-element technology for extending swept-wing natural laminar flow at chord Reynolds numbers relevant to transport aircraft. Computations performed for the boundary layer on a natural-laminar-flow airfoil with a leading-edge sweep angle of 34.6 deg, freestream Mach number of 0.75, and chord Reynolds numbers of 17 × 10(exp 6), 24 × 10(exp 6), and 30 × 10(exp 6) suggest that discrete roughness elements could delay laminar-turbulent transition by about 20% when transition is caused by stationary crossflow disturbances. Computations show that the introduction of small-wavelength stationary crossflow disturbances (i.e., discrete roughness element) also suppresses the growth of most amplified traveling crossflow disturbances.

Low noise wing slat system with rigid cove-filled slat

Science.gov (United States)

Shmilovich, Arvin (Inventor); Yadlin, Yoram (Inventor)

2013-01-01

Concepts and technologies described herein provide for a low noise aircraft wing slat system. According to one aspect of the disclosure provided herein, a cove-filled wing slat is used in conjunction with a moveable panel rotatably attached to the wing slat to provide a high lift system. The moveable panel rotates upward against the rear surface of the slat during deployment of the slat, and rotates downward to bridge a gap width between the stowed slat and the lower wing surface, completing the continuous outer mold line shape of the wing, when the cove-filled slat is retracted to the stowed position.

Role of wing morphing in thrust generation

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Mehdi Ghommem

2014-01-01

Full Text Available In this paper, we investigate the role of morphing on flight dynamics of two birds by simulating the flow over rigid and morphing wings that have the characteristics of two different birds, namely the Giant Petrel and Dove Prion. The simulation of a flapping rigid wing shows that the root of the wing should be placed at a specific angle of attack in order to generate enough lift to balance the weight of the bird. However, in this case the generated thrust is either very small, or even negative, depending on the wing shape. Further, results show that morphing of the wing enables a significant increase in the thrust and propulsive efficiency. This indicates that the birds actually utilize some sort of active wing twisting and bending to produce enough thrust. This study should facilitate better guidance for the design of flapping air vehicles.

Wing rock suppression using forebody vortex control

Science.gov (United States)

Ng, T. T.; Ong, L. Y.; Suarez, C. J.; Malcolm, G. N.

1991-01-01

Static and free-to-roll tests were conducted in a water tunnel with a configuration that consisted of a highly-slender forebody and 78-deg sweep delta wings. Flow visualization was performed and the roll angle histories were obtained. The fluid mechanisms governing the wing rock of this configuration were identified. Different means of suppressing wing rock by controlling the forebody vortices using small blowing jets were also explored. Steady blowing was found to be capable of suppressing wing rock, but significant vortex asymmetries had to be induced at the same time. On the other hand, alternating pulsed blowing on the left and right sides of the forebody was demonstrated to be potentially an effective means of suppressing wing rock and eliminating large asymmetric moments at high angles of attack.

The initial study on supercritical water flow and heat transfer in square rod bundle channel with mixing vane

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Zuo Guoping; Cao Can; Yu Tao

2010-01-01

Three-dimensional rectangular channel with the mixing wine in supercritical water reactor was studied in the paper using the FLUENT software. The mixing wing elevation influence on temperature distribution and flow field were studied in the model. The results showed the mixing wing caused fluid circumferential flow, making flow hot and cold fluids mixed and fluid temperature uniform distribution, effectively improved the fuel rod surface temperature distribution and reduced hot temperature. Among the four cases of mixing wing elevation of 15, 30, 45 and 50 angle, 30 angle is the best case in improving temperature distribution. (authors)

Dynamics of F-actin prefigure the structure of butterfly wing scales.

Science.gov (United States)

Dinwiddie, April; Null, Ryan; Pizzano, Maria; Chuong, Lisa; Leigh Krup, Alexis; Ee Tan, Hwei; Patel, Nipam H

2014-08-15

The wings of butterflies and moths consist of dorsal and ventral epidermal surfaces that give rise to overlapping layers of scales and hairs (Lepidoptera, "scale wing"). Wing scales (average length ~200 µm) are homologous to insect bristles (macrochaetes), and their colors create the patterns that characterize lepidopteran wings. The topology and surface sculpture of wing scales vary widely, and this architectural complexity arises from variations in the developmental program of the individual scale cells of the wing epithelium. One of the more striking features of lepidopteran wing scales are the longitudinal ridges that run the length of the mature (dead) cell, gathering the cuticularized scale cell surface into pleats on the sides of each scale. While also present around the periphery of other insect bristles and hairs, longitudinal ridges in lepidopteran wing scales gain new significance for their creation of iridescent color through microribs and lamellae. Here we show the dynamics of the highly organized F-actin filaments during scale cell development, and present experimental manipulations of actin polymerization that reveal the essential role of this cytoskeletal component in wing scale elongation and the positioning of longitudinal ribs. Copyright © 2014 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

Development of Delta Wing Aerodynamics Research in Universiti Teknologi Malaysia Low Speed Wind Tunnel

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Shabudin Mat

2014-07-01

Full Text Available This paper presents wind tunnel experiment on two delta wing configurations which are differentiated by their leading edge profiles: sharp and round-edged wings. The experiments were performed as a part of the delta wing aerodynamics research development in Universiti Teknologi Malaysia, low speed tunnel (UTM-LST. Steady load balance and flow visualization tests were conducted at Reynolds numbers of 0.5, 1, and 1.5 × 106, respectively. The flow measurement at low Reynolds number was also performed at as low as speed of 5 m/s. During the experiments, laser with smoke flow visualizations test was performed on both wings. The study has identified interesting features of the interrelationship between the conventional leading edge primary vortex and the occurrence and development of the vortex breakdown above the delta wings. The results conclude the vortex characteristics are largely dependent on the Reynolds number, angle of attack, and leading-edge radii of the wing.

A CFD Database for Airfoils and Wings at Post-Stall Angles of Attack

Science.gov (United States)

Petrilli, Justin; Paul, Ryan; Gopalarathnam, Ashok; Frink, Neal T.

2013-01-01

This paper presents selected results from an ongoing effort to develop an aerodynamic database from Reynolds-Averaged Navier-Stokes (RANS) computational analysis of airfoils and wings at stall and post-stall angles of attack. The data obtained from this effort will be used for validation and refinement of a low-order post-stall prediction method developed at NCSU, and to fill existing gaps in high angle of attack data in the literature. Such data could have potential applications in post-stall flight dynamics, helicopter aerodynamics and wind turbine aerodynamics. An overview of the NASA TetrUSS CFD package used for the RANS computational approach is presented. Detailed results for three airfoils are presented to compare their stall and post-stall behavior. The results for finite wings at stall and post-stall conditions focus on the effects of taper-ratio and sweep angle, with particular attention to whether the sectional flows can be approximated using two-dimensional flow over a stalled airfoil. While this approximation seems reasonable for unswept wings even at post-stall conditions, significant spanwise flow on stalled swept wings preclude the use of two-dimensional data to model sectional flows on swept wings. Thus, further effort is needed in low-order aerodynamic modeling of swept wings at stalled conditions.

Computational Analysis of the G-III Laminar Flow Glove

Science.gov (United States)

Malik, Mujeeb R.; Liao, Wei; Lee-Rausch, Elizabeth M.; Li, Fei; Choudhari, Meelan M.; Chang, Chau-Lyan

2011-01-01

Under NASA's Environmentally Responsible Aviation Project, flight experiments are planned with the primary objective of demonstrating the Discrete Roughness Elements (DRE) technology for passive laminar flow control at chord Reynolds numbers relevant to transport aircraft. In this paper, we present a preliminary computational assessment of the Gulfstream-III (G-III) aircraft wing-glove designed to attain natural laminar flow for the leading-edge sweep angle of 34.6deg. Analysis for a flight Mach number of 0.75 shows that it should be possible to achieve natural laminar flow for twice the transition Reynolds number ever achieved at this sweep angle. However, the wing-glove needs to be redesigned to effectively demonstrate passive laminar flow control using DREs. As a by-product of the computational assessment, effect of surface curvature on stationary crossflow disturbances is found to be strongly stabilizing for the current design, and it is suggested that convex surface curvature could be used as a control parameter for natural laminar flow design, provided transition occurs via stationary crossflow disturbances.

Effects of Sweep Angle on the Boundary-Layer Stability Characteristics of an Untapered Wing at Low Speeds

Science.gov (United States)

Boltz, Frederick W.; Kenyon, George C.; Allen, Clyde Q.

1960-01-01

An investigation was conducted in the Ames 12-Foot Low-Turbulence Pressure Tunnel to determine the effects of sweep on the boundary-layer stability characteristics of an untapered variable-sweep wing having an NACA 64(2)A015 section normal to the leading edge. Pressure distribution and transition were measured on the wing at low speeds at sweep angles of 0, 10, 20, 30, 40, and 50 deg. and at angles of attack from -3 to 3 deg. The investigation also included flow-visualization studies on the surface at sweep angles from 0 to 50 deg. and total pressure surveys in the boundary layer at a sweep angle of 30 deg. for angles of attack from -12 to 0 deg. It was found that sweep caused premature transition on the wing under certain conditions. This effect resulted from the formation of vortices in the boundary layer when a critical combination of sweep angle, pressure gradient, and stream Reynolds number was attained. A useful parameter in indicating the combined effect of these flow variables on vortex formation and on beginning transition is the crossflow Reynolds number. The critical values of crossflow Reynolds number for vortex formation found in this investigation range from about 135 to 190 and are in good agreement with those reported in previous investigations. The values of crossflow Reynolds number for beginning transitions were found to be between 190 and 260. For each condition (i.e., development of vortices and initiation of transition at a given location) the lower values in the specified ranges were obtained with a light coating of flow-visualization material on the surface. A method is presented for the rapid computation of crossflow Reynolds number on any swept surface for which the pressure distribution is known. From calculations based on this method, it was found that the maximum values of crossflow Reynolds number are attained under conditions of a strong pressure gradient and at a sweep angle of about 50 deg. Due to the primary dependence on pressure

Synthetic Jet Interactions with Flows of Varying Separation Severity and Spanwise Flow Magnitude

Science.gov (United States)

Monastero, Marianne; Lindstrom, Annika; Amitay, Michael

2017-11-01

Flow physics associated with the interactions of synthetic jet actuators with a highly three-dimensional separated flow over a flapped airfoil were investigated experimentally and analyzed using stereo particle image velocimetry (SPIV) and surface pressure data. Increased understanding of active flow control devices in flows which are representative of airplane wings or tails can lead to actuator placement (i.e., chordwise location, spanwise spacing) with the greatest beneficial effect on performance. An array of discrete synthetic jets was located just upstream of the control surface hingeline and operated at a blowing ratio of 1 and non-dimensional frequency of 48. Detailed flowfield measurements over the control surface were conducted, where the airfoil's sweep angle and the control surface deflection angle were fixed at 20°. Focus was placed on the local and global flowfields as spanwise actuator spacing was varied. Moreover, surface pressure measurement for several sweep angles, control surface deflection angles, and angles of attack were also performed. Actuation resulted in an overall separation reduction and a dependence of local flowfield details (i.e. separation severity, spanwise flow magnitude, flow structures, and jet trajectory) on spanwise jet spacing. The Boeing Company.

A Model for Selection of Eyespots on Butterfly Wings.

Science.gov (United States)

Sekimura, Toshio; Venkataraman, Chandrasekhar; Madzvamuse, Anotida

2015-01-01

The development of eyespots on the wing surface of butterflies of the family Nympalidae is one of the most studied examples of biological pattern formation.However, little is known about the mechanism that determines the number and precise locations of eyespots on the wing. Eyespots develop around signaling centers, called foci, that are located equidistant from wing veins along the midline of a wing cell (an area bounded by veins). A fundamental question that remains unsolved is, why a certain wing cell develops an eyespot, while other wing cells do not. We illustrate that the key to understanding focus point selection may be in the venation system of the wing disc. Our main hypothesis is that changes in morphogen concentration along the proximal boundary veins of wing cells govern focus point selection. Based on previous studies, we focus on a spatially two-dimensional reaction-diffusion system model posed in the interior of each wing cell that describes the formation of focus points. Using finite element based numerical simulations, we demonstrate that variation in the proximal boundary condition is sufficient to robustly select whether an eyespot focus point forms in otherwise identical wing cells. We also illustrate that this behavior is robust to small perturbations in the parameters and geometry and moderate levels of noise. Hence, we suggest that an anterior-posterior pattern of morphogen concentration along the proximal vein may be the main determinant of the distribution of focus points on the wing surface. In order to complete our model, we propose a two stage reaction-diffusion system model, in which an one-dimensional surface reaction-diffusion system, posed on the proximal vein, generates the morphogen concentrations that act as non-homogeneous Dirichlet (i.e., fixed) boundary conditions for the two-dimensional reaction-diffusion model posed in the wing cells. The two-stage model appears capable of generating focus point distributions observed in

A Model for Selection of Eyespots on Butterfly Wings.

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Toshio Sekimura

Full Text Available The development of eyespots on the wing surface of butterflies of the family Nympalidae is one of the most studied examples of biological pattern formation.However, little is known about the mechanism that determines the number and precise locations of eyespots on the wing. Eyespots develop around signaling centers, called foci, that are located equidistant from wing veins along the midline of a wing cell (an area bounded by veins. A fundamental question that remains unsolved is, why a certain wing cell develops an eyespot, while other wing cells do not.We illustrate that the key to understanding focus point selection may be in the venation system of the wing disc. Our main hypothesis is that changes in morphogen concentration along the proximal boundary veins of wing cells govern focus point selection. Based on previous studies, we focus on a spatially two-dimensional reaction-diffusion system model posed in the interior of each wing cell that describes the formation of focus points. Using finite element based numerical simulations, we demonstrate that variation in the proximal boundary condition is sufficient to robustly select whether an eyespot focus point forms in otherwise identical wing cells. We also illustrate that this behavior is robust to small perturbations in the parameters and geometry and moderate levels of noise. Hence, we suggest that an anterior-posterior pattern of morphogen concentration along the proximal vein may be the main determinant of the distribution of focus points on the wing surface. In order to complete our model, we propose a two stage reaction-diffusion system model, in which an one-dimensional surface reaction-diffusion system, posed on the proximal vein, generates the morphogen concentrations that act as non-homogeneous Dirichlet (i.e., fixed boundary conditions for the two-dimensional reaction-diffusion model posed in the wing cells. The two-stage model appears capable of generating focus point distributions

A computational study on the influence of insect wing geometry on bee flight mechanics

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Jeffrey Feaster

2017-12-01

Full Text Available Two-dimensional computational fluid dynamics (CFD is applied to better understand the effects of wing cross-sectional morphology on flow field and force production. This study investigates the influence of wing cross-section on insect scale flapping flight performance, for the first time, using a morphologically representative model of a bee (Bombus pensylvanicus wing. The bee wing cross-section was determined using a micro-computed tomography scanner. The results of the bee wing are compared with flat and elliptical cross-sections, representative of those used in modern literature, to determine the impact of profile variation on aerodynamic performance. The flow field surrounding each cross-section and the resulting forces are resolved using CFD for a flight speed range of 1 to 5 m/s. A significant variation in vortex formation is found when comparing the ellipse and flat plate with the true bee wing. During the upstroke, the bee and approximate wing cross-sections have a much shorter wake structure than the flat plate or ellipse. During the downstroke, the flat plate and elliptical cross-sections generate a single leading edge vortex, while the approximate and bee wings generate numerous, smaller structures that are shed throughout the stroke. Comparing the instantaneous aerodynamic forces on the wing, the ellipse and flat plate sections deviate progressively with velocity from the true bee wing. Based on the present findings, a simplified cross-section of an insect wing can misrepresent the flow field and force production. We present the first aerodynamic study using a true insect wing cross-section and show that the wing corrugation increases the leading edge vortex formation frequency for a given set of kinematics.

Control of wing-tip vortex using winglets at low Reynolds number

Science.gov (United States)

Cho, Seunghyun; Choi, Haecheon

2014-11-01

Winglets are considered as one of the effective devices for reducing induced drag, and thus many studies have been conducted, but mainly at high Reynolds numbers (Re ~106 ~107) for commercial airplanes. However, small-size unmanned air vehicles (UAV), operating at low Reynolds numbers (Re PIV measurements are conducted at several cross-flow planes for a few different angles of attack (α) . At high angles of attack (7° ~13°) , the winglets with the cant angle of 70° increase the aerodynamic performance, whereas at low angles of attack (2° ~6°) , the wing-tip extension (cant angle of 0°) shows better performances. The velocity fields measured from PIV indicate that, with the winglet, the wing-tip vortex moves away from the wing surface at α =12° , and the downwash motion in the wake behind the trailing edge is decreased, reducing the magnitude of the induced drag. A concept of changing the cant angle during flight is also suggested at this talk. Supported by 2011-0028032.

Aerodynamic characteristics of a wing near its tip using panel method. Panel ho ni yoru tandokuyoku yokutan fukin no kuryoku tokusei

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Choi, J [Nagoya University, Nagoya (Japan); Sugiyama, Y [Nagoya University, Nagoya (Japan). Faculty of Engineering

1992-01-05

The study described in this paper is intended to evaluate the aerodynamic characteristics of a turbo machine wing or an aircraft wing near its tip, using the panel method. The paper describes the case of a rectangular wing with a large aspect ratio. The introduced linear simultaneous equation was solved using a computer, and compared with the experimental result. The result may be summarized as follows: The distribution of pressure on the wing near its tip using the panel method takes the same shape as that for the experimental result; the negative pressure calculated close to the wing's trailing edge near the wing tip is a result of a three-dimensional effect of the flow along the wing width; the calculation and the experiment showed an increase in local lift coefficient and locally induced resistance coefficient in the vicinity of wing tip; the speed component in the y'' direction explains the structure of the wing surface velocity forming wing backwash vortex given by the lift linearity theory; and the result of calculation on the pressure distribution in the wing chord direction near the wing tip is very close to the experimental result except for the wing flank in the close vicinity of the wing tip upstream of the wing chord middle point. 11 refs., 13 figs.

Aerodynamics of a translating comb-like plate inspired by a fairyfly wing

Science.gov (United States)

Lee, Seung Hun; Kim, Daegyoum

2017-08-01

Unlike the smooth wings of common insects or birds, micro-scale insects such as the fairyfly have a distinctive wing geometry, comprising a frame with several bristles. Motivated by this peculiar wing geometry, we experimentally investigated the flow structure of a translating comb-like wing for a wide range of gap size, angle of attack, and Reynolds number, Re = O(10) - O(103), and the correlation of these parameters with aerodynamic performance. The flow structures of a smooth plate without a gap and a comb-like plate are significantly different at high Reynolds number, while little difference was observed at the low Reynolds number of O(10). At low Reynolds number, shear layers that were generated at the edges of the tooth of the comb-like plate strongly diffuse and eventually block a gap. This gap blockage increases the effective surface area of the plate and alters the formation of leading-edge and trailing-edge vortices. As a result, the comb-like plate generates larger aerodynamic force per unit area than the smooth plate. In addition to a quasi-steady phase after the comb-like plate travels several chords, we also studied a starting phase of the shear layer development when the comb-like plate begins to translate from rest. While a plate with small gap size can generate aerodynamic force at the starting phase as effectively as at the quasi-steady phase, the aerodynamic force drops noticeably for a plate with a large gap because the diffusion of the developing shear layers is not enough to block the gap.

Exploring the Role of Habitat on the Wettability of Cicada Wings.

Science.gov (United States)

Oh, Junho; Dana, Catherine E; Hong, Sungmin; Román, Jessica K; Jo, Kyoo Dong; Hong, Je Won; Nguyen, Jonah; Cropek, Donald M; Alleyne, Marianne; Miljkovic, Nenad

2017-08-16

Evolutionary pressure has pushed many extant species to develop micro/nanostructures that can significantly affect wettability and enable functionalities such as droplet jumping, self-cleaning, antifogging, antimicrobial, and antireflectivity. In particular, significant effort is underway to understand the insect wing surface structure to establish rational design tools for the development of novel engineered materials. Most studies, however, have focused on superhydrophobic wings obtained from a single insect species, in particular, the Psaltoda claripennis cicada. Here, we investigate the relationship between the spatially dependent wing wettability, topology, and droplet jumping behavior of multiple cicada species and their habitat, lifecycle, and interspecies relatedness. We focus on cicada wings of four different species: Neotibicen pruinosus, N. tibicen, Megatibicen dorsatus, and Magicicada septendecim and take a comparative approach. Using spatially resolved microgoniometry, scanning electron microscopy, atomic force microscopy, and high speed optical microscopy, we show that within cicada species, the wettability of wings is spatially homogeneous across wing cells. All four species were shown to have truncated conical pillars with widely varying length scales ranging from 50 to 400 nm in height. Comparison of the wettability revealed three cicada species with wings that are superhydrophobic (>150°) with low contact angle hysteresis (<5°), resulting in stable droplet jumping behavior. The fourth, more distantly related species (Ma. septendecim) showed only moderate hydrophobic behavior, eliminating some of the beneficial surface functional aspects for this cicada. Correlation between cicada habitat and wing wettability yielded little connection as wetter, swampy environments do not necessarily equate to higher measured wing hydrophobicity. The results, however, do point to species relatedness and reproductive strategy as a closer proxy for predicting

Study of interaction of a pair of longitudinal vortices with a horseshoe vortex around a wing. 2nd Report. Behavior of the interacting flow field controlled passively; Tsubasa mawari no bateikei uzu to tateuzu no kansho ni kansuru kenkyu. 2. Judo seigyosareta nagareba no kyodo

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Hara, H. [Mitsubishi Heavy Industries, Ltd., Tokyo (Japan); Shizawa, T.; Honami, S. [Science University of Tokyo, Tokyo (Japan). Faculty of Engineering

1999-12-25

This paper presents the behavior of a passively controlled horseshoe vortex at the root of NACA0024 wing which is established on a turbulent boundary layer, A pair of vortex generators of half delta wing is installed upstream of the wing. The flow field of the optimally controlled horseshoe vortex both in case of Common Flow Up (CFUC) and Common Flow Down Configuration (CFDC) is carefully investigated by an X-array hot-wire. In case of CFUC, the horseshoe vortex is not shifted from the wing, because the longitudinal vortex is restrained. The interacted vortex presents a circular profile, in a optimally controlled case. In case of CFDC, the interacted vortex that has strong vorticity by the pairing process is shifted away from the wing. Then, the high momentum fluid flow penetrates between the wing and the vortex. (author)

Waterproof and translucent wings at the same time: problems and solutions in butterflies.

Science.gov (United States)

Goodwyn, Pablo Perez; Maezono, Yasunori; Hosoda, Naoe; Fujisaki, Kenji

2009-07-01

Although the colour of butterflies attracts the most attention, the waterproofing properties of their wings are also extremely interesting. Most butterfly wings are considered "super-hydrophobic" because the contact angle (CA) with a water drop exceeds 150 degrees. Usually, butterfly wings are covered with strongly overlapping scales; however, in the case of transparent or translucent wings, scale cover is reduced; thus, the hydrophobicity could be affected. Here, we present a comparative analysis of wing hydrophobicity and its dependence on morphology for two species with translucent wings Parantica sita (Nymphalidae) and Parnassius glacialis (Papilionidae). These species have very different life histories: P. sita lives for up to 6 months as an adult and migrates over long distance, whereas P. glacialis lives for less than 1 month and does not migrate. We measured the water CA and analysed wing morphology with scanning electron microscopy and atomic force microscopy. P. sita has super-hydrophobic wing surfaces, with CA > 160 degrees, whereas P. glacialis did not (CA = 100-135 degrees). Specialised scales were found on the translucent portions of P. sita wings. These scales were ovoid and much thinner than common scales, erect at about 30 degrees, and leaving up to 80% of the wing surface uncovered. The underlying bare wing surface had a remarkable pattern of ridges and knobs. P. glacialis also had over 80% of the wing surface uncovered, but the scales were either setae-like or spade-like. The bare surface of the wing had an irregular wavy smooth pattern. We suggest a mode of action that allows this super-hydrophobic effect with an incompletely covered wing surface. The scales bend, but do not collapse, under the pressure of a water droplet, and the elastic recovery of the structure at the borders of the droplet allows a high apparent CA. Thus, P. sita can be translucent without losing its waterproof properties. This characteristic is likely necessary for the long

An experimental study of the nonlinear dynamic phenomenon known as wing rock

Science.gov (United States)

Arena, A. S., Jr.; Nelson, R. C.; Schiff, L. B.

1990-01-01

An experimental investigation into the physical phenomena associated with limit cycle wing rock on slender delta wings has been conducted. The model used was a slender flat plate delta wing with 80-deg leading edge sweep. The investigation concentrated on three main areas: motion characteristics obtained from time history plots, static and dynamic flow visualization of vortex position, and static and dynamic flow visualization of vortex breakdown. The flow visualization studies are correlated with model motion to determine the relationship between vortex position and vortex breakdown with the dynamic rolling moments. Dynamic roll moment coefficient curves reveal rate-dependent hysteresis, which drives the motion. Vortex position correlated with time and model motion show a time lag in the normal position of the upward moving wing vortex. This time lag may be the mechanism responsible for the hysteresis. Vortex breakdown is shown to have a damping effect on the motion.

Physics-based Morphology Analysis and Adjoint Optimization of Flexible Flapping Wings

Science.gov (United States)

2016-08-30

production, power consumption , and efficiency. Novel tools for studying wing morphing during complicated flapping flights have been developed to...23 Figure 14. Transverse plane cut at mid-downstroke. (a) Cut through wing and body (b) Cut through the near wake (no wings...between wing surfaces and corresponding least square planes . The distances are normalized by wing mid chord length

Large CYBER-205-model of the Euler equations for vortex-stretched turbulent flow around Delta wings

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Rizzi, A.; Purcell, C.J.

1985-01-01

The large-scale numerical simulation of fluid flow is described as a discipline within the field of software engineering. As an example of such work, a vortex flow field is analyzed for its essential physical flow features, an appropriate mathematical description is presented (the Euler equations with an artificial viscosity model), a numerical algorithm to solve mathematical equations is described, and the programming methodology which allows us to attain a very high degree of vectorization on the CYBER 205 is discussed. Four simulated flowfields with vorticity shed from wing edges are computed with up to as many as one million grid points and verify the realism of the simulation model. The computed solutions show all of the qualitative features that are expected in these flows. The twisted cranked-and-cropped delta case is one where the leading-edge vortex is highly stretched and unstable, displaying ultimately inviscid large-scale turbulent-like phenomena

Problem of Vortex Turbulence behind Wings (II),

Science.gov (United States)

1980-09-23

these winglets would give a resultant aerodynamic force directed towards the front which would decrease the wing drag. Such winglets will affect the...Fig. 30 Whitcomb winglets Pig. 31 Set of winglets for wake dissipation Surfaces on wing tips, winglets (Fig. 30), proposed by Whitcomb to diminish...anyway - to decrease the induced drag of the wing by putting some winglets at a certain angle in different planes, as shown in Fig. 31. The total

Three-Dimensional Piecewise-Continuous Class-Shape Transformation of Wings

Science.gov (United States)

Olson, Erik D.

2015-01-01

Class-Shape Transformation (CST) is a popular method for creating analytical representations of the surface coordinates of various components of aerospace vehicles. A wide variety of two- and three-dimensional shapes can be represented analytically using only a modest number of parameters, and the surface representation is smooth and continuous to as fine a degree as desired. This paper expands upon the original two-dimensional representation of airfoils to develop a generalized three-dimensional CST parametrization scheme that is suitable for a wider range of aircraft wings than previous formulations, including wings with significant non-planar shapes such as blended winglets and box wings. The method uses individual functions for the spanwise variation of airfoil shape, chord, thickness, twist, and reference axis coordinates to build up the complete wing shape. An alternative formulation parameterizes the slopes of the reference axis coordinates in order to relate the spanwise variation to the tangents of the sweep and dihedral angles. Also discussed are methods for fitting existing wing surface coordinates, including the use of piecewise equations to handle discontinuities, and mathematical formulations of geometric continuity constraints. A subsonic transport wing model is used as an example problem to illustrate the application of the methodology and to quantify the effects of piecewise representation and curvature constraints.

Review of Constructed Subsurface Flow vs. Surface Flow Wetlands

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

HALVERSON, NANCY

2004-01-01

The purpose of this document is to use existing documentation to review the effectiveness of subsurface flow and surface flow constructed wetlands in treating wastewater and to demonstrate the viability of treating effluent from Savannah River Site outfalls H-02 and H-04 with a subsurface flow constructed wetland to lower copper, lead and zinc concentrations to within National Pollutant Discharge Elimination System (NPDES) Permit limits. Constructed treatment wetlands are engineered systems that have been designed and constructed to use the natural functions of wetlands for wastewater treatment. Constructed wetlands have significantly lower total lifetime costs and often lower capital costs than conventional treatment systems. The two main types of constructed wetlands are surface flow and subsurface flow. In surface flow constructed wetlands, water flows above ground. Subsurface flow constructed wetlands are designed to keep the water level below the top of the rock or gravel media, thus minimizing human and ecological exposure. Subsurface flow wetlands demonstrate higher rates of contaminant removal per unit of land than surface flow (free water surface) wetlands, therefore subsurface flow wetlands can be smaller while achieving the same level of contaminant removal. Wetlands remove metals using a variety of processes including filtration of solids, sorption onto organic matter, oxidation and hydrolysis, formation of carbonates, formation of insoluble sulfides, binding to iron and manganese oxides, reduction to immobile forms by bacterial activity, and uptake by plants and bacteria. Metal removal rates in both subsurface flow and surface flow wetlands can be high, but can vary greatly depending upon the influent concentrations and the mass loading rate. Removal rates of greater than 90 per cent for copper, lead and zinc have been demonstrated in operating surface flow and subsurface flow wetlands. The constituents that exceed NPDES limits at outfalls H-02 a nd H

Validation of morphing wing methodologies on an unmanned aerial system and a wind tunnel technology demonstrator

Science.gov (United States)

Gabor, Oliviu Sugar

, the spanwise number of actuation stations as well as the displacement limits were established. The performance improvements obtained and the limitations of the morphing wing concept were studied. To verify the optimization results, high-fidelity Computational Fluid Dynamics simulations were also performed, giving very accurate indications of the obtained gains. For the morphing model based on an aircraft wing tip, the skin shapes were optimized in order to control laminar flow on the upper surface. An automated structured mesh generation procedure was developed and implemented. To accurately capture the shape of the skin, a precision scanning procedure was done and its results were included in the numerical model. High-fidelity simulations were performed to determine the upper surface transition region and the numerical results were validated using experimental wind tunnel data.

Optimization and design of an aircraft's morphing wing-tip demonstrator for drag reduction at low speeds, Part II - Experimental validation using Infra-Red transition measurement from Wind Tunnel tests

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Andreea Koreanschi

2017-02-01

Full Text Available In the present paper, an ‘in-house’ genetic algorithm was numerically and experimentally validated. The genetic algorithm was applied to an optimization problem for improving the aerodynamic performances of an aircraft wing tip through upper surface morphing. The optimization was performed for 16 flight cases expressed in terms of various combinations of speeds, angles of attack and aileron deflections. The displacements resulted from the optimization were used during the wind tunnel tests of the wing tip demonstrator for the actuators control to change the upper surface shape of the wing. The results of the optimization of the flow behavior for the airfoil morphing upper-surface problem were validated with wind tunnel experimental transition results obtained with infra-red Thermography on the wing-tip demonstrator. The validation proved that the 2D numerical optimization using the ‘in-house’ genetic algorithm was an appropriate tool in improving various aspects of a wing’s aerodynamic performances.

Development of Delta Wing Aerodynamics Research in Universiti Teknologi Malaysia Low Speed Wind Tunnel

OpenAIRE

Shabudin Mat; I. S. Ishak; Tholudin Mat Lazim; Shuhaimi Mansor; Mazuriah Said; Abdul Basid Abdul Rahman; Ahmad Shukeri Mohd. Kamaludim; Romain Brossay

2014-01-01

This paper presents wind tunnel experiment on two delta wing configurations which are differentiated by their leading edge profiles: sharp and round-edged wings. The experiments were performed as a part of the delta wing aerodynamics research development in Universiti Teknologi Malaysia, low speed tunnel (UTM-LST). Steady load balance and flow visualization tests were conducted at Reynolds numbers of 0.5, 1, and 1.5 × 106, respectively. The flow measurement at low Reynolds number was also per...

Surface obstacles in pulsatile flow

Science.gov (United States)

Carr, Ian A.; Plesniak, Michael W.

2017-11-01

Flows past obstacles mounted on flat surfaces have been widely studied due to their ubiquity in nature and engineering. For nearly all of these studies, the freestream flow over the obstacle was steady, i.e., constant velocity, unidirectional flow. Unsteady, pulsatile flows occur frequently in biology, geophysics, biomedical engineering, etc. Our study is aimed at extending the comprehensive knowledge base that exists for steady flows to considerably more complex pulsatile flows. Characterizing the vortex and wake dynamics of flows around surface obstacles embedded in pulsatile flows can provide insights into the underlying physics in all wake and junction flows. In this study, we experimentally investigate the wake of two canonical obstacles: a cube and a circular cylinder with an aspect ratio of unity. Our previous studies of a surface-mounted hemisphere in pulsatile flow are used as a baseline for these two new, more complex geometries. Phase-averaged PIV and hot-wire anemometry are used to characterize the dynamics of coherent structures in the wake and at the windward junction of the obstacles. Complex physics occur during the deceleration phase of the pulsatile inflow. We propose a framework for understanding these physics based on self-induced vortex propagation, similar to the phenomena exhibited by vortex rings.

Boundary Layer Transition, Separation and Flow Control on Airfoils, Wings and Bodies in CFD, Wind-Tunnel and In-Flight Studies

Czech Academy of Sciences Publication Activity Database

Popelka, Lukáš; Matějka, M.; Šimurda, David; Součková, Natálie

2011-01-01

Roč. 35, č. 4 (2011), s. 97-104 ISSN 0744-8996 R&D Projects: GA MŠk(CZ) 1M06031; GA AV ČR IAA2076403; GA ČR GA101/08/1112 Institutional research plan: CEZ:AV0Z20760514 Keywords : airfoil * wing-fuselage interaction * flow control Subject RIV: BK - Fluid Dynamics

Computational Fluid Dynamic Simulation (CFD and Experimental Study on Wing-external Store Aerodynamic Interference of a Subsonic Fighter Aircraft

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Tholudin Mat Lazim

2003-01-01

Full Text Available The main objective of the present work is to study the effect of an external store on a subsonic fighter aircraft. Generally most modern fighter aircrafts are designed with an external store installation. In this study, a subsonic fighter aircraft model has been manufactured using a computer numerical control machine for the purpose of studying the effect of the aerodynamic interference of the external store on the flow around the aircraft wing. A computational fluid dynamic (CFD simulation was also carried out on the same configuration. Both the CFD and the wind tunnel testing were carried out at a Reynolds number 1.86×105 to ensure that the aerodynamic characteristic can certify that the aircraft will not be face any difficulties in its stability and controllability. Both the experiments and the simulation were carried out at the same Reynolds number in order to verify each other. In the CFD simulation, a commercial CFD code was used to simulate the interference and aerodynamic characteristics of the model. Subsequently, the model together with an external store was tested in a low speed wind tunnel with a test section sized 0.45 m×0.45 m. Measured and computed results for the two-dimensional pressure distribution were satisfactorily comparable. There is only a 19% deviation between pressure distribution measured in wind tunnel testing and the result predicted by the CFD. The result shows that the effect of the external storage is only significant on the lower surface of the wing and almost negligible on the upper surface of the wing. Aerodynamic interference due to the external store was most evident on the lower surface of the wing and almost negligible on the upper surface at a low angle of attack. In addition, the area of influence on the wing surface by the store interference increased as the airspeed increased.

Grid-Free LES 3D Vortex Method for the Simulation of Tubulent Flows Over Advanced Lifting Surfaces, Phase I

Data.gov (United States)

National Aeronautics and Space Administration — Turbulent flows associated with advanced aerodynamic designs represent a considerable challenge for accurate prediction. For example, the flow past low-speed wings...

Microscopic modulation of mechanical properties in transparent insect wings

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Arora, Ashima; Kumar, Pramod; Bhagavathi, Jithin; Singh, Kamal P., E-mail: kpsingh@iisermohali.ac.in; Sheet, Goutam, E-mail: goutam@iisermohali.ac.in [Department of Physical Sciences, Indian Institute of Science Education and Research, Mohali, Punjab 140306 (India)

2014-02-10

We report on the measurement of local friction and adhesion of transparent insect wings using an atomic force microscope cantilever down to nanometre length scales. We observe that the wing-surface is decorated with 10 μm long and 2 μm wide islands that have higher topographic height. The friction on the islands is two orders of magnitude higher than the back-ground while the adhesion on the islands is smaller. Furthermore, the high islands are decorated with ordered nano-wire-like structures while the background is full of randomly distributed granular nano-particles. Coherent optical diffraction through the wings produce a stable diffraction pattern revealing a quasi-periodic organization of the high islands over the entire wing. This suggests a long-range order in the modulation of friction and adhesion which is directly correlated with the topography. The measurements unravel novel functional design of complex wing surface and could find application in miniature biomimetic devices.

Optimization of aerodynamic efficiency for twist morphing MAV wing

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

N.I. Ismail

2014-06-01

Full Text Available Twist morphing (TM is a practical control technique in micro air vehicle (MAV flight. However, TM wing has a lower aerodynamic efficiency (CL/CD compared to membrane and rigid wing. This is due to massive drag penalty created on TM wing, which had overwhelmed the successive increase in its lift generation. Therefore, further CL/CDmax optimization on TM wing is needed to obtain the optimal condition for the morphing wing configuration. In this paper, two-way fluid–structure interaction (FSI simulation and wind tunnel testing method are used to solve and study the basic wing aerodynamic performance over (non-optimal TM, membrane and rigid wings. Then, a multifidelity data metamodel based design optimization (MBDO process is adopted based on the Ansys-DesignXplorer frameworks. In the adaptive MBDO process, Kriging metamodel is used to construct the final multifidelity CL/CD responses by utilizing 23 multi-fidelity sample points from the FSI simulation and experimental data. The optimization results show that the optimal TM wing configuration is able to produce better CL/CDmax magnitude by at least 2% than the non-optimal TM wings. The flow structure formation reveals that low TV strength on the optimal TM wing induces low CD generation which in turn improves its overall CL/CDmax performance.

Transonic Aerodynamic Characteristics of a Wing-Body Combination having a 52.5 deg Sweptback Wing of Aspect Ratio 3 with Conical Camber and Designed for a Mach Number of the Square Root of 2

Science.gov (United States)

Igoe, William B.; Re, Richard J.; Cassetti, Marlowe

1961-01-01

An investigation has been made of the effects of conical wing camber and supersonic body indentation on the aerodynamic characteristics of a wing-body configuration at transonic speeds. Wing aspect ratio was 3.0, taper ratio was 0.1, and quarter-chord line sweepback was 52.5 deg with airfoil sections of 0.03 thickness ratio. The tests were conducted in the Langley 16-foot transonic tunnel at various Mach numbers from 0.80 to 1.05 at angles of attack from -4 deg to 14 deg. The cambered-wing configuration achieved higher lift-drag ratios than a similar plane-wing configuration. The camber also reduced the effects of wing-tip flow separation on the aerodynamic characteristics. In general, no stability or trim changes below wing-tip flow separation resulted from the use of camber. The use of supersonic body indentation improved the lift-drag ratios at Mach numbers from 0.96 to 1.05.

Flapping and flexible wings for biological and micro air vehicles

Science.gov (United States)

Shyy, Wei; Berg, Mats; Ljungqvist, Daniel

1999-07-01

Micro air vehicles (MAVs) with wing spans of 15 cm or less, and flight speed of 30-60 kph are of interest for military and civilian applications. There are two prominent features of MAV flight: (i) low Reynolds number (10 4-10 5), resulting in unfavorable aerodynamic conditions to support controlled flight, and (ii) small physical dimensions, resulting in certain favorable scaling characteristics including structural strength, reduced stall speed, and low inertia. Based on observations of biological flight vehicles, it appears that wing motion and flexible airfoils are two key attributes for flight at low Reynolds number. The small size of MAVs corresponds in nature to small birds, which do not glide like large birds, but instead flap with considerable change of wing shape during a single flapping cycle. With flapping and flexible wings, birds overcome the deteriorating aerodynamic performance under steady flow conditions by employing unsteady mechanisms. In this article, we review both biological and aeronautical literatures to present salient features relevant to MAVs. We first summarize scaling laws of biological and micro air vehicles involving wing span, wing loading, vehicle mass, cruising speed, flapping frequency, and power. Next we discuss kinematics of flapping wings and aerodynamic models for analyzing lift, drag and power. Then we present issues related to low Reynolds number flows and airfoil shape selection. Recent work on flexible structures capable of adjusting the airfoil shape in response to freestream variations is also discussed.

Surface flow measurements from drones

Science.gov (United States)

Tauro, Flavia; Porfiri, Maurizio; Grimaldi, Salvatore

2016-09-01

Drones are transforming the way we sense and interact with the environment. However, despite their increased capabilities, the use of drones in geophysical sciences usually focuses on image acquisition for generating high-resolution maps. Motivated by the increasing demand for innovative and high performance geophysical observational methodologies, we posit the integration of drone technology and optical sensing toward a quantitative characterization of surface flow phenomena. We demonstrate that a recreational drone can be used to yield accurate surface flow maps of sub-meter water bodies. Specifically, drone's vibrations do not hinder surface flow observations, and velocity measurements are in agreement with traditional techniques. This first instance of quantitative water flow sensing from a flying drone paves the way to novel observations of the environment.

F-8 supercritical wing flight pressure, Boundary layer, and wake measurements and comparisons with wind tunnel data

Science.gov (United States)

Montoya, L. C.; Banner, R. D.

1977-01-01

Data for speeds from Mach 0.50 to Mach 0.99 are presented for configurations with and without fuselage area-rule additions, with and without leading-edge vortex generators, and with and without boundary-layer trips on the wing. The wing pressure coefficients are tabulated. Comparisons between the airplane and model data show that higher second velocity peaks occurred on the airplane wing than on the model wing. The differences were attributed to wind tunnel wall interference effects that caused too much rear camber to be designed into the wing. Optimum flow conditions on the outboard wing section occurred at Mach 0.98 at an angle of attack near 4 deg. The measured differences in section drag with and without boundary-layer trips on the wing suggested that a region of laminar flow existed on the outboard wing without trips.

Biomolecular Nano-Flow-Sensor to Measure Near-Surface Flow

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Noji Hiroyuki

2009-01-01

Full Text Available Abstract We have proposed and experimentally demonstrated that the measurement of the near-surface flow at the interface between a liquid and solid using a 10 nm-sized biomolecular motor of F1-ATPase as a nano-flow-sensor. For this purpose, we developed a microfluidic test-bed chip to precisely control the liquid flow acting on the F1-ATPase. In order to visualize the rotation of F1-ATPase, several hundreds nanometer-sized particle was immobilized at the rotational axis of F1-ATPase to enhance the rotation to be detected by optical microscopy. The rotational motion of F1-ATPase, which was immobilized on an inner surface of the test-bed chip, was measured to obtain the correlation between the near-surface flow and the rotation speed of F1-ATPase. As a result, we obtained the relationship that the rotation speed of F1-ATPase was linearly decelerated with increasing flow velocity. The mechanism of the correlation between the rotation speed and the near-surface flow remains unclear, however the concept to use biomolecule as a nano-flow-sensor was proofed successfully. (See supplementary material 1 Electronic supplementary material The online version of this article (doi:10.1007/s11671-009-9479-3 contains supplementary material, which is available to authorized users. Click here for file

Reynolds number scalability of bristled wings performing clap and fling

Science.gov (United States)

Jacob, Skyler; Kasoju, Vishwa; Santhanakrishnan, Arvind

2017-11-01

Tiny flying insects such as thrips show a distinctive physical adaptation in the use of bristled wings. Thrips use wing-wing interaction kinematics for flapping, in which a pair of wings clap together at the end of upstroke and fling apart at the beginning of downstroke. Previous studies have shown that the use of bristled wings can reduce the forces needed for clap and fling at Reynolds number (Re) on the order of 10. This study examines if the fluid dynamic advantages of using bristled wings also extend to higher Re on the order of 100. A robotic clap and fling platform was used for this study, in which a pair of physical wing models were programmed to execute clap and fling kinematics. Force measurements were conducted on solid (non-bristled) and bristled wing pairs. The results show lift and drag forces were both lower for bristled wings when compared to solid wings for Re ranging from 1-10, effectively increasing peak lift to peak drag ratio of bristled wings. However, peak lift to peak drag ratio was lower for bristled wings at Re =120 as compared to solid wings, suggesting that bristled wings may be uniquely advantageous for Re on the orders of 1-10. Flow structures visualized using particle image velocimetry (PIV) and their impact on force production will be presented.

A Neural Network Controller New Methodology for the ATR-42 Morphing Wing Actuation

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Abdallah Ben MOSBAH

2016-06-01

Full Text Available A morphing wing model is used to improve aircraft performance. To obtain the desired airfoils, electrical actuators are used, which are installed inside of the wing to morph its upper surface in order to obtain its desired shape. In order to achieve this objective, a robust position controller is needed. In this research, a design and test validation of a controller based on neural networks is presented. This controller was composed by a position controller and a current controller to manage the current consumed by the electrical actuators to obtain its desired displacement. The model was tested and validated using simulation and experimental tests. The results obtained with the proposed controller were compared to the results given by the PID controller. Wind tunnel tests were conducted in the Price-Païdoussis Wind Tunnel at the LARCASE laboratory in order to calculate the pressure coefficient distribution on an ATR-42 morphing wing model for different flow conditions. The pressure coefficients obtained experimentally were compared with their numerical values given by XFoil software.

Moveable Leading Edge Device for a Wing

Science.gov (United States)

Pitt, Dale M. (Inventor); Eckstein, Nicholas Stephen (Inventor)

2013-01-01

A method and apparatus for managing a flight control surface system. A leading edge section on a wing of an aircraft is extended into a deployed position. A deformable section connects the leading edge section to a trailing section. The deformable section changes from a deformed shape to an original shape when the leading edge section is moved into the deployed position. The leading edge section on the wing is moved from the deployed position to an undeployed position. The deformable section changes to the deformed shape inside of the wing.

Analysis of Low-Speed Stall Aerodynamics of a Business Jets Wing Using STAR-CCM+

Science.gov (United States)

Bui, Trong

2016-01-01

Reynolds-Averaged Navier-Stokes (RANS) computational fluid dynamics (CFD) analysis was conducted: to study the low-speed stall aerodynamics of a GIII aircrafts swept wing modified with (1) a laminar-flow wing glove, or (2) a seamless flap. The stall aerodynamics of these two different wing configurations were analyzed and compared with the unmodified baseline wing for low-speed flight. The Star-CCM+ polyhedral unstructured CFD code was first validated for wing stall predictions using the wing-body geometry from the First AIAA CFD High-Lift Prediction Workshop.

Bio-mimetic Flow Control

Science.gov (United States)

Choi, Haecheon

2009-11-01

Bio-mimetic engineering or bio-mimetics is the application of biological methods and systems found in nature to the study and design of engineering systems and modern technology (from Wikipedia). The concept itself is old, but successful developments have been made recently, especially in the research field of flow control. The objective of flow control based on the bio-mimetic approach is to develop novel concepts for reducing drag, increasing lift and enhancing aerodynamic performance. For skin friction reduction, a few ideas have been suggested such as the riblet from shark, compliant surface from dolphin, microbubble injection and multiple front-body curvature from penguin, and V-shaped protrusion from sailfish. For form drag reduction, several new attempts have been also made recently. Examples include the V-shaped spanwise grooves from saguaro cactus, overall shape of box fish, longitudinal grooves on scallop shell, bill of swordfish, hooked comb on owl wing, trailing-edge protrusion on dragonfly wing, and fillet. For the enhancement of aerodynamic performance, focuses have been made on the birds, fish and insects: e.g., double layered feather of landing bird, leading-edge serration of humpback-whale flipper, pectoral fin of flying fish, long tail on swallowtail-butterfly wing, wing flapping motion of dragonfly, and alula in birds. Living animals adapt their bodies to better performance in multi purposes, but engineering requires single purpose in most cases. Therefore, bio-mimetic approaches often produce excellent results more than expected. However, they are sometimes based on people's wrong understanding of nature and produce unwanted results. Successes and failures from bio-mimetic approaches in flow control will be discussed in the presentation.

Experimental Surface Pressure Data Obtained on 65 deg Delta Wing Across Reynolds Number and Mach Number Ranges. Volume 2; Small-Radius Leading Edge

Science.gov (United States)

Chu, Julio; Luckring, James M.

1996-01-01

An experimental wind tunnel test of a 65 deg. delta wing model with interchangeable leading edges was conducted in the Langley National Transonic Facility (NTF). The objective was to investigate the effects of Reynolds and Mach numbers on slender-wing leading-edge vortex flows with four values of wing leading-edge bluntness. Experimentally obtained pressure data are presented without analysis in tabulated and graphical formats across a Reynolds number range of 6 x 10(exp 6) to 84 x 10(exp 6) at a Mach number of 0.85 and across a Mach number range of 0.4 to 0.9 at Reynolds numbers of 6 x 10(exp 6) and 60 x 10(exp 6). Normal-force and pitching-moment coefficient plots for these Reynolds number and Mach number ranges are also presented.

Effect of compressive force on aeroelastic stability of a strut-braced wing

Science.gov (United States)

Sulaeman, Erwin

2002-01-01

Recent investigations of a strut-braced wing (SBW) aircraft show that, at high positive load factors, a large tensile force in the strut leads to a considerable compressive axial force in the inner wing, resulting in a reduced bending stiffness and even buckling of the wing. Studying the influence of this compressive force on the structural response of SBW is thus of paramount importance in the early stage of SBW design. The purpose of the this research is to investigate the effect of compressive force on aeroelastic stability of the SBW using efficient structural finite element and aerodynamic lifting surface methods. A procedure is developed to generate wing stiffness distribution for detailed and simplified wing models and to include the compressive force effect in the SBW aeroelastic analysis. A sensitivity study is performed to generate response surface equations for the wing flutter speed as functions of several design variables. These aeroelastic procedures and response surface equations provide a valuable tool and trend data to study the unconventional nature of SBW. In order to estimate the effect of the compressive force, the inner part of the wing structure is modeled as a beam-column. A structural finite element method is developed based on an analytical stiffness matrix formulation of a non-uniform beam element with arbitrary polynomial variations in the cross section. By using this formulation, the number of elements to model the wing structure can be reduced without degrading the accuracy. The unsteady aerodynamic prediction is based on a discrete element lifting surface method. The present formulation improves the accuracy of existing lifting surface methods by implementing a more rigorous treatment on the aerodynamic kernel integration. The singularity of the kernel function is isolated by implementing an exact expansion series to solve an incomplete cylindrical function problem. A hybrid doublet lattice/doublet point scheme is devised to reduce

Development of Tollmien-Schlichting disturbances in the presence of laminar separation bubbles on an unswept infinite wavy wing

Science.gov (United States)

Thomas, Christian; Mughal, Shahid; Ashworth, Richard

2017-04-01

The effect of long-wavelength sinusoidal surface waviness on the development of Tollmien-Schlichting (TS) wave instabilities is investigated. The analysis is based on the compressible flow that forms over an unswept infinite wavy wing with surface variations of variable amplitude, wavelength, and phase. Boundary layer profiles are extracted directly from solutions of a Navier-Stokes solver, which allows a thorough parametric analysis to be undertaken. Many wavy surface configurations are examined that can be sufficient to establish localized pockets of separated flow. Linear stability analysis is undertaken using parabolized stability equations (PSE) and linearized Navier-Stokes (LNS) methods, and surface waviness is generally found to enhance unstable behavior. Results of the two schemes are compared and criteria for PSE to establish accurate solutions in separated flows are determined, which are based on the number of TS waves per wavelength of the surface deformation. Relationships are formulated, relating the instability variations to the surface parameters, which are consistent with previous observations regarding the growth of TS waves on a flat plate. Additionally, some long-wavelength surface deformations are found to stabilize TS disturbances.

Modulation of leading edge vorticity and aerodynamic forces in flexible flapping wings.

Science.gov (United States)

Zhao, Liang; Deng, Xinyan; Sane, Sanjay P

2011-09-01

In diverse biological flight systems, the leading edge vortex has been implicated as a flow feature of key importance in the generation of flight forces. Unlike fixed wings, flapping wings can translate at higher angles of attack without stalling because their leading edge vorticity is more stable than the corresponding fixed wing case. Hence, the leading edge vorticity has often been suggested as the primary determinant of the high forces generated by flapping wings. To test this hypothesis, it is necessary to modulate the size and strength of the leading edge vorticity independently of the gross kinematics while simultaneously monitoring the forces generated by the wing. In a recent study, we observed that forces generated by wings with flexible trailing margins showed a direct dependence on the flexural stiffness of the wing. Based on that study, we hypothesized that trailing edge flexion directly influences leading edge vorticity, and thereby the magnitude of aerodynamic forces on the flexible flapping wings. To test this hypothesis, we visualized the flows on wings of varying flexural stiffness using a custom 2D digital particle image velocimetry system, while simultaneously monitoring the magnitude of the aerodynamic forces. Our data show that as flexion decreases, the magnitude of the leading edge vorticity increases and enhances aerodynamic forces, thus confirming that the leading edge vortex is indeed a key feature for aerodynamic force generation in flapping flight. The data shown here thus support the hypothesis that camber influences instantaneous aerodynamic forces through modulation of the leading edge vorticity.

A comparative study of the hovering efficiency of flapping and revolving wings

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Zheng, L; Mittal, R; Hedrick, T

2013-01-01

Direct numerical simulations are used to explore the hovering performance and efficiency for hawkmoth-inspired flapping and revolving wings at Reynolds (Re) numbers varying from 50 to 4800. This range covers the gamut from small (fruit fly size) to large (hawkmoth size) flying insects and is also relevant to the design of micro- and nano-aerial vehicles. The flapping wing configuration chosen here corresponds to a hovering hawkmoth and the model is derived from high-speed videogrammetry of this insect. The revolving wing configuration also employs the wings of the hawkmoth but these are arranged in a dual-blade configuration typical of helicopters. Flow for both of these configurations is simulated over the range of Reynolds numbers of interest and the aerodynamic performance of the two compared. The comparison of these two seemingly different configurations raises issues regarding the appropriateness of various performance metrics and even characteristic scales; these are also addressed in the current study. Finally, the difference in the performance between the two is correlated with the flow physics of the two configurations. The study indicates that viscous forces dominate the aerodynamic power expenditure of the revolving wing to a degree not observed for the flapping wing. Consequently, the lift-to-power metric of the revolving wing declines rapidly with decreasing Reynolds numbers resulting in a hovering performance that is at least a factor of 2 lower than the flapping wing at Reynolds numbers less than about 100. (paper)

Radionuclide transfer onto ground surface in surface water flow, 1

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Mukai, Masayuki; Takebe, Shinichi; Komiya, Tomokazu; Kamiyama, Hideo

1991-07-01

Radionuclides migration in ground surface water flow is considered to be one of the important path way in the scenario for environmental migration of radionuclides leaked from low level radioactive waste repository. Simulating the slightly sloped surface on which contaminated solution is flowing downward, testing for radionuclide migration on ground surface had been started. As it's first step, an experiment was carried out under the condition of restricted infiltration in order to elucidate the adsorption behavior of radionuclides onto the loamy soil surface in related with hydraulic conditions. Radionuclides concentration change in effluent solution with time and a concentration distribution of radionuclides adsorbed on the ground surface were obtained from several experimental conditions combining the rate and the duration time of the water flow. The radionuclides concentration in the effluent solution was nearly constant during each experimental period, and was reduced under the condition of lower flow rate. The surface distribution of radionuclides concentration showed two distinctive regions. The one was near the inlet vessel where the concentration was promptly reducing, and the other was following the former where the concentration was nearly constant. The characteristic surface distribution of radionuclides concentration can be explained by a two dimensional diffusion model with a first order adsorption reaction, based on the advection of flow rate distribution in perpendicular direction. (author)

Effect of the angle of attack of a rectangular wing on the heat transfer enhancement in channel flow at low Reynolds number

Science.gov (United States)

Khanjian, Assadour; Habchi, Charbel; Russeil, Serge; Bougeard, Daniel; Lemenand, Thierry

2018-05-01

Convective heat transfer enhancement can be achieved by generating secondary flow structures that are added to the main flow to intensify the fluid exchange between hot and cold regions. One method involves the use of vortex generators to produce streamwise and transverse vortices superimposed to the main flow. This study presents numerical computation results of laminar convection heat transfer in a rectangular channel whose bottom wall is equipped with one row of rectangular wing vortex generators. The governing equations are solved using finite volume method by considering steady state, laminar regime and incompressible flow. Three-dimensional numerical simulations are performed to study the effect of the angle of attack α of the wing on heat transfer and pressure drop. Different values are taken into consideration within the range 0° heat transfer enhancement, Nusselt number and the friction factor are studied on both local and global perspectives. Also, the location of the generated vortices within the channel is studied, as well as their effect on the heat transfer enhancement throughout the channel for all α values . Based on both local and global analysis, our results show that the angle of attack α has a direct impact on the heat transfer enhancement. By increasing its value, it leads to better enhancement until an optimal value is reached, beyond which the thermal performances decrease.

Wind-tunnel investigation of aerodynamic efficiency of three planar elliptical wings with curvature of quarter-chord line

Science.gov (United States)

Mineck, Raymond E.; Vijgen, Paul M. H. W.

1993-01-01

Three planar, untwisted wings with the same elliptical chord distribution but with different curvatures of the quarter-chord line were tested in the Langley 8-Foot Transonic Pressure Tunnel (8-ft TPT) and the Langley 7- by 10-Foot High-Speed Tunnel (7 x 10 HST). A fourth wing with a rectangular planform and the same projected area and span was also tested. Force and moment measurements from the 8-ft TPT tests are presented for Mach numbers from 0.3 to 0.5 and angles of attack from -4 degrees to 7 degrees. Sketches of the oil-flow patterns on the upper surfaces of the wings and some force and moment measurements from the 7 x 10 HST tests are presented at a Mach number of 0.5. Increasing the curvature of the quarter-chord line makes the angle of zero lift more negative but has little effect on the drag coefficient at zero lift. The changes in lift-curve slope and in the Oswald efficiency factor with the change in curvature of the quarter-chord line (wingtip location) indicate that the elliptical wing with the unswept quarter-chord line has the lowest lifting efficiency and the elliptical wing with the unswept trailing edge has the highest lifting efficiency; the crescent-shaped planform wing has an efficiency in between.

Wing in Ground Effect over a Wavy Surface

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Valentin Adrian Jean BUTOESCU

2018-06-01

Full Text Available A vortex method has been used to investigate the effect of a wavy ground on the aerodynamic forces acting on a wing that flies in its proximity. The air is considered inviscid and incompressible. The problem is obviously unsteady, and the solutions were found numerically.

Utilization of Optimization for Design of Morphing Wing Structures for Enhanced Flight

Science.gov (United States)

Detrick, Matthew Scott

Conventional aircraft control surfaces constrain maneuverability. This work is a comprehensive study that looks at both smart material and conventional actuation methods to achieve wing twist to potentially improve flight capability using minimal actuation energy while allowing minimal wing deformation under aerodynamic loading. A continuous wing is used in order to reduce drag while allowing the aircraft to more closely approximate the wing deformation used by birds while loitering. The morphing wing for this work consists of a skin supported by an underlying truss structure whose goal is to achieve a given roll moment using less actuation energy than conventional control surfaces. A structural optimization code has been written in order to achieve minimal wing deformation under aerodynamic loading while allowing wing twist under actuation. The multi-objective cost function for the optimization consists of terms that ensure small deformation under aerodynamic loading, small change in airfoil shape during wing twist, a linear variation of wing twist along the length of the wing, small deviation from the desired wing twist, minimal number of truss members, minimal wing weight, and minimal actuation energy. Hydraulic cylinders and a two member linkage driven by a DC motor are tested separately to provide actuation. Since the goal of the current work is simply to provide a roll moment, only one actuator is implemented along the wing span. Optimization is also used to find the best location within the truss structure for the actuator. The active structure produced by optimization is then compared to simulated and experimental results from other researchers as well as characteristics of conventional aircraft.

Supersonic vortex breakdown over a delta wing in transonic flow

Science.gov (United States)

Kandil, Hamdy A.; Kandil, Osama A.; Liu, C. H.

1993-01-01

The effects of freestream Mach number and angle of attack on the leading-edge vortex breakdown due to the terminating shock on a 65-degree, sharp-edged, cropped delta wing are investigated computationally, using the time-accurate solution of the laminar unsteady compressible full Navier-Stokes equations with the implicit upwind flux-difference splitting, finite-volume scheme. A fine O-H grid consisting of 125 x 85 x 84 points in the wrap-around, normal, and axial directions, respectively, is used for all the flow cases. Keeping the Reynolds number fixed at 3.23 x 10 exp 6, the Mach number is varied from 0.85 to 0.9 and the angle of attack is varied from 20 to 24 deg. The results show that, at 20-deg angle of attack, the increase of the Mach number from 0.85 to 0.9 results in moving the location of the terminating shock downstream. The results also show that, at 0.85 Mach number, the increase of the angle of attack from 20 to 24 deg results in moving the location of the terminating shock upstream. The results are in good agreement with the experimental data.

Separation control on the wing by jet actuators

Science.gov (United States)

Karyakin, O. M.; Nalivaiko, A. G.; Ustinov, M. V.; Flaxman, Ja. Sh.

2018-05-01

Use of jet actuators to eliminate flow separation is experimentally investigated on a straight wing with a NACA 0012 airfoil. It is shown that under the influence of synthetic jets the size of separation zone greatly reduces and the flow separation point displaces downstream. In addition, lift coefficient increases by more than 10%.

Wing Leading Edge Concepts for Noise Reduction

Science.gov (United States)

Shmilovich, Arvin; Yadlin, Yoram; Pitera, David M.

2010-01-01

This study focuses on the development of wing leading edge concepts for noise reduction during high-lift operations, without compromising landing stall speeds, stall characteristics or cruise performance. High-lift geometries, which can be obtained by conventional mechanical systems or morphing structures have been considered. A systematic aerodynamic analysis procedure was used to arrive at several promising configurations. The aerodynamic design of new wing leading edge shapes is obtained from a robust Computational Fluid Dynamics procedure. Acoustic benefits are qualitatively established through the evaluation of the computed flow fields.

Flow cytometry determination of ploidy level in winged bean ...

African Journals Online (AJOL)

Ploidy determination and mutation breeding of crop plants are inseparable twins given that mutation breeding is hinged majorly on polyploidization of crop's chromosome number. The present research was aimed at determining the ploidy level of 20 accessions of winged bean (Psophoscarpus tetragonolobus) using known ...

Morphing flight control surface for advanced flight performance

Science.gov (United States)

Detrick, Matt; Kwak, Seung-Keon; Yoon, Hwan-Sik

2006-03-01

A novel Morphing Flight Control Surface (MFCS) system has been developed. The distinction of this research effort is that the SenAnTech team has incorporated our innovative Highly Deformable Mechanism (HDM) into our MFCS. The feasibility of this novel technology for deformable wing structures, such as airfoil shaping, warping or twisting with a flexure-based high displacement PZT actuator has been demonstrated via computational simulations such as Finite Element Analysis (FEA) and Computational Fluid Dynamics (CFD). CFD was implemented to verify the accuracy of the complex potential flow theory for this application. Then, complex potential flow theory, kinematics, geometry, and static force analysis were incorporated into a multidisciplinary GUI simulation tool. This tool has been used to aid the design of the MFCS. The results show that we can achieve up to five degrees of wing twisting with our proposed system, while using minimal volume within the wing and adding little weight.

Insect Wing Displacement Measurement Using Digital Holography

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Aguayo, Daniel D.; Mendoza Santoyo, Fernando; Torre I, Manuel H. de la; Caloca Mendez, Cristian I.

2008-01-01

Insects in flight have been studied with optical non destructive techniques with the purpose of using meaningful results in aerodynamics. With the availability of high resolution and large dynamic range CCD sensors the so called interferometric digital holographic technique was used to measure the surface displacement of in flight insect wings, such as butterflies. The wings were illuminated with a continuous wave Verdi laser at 532 nm, and observed with a CCD Pixelfly camera that acquire images at a rate of 11.5 frames per second at a resolution of 1392x1024 pixels and 12 Bit dynamic range. At this frame rate digital holograms of the wings were captured and processed in the usual manner, namely, each individual hologram is Fourier processed in order to find the amplitude and phase corresponding to the digital hologram. The wings displacement is obtained when subtraction between two digital holograms is performed for two different wings position, a feature applied to all consecutive frames recorded. The result of subtracting is seen as a wrapped phase fringe pattern directly related to the wing displacement. The experimental data for different butterfly flying conditions and exposure times are shown as wire mesh plots in a movie of the wings displacement

Aerodynamic Comparison of Hyper-Elliptic Cambered Span (HECS) Wings with Conventional Configurations

Science.gov (United States)

Lazos, Barry S.; Visser, Kenneth D.

2006-01-01

An experimental study was conducted to examine the aerodynamic and flow field characteristics of hyper-elliptic cambered span (HECS) wings and compare results with more conventional configurations used for induced drag reduction. Previous preliminary studies, indicating improved L/D characteristics when compared to an elliptical planform prompted this more detailed experimental investigation. Balance data were acquired on a series of swept and un-swept HECS wings, a baseline elliptic planform, two winglet designs and a raked tip configuration. Seven-hole probe wake surveys were also conducted downstream of a number of the configurations. Wind tunnel results indicated aerodynamic performance levels of all but one of the HECS wings exceeded that of the other configurations. The flow field data surveys indicate the HECS configurations displaced the tip vortex farther outboard of the wing than the Baseline configuration. Minimum drag was observed on the raked tip configuration and it was noted that the winglet wake lacked the cohesive vortex structure present in the wakes of the other configurations.

Influence of slip-surface geometry on earth-flow deformation, Montaguto earth flow, southern Italy

Science.gov (United States)

Guerriero, L.; Coe, Jeffrey A.; Revellio, P.; Grelle, G.; Pinto, F.; Guadagno, F.

2016-01-01

We investigated relations between slip-surface geometry and deformational structures and hydrologic features at the Montaguto earth flow in southern Italy between 1954 and 2010. We used 25 boreholes, 15 static cone-penetration tests, and 22 shallow-seismic profiles to define the geometry of basal- and lateral-slip surfaces; and 9 multitemporal maps to quantify the spatial and temporal distribution of normal faults, thrust faults, back-tilted surfaces, strike-slip faults, flank ridges, folds, ponds, and springs. We infer that the slip surface is a repeating series of steeply sloping surfaces (risers) and gently sloping surfaces (treads). Stretching of earth-flow material created normal faults at risers, and shortening of earth-flow material created thrust faults, back-tilted surfaces, and ponds at treads. Individual pairs of risers and treads formed quasi-discrete kinematic zones within the earth flow that operated in unison to transmit pulses of sediment along the length of the flow. The locations of strike-slip faults, flank ridges, and folds were not controlled by basal-slip surface topography but were instead dependent on earth-flow volume and lateral changes in the direction of the earth-flow travel path. The earth-flow travel path was strongly influenced by inactive earth-flow deposits and pre-earth-flow drainages whose positions were determined by tectonic structures. The implications of our results that may be applicable to other earth flows are that structures with strikes normal to the direction of earth-flow motion (e.g., normal faults and thrust faults) can be used as a guide to the geometry of basal-slip surfaces, but that depths to the slip surface (i.e., the thickness of an earth flow) will vary as sediment pulses are transmitted through a flow.

POD Analysis of Flow Behind a Four-wing Vortex Generator

Science.gov (United States)

Hosseinali, Mahdi; Wilkins, Stephen; Hall, Joseph

2015-11-01

Wing-tip vortices that persist long after the passage of large aircraft are of major concern to aircraft controllers and are responsible for considerable delays between aircraft take-off times. Understanding these vortices is extremely important, with the ultimate goal to reduce or eliminate delays altogether. Simple theoretical models of vortices can be studied experimentally using a four-wing vortex generator. The cross-stream planes are measured with a two-component Particle Image Velocimetry (PIV) system, and the resulting vector fields were analyzed with a Proper Orthogonal Decomposition (POD) via the method of snapshots. POD analysis will be employed both before and after removing vortex core meandering to investigate the meandering effect on POD modes for a better understanding of it.

Asymmetric ratchet effect for directional transport of fog drops on static and dynamic butterfly wings.

Science.gov (United States)

Liu, Chengcheng; Ju, Jie; Zheng, Yongmei; Jiang, Lei

2014-02-25

Inspired by novel creatures, researchers have developed varieties of fog drop transport systems and made significant contributions to the fields of heat transferring, water collecting, antifogging, and so on. Up to now, most of the efforts in directional fog drop transport have been focused on static surfaces. Considering it is not practical to keep surfaces still all the time in reality, conducting investigations on surfaces that can transport fog drops in both static and dynamic states has become more and more important. Here we report the wings of Morpho deidamia butterflies can directionally transport fog drops in both static and dynamic states. This directional drop transport ability results from the micro/nano ratchet-like structure of butterfly wings: the surface of butterfly wings is composed of overlapped scales, and the scales are covered with porous asymmetric ridges. Influenced by this special structure, fog drops on static wings are transported directionally as a result of the fog drops' asymmetric growth and coalescence. Fog drops on vibrating wings are propelled directionally due to the fog drops' asymmetric dewetting from the wings.

Numerical simulation of X-wing type biplane flapping wings in 3D using the immersed boundary method

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Tay, W B; Van Oudheusden, B W; Bijl, H

2014-01-01

The numerical simulation of an insect-sized ‘X-wing’ type biplane flapping wing configuration is performed in 3D using an immersed boundary method solver at Reynolds numbers equal to 1000 (1 k) and 5 k, based on the wing's root chord length. This X-wing type flapping configuration draws its inspiration from Delfly, a bio-inspired ornithopter MAV which has two pairs of wings flapping in anti-phase in a biplane configuration. The objective of the present investigation is to assess the aerodynamic performance when the original Delfly flapping wing micro-aerial vehicle (FMAV) is reduced to the size of an insect. Results show that the X-wing configuration gives more than twice the average thrust compared with only flapping the upper pair of wings of the X-wing. However, the X-wing's average thrust is only 40% that of the upper wing flapping at twice the stroke angle. Despite this, the increased stability which results from the smaller lift and moment variation of the X-wing configuration makes it more suited for sharp image capture and recognition. These advantages make the X-wing configuration an attractive alternative design for insect-sized FMAVS compared to the single wing configuration. In the Reynolds number comparison, the vorticity iso-surface plot at a Reynolds number of 5 k revealed smaller, finer vortical structures compared to the simulation at 1 k, due to vortices’ breakup. In comparison, the force output difference is much smaller between Re = 1 k and 5 k. Increasing the body inclination angle generates a uniform leading edge vortex instead of a conical one along the wingspan, giving higher lift. Understanding the force variation as the body inclination angle increases will allow FMAV designers to optimize the thrust and lift ratio for higher efficiency under different operational requirements. Lastly, increasing the spanwise flexibility of the wings increases the thrust slightly but decreases the efficiency. The thrust result is similar

Detached Eddy Simulation of Flap Side-Edge Flow

Science.gov (United States)

Balakrishnan, Shankar K.; Shariff, Karim R.

2016-01-01

Detached Eddy Simulation (DES) of flap side-edge flow was performed with a wing and half-span flap configuration used in previous experimental and numerical studies. The focus of the study is the unsteady flow features responsible for the production of far-field noise. The simulation was performed at a Reynolds number (based on the main wing chord) of 3.7 million. Reynolds Averaged Navier-Stokes (RANS) simulations were performed as a precursor to the DES. The results of these precursor simulations match previous experimental and RANS results closely. Although the present DES simulations have not reached statistical stationary yet, some unsteady features of the developing flap side-edge flowfield are presented. In the final paper it is expected that statistically stationary results will be presented including comparisons of surface pressure spectra with experimental data.

Aerodynamic performance and particle image velocimetery of piezo actuated biomimetic manduca sexta engineered wings towards the design and application of a flapping wing flight vehicle

Science.gov (United States)

DeLuca, Anthony M.

Considerable research and investigation has been conducted on the aerodynamic performance, and the predominate flow physics of the Manduca Sexta size of biomimetically designed and fabricated wings as part of the AFIT FWMAV design project. Despite a burgeoning interest and research into the diverse field of flapping wing flight and biomimicry, the aerodynamics of flapping wing flight remains a nebulous field of science with considerable variance into the theoretical abstractions surrounding aerodynamic mechanisms responsible for aerial performance. Traditional FWMAV flight models assume a form of a quasi-steady approximation of wing aerodynamics based on an infinite wing blade element model (BEM). An accurate estimation of the lift, drag, and side force coefficients is a critical component of autonomous stability and control models. This research focused on two separate experimental avenues into the aerodynamics of AFIT's engineered hawkmoth wings|forces and flow visualization. 1. Six degree of freedom force balance testing, and high speed video analysis was conducted on 30°, 45°, and 60° angle stop wings. A novel, non-intrusive optical tracking algorithm was developed utilizing a combination of a Gaussian Mixture Model (GMM) and ComputerVision (OpenCV) tools to track the wing in motion from multiple cameras. A complete mapping of the wing's kinematic angles as a function of driving amplitude was performed. The stroke angle, elevation angle, and angle of attack were tabulated for all three wings at driving amplitudes ranging from A=0.3 to A=0.6. The wing kinematics together with the force balance data was used to develop several aerodynamic force coefficient models. A combined translational and rotational aerodynamic model predicted lift forces within 10%, and vertical forces within 6%. The total power consumption was calculated for each of the three wings, and a Figure of Merit was calculated for each wing as a general expression of the overall efficiency of

Numerical simulation of incidence and sweep effects on delta wing vortex breakdown

Science.gov (United States)

Ekaterinaris, J. A.; Schiff, Lewis B.

1994-01-01

The structure of the vortical flowfield over delta wings at high angles of attack was investigated. Three-dimensional Navier-Stokes numerical simulations were carried out to predict the complex leeward-side flowfield characteristics, including leading-edge separation, secondary separation, and vortex breakdown. Flows over a 75- and a 63-deg sweep delta wing with sharp leading edges were investigated and compared with available experimental data. The effect of variation of circumferential grid resolution grid resolution in the vicinity of the wing leading edge on the accuracy of the solutions was addressed. Furthermore, the effect of turbulence modeling on the solutions was investigated. The effects of variation of angle of attack on the computed vortical flow structure for the 75-deg sweep delta wing were examined. At moderate angles of attack no vortex breakdown was observed. When a critical angle of attack was reached, bubble-type vortex breakdown was found. With further increase in angle of attack, a change from bubble-type breakdown to spiral-type vortex breakdown was predicted by the numerical solution. The effects of variation of sweep angle and freestream Mach number were addressed with the solutions on a 63-deg sweep delta wing.

Application of Piezoelectrics to Flapping-Wing MAVs

Science.gov (United States)

Widstrand, Alex; Hubner, J. Paul

2015-11-01

Micro air vehicles (MAVs) are a class of unmanned aerial vehicles that are size-restricted and operate at low velocities and low Reynolds numbers. An ongoing challenge with MAVs is that their flight-related operations are highly constrained by their size and weight, which limits battery size and, therefore, available power. One type of MAV called an ornithopter flies using flapping wings to create both lift and thrust, much like birds and insects do. Further bio-inspiration from bats led to the design of membrane wings for these vehicles, which provide aerodynamic benefits through passive vibration. In an attempt to capitalize on this vibration, a piezoelectric film, which generates a voltage when stressed, was investigated as the wing surface. Two wing planforms with constant area were designed and fabricated. The goal was to measure the wings' flight characteristics and output energy in freestream conditions. Complications with the flapper arose which prevented wind tunnel tests from being performed; however, energy data was obtained from table-top shaker tests. Preliminary results indicate that wing shape affects the magnitude of the charge generated, with a quarter-elliptic planform outperforming a rectangular planform. Funding provided by NSF REU Site Award number 1358991.

Viscous wing theory development. Volume 1: Analysis, method and results

Science.gov (United States)

Chow, R. R.; Melnik, R. E.; Marconi, F.; Steinhoff, J.

1986-01-01

Viscous transonic flows at large Reynolds numbers over 3-D wings were analyzed using a zonal viscid-inviscid interaction approach. A new numerical AFZ scheme was developed in conjunction with the finite volume formulation for the solution of the inviscid full-potential equation. A special far-field asymptotic boundary condition was developed and a second-order artificial viscosity included for an improved inviscid solution methodology. The integral method was used for the laminar/turbulent boundary layer and 3-D viscous wake calculation. The interaction calculation included the coupling conditions of the source flux due to the wing surface boundary layer, the flux jump due to the viscous wake, and the wake curvature effect. A method was also devised incorporating the 2-D trailing edge strong interaction solution for the normal pressure correction near the trailing edge region. A fully automated computer program was developed to perform the proposed method with one scalar version to be used on an IBM-3081 and two vectorized versions on Cray-1 and Cyber-205 computers.

Patterning of a compound eye on an extinct dipteran wing

OpenAIRE

Dinwiddie, April; Rachootin, Stan

2010-01-01

We have discovered unexpected similarities between a novel and characteristic wing organ in an extinct biting midge from Baltic amber, Eohelea petrunkevitchi, and the surface of a dipteran's compound eye. Scanning electron microscope images now reveal vestigial mechanoreceptors between the facets of the organ. We interpret Eohelea's wing organ as the blending of these two developmental systems: the formation and patterning of the cuticle in the eye and of the wing.

An Investigation of the Effects of Discrete Wing Tip Jets on Wake Vortex Roll Up.

Science.gov (United States)

1983-08-01

aerodynamic thrust of the winglet and the more efficient lift production of the main wing combine to give winglets a dramatic improvement in aerodynamic ...with winglets could possibly provide the needed flexibility. Ř’ . " % * .- *2,,~4 . ,.*.%~* CHAPT1ER III BACKGROUND: AERODYNAMIC JE7IS IN CROSS FLOW...outboard shift of the wing tip vortex indicated that discrete wing tip jets may be able to produce improved wing aerodynamics during cruise flight

Smart wing rotation and trailing-edge vortices enable high frequency mosquito flight

Science.gov (United States)

Bomphrey, Richard J.; Nakata, Toshiyuki; Phillips, Nathan; Walker, Simon M.

2017-03-01

Mosquitoes exhibit unusual wing kinematics; their long, slender wings flap at remarkably high frequencies for their size (>800 Hz)and with lower stroke amplitudes than any other insect group. This shifts weight support away from the translation-dominated, aerodynamic mechanisms used by most insects, as well as by helicopters and aeroplanes, towards poorly understood rotational mechanisms that occur when pitching at the end of each half-stroke. Here we report free-flight mosquito wing kinematics, solve the full Navier-Stokes equations using computational fluid dynamics with overset grids, and validate our results with in vivo flow measurements. We show that, although mosquitoes use familiar separated flow patterns, much of the aerodynamic force that supports their weight is generated in a manner unlike any previously described for a flying animal. There are three key features: leading-edge vortices (a well-known mechanism that appears to be almost ubiquitous in insect flight), trailing-edge vortices caused by a form of wake capture at stroke reversal, and rotational drag. The two new elements are largely independent of the wing velocity, instead relying on rapid changes in the pitch angle (wing rotation) at the end of each half-stroke, and they are therefore relatively immune to the shallow flapping amplitude. Moreover, these mechanisms are particularly well suited to high aspect ratio mosquito wings.

Power reduction and the radial limit of stall delay in revolving wings of different aspect ratio

NARCIS (Netherlands)

Kruyt, J.W.; Heijst, Van G.F.; Altshuler, D.L.; Lentink, David

2015-01-01

Airplanes and helicopters use high aspect ratio wings to reduce the power required to fly, but must operate at low angle of attack to prevent flow separation and stall. Animals capable of slow sustained flight, such as hummingbirds, have low aspect ratio wings and flap their wings at high angle

Numerical and Experimental Validation of the Optimization Methodologies for a Wing-Tip Structure Equipped with Conventional and Morphing Ailerons =

Science.gov (United States)

Koreanschi, Andreea

In order to answer the problem of 'how to reduce the aerospace industry's environment footprint?' new morphing technologies were developed. These technologies were aimed at reducing the aircraft's fuel consumption through reduction of the wing drag. The morphing concept used in the present research consists of replacing the conventional aluminium upper surface of the wing with a flexible composite skin for morphing abilities. For the ATR-42 'Morphing wing' project, the wing models were manufactured entirely from composite materials and the morphing region was optimized for flexibility. In this project two rigid wing models and an active morphing wing model were designed, manufactured and wind tunnel tested. For the CRIAQ MDO 505 project, a full scale wing-tip equipped with two types of ailerons, conventional and morphing, was designed, optimized, manufactured, bench and wind tunnel tested. The morphing concept was applied on a real wing internal structure and incorporated aerodynamic, structural and control constraints specific to a multidisciplinary approach. Numerical optimization, aerodynamic analysis and experimental validation were performed for both the CRIAQ MDO 505 full scale wing-tip demonstrator and the ATR-42 reduced scale wing models. In order to improve the aerodynamic performances of the ATR-42 and CRIAQ MDO 505 wing airfoils, three global optimization algorithms were developed, tested and compared. The three algorithms were: the genetic algorithm, the artificial bee colony and the gradient descent. The algorithms were coupled with the two-dimensional aerodynamic solver XFoil. XFoil is known for its rapid convergence, robustness and use of the semi-empirical e n method for determining the position of the flow transition from laminar to turbulent. Based on the performance comparison between the algorithms, the genetic algorithm was chosen for the optimization of the ATR-42 and CRIAQ MDO 505 wing airfoils. The optimization algorithm was improved during

Aerodynamics of wings at low Reynolds numbers: Boundary layer separation and reattachment

Science.gov (United States)

McArthur, John

Due to advances in electronics technology, it is now possible to build small scale flying and swimming vehicles. These vehicles will have size and velocity scales similar to small birds and fish, and their characteristic Reynolds number will be between 104 and 105. Currently, these flying and swimming vehicles do not perform well, and very little research has been done to characterize them, or to explain why they perform so poorly. This dissertation documents three basic investigations into the performance of small scale lifting surfaces, with Reynolds numbers near 104. Part I. Low Reynolds number aerodynamics. Three airfoil shapes were studied at Reynolds numbers of 1 and 2x104: a flat plate airfoil, a circular arc cambered airfoil, and the Eppler 387 airfoil. Lift and drag force measurements were made on both 2D and 3D conditions, with the 3D wings having an aspect ratio of 6, and the 2D condition being approximated by placing end plates at the wing tips. Comparisons to the limited number of previous measurements show adequate agreement. Previous studies have been inconclusive on whether lifting line theory can be applied to this range of Re, but this study shows that lifting line theory can be applied when there are no sudden changes in the slope of the force curves. This is highly dependent on the airfoil shape of the wing, and explains why previous studies have been inconclusive. Part II. The laminar separation bubble. The Eppler 387 airfoil was studied at two higher Reynolds numbers: 3 and 6x10 4. Previous studies at a Reynolds number of 6x104 had shown this airfoil experiences a drag increase at moderate lift, and a subsequent drag decrease at high lift. Previous studies suggested that the drag increase is caused by a laminar separation bubble, but the experiments used to show this were conducted at higher Reynolds numbers and extrapolated down. Force measurements were combined with flow field measurements at Reynolds numbers 3 and 6x104 to determine whether

Prediction of vortex breakdown on a delta wing

Science.gov (United States)

Agrawal, S.; Robinson, B. A.; Barnett, R. M.

1992-01-01

Recent studies of leading-edge vortex flows with computational fluid dynamics codes using Euler or Navier-Stokes formulations have shown fair agreement with experimental data. These studies have concentrated on simulating the flowfields associated with a sharp-edged flat plate 70 deg delta wing at angles of attack where vortex breakdown or burst is observed over the wing. There are, however, a number of discrepancies between the experimental data and the computed flowfields. The location of vortex breakdown in the computational solutions is seen to differ from the experimental data and to vary with changes in the computational grid and freestream Mach number. There also remain issues as to the validity of steady-state computations for cases which contain regions of unsteady flow, such as in the post-breakdown regions. As a partial response to these questions, a number of laminar Navier-Stokes solutions were examined for the 70 deg delta wing. The computed solutions are compared with an experimental database obtained at low subsonic speeds. The convergence of forces, moments and vortex breakdown locations are also analyzed to determine if the computed flowfields actually reach steady-state conditions.

Structure design of an innovative adaptive variable camber wing

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Zhao An-Min

2018-01-01

Full Text Available In this paper, an innovative double rib sheet structure is proposed, which can replace the traditional rigid hinge joint with the surface contact. On the one hand, the variable camber wing structural design not only can improve the capacity to sustain more load but also will not increase the overall weight of the wing. On the other hand, it is a simple mechanical structure design to achieve the total wing camber change. Then the numerical simulation results show that the maximum stress at the connect of the wing rib is 88.2MPa, and the double ribs sheet engineering design meet the structural strength requirements. In addition, to make a fair comparison, the parameters of variable camber are fully referenced to the Talon Unmanned Aerial Vehicle (UAV. The results reveal that the total variable camber wing can further enhance aircraft flight efficiency by 29.4%. The design of the whole variable camber wing structure proposed in this paper has high engineering value and feasibility.

Local elasticity and adhesion of nanostructures on Drosophila melanogaster wing membrane studied using atomic force microscopy

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Wagner, Ryan, E-mail: rbwagner@purdue.edu [School of Mechanical Engineering, Purdue University, West Lafayette (United States); Brick Nanotechnology Center, Purdue University, West Lafayette (United States); Pittendrigh, Barry R. [Department of Entomology, University of Illinois, Champaign (United States); Raman, Arvind, E-mail: raman@purdue.edu [School of Mechanical Engineering, Purdue University, West Lafayette (United States); Brick Nanotechnology Center, Purdue University, West Lafayette (United States)

2012-10-15

Highlights: Black-Right-Pointing-Pointer We studied the wing membrane of Drosophila melanogaster with atomic force microscopy. Black-Right-Pointing-Pointer We report the structure, elasticity, and adhesion on the wing membrane in air and nitrogen environments. Black-Right-Pointing-Pointer Results provide insight into the nature of the wing membrane enabling the development of biomimetic surface and micro air vehicles. - Abstract: Insect wings have a naturally occurring, complex, functional, hierarchical microstructure and nanostructure, which enable a remarkably water-resistant and self-cleaning surface. Insect wings are used as a basis for engineering biomimetic materials; however, the material properties of these nanostructures such as local elastic modulus and adhesion are poorly understood. We studied the wings of the Canton-S strain of Drosophila melanogaster (hereafter referred to as Drosophila) with atomic force microscopy (AFM) to quantify the local material properties of Drosophila wing surface nanostructures. The wings are found to have a hierarchical structure of 10-20 {mu}m long, 0.5-1 {mu}m diameter hair, and at a much smaller scale, 100 nm diameter and 30-60 nm high bumps. The local properties of these nanoscale bumps were studied under ambient and dry conditions with force-volume AFM. The wing membrane was found to have a elastic modulus on the order of 1000 MPa and the work of adhesion between the probe and wing membrane surface was found to be on the order of 100 mJ/m{sup 2}, these properties are the same order of magnitude as common thermoplastic polymers such as polyethylene. The difference in work of adhesion between the nanoscale bump and membrane does not change significantly between ambient (relative humidity of 30%) or dry conditions. This suggests that the nanoscale bumps and the surrounding membrane are chemically similar and only work to increase hydrophobicity though surface roughening or the geometric lotus effect.

Local elasticity and adhesion of nanostructures on Drosophila melanogaster wing membrane studied using atomic force microscopy

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Wagner, Ryan; Pittendrigh, Barry R.; Raman, Arvind

2012-01-01

Highlights: ► We studied the wing membrane of Drosophila melanogaster with atomic force microscopy. ► We report the structure, elasticity, and adhesion on the wing membrane in air and nitrogen environments. ► Results provide insight into the nature of the wing membrane enabling the development of biomimetic surface and micro air vehicles. - Abstract: Insect wings have a naturally occurring, complex, functional, hierarchical microstructure and nanostructure, which enable a remarkably water-resistant and self-cleaning surface. Insect wings are used as a basis for engineering biomimetic materials; however, the material properties of these nanostructures such as local elastic modulus and adhesion are poorly understood. We studied the wings of the Canton-S strain of Drosophila melanogaster (hereafter referred to as Drosophila) with atomic force microscopy (AFM) to quantify the local material properties of Drosophila wing surface nanostructures. The wings are found to have a hierarchical structure of 10–20 μm long, 0.5–1 μm diameter hair, and at a much smaller scale, 100 nm diameter and 30–60 nm high bumps. The local properties of these nanoscale bumps were studied under ambient and dry conditions with force-volume AFM. The wing membrane was found to have a elastic modulus on the order of 1000 MPa and the work of adhesion between the probe and wing membrane surface was found to be on the order of 100 mJ/m 2 , these properties are the same order of magnitude as common thermoplastic polymers such as polyethylene. The difference in work of adhesion between the nanoscale bump and membrane does not change significantly between ambient (relative humidity of 30%) or dry conditions. This suggests that the nanoscale bumps and the surrounding membrane are chemically similar and only work to increase hydrophobicity though surface roughening or the geometric lotus effect.

Rotational accelerations stabilize leading edge vortices on revolving fly wings.

Science.gov (United States)

Lentink, David; Dickinson, Michael H

2009-08-01

The aerodynamic performance of hovering insects is largely explained by the presence of a stably attached leading edge vortex (LEV) on top of their wings. Although LEVs have been visualized on real, physically modeled, and simulated insects, the physical mechanisms responsible for their stability are poorly understood. To gain fundamental insight into LEV stability on flapping fly wings we expressed the Navier-Stokes equations in a rotating frame of reference attached to the wing's surface. Using these equations we show that LEV dynamics on flapping wings are governed by three terms: angular, centripetal and Coriolis acceleration. Our analysis for hovering conditions shows that angular acceleration is proportional to the inverse of dimensionless stroke amplitude, whereas Coriolis and centripetal acceleration are proportional to the inverse of the Rossby number. Using a dynamically scaled robot model of a flapping fruit fly wing to systematically vary these dimensionless numbers, we determined which of the three accelerations mediate LEV stability. Our force measurements and flow visualizations indicate that the LEV is stabilized by the ;quasi-steady' centripetal and Coriolis accelerations that are present at low Rossby number and result from the propeller-like sweep of the wing. In contrast, the unsteady angular acceleration that results from the back and forth motion of a flapping wing does not appear to play a role in the stable attachment of the LEV. Angular acceleration is, however, critical for LEV integrity as we found it can mediate LEV spiral bursting, a high Reynolds number effect. Our analysis and experiments further suggest that the mechanism responsible for LEV stability is not dependent on Reynolds number, at least over the range most relevant for insect flight (100wind turbines at much higher Reynolds numbers suggest that even large flying animals could potentially exploit LEV-based force augmentation during slow hovering flight, take-offs or landing

A wind tunnel investigation of the effects of micro-vortex generators and Gurney flaps on the high-lift characteristics of a business jet wing. M.S. Thesis

Science.gov (United States)

Martuccio, Michelle Therese

1994-01-01

A study of a full-scale, semi-span business jet wing has been conducted to investigate the potential of two types of high-lift devices for improving aircraft high-lift performance. The research effort involved low-speed wind-tunnel tests of micro-vortex generators and Gurney flaps applied to the flap system of the business jet wing and included force and moment measurements, surface pressure surveys and flow visualization on the wing and flap. Results showed that the micro-vortex generators tested had no beneficial effects on the longitudinal force characteristics in this particular application, while the Gurney flaps were an effective means of increasing lift. However, the Gurney flaps also caused an increase in drag in most circumstances.

Effects of flow separation and cove leakage on pressure and heat-transfer distributions along a wing-cove-elevon configuration at Mach 6.9. [Langley 8-ft high temperature tunnel test

Science.gov (United States)

Deveikis, W. D.

1983-01-01

External and internal pressure and cold-wall heating-rate distributions were obtained in hypersonic flow on a full-scale heat-sink representation of the space shuttle orbiter wing-elevon-cove configuration in an effort to define effects of flow separation on cove aerothermal environment as a function of cove seal leak area, ramp angle, and free-stream unit Reynolds number. Average free-stream Mach number from all tests was 6.9; average total temperature from all tests was 3360 R; free-stream dynamic pressure ranged from about 2 to 9 psi; and wing angle of attack was 5 deg (flow compression). For transitional and turbulent flow separation, increasing cove leakage progressively increased heating rates in the cove. When ingested mass flow was sufficient to force large reductions in extent of separation, increasing cove leakage reduced heating rates in the cove to those for laminar attached flow. Cove heating-rate distributions calculated with a method that assumed laminar developing channel flow agreed with experimentally obtained distributions within root-mean-square differences that varied between 11 and 36 percent where cove walls were parallel for leak areas of 50 and 100 percent.

Structural colours of nickel bioreplicas of butterfly wings

Science.gov (United States)

Tolenis, Tomas; Swiontek, Stephen E.; Lakhtakia, Akhlesh

2017-04-01

The two-angle conformally evaporated-film-by-rotation technique (TA-CEFR) was devised to coat the wings of the monarch butterfly with nickel in order to form a 500-nm thick bioreplica thereof. The bioreplica exhibits structural colours that are completely obscured in actual wings by pigmental colours. Thus, the TA-CEFR technique provides a way to replicate, study and exploit hidden morphologies of biological surfaces.

Elastically Shaped Wing Optimization and Aircraft Concept for Improved Cruise Efficiency

Science.gov (United States)

Nguyen, Nhan; Trinh, Khanh; Reynolds, Kevin; Kless, James; Aftosmis, Michael; Urnes, James, Sr.; Ippolito, Corey

2013-01-01

This paper presents the findings of a study conducted tn 2010 by the NASA Innovation Fund Award project entitled "Elastically Shaped Future Air Vehicle Concept". The study presents three themes in support of meeting national and global aviation challenges of reducing fuel burn for present and future aviation systems. The first theme addresses the drag reduction goal through innovative vehicle configurations via non-planar wing optimization. Two wing candidate concepts have been identified from the wing optimization: a drooped wing shape and an inflected wing shape. The drooped wing shape is a truly biologically inspired wing concept that mimics a seagull wing and could achieve about 5% to 6% drag reduction, which is aerodynamically significant. From a practical perspective, this concept would require new radical changes to the current aircraft development capabilities for new vehicles with futuristic-looking wings such as this concept. The inflected wing concepts could achieve between 3% to 4% drag reduction. While the drag reduction benefit may be less, the inflected-wing concept could have a near-term impact since this concept could be developed within the current aircraft development capabilities. The second theme addresses the drag reduction goal through a new concept of elastic wing shaping control. By aeroelastically tailoring the wing shape with active control to maintain optimal aerodynamics, a significant drag reduction benefit could be realized. A significant reduction in fuel burn for long-range cruise from elastic wing shaping control could be realized. To realize the potential of the elastic wing shaping control concept, the third theme emerges that addresses the drag reduction goal through a new aerodynamic control effector called a variable camber continuous trailing edge flap. Conventional aerodynamic control surfaces are discrete independent surfaces that cause geometric discontinuities at the trailing edge region. These discontinuities promote

Flutter analysis of hybrid metal-composite low aspect ratio trapezoidal wings in supersonic flow

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Shokrollahi Saeed

2017-02-01

Full Text Available An effective 3D supersonic Mach box approach in combination with non-classical hybrid metal-composite plate theory has been used to investigate flutter boundaries of trapezoidal low aspect ratio wings. The wing structure is composed of two main components including aluminum material (in-board section and laminated composite material (out-board section. A global Ritz method is used with simple polynomials being employed as the trial functions. The most important objective of the present research is to study the effect of composite to metal proportion of hybrid wing structure on flutter boundaries in low supersonic regime. In addition, the effect of some important geometrical parameters such as sweep angle, taper ratio and aspect ratio on flutter boundaries were studied. The results obtained by present approach for special cases like pure metallic wings and results for high supersonic regime based on piston theory show a good agreement with those obtained by other investigators.

Quasi-cylindrical theory of wing-body interference at supersonic speeds and comparison with experiment

Science.gov (United States)

Nielsen, Jack N

1955-01-01

A theoretical method is presented for calculating the flow field about wing-body combinations employing bodies deviating only slightly in shape from a circular cylinder. The method is applied to the calculation of the pressure field acting between a circular cylindrical body and a rectangular wing. The case of zero body angle of attack and variable wing incidence is considered as well as the case of zero wing incidence and variable body angle of attack. An experiment was performed especially for the purpose of checking the calculative examples.

Conceptual design for a laminar-flying-wing aircraft

Science.gov (United States)

Saeed, T. I.

The laminar-flying-wing aircraft appears to be an attractive long-term prospect for reducing the environmental impact of commercial aviation. In assessing its potential, a relatively straightforward initial step is the conceptual design of a version with restricted sweep angle. Such a design is the topic of this thesis. Subject to constraints, this research aims to; provide insight into the parameters affecting practical laminar-flow-control suction power requirements; identify a viable basic design specification; and, on the basis of this, an assessment of the fuel efficiency through a detailed conceptual design study. It is shown that there is a minimum power requirement independent of the suction system design, associated with the stagnation pressure loss in the boundary layer. This requirement increases with aerofoil section thickness, but depends only weakly on Mach number and (for a thick, lightly-loaded laminar flying wing) lift coefficient. Deviation from the optimal suction distribution, due to a practical chamber-based architecture, is found to have very little effect on the overall suction coefficient. In the spanwise direction, through suitable choice of chamber depth, the pressure drop due to frictional and inertial effects may be rendered negligible. Finally, it is found that the pressure drop from the aerofoil surface to the pump collector ducts determines the power penalty. To identify the viable basic design specification, a high-level exploration of the laminar flying wing design space is performed. The characteristics of the design are assessed as a function of three parameters: thickness-to-chord ratio, wingspan, and unit Reynolds number. A feasible specification, with 20% thickness-to-chord, 80 m span and a unit Reynolds number of 8 x 106 m-1, is identified; it corresponds to a 187 tonne aircraft which cruises at Mach 0.67 and altitude 22,500 ft, with lift coefficient 0.14. On the basis of this specification, a detailed conceptual design is

Butterfly wing colours : scale beads make white pierid wings brighter

NARCIS (Netherlands)

Stavenga, DG; Stowe, S; Siebke, K; Zeil, J; Arikawa, K

2004-01-01

The wing-scale morphologies of the pierid butterflies Pieris rapae (small white) and Delias nigrina (common jezabel), and the heliconine Heliconius melpomene are compared and related to the wing-reflectance spectra. Light scattering at the wing scales determines the wing reflectance, but when the

Clap-and-fling mechanism in a hovering insect-like two-winged flapping-wing micro air vehicle.

Science.gov (United States)

Phan, Hoang Vu; Au, Thi Kim Loan; Park, Hoon Cheol

2016-12-01

This study used numerical and experimental approaches to investigate the role played by the clap-and-fling mechanism in enhancing force generation in hovering insect-like two-winged flapping-wing micro air vehicle (FW-MAV). The flapping mechanism was designed to symmetrically flap wings at a high flapping amplitude of approximately 192°. The clap-and-fling mechanisms were thereby implemented at both dorsal and ventral stroke reversals. A computational fluid dynamic (CFD) model was constructed based on three-dimensional wing kinematics to estimate the force generation, which was validated by the measured forces using a 6-axis load cell. The computed forces proved that the CFD model provided reasonable estimation with differences less than 8%, when compared with the measured forces. The measurement indicated that the clap and flings at both the stroke reversals augmented the average vertical force by 16.2% when compared with the force without the clap-and-fling effect. In the CFD simulation, the clap and flings enhanced the vertical force by 11.5% and horizontal drag force by 18.4%. The observations indicated that both the fling and the clap contributed to the augmented vertical force by 62.6% and 37.4%, respectively, and to the augmented horizontal drag force by 71.7% and 28.3%, respectively. The flow structures suggested that a strong downwash was expelled from the opening gap between the trailing edges during the fling as well as the clap at each stroke reversal. In addition to the fling phases, the influx of air into the low-pressure region between the wings from the leading edges also significantly contributed to augmentation of the vertical force. The study conducted for high Reynolds numbers also confirmed that the effect of the clap and fling was insignificant when the minimum distance between the two wings exceeded 1.2c (c = wing chord). Thus, the clap and flings were successfully implemented in the FW-MAV, and there was a significant improvement in the

An Airplane Design having a Wing with Fuselage Attached to Each Tip

Science.gov (United States)

Spearman, Leroy M.

2001-01-01

This paper describes the conceptual design of an airplane having a low aspect ratio wing with fuselages that are attached to each wing tip. The concept is proposed for a high-capacity transport as an alternate to progressively increasing the size of a conventional transport design having a single fuselage with cantilevered wing panels attached to the sides and tail surfaces attached at the rear. Progressively increasing the size of conventional single body designs may lead to problems in some area's such as manufacturing, ground-handling and aerodynamic behavior. A limited review will be presented of some past work related to means of relieving some size constraints through the use of multiple bodies. Recent low-speed wind-tunnel tests have been made of models representative of the inboard-wing concept. These models have a low aspect ratio wing with a fuselage attached to each tip. Results from these tests, which included force measurements, surface pressure measurements, and wake surveys, will be presented herein.

Morphing Wing-Tip Open Loop Controller and its Validation During Wind Tunnel Tests at the IAR-NRC

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Mohamed Sadok GUEZGUEZ

2016-09-01

Full Text Available In this project, a wing tip of a real aircraft was designed and manufactured. This wing tip was composed of a wing and an aileron. The wing was equipped with a composite skin on its upper surface. This skin changed its shape (morphed by use of 4 electrical in-house developed actuators and 32 pressure sensors. These pressure sensors measure the pressures, and further the loads on the wing upper surface. Thus, the upper surface of the wing was morphed using these actuators with the aim to improve the aerodynamic performances of the wing-tip. Two types of ailerons were designed and manufactured: one aileron is rigid (non-morphed and one morphing aileron. This morphing aileron can change its shape also for the aerodynamic performances improvement. The morphing wing-tip internal structure is designed and manufactured, and is presented firstly in the paper. Then, the modern communication and control hardware are presented for the entire morphing wing tip equipped with actuators and sensors having the aim to morph the wing. The calibration procedure of the wing tip is further presented, followed by the open loop controller results obtained during wind tunnel tests. Various methodologies of open loop control are presented in this paper, and results obtained were obtained and validated experimentally through wind tunnel tests.

Short revolving wings enable hovering animals to avoid stall and reduce drag

Science.gov (United States)

Lentink, David; Kruyt, Jan W.; Heijst, Gertjan F.; Altshuler, Douglas L.

2014-11-01

Long and slender wings reduce the drag of airplanes, helicopters, and gliding animals, which operate at low angle of attack (incidence). Remarkably, there is no evidence for such influence of wing aspect ratio on the energetics of hovering animals that operate their wings at much higher incidence. High incidence causes aircraft wings to stall, hovering animals avoid stall by generating an attached vortex along the leading edge of their wings that elevates lift. Hypotheses that explain this capability include the necessity for a short radial distance between the shoulder joint and wing tip, measured in chord lengths, instead of the long tip-to-tip distance that elevates aircraft performance. This stems from how hovering animals revolve their wings around a joint, a condition for which the precise effect of aspect ratio on stall performance is unknown. Here we show that the attachment of the leading edge vortex is determined by wing aspect ratio with respect to the center of rotation-for a suite of aspect ratios that represent both animal and aircraft wings. The vortex remains attached when the local radius is shorter than 4 chord lengths, and separates outboard on more slender wings. Like most other hovering animals, hummingbirds have wing aspect ratios between 3 and 4, much stubbier than helicopters. Our results show this makes their wings robust against flow separation, which reduces drag below values obtained with more slender wings. This revises our understanding of how aspect ratio improves performance at low Reynolds numbers.

Effects of structural flexibility of wings in flapping flight of butterfly.

Science.gov (United States)

Senda, Kei; Obara, Takuya; Kitamura, Masahiko; Yokoyama, Naoto; Hirai, Norio; Iima, Makoto

2012-06-01

The objective of this paper is to clarify the effects of structural flexibility of wings of a butterfly in flapping flight. For this purpose, a dynamics model of a butterfly is derived by Lagrange's method, where the butterfly is considered as a rigid multi-body system. The panel method is employed to simulate the flow field and the aerodynamic forces acting on the wings. The mathematical model is validated by the agreement of the numerical result with the experimentally measured data. Then, periodic orbits of flapping-of-wings flights are parametrically searched in order to fly the butterfly models. Almost periodic orbits are found, but they are unstable. Deformation of the wings is modeled in two ways. One is bending and its effect on the aerodynamic forces is discussed. The other is passive wing torsion caused by structural flexibility. Numerical simulations demonstrate that flexible torsion reduces the flight instability.

Effects of structural flexibility of wings in flapping flight of butterfly

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Senda, Kei; Yokoyama, Naoto; Obara, Takuya; Kitamura, Masahiko; Hirai, Norio; Iima, Makoto

2012-01-01

The objective of this paper is to clarify the effects of structural flexibility of wings of a butterfly in flapping flight. For this purpose, a dynamics model of a butterfly is derived by Lagrange’s method, where the butterfly is considered as a rigid multi-body system. The panel method is employed to simulate the flow field and the aerodynamic forces acting on the wings. The mathematical model is validated by the agreement of the numerical result with the experimentally measured data. Then, periodic orbits of flapping-of-wings flights are parametrically searched in order to fly the butterfly models. Almost periodic orbits are found, but they are unstable. Deformation of the wings is modeled in two ways. One is bending and its effect on the aerodynamic forces is discussed. The other is passive wing torsion caused by structural flexibility. Numerical simulations demonstrate that flexible torsion reduces the flight instability. (paper)

On fluttering modes for aircraft wing model in subsonic air flow.

Science.gov (United States)

Shubov, Marianna A

2014-12-08

The paper deals with unstable aeroelastic modes for aircraft wing model in subsonic, incompressible, inviscid air flow. In recent author's papers asymptotic, spectral and stability analysis of the model has been carried out. The model is governed by a system of two coupled integrodifferential equations and a two-parameter family of boundary conditions modelling action of self-straining actuators. The Laplace transform of the solution is given in terms of the 'generalized resolvent operator', which is a meromorphic operator-valued function of the spectral parameter λ, whose poles are called the aeroelastic modes. The residues at these poles are constructed from the corresponding mode shapes. The spectral characteristics of the model are asymptotically close to the ones of a simpler system, which is called the reduced model. For the reduced model, the following result is shown: for each value of subsonic speed, there exists a radius such that all aeroelastic modes located outside the circle of this radius centred at zero are stable. Unstable modes, whose number is always finite, can occur only inside this 'circle of instability'. Explicit estimate of the 'instability radius' in terms of model parameters is given.

A Numerical Study of Aerodynamic Performance and Noise of a Bionic Airfoil Based on Owl Wing

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Xiaomin Liu

2014-08-01

Full Text Available Noise reduction and efficiency enhancement are the two important directions in the development of the multiblade centrifugal fan. In this study, we attempt to develop a bionic airfoil based on the owl wing and investigate its aerodynamic performance and noise-reduction mechanism at the relatively low Reynolds number. Firstly, according to the geometric characteristics of the owl wing, a bionic airfoil is constructed as the object of study at Reynolds number of 12,300. Secondly, the large eddy simulation (LES with the Smagorinsky model is adopted to numerically simulate the unsteady flow fields around the bionic airfoil and the standard NACA0006 airfoil. And then, the acoustic sources are extracted from the unsteady flow field data, and the Ffowcs Williams-Hawkings (FW-H equation based on Lighthill's acoustic theory is solved to predict the propagation of these acoustic sources. The numerical results show that the lift-to-drag ratio of bionic airfoil is higher than that of the traditional NACA 0006 airfoil because of its deeply concave lower surface geometry. Finally, the sound field of the bionic airfoil is analyzed in detail. The distribution of the A-weighted sound pressure levels, the scaled directivity of the sound, and the distribution of dP/dt on the airfoil surface are provided so that the characteristics of the acoustic sources could be revealed.

Pegasus(Registered trademark) Wing-Glove Experiment to Document Hypersonic Crossflow Transition: Measurement System and Selected Flight Results

Science.gov (United States)

Bertelrud, Arild; delaTova, Geva; Hamory, Philip J.; Young, Ronald; Noffz, Gregory K.; Dodson, Michael; Graves, Sharon S.; Diamond, John K.; Bartlett, James E.; Noack, Robert;

Radionuclide transfer onto ground surface in surface water flow. 2. Undisturbed tuff rock

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Mukai, Masayuki; Takebe, Shinichi; Komiya, Tomokazu

1994-09-01

Radionuclide migration with ground surface water flow is considered to be one of path ways in the scenario for environmental migration of the radionuclide leaked from LLRW depository. To study the radionuclide migration demonstratively, a ground surface radionuclide migration test was carried out by simulating radioactive solution flowing on the sloped tuff rock surface. Tuff rock sample of 240 cm in length taken from the Shimokita district was used to test the transfer of 60 Co, 85 Sr and 137 Cs onto the sample surface from the flowing radioactive solution under restricted infiltration condition at flow rates of 25, 80, 160ml/min and duration of 56h. The concentration change of the radionuclides in effluent was nearly constant as a function of elapsed time during the experimental period, but decreased with lower flow rates. Among the three radionuclides, 137 Cs was greatly decreased its concentration to 30% of the inflow. Adsorbed distribution of the radionuclides concentration on the ground surface decreased gradually with the distance from the inlet, and showed greater gradient at lower flow rate. Analyzing the result by the migration model, where a vertical advection distribution and two-dimensional diffusion in surface water are adopted with a first order adsorption reaction, value of migration parameters was obtained relating to the radionuclide adsorption and the surface water flow, and the measured distribution could be well simulated by adopting the value to the model. By comparing the values with the case of loamy soil layer, all values of the migration parameters showed not so great difference between two samples for 60 Co and 85 Sr. For 137 Cs, reflecting a few larger value of adsorption to the tuff rock, larger ability to reduce the concentration of flowing radioactive solution could be indicated than that to the loamy soil surface by estimation for long flowed distance. (author)

Transient disturbance growth in flows over convex surfaces

Science.gov (United States)

Karp, Michael; Hack, M. J. Philipp

2017-11-01

Flows over curved surfaces occur in a wide range of applications including airfoils, compressor and turbine vanes as well as aerial, naval and ground vehicles. In most of these applications the surface has convex curvature, while concave surfaces are less common. Since monotonic boundary-layer flows over convex surfaces are exponentially stable, they have received considerably less attention than flows over concave walls which are destabilized by centrifugal forces. Non-modal mechanisms may nonetheless enable significant disturbance growth which can make the flow susceptible to secondary instabilities. A parametric investigation of the transient growth and secondary instability of flows over convex surfaces is performed. The specific conditions yielding the maximal transient growth and strongest instability are identified. The effect of wall-normal and spanwise inflection points on the instability process is discussed. Finally, the role and significance of additional parameters, such as the geometry and pressure gradient, is analyzed.

Vortexlet models of flapping flexible wings show tuning for force production and control

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Mountcastle, A M; Daniel, T L

2010-01-01

Insect wings are compliant structures that experience deformations during flight. Such deformations have recently been shown to substantially affect induced flows, with appreciable consequences to flight forces. However, there are open questions related to the aerodynamic mechanisms underlying the performance benefits of wing deformation, as well as the extent to which such deformations are determined by the boundary conditions governing wing actuation together with mechanical properties of the wing itself. Here we explore aerodynamic performance parameters of compliant wings under periodic oscillations, subject to changes in phase between wing elevation and pitch, and magnitude and spatial pattern of wing flexural stiffness. We use a combination of computational structural mechanics models and a 2D computational fluid dynamics approach to ask how aerodynamic force production and control potential are affected by pitch/elevation phase and variations in wing flexural stiffness. Our results show that lift and thrust forces are highly sensitive to flexural stiffness distributions, with performance optima that lie in different phase regions. These results suggest a control strategy for both flying animals and engineering applications of micro-air vehicles.

AERO2S - SUBSONIC AERODYNAMIC ANALYSIS OF WINGS WITH LEADING- AND TRAILING-EDGE FLAPS IN COMBINATION WITH CANARD OR HORIZONTAL TAIL SURFACES (CDC VERSION)

Science.gov (United States)

Darden, C. M.

1994-01-01

This code was developed to aid design engineers in the selection and evaluation of aerodynamically efficient wing-canard and wing-horizontal-tail configurations that may employ simple hinged-flap systems. Rapid estimates of the longitudinal aerodynamic characteristics of conceptual airplane lifting surface arrangements are provided. The method is particularly well suited to configurations which, because of high speed flight requirements, must employ thin wings with highly swept leading edges. The code is applicable to wings with either sharp or rounded leading edges. The code provides theoretical pressure distributions over the wing, the canard or horizontal tail, and the deflected flap surfaces as well as estimates of the wing lift, drag, and pitching moments which account for attainable leading edge thrust and leading edge separation vortex forces. The wing planform information is specified by a series of leading edge and trailing edge breakpoints for a right hand wing panel. Up to 21 pairs of coordinates may be used to describe both the leading edge and the trailing edge. The code has been written to accommodate 2000 right hand panel elements, but can easily be modified to accommodate a larger or smaller number of elements depending on the capacity of the target computer platform. The code provides solutions for wing surfaces composed of all possible combinations of leading edge and trailing edge flap settings provided by the original deflection multipliers and by the flap deflection multipliers. Up to 25 pairs of leading edge and trailing edge flap deflection schedules may thus be treated simultaneously. The code also provides for an improved accounting of hinge-line singularities in determination of wing forces and moments. To determine lifting surface perturbation velocity distributions, the code provides for a maximum of 70 iterations. The program is constructed so that successive runs may be made with a given code entry. To make additional runs, it is

Real-time in vivo imaging of butterfly wing development: revealing the cellular dynamics of the pupal wing tissue.

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Masaki Iwata

Full Text Available Butterfly wings are covered with regularly arranged single-colored scales that are formed at the pupal stage. Understanding pupal wing development is therefore crucial to understand wing color pattern formation. Here, we successfully employed real-time in vivo imaging techniques to observe pupal hindwing development over time in the blue pansy butterfly, Junonia orithya. A transparent sheet of epithelial cells that were not yet regularly arranged was observed immediately after pupation. Bright-field imaging and autofluorescent imaging revealed free-moving hemocytes and tracheal branches of a crinoid-like structure underneath the epithelium. The wing tissue gradually became gray-white, epithelial cells were arranged regularly, and hemocytes disappeared, except in the bordering lacuna, after which scales grew. The dynamics of the epithelial cells and scale growth were also confirmed by fluorescent imaging. Fluorescent in vivo staining further revealed that these cells harbored many mitochondria at the surface of the epithelium. Organizing centers for the border symmetry system were apparent immediately after pupation, exhibiting a relatively dark optical character following treatment with fluorescent dyes, as well as in autofluorescent images. The wing tissue exhibited slow and low-frequency contraction pulses with a cycle of approximately 10 to 20 minutes, mainly occurring at 2 to 3 days postpupation. The pulses gradually became slower and weaker and eventually stopped. The wing tissue area became larger after contraction, which also coincided with an increase in the autofluorescence intensity that might have been caused by scale growth. Examination of the pattern of color development revealed that the black pigment was first deposited in patches in the central areas of an eyespot black ring and a parafocal element. These results of live in vivo imaging that covered wide wing area for a long time can serve as a foundation for studying the

Real-time in vivo imaging of butterfly wing development: revealing the cellular dynamics of the pupal wing tissue.

Science.gov (United States)

Iwata, Masaki; Ohno, Yoshikazu; Otaki, Joji M

2014-01-01

Butterfly wings are covered with regularly arranged single-colored scales that are formed at the pupal stage. Understanding pupal wing development is therefore crucial to understand wing color pattern formation. Here, we successfully employed real-time in vivo imaging techniques to observe pupal hindwing development over time in the blue pansy butterfly, Junonia orithya. A transparent sheet of epithelial cells that were not yet regularly arranged was observed immediately after pupation. Bright-field imaging and autofluorescent imaging revealed free-moving hemocytes and tracheal branches of a crinoid-like structure underneath the epithelium. The wing tissue gradually became gray-white, epithelial cells were arranged regularly, and hemocytes disappeared, except in the bordering lacuna, after which scales grew. The dynamics of the epithelial cells and scale growth were also confirmed by fluorescent imaging. Fluorescent in vivo staining further revealed that these cells harbored many mitochondria at the surface of the epithelium. Organizing centers for the border symmetry system were apparent immediately after pupation, exhibiting a relatively dark optical character following treatment with fluorescent dyes, as well as in autofluorescent images. The wing tissue exhibited slow and low-frequency contraction pulses with a cycle of approximately 10 to 20 minutes, mainly occurring at 2 to 3 days postpupation. The pulses gradually became slower and weaker and eventually stopped. The wing tissue area became larger after contraction, which also coincided with an increase in the autofluorescence intensity that might have been caused by scale growth. Examination of the pattern of color development revealed that the black pigment was first deposited in patches in the central areas of an eyespot black ring and a parafocal element. These results of live in vivo imaging that covered wide wing area for a long time can serve as a foundation for studying the cellular dynamics of living

Crossflow-Vortex Breakdown on Swept Wings: Correlation of Nonlinear Physics

Science.gov (United States)

Joslin, R. D.; Streett, C. L.

1994-01-01

The spatial evolution of cross flow-vortex packets in a laminar boundary layer on a swept wing are computed by the direct numerical simulation of the incompressible Navier- Stokes equations. A wall-normal velocity distribution of steady suction and blowing at the wing surface is used to generate a strip of equally spaced and periodic disturbances along the span. Three simulations are conducted to study the effect of initial amplitude on the disturbance evolution, to determine the role of traveling cross ow modes in transition, and to devise a correlation function to guide theories of transition prediction. In each simulation, the vortex packets first enter a chordwise region of linear independent growth, then, the individual packets coalesce downstream and interact with adjacent packets, and, finally, the vortex packets nonlinearly interact to generate inflectional velocity profiles. As the initial amplitude of the disturbance is increased, the length of the evolution to breakdown decreases. For this pressure gradient, stationary modes dominate the disturbance evolution. A two-coeffcient function was devised to correlate the simulation results. The coefficients, combined with a single simulation result, provide sufficient information to generate the evolution pattern for disturbances of any initial amplitude.

Biotemplated Morpho Butterfly Wings for Tunable Structurally Colored Photocatalysts.

Science.gov (United States)

Rodríguez, Robin E; Agarwal, Sneha P; An, Shun; Kazyak, Eric; Das, Debashree; Shang, Wen; Skye, Rachael; Deng, Tao; Dasgupta, Neil P

2018-02-07

Morpho sulkowskyi butterfly wings contain naturally occurring hierarchical nanostructures that produce structural coloration. The high aspect ratio and surface area of these wings make them attractive nanostructured templates for applications in solar energy and photocatalysis. However, biomimetic approaches to replicate their complex structural features and integrate functional materials into their three-dimensional framework are highly limited in precision and scalability. Herein, a biotemplating approach is presented that precisely replicates Morpho nanostructures by depositing nanocrystalline ZnO coatings onto wings via low-temperature atomic layer deposition (ALD). This study demonstrates the ability to precisely tune the natural structural coloration while also integrating multifunctionality by imparting photocatalytic activity onto fully intact Morpho wings. Optical spectroscopy and finite-difference time-domain numerical modeling demonstrate that ALD ZnO coatings can rationally tune the structural coloration across the visible spectrum. These structurally colored photocatalysts exhibit an optimal coating thickness to maximize photocatalytic activity, which is attributed to trade-offs between light absorption and catalytic quantum yield with increasing coating thickness. These multifunctional photocatalysts present a new approach to integrating solar energy harvesting into visually attractive surfaces that can be integrated into building facades or other macroscopic structures to impart aesthetic appeal.

Using Free Flow Energy Cumulation in Wind and Hydro Power Production

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Lev Ktitorov

2016-09-01

Full Text Available When approaching a conventional wind turbine, the air flow is slowed down and widened. This results in a loss of turbine efficiency. In order to exploit wind or water flow power as effectively as possible, it was suggested that the turbine should be placed inside a shroud, which consists of 4 wing-shaped surfaces. Two internal airfoils improve the turbine performance by speeding up the flow acting on the turbine blades, two external wings create a field of low pressure behind the turbine, thus, helping to draw more mass flow to the turbine and avoid the loss of efficiency due to flow deceleration.  The system accumulates kinetic energy of the flow in a small volume where the smaller (and, therefore, cheaper turbine can be installed. A smaller system can be installed inside the bigger one, which would help to accumulate even more kinetic energy on the turbine. We call this method the kinetic energy summation with local flow redistribution. Both experiments and CFD simulations demonstrate a significant increase in velocity and generated mechanical power in comparison of those for a bare turbine.

Mechanisms in wing-in-ground effect aerodynamics

Science.gov (United States)

Jones, Marvin Alan

An aircraft in low-level flight experiences a large increase in lift and a marked reduction in drag, compared with flight at altitude. This phenomenon is termed the 'wing-in-ground' effect. In these circumstances a region of high pressure is created beneath the aerofoil, and a pressure difference is set up between its upper and lower surfaces. A pressure difference is not permitted at the trailing edge and therefore a mechanism must exist which allows the pressures above and below to adjust themselves to produce a continuous pressure field in the wake. It is the study of this mechanism and its role in the aerodynamics of low-level flight that forms the basis of our investigation. We begin in Chapter 2 by considering the flow past a thin aero-foil moving at moderate distances from the ground, the typical ground clearance a being of order unity. The aforementioned mechanism is introduced and described in detail in the context of this inviscid problem. Chapter 3 considers the same flow for large and small ground clearances and in the later case shows that the flow solution beneath the aerofoil takes on a particularly simple form. In this case the lift is shown to increase as a-1. In Chapter 4 we focus on the flow past the trailing edge of an aerofoil moving even nearer the ground, with the ground just outside the boundary layer. We show that in this case our asymptotic theory for small a is consistent with a 'triple-deck' approach to the problem which incorporates ground effects via a new pressure-displacement law. The triple-deck ground-interference problem is stated and solved. In Chapter 5 we investigate the case where the aerofoil is so near the ground that the ground is inside the boundary layer. Here the moving ground interacts with the aerofoil in a fully viscous way and the non-linear boundary layer equations hold along the entire length of the aerofoil. Again a pressure difference at the trailing edge is not permitted and this produces upstream adjustment

Integrated Surface/subsurface flow modeling in PFLOTRAN

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Painter, Scott L [Oak Ridge National Lab. (ORNL), Oak Ridge, TN (United States)

2016-10-01

Understanding soil water, groundwater, and shallow surface water dynamics as an integrated hydrological system is critical for understanding the Earth’s critical zone, the thin outer layer at our planet’s surface where vegetation, soil, rock, and gases interact to regulate the environment. Computational tools that take this view of soil moisture and shallow surface flows as a single integrated system are typically referred to as integrated surface/subsurface hydrology models. We extend the open-source, highly parallel, subsurface flow and reactive transport simulator PFLOTRAN to accommodate surface flows. In contrast to most previous implementations, we do not represent a distinct surface system. Instead, the vertical gradient in hydraulic head at the land surface is neglected, which allows the surface flow system to be eliminated and incorporated directly into the subsurface system. This tight coupling approach leads to a robust capability and also greatly simplifies implementation in existing subsurface simulators such as PFLOTRAN. Successful comparisons to independent numerical solutions build confidence in the approximation and implementation. Example simulations of the Walker Branch and East Fork Poplar Creek watersheds near Oak Ridge, Tennessee demonstrate the robustness of the approach in geometrically complex applications. The lack of a robust integrated surface/subsurface hydrology capability had been a barrier to PFLOTRAN’s use in critical zone studies. This work addresses that capability gap, thus enabling PFLOTRAN as a community platform for building integrated models of the critical zone.

Flow over riblet curved surfaces

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Loureiro, J B R; Freire, A P Silva, E-mail: atila@mecanica.ufrj.br [Mechanical Engineering Program, Federal University of Rio de Janeiro (COPPE/UFRJ), C.P. 68503, 21.941-972, Rio de Janeiro, RJ (Brazil)

2011-12-22

The present work studies the mechanics of turbulent drag reduction over curved surfaces by riblets. The effects of surface modification on flow separation over steep and smooth curved surfaces are investigated. Four types of two-dimensional surfaces are studied based on the morphometric parameters that describe the body of a blue whale. Local measurements of mean velocity and turbulence profiles are obtained through laser Doppler anemometry (LDA) and particle image velocimetry (PIV).

Replication of cicada wing's nano-patterns by hot embossing and UV nanoimprinting

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Hong, Sung-Hoon; Hwang, Jaeyeon; Lee, Heon

2009-01-01

The hydrophobicity of the cicada wing originates from its naturally occurring, surface nano-structure. The nano-structure of the cicada wing consists of an array of nano-sized pillars, 100 nm in diameter and 300 nm in height. In this study, the nano-structure of the cicada wing was successfully duplicated by using hot embossing lithography and UV nanoimprint lithography (NIL). The diameter and pitch of replication were the same as those of the original cicada wing and the height was a little smaller than that of the original master. The transmittance of the hot embossed PVC film was increased by 2-6% compared with that of the bare PVC film. The hydrophobicity was measured by water contact angle measurements. The water contact angle of the replica, made of UV cured polymer, was 132 0 ± 2 0 , which was slightly lower than that of the original cicada wing (138 0 ± 2 0 ), but much higher than that of the UV cured polymer surface without any nano-sized pillars (86 0 ).

Artificial insect wings of diverse morphology for flapping-wing micro air vehicles

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Shang, J K; Finio, B M; Wood, R J; Combes, S A

2009-01-01

The development of flapping-wing micro air vehicles (MAVs) demands a systematic exploration of the available design space to identify ways in which the unsteady mechanisms governing flapping-wing flight can best be utilized for producing optimal thrust or maneuverability. Mimicking the wing kinematics of biological flight requires examining the potential effects of wing morphology on flight performance, as wings may be specially adapted for flapping flight. For example, insect wings passively deform during flight, leading to instantaneous and potentially unpredictable changes in aerodynamic behavior. Previous studies have postulated various explanations for insect wing complexity, but there lacks a systematic approach for experimentally examining the functional significance of components of wing morphology, and for determining whether or not natural design principles can or should be used for MAVs. In this work, a novel fabrication process to create centimeter-scale wings of great complexity is introduced; via this process, a wing can be fabricated with a large range of desired mechanical and geometric characteristics. We demonstrate the versatility of the process through the creation of planar, insect-like wings with biomimetic venation patterns that approximate the mechanical properties of their natural counterparts under static loads. This process will provide a platform for studies investigating the effects of wing morphology on flight dynamics, which may lead to the design of highly maneuverable and efficient MAVs and insight into the functional morphology of natural wings.

Wind tunnel tests for a flapping wing model with a changeable camber using macro-fiber composite actuators

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Kim, Dae-Kwan; Han, Jae-Hung; Kwon, Ki-Jung

2009-01-01

In the present study, a biomimetic flexible flapping wing was developed on a real ornithopter scale by using macro-fiber composite (MFC) actuators. With the actuators, the maximum camber of the wing can be linearly changed from −2.6% to +4.4% of the maximum chord length. Aerodynamic tests were carried out in a low-speed wind tunnel to investigate the aerodynamic characteristics, particularly the camber effect, the chordwise flexibility effect and the unsteady effect. Although the chordwise wing flexibility reduces the effective angle of attack, the maximum lift coefficient can be increased by the MFC actuators up to 24.4% in a static condition. Note also that the mean values of the perpendicular force coefficient rise to a value of considerably more than 3 in an unsteady aerodynamic flow region. Additionally, particle image velocimetry (PIV) tests were performed in static and dynamic test conditions to validate the flexibility and unsteady effects. The static PIV results confirm that the effective angle of attack is reduced by the coupling of the chordwise flexibility and the aerodynamic force, resulting in a delay in the stall phenomena. In contrast to the quasi-steady flow condition of a relatively high advance ratio, the unsteady aerodynamic effect due to a leading edge vortex can be found along the wing span in a low advance ratio region. The overall results show that the chordwise wing flexibility can produce a positive effect on flapping aerodynamic characteristics in quasi-steady and unsteady flow regions; thus, wing flexibility should be considered in the design of efficient flapping wings

Simulation of gas compressible flow by free surface water flow

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Altafini, C.R.; Silva Ferreira, R.T. da

1981-01-01

The analogy between the water flow with a free surface and the compressible fluid flow, commonly called hydraulic analogy, is analyzed and its limitations are identified. The water table is the equipment used for this simulation, which allows the quatitative analysis of subsonic and supersonic flow with a low cost apparatus. The hydraulic analogy is applied to subsonic flow around circular cylinders and supersonic flow around cones. The results are compared with available theoretical and experimental data and a good agreement is achieved. (Author) [pt

Ventilation and internal structure effects on naturally induced flows in a static aircraft wing

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Moore, Daithi; Newport, David; Egan, Vanessa; Lacarac, Vesna

2012-01-01

The ventilation performance within an aircraft wing leading edge is investigated for a number of enclosure and ventilation configurations. The natural convection regime present is found to be highly sensitive to enclosure conditions, particularly the introduction of a partition. The presence of a partition reduced the overall heat exhausted from the cavity by up to 60%. The optimum ventilation strategy is also changed from a forward biased vent orientation (found for the unpartitioned case), to one where both the rear and front vents within the enclosure had the same open area. Cylinder plume effects dominate within the enclosure and were the main driver of the convective regime, with steady-state enclosure conditions highly dependent upon cylinder placement and plume orientation. An externally heated enclosure with internal heat source, combined with ventilation and an internal structure produced a complex natural convection regime which is sensitive to enclosure conditions. Hence an adequate knowledge of such conditions is necessary in order to fully appreciate the convective regime. - Highlights: → Optimum ventilation strategy changed between unpartitioned and partitioned cases. → Flow path and plume orientation are important to consider when analysing ventilation. → Bleed duct placement significantly alters flow path and temperature distribution. → Enclosure partitioning reduced heat exhaustion by 60%.

Wing-pitch modulation in maneuvering fruit flies is explained by an interplay between aerodynamics and a torsional spring

Science.gov (United States)

Beatus, Tsevi; Cohen, Itai

2015-08-01

While the wing kinematics of many flapping insects have been well characterized, understanding the underlying sensory, neural, and physiological mechanisms that determine these kinematics is still a challenge. Two main difficulties in understanding the physiological mechanisms arise from the complexity of the interaction between a flapping wing and its own unsteady flow, as well as the intricate mechanics of the insect wing hinge, which is among the most complicated joints in the animal kingdom. These difficulties call for the application of reduced-order approaches. Here this strategy is used to model the torques exerted by the wing hinge along the wing-pitch axis of maneuvering fruit flies as a damped torsional spring with elastic and damping coefficients as well as a rest angle. Furthermore, we model the air flows using simplified quasistatic aerodynamics. Our findings suggest that flies take advantage of the passive coupling between aerodynamics and the damped torsional spring to indirectly control their wing-pitch kinematics by modulating the spring parameters. The damped torsional-spring model explains the changes measured in wing-pitch kinematics during roll correction maneuvers through modulation of the spring damping and elastic coefficients. These results, in conjunction with the previous literature, indicate that flies can accurately control their wing-pitch kinematics on a sub-wing-beat time scale by modulating all three effective spring parameters on longer time scales.

Downstream Effects on Orbiter Leeside Flow Separation for Hypersonic Flows

Science.gov (United States)

Buck, Gregory M.; Pulsonetti, Maria V.; Weilmuenster, K. James

2005-01-01

Discrepancies between experiment and computation for shuttle leeside flow separation, which came to light in the Columbia accident investigation, are resolved. Tests were run in the Langley Research Center 20-Inch Hypersonic CF4 Tunnel with a baseline orbiter model and two extended trailing edge models. The extended trailing edges altered the wing leeside separation lines, moving the lines toward the fuselage, proving that wing trailing edge modeling does affect the orbiter leeside flow. Computations were then made with a wake grid. These calculations more closely matched baseline experiments. Thus, the present findings demonstrate that it is imperative to include the wake flow domain in CFD calculations in order to accurately predict leeside flow separation for hypersonic vehicles at high angles of attack.

Time-varying wing-twist improves aerodynamic efficiency of forward flight in butterflies.

Science.gov (United States)

Zheng, Lingxiao; Hedrick, Tyson L; Mittal, Rajat

2013-01-01

Insect wings can undergo significant chordwise (camber) as well as spanwise (twist) deformation during flapping flight but the effect of these deformations is not well understood. The shape and size of butterfly wings leads to particularly large wing deformations, making them an ideal test case for investigation of these effects. Here we use computational models derived from experiments on free-flying butterflies to understand the effect of time-varying twist and camber on the aerodynamic performance of these insects. High-speed videogrammetry is used to capture the wing kinematics, including deformation, of a Painted Lady butterfly (Vanessa cardui) in untethered, forward flight. These experimental results are then analyzed computationally using a high-fidelity, three-dimensional, unsteady Navier-Stokes flow solver. For comparison to this case, a set of non-deforming, flat-plate wing (FPW) models of wing motion are synthesized and subjected to the same analysis along with a wing model that matches the time-varying wing-twist observed for the butterfly, but has no deformation in camber. The simulations show that the observed butterfly wing (OBW) outperforms all the flat-plate wings in terms of usable force production as well as the ratio of lift to power by at least 29% and 46%, respectively. This increase in efficiency of lift production is at least three-fold greater than reported for other insects. Interestingly, we also find that the twist-only-wing (TOW) model recovers much of the performance of the OBW, demonstrating that wing-twist, and not camber is key to forward flight in these insects. The implications of this on the design of flapping wing micro-aerial vehicles are discussed.

Time-varying wing-twist improves aerodynamic efficiency of forward flight in butterflies.

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Lingxiao Zheng

Full Text Available Insect wings can undergo significant chordwise (camber as well as spanwise (twist deformation during flapping flight but the effect of these deformations is not well understood. The shape and size of butterfly wings leads to particularly large wing deformations, making them an ideal test case for investigation of these effects. Here we use computational models derived from experiments on free-flying butterflies to understand the effect of time-varying twist and camber on the aerodynamic performance of these insects. High-speed videogrammetry is used to capture the wing kinematics, including deformation, of a Painted Lady butterfly (Vanessa cardui in untethered, forward flight. These experimental results are then analyzed computationally using a high-fidelity, three-dimensional, unsteady Navier-Stokes flow solver. For comparison to this case, a set of non-deforming, flat-plate wing (FPW models of wing motion are synthesized and subjected to the same analysis along with a wing model that matches the time-varying wing-twist observed for the butterfly, but has no deformation in camber. The simulations show that the observed butterfly wing (OBW outperforms all the flat-plate wings in terms of usable force production as well as the ratio of lift to power by at least 29% and 46%, respectively. This increase in efficiency of lift production is at least three-fold greater than reported for other insects. Interestingly, we also find that the twist-only-wing (TOW model recovers much of the performance of the OBW, demonstrating that wing-twist, and not camber is key to forward flight in these insects. The implications of this on the design of flapping wing micro-aerial vehicles are discussed.

Wake Characteristics of a Flapping Wing Optimized for both Aerial and Aquatic Flight

Science.gov (United States)

Izraelevitz, Jacob; Kotidis, Miranda; Triantafyllou, Michael

2017-11-01

Multiple aquatic bird species (including murres, puffins, and other auks) employ a single actuator to propel themselves in two different fluid media: both flying and swimming using primarily their flapping wings. This impressive design compromise could be adopted by engineered implementations of dual aerial/aquatic robotic platforms, as it offers an existence proof for favorable flow physics. We discuss one realization of a 3D flapping wing actuation system for use in both air and water. The wing oscillates by the root and employs an active in-line motion degree-of-freedom. An experiment-coupled optimization routine generates the wing trajectories, controlling the unsteady forces throughout each flapping cycle. We elucidate the wakes of these wing trajectories using dye visualization, correlating the wake vortex structures with simultaneous force measurements. After optimization, the wing generates the large force envelope necessary for propulsion in both fluid media, and furthermore, demonstrate improved control over the unsteady wake.

Development of multidisciplinary design optimization procedures for smart composite wings and turbomachinery blades

Science.gov (United States)

Jha, Ratneshwar

Multidisciplinary design optimization (MDO) procedures have been developed for smart composite wings and turbomachinery blades. The analysis and optimization methods used are computationally efficient and sufficiently rigorous. Therefore, the developed MDO procedures are well suited for actual design applications. The optimization procedure for the conceptual design of composite aircraft wings with surface bonded piezoelectric actuators involves the coupling of structural mechanics, aeroelasticity, aerodynamics and controls. The load carrying member of the wing is represented as a single-celled composite box beam. Each wall of the box beam is analyzed as a composite laminate using a refined higher-order displacement field to account for the variations in transverse shear stresses through the thickness. Therefore, the model is applicable for the analysis of composite wings of arbitrary thickness. Detailed structural modeling issues associated with piezoelectric actuation of composite structures are considered. The governing equations of motion are solved using the finite element method to analyze practical wing geometries. Three-dimensional aerodynamic computations are performed using a panel code based on the constant-pressure lifting surface method to obtain steady and unsteady forces. The Laplace domain method of aeroelastic analysis produces root-loci of the system which gives an insight into the physical phenomena leading to flutter/divergence and can be efficiently integrated within an optimization procedure. The significance of the refined higher-order displacement field on the aeroelastic stability of composite wings has been established. The effect of composite ply orientations on flutter and divergence speeds has been studied. The Kreisselmeier-Steinhauser (K-S) function approach is used to efficiently integrate the objective functions and constraints into a single envelope function. The resulting unconstrained optimization problem is solved using the

AERO2S - SUBSONIC AERODYNAMIC ANALYSIS OF WINGS WITH LEADING- AND TRAILING-EDGE FLAPS IN COMBINATION WITH CANARD OR HORIZONTAL TAIL SURFACES (IBM PC VERSION)

Science.gov (United States)

Carlson, H. W.

1994-01-01

This code was developed to aid design engineers in the selection and evaluation of aerodynamically efficient wing-canard and wing-horizontal-tail configurations that may employ simple hinged-flap systems. Rapid estimates of the longitudinal aerodynamic characteristics of conceptual airplane lifting surface arrangements are provided. The method is particularly well suited to configurations which, because of high speed flight requirements, must employ thin wings with highly swept leading edges. The code is applicable to wings with either sharp or rounded leading edges. The code provides theoretical pressure distributions over the wing, the canard or horizontal tail, and the deflected flap surfaces as well as estimates of the wing lift, drag, and pitching moments which account for attainable leading edge thrust and leading edge separation vortex forces. The wing planform information is specified by a series of leading edge and trailing edge breakpoints for a right hand wing panel. Up to 21 pairs of coordinates may be used to describe both the leading edge and the trailing edge. The code has been written to accommodate 2000 right hand panel elements, but can easily be modified to accommodate a larger or smaller number of elements depending on the capacity of the target computer platform. The code provides solutions for wing surfaces composed of all possible combinations of leading edge and trailing edge flap settings provided by the original deflection multipliers and by the flap deflection multipliers. Up to 25 pairs of leading edge and trailing edge flap deflection schedules may thus be treated simultaneously. The code also provides for an improved accounting of hinge-line singularities in determination of wing forces and moments. To determine lifting surface perturbation velocity distributions, the code provides for a maximum of 70 iterations. The program is constructed so that successive runs may be made with a given code entry. To make additional runs, it is

Variable Camber Continuous Aerodynamic Control Surfaces and Methods for Active Wing Shaping Control

Science.gov (United States)

Nguyen, Nhan T. (Inventor)

2016-01-01

An aerodynamic control apparatus for an air vehicle improves various aerodynamic performance metrics by employing multiple spanwise flap segments that jointly form a continuous or a piecewise continuous trailing edge to minimize drag induced by lift or vortices. At least one of the multiple spanwise flap segments includes a variable camber flap subsystem having multiple chordwise flap segments that may be independently actuated. Some embodiments also employ a continuous leading edge slat system that includes multiple spanwise slat segments, each of which has one or more chordwise slat segment. A method and an apparatus for implementing active control of a wing shape are also described and include the determination of desired lift distribution to determine the improved aerodynamic deflection of the wings. Flap deflections are determined and control signals are generated to actively control the wing shape to approximate the desired deflection.

Patterning of a compound eye on an extinct dipteran wing.

Science.gov (United States)

Dinwiddie, April; Rachootin, Stan

2011-04-23

We have discovered unexpected similarities between a novel and characteristic wing organ in an extinct biting midge from Baltic amber, Eohelea petrunkevitchi, and the surface of a dipteran's compound eye. Scanning electron microscope images now reveal vestigial mechanoreceptors between the facets of the organ. We interpret Eohelea's wing organ as the blending of these two developmental systems: the formation and patterning of the cuticle in the eye and of the wing. Typically, only females in the genus carry this distinctive, highly organized structure. Two species were studied (E. petrunkevitchi and E. sinuosa), and the structure differs in form between them. We examine Eohelea's wing structures for modes of fabrication, material properties and biological functions, and the effective ecological environment in which these midges lived. We argue that the current view of the wing organ's function in stridulation has been misconstrued since it was described half a century ago.

The analysis of the flying wing in morphing concept

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Ionică CÎRCIU

2013-06-01

Full Text Available The combination between the flying wing morphing concept and the use of modern command and control system offers exponential advantages having a leverage effect in the economy and research. The flying wing architecture has the advantage of low cost against efficiency, the morphing of this concept defining the new characteristic frontiers and aerodynamic performances which derive immediately. On designing an unmanned aerial vehicle for a various range of missions, its lifting surface needs to display optimal geometrical features, so that the UAV may maintain the induced drag and the moment coefficient at reasonable levels. The command and control of the lifting surfaces in morphing concept offer characteristics and in-flight performances at a superior level. The limits of the system depend on the reliability of the execution elements and the grade of accuracy for the control laws which are implemented in the calculation module. The paper aims at presenting an analysis regarding the robotic air systems of flying wing type through the aerodynamic analysis and with the help of specific software instruments. The performances and flight qualities depend directly on the geometry of the lifting surface of the aerial vehicle.

Effect of outer wing separation on lift and thrust generation in a flapping wing system

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Mahardika, Nanang; Viet, Nguyen Quoc; Park, Hoon Cheol

2011-01-01

We explore the implementation of wing feather separation and lead-lagging motion to a flapping wing. A biomimetic flapping wing system with separated outer wings is designed and demonstrated. The artificial wing feather separation is implemented in the biomimetic wing by dividing the wing into inner and outer wings. The features of flapping, lead-lagging, and outer wing separation of the flapping wing system are captured by a high-speed camera for evaluation. The performance of the flapping wing system with separated outer wings is compared to that of a flapping wing system with closed outer wings in terms of forward force and downward force production. For a low flapping frequency ranging from 2.47 to 3.90 Hz, the proposed biomimetic flapping wing system shows a higher thrust and lift generation capability as demonstrated by a series of experiments. For 1.6 V application (lower frequency operation), the flapping wing system with separated wings could generate about 56% higher forward force and about 61% less downward force compared to that with closed wings, which is enough to demonstrate larger thrust and lift production capability of the separated outer wings. The experiments show that the outer parts of the separated wings are able to deform, resulting in a smaller amount of drag production during the upstroke, while still producing relatively greater lift and thrust during the downstroke.

Surface roughness effects on heat transfer in Couette flow

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Elia, G.G.

1981-01-01

A cell theory for viscous flow with rough surfaces is applied to two basic illustrative heat transfer problems which occur in Couette flow. Couette flow between one adiabatic surface and one isothermal surface exhibits roughness effects on the adiabatic wall temperature. Two types of rough cell adiabatic surfaces are studied: (1) perfectly insulating (the temperature gradient vanishes at the boundary of each cell); (2) average insulating (each cell may gain or lose heat but the total heat flow at the wall is zero). The results for the roughness on a surface in motion are postulated to occur because of fluid entrainment in the asperities on the moving surface. The symmetry of the roughness effects on thermal-viscous dissipation is discussed in detail. Explicit effects of the roughness on each surface, including combinations of roughness values, are presented to enable the case where the two surfaces may be from different materials to be studied. The fluid bulk temperature rise is also calculated for Couette flow with two ideal adiabatic surfaces. The effect of roughness on thermal-viscous dissipation concurs with the viscous hydrodynamic effect. The results are illustrated by an application to lubrication. (Auth.)

Turbulent Wing-Leading-Edge Correlation Assessment for the Shuttle Orbiter

Science.gov (United States)

King, Rudolph A.; Vaughan, Matthew P.

2009-01-01

This study was conducted in support of the Orbiter damage assessment activity that takes place for each Shuttle mission since STS-107 (STS - Space Transportation System). As part of the damage assessment activity, the state of boundary layer (laminar or turbulent) during reentry needs to be estimated in order to define the aerothermal environment on the Orbiter. Premature turbulence on the wing leading edge (WLE) is possible if a surface irregularity promotes early transition and the resulting turbulent wedge flow contaminates the WLE flow. The objective of this analysis is to develop a criterion to determine if and when the flow along the WLE experiences turbulent heating given an incoming turbulent boundary layer that contaminates the attachment line. The data to be analyzed were all obtained as part of the MH-13 Space Shuttle Orbiter Aerothermodynamic Test conducted on a 1.8%-scale Orbiter model at Calspan/University of Buffalo Research Center in the Large Energy National Shock Tunnels facility. A rational framework was used to develop a means to assess the state of the WLE flow on the Orbiter during reentry given a contaminated attachment-line flow. Evidence of turbulent flow on the WLE has been recently documented for a few STS missions during the Orbiter s flight history, albeit late in the reentry trajectory. The criterion developed herein will be compared to these flight results.

Application of a Full Reynolds Stress Model to High Lift Flows

Science.gov (United States)

Lee-Rausch, E. M.; Rumsey, C. L.; Eisfeld, B.

2016-01-01

A recently developed second-moment Reynolds stress model was applied to two challenging high-lift flows: (1) transonic flow over the ONERA M6 wing, and (2) subsonic flow over the DLR-F11 wing-body configuration from the second AIAA High Lift Prediction Workshop. In this study, the Reynolds stress model results were contrasted with those obtained from one- and two{equation turbulence models, and were found to be competitive in terms of the prediction of shock location and separation. For an ONERA M6 case, results from multiple codes, grids, and models were compared, with the Reynolds stress model tending to yield a slightly smaller shock-induced separation bubble near the wing tip than the simpler models, but all models were fairly close to the limited experimental surface pressure data. For a series of high-lift DLR{F11 cases, the range of results was more limited, but there was indication that the Reynolds stress model yielded less-separated results than the one-equation model near maximum lift. These less-separated results were similar to results from the one-equation model with a quadratic constitutive relation. Additional computations need to be performed before a more definitive assessment of the Reynolds stress model can be made.

Numerical and experimental investigations on unsteady aerodynamics of flapping wings

Science.gov (United States)

Yu, Meilin

The development of a dynamic unstructured grid high-order accurate spectral difference (SD) method for the three dimensional compressible Navier-Stokes (N-S) equations and its applications in flapping-wing aerodynamics are carried out in this work. Grid deformation is achieved via an algebraic blending strategy to save computational cost. The Geometric Conservation Law (GCL) is imposed to ensure that grid deformation will not contaminate the flow physics. A low Mach number preconditioning procedure is conducted in the developed solver to handle the bio-inspired flow. The capability of the low Mach number preconditioned SD solver is demonstrated by a series of two dimensional (2D) and three dimensional (3D) simulations of the unsteady vortex dominated flow. Several topics in the flapping wing aerodynamics are numerically and experimentally investigated in this work. These topics cover some of the cutting-edge issues in flapping wing aerodynamics, including the wake structure analysis, airfoil thickness and kinematics effects on the aerodynamic performances, vortex structure analysis around 3D flapping wings and the kinematics optimization. Wake structures behind a sinusoidally pitching NACA0012 airfoil are studied with both experimental and numerical approaches. The experiments are carried out with Particle Image Velocimetry (PIV) and two types of wake transition processes, namely the transition from a drag-indicative wake to a thrust-indicative wake and that from the symmetric wake to the asymmetric wake are distinguished. The numerical results from the developed SD solver agree well with the experimental results. It is numerically found that the deflective direction of the asymmetric wake is determined by the initial conditions, e.g. initial phase angle. As most insects use thin wings (i. e., wing thickness is only a few percent of the chord length) in flapping flight, the effects of airfoil thickness on thrust generation are numerically investigated by simulating

Effect of flexibility on flapping wing characteristics under forward flight

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Zhu, Jianyang; Jiang, Lin; Zhou, Chaoying; Wang, Chao

2014-01-01

Through two-dimensional numerical simulation and by solving the unsteady incompressible Navier–Stokes (NS) equations, coupled with the structural dynamic equation for the motion of the wing, the effect of flexibility on flapping wing characteristics during forward flight is systematically studied. The flapping wing is considered as a cantilever, which performs the translational and rotational motion at its leading edge, and the other part is passively deformed by the aerodynamic force. The frequency ratio ω* and mass ratio m* are defined and used to characterize the flexibility of the flapping wing. It has been found that an optimal range of the frequency ratio exists in which the flexible wing possesses both a larger propulsive efficiency and lifting efficiency than their rigid counterpart. Also, the flexible wing with the smaller mass ratio may be of benefit to generate thrust, while the larger mass ratio may be of benefit to generate lift. In addition, a stronger leading edge vortex and reattachment vortex are observed around the appropriate flexibility wing’s surface, which therefore leads to better aerodynamic characteristics. (paper)

Aerodynamic consequences of wing morphing during emulated take-off and gliding in birds.

Science.gov (United States)

Klaassen van Oorschot, Brett; Mistick, Emily A; Tobalske, Bret W

2016-10-01

Birds morph their wings during a single wingbeat, across flight speeds and among flight modes. Such morphing may allow them to maximize aerodynamic performance, but this assumption remains largely untested. We tested the aerodynamic performance of swept and extended wing postures of 13 raptor species in three families (Accipitridae, Falconidae and Strigidae) using a propeller model to emulate mid-downstroke of flapping during take-off and a wind tunnel to emulate gliding. Based on previous research, we hypothesized that (1) during flapping, wing posture would not affect maximum ratios of vertical and horizontal force coefficients (C V :C H ), and that (2) extended wings would have higher maximum C V :C H when gliding. Contrary to each hypothesis, during flapping, extended wings had, on average, 31% higher maximum C V :C H ratios and 23% higher C V than swept wings across all biologically relevant attack angles (α), and, during gliding, maximum C V :C H ratios were similar for the two postures. Swept wings had 11% higher C V than extended wings in gliding flight, suggesting flow conditions around these flexed raptor wings may be different from those in previous studies of swifts (Apodidae). Phylogenetic affiliation was a poor predictor of wing performance, due in part to high intrafamilial variation. Mass was only significantly correlated with extended wing performance during gliding. We conclude that wing shape has a greater effect on force per unit wing area during flapping at low advance ratio, such as take-off, than during gliding. © 2016. Published by The Company of Biologists Ltd.

Examination of the effect of blowing on the near-surface flow structure over a dimpled surface

Science.gov (United States)

Borchetta, C. G.; Martin, A.; Bailey, S. C. C.

2018-03-01

The near surface flow over a dimpled surface with flow injection through it was documented using time-resolved particle image velocimetry. The instantaneous flow structure, time-averaged statistics, and results from snapshot proper orthogonal decomposition were used to examine the coherent structures forming near the dimpled surface. In particular, the modifications made to the flow structures by the addition of flow injection through the surface were studied. It was observed that without flow injection, inclined flow structures with alternating vorticity from neighboring dimples are generated by the dimples and advect downstream. This behavior is coupled with fluid becoming entrained inside the dimples, recirculating and ejecting away from the surface. When flow injection was introduced through the surface, the flow structures became more disorganized, but some of the features of the semi-periodic structures observed without flow injection were preserved. The structures with flow injection appear in multiple wall-normal layers, formed from vortical structures shed from upstream dimples, with a corresponding increase in the size of the advecting structures. As a result of the more complex flow field observed with flow injection, there was an increase in turbulent kinetic energy and Reynolds shear stress, with the Reynolds shear stress representing an increase in vertical transport of momentum by sweeping and ejecting motions that were not present without flow injection.

Polygon formation and surface flow on a rotating fluid surface

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Bergmann, Raymond; Tophøj, Laust Emil Hjerrild; Homan, T. A. M.

2011-01-01

We present a study of polygons forming on the free surface of a water flow confined to a stationary cylinder and driven by a rotating bottom plate as described by Jansson et al. (Phys. Rev. Lett., vol. 96, 2006, 174502). In particular, we study the case of a triangular structure, either completely...... there the symmetry breaking proceeds like a low-dimensional linear instability. We show that the circular state and the unstable manifold connecting it with the polygon solution are universal in the sense that very different initial conditions lead to the same circular state and unstable manifold. For a wet triangle......, we measure the surface flows by particle image velocimetry (PIV) and show that there are three vortices present, but that the strength of these vortices is far too weak to account for the rotation velocity of the polygon. We show that partial blocking of the surface flow destroys the polygons and re...

Dynamic control of a bistable wing under aerodynamic loading

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Bilgen, Onur; Arrieta, Andres F; Friswell, Michael I; Hagedorn, Peter

2013-01-01

The aerodynamic evaluation of a dynamic control technique applied to a bistable unsymmetrical cross-ply composite plate with surface bonded piezoelectric actuators is presented. The plate is clamped on one end to form a low-aspect-ratio wing. A previously proposed dynamic control method, utilizing bending resonance in different stable equilibrium positions, is used to induce snap-through between the two equilibrium states. Compared to quasi-static actuation, driving the bistable plate near resonance using surface bonded piezoelectric materials requires, theoretically, a lower peak excitation voltage to achieve snap-through. First, a set of extensive wind tunnel experiments are conducted on the passive bistable wing to understand the change in the dynamic behavior under various aerodynamic conditions. The passive wing demonstrated sufficient bending stiffness to sustain its shape under aerodynamic loading while preserving the desired bistable behavior. Next, by the use of the resonant control technique, the plate is turned into an effectively monostable structure, or alternatively, both stable equilibrium positions can be reached actively from the other stable equilibrium. Dynamic forward and reverse snap-through is demonstrated in the wind tunnel which shows both the effectiveness of the piezoelectric actuation as well as the load carrying capability of both states of the bistable wing. (paper)

Effect of tip vortices on membrane vibration of flexible wings with different aspect ratios

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Genç Mustafa Serdar

2016-01-01

Full Text Available In this study, the effect of the aspect ratio on the aerodynamics characteristic of flexible membrane wings with different aspect ratios (AR = 1 and AR = 3 is experimentally investigated at Reynolds number of 25000. Time accurate measurements of membrane deformation using Digital Image Correlation system (DIC is carried out while normal forces of the wing will be measured by helping a load-cell system and flow on the wing was visualized by means of smoke wire technic. The characteristics of high aspect ratio wings are shown to be affected by leading edge separation bubbles at low Reynolds number. It is concluded that the camber of membrane wing excites the separated shear layer and this situation increases the lift coefficient relatively more as compared to rigid wings. In membrane wings with low aspect ratio, unsteadiness included tip vortices and vortex shedding, and the combination of tip vortices and vortex shedding causes complex unsteady deformations of these membrane wings. The characteristic of high aspect ratio wings was shown to be affected by leading edge separation bubbles at low Reynolds numbers whereas the deformations of flexible wing with low aspect ratio affected by tip vortices and leading edge separation bubbles.

Effect of varying solid membrane area of bristled wings on clap and fling aerodynamics in the smallest flying insects

Science.gov (United States)

Ford, Mitchell; Kasoju, Vishwa; Santhanakrishnan, Arvind

2017-11-01

The smallest flying insects with body lengths under 1.5 mm, such as thrips, fairyflies, and some parasitoid wasps, show marked morphological preference for wings consisting of a thin solid membrane fringed with long bristles. In particular, thrips have been observed to use clap and fling wing kinematics at chord-based Reynolds numbers of approximately 10. More than 6,000 species of thrips have been documented, among which there is notable morphological diversity in bristled wing design. This study examines the effect of varying the ratio of solid membrane area to total wing area (including bristles) on aerodynamic forces and flow structures generated during clap and fling. Forewing image analysis on 30 species of thrips showed that membrane area ranged from 16%-71% of total wing area. Physical models of bristled wing pairs with ratios of solid membrane area to total wing area ranging from 15%-100% were tested in a dynamically scaled robotic platform mimicking clap and fling kinematics. Decreasing membrane area relative to total wing area resulted in significant decrease in maximum drag coefficient and comparatively smaller reduction in maximum lift coefficient, resulting in higher peak lift to drag ratio. Flow structures visualized using PIV will be presented.

Integration of wings and their eyespots in the speckled wood butterfly Pararge aegeria.

Science.gov (United States)

Breuker, Casper J; Gibbs, Melanie; Van Dyck, Hans; Brakefield, Paul M; Klingenberg, Christian Peter; Van Dongen, Stefan

2007-07-15

We investigated both the phenotypic and developmental integration of eyespots on the fore- and hindwings of speckled wood butterflies Pararge aegeria. Eyespots develop within a framework of wing veins, which may not only separate eyespots developmentally, but may at the same time also integrate them by virtue of being both signalling sources and barriers during eyespot development. We therefore specifically investigated the interaction between wing venation patterns and eyespot integration. Phenotypic covariation among eyespots was very high, but only eyespots in neighbouring wing cells and in homologous wing cells on different wing surfaces were developmentally integrated. This can be explained by the fact that the wing cells of these eyespots share one or more wing veins. The wing venation patterns of fore- and hindwings were highly integrated, both phenotypically and developmentally. This did not affect overall developmental integration of the eyespots. The adaptive significance of integration patterns is discussed and more specifically we stress the need to conduct studies on phenotypic plasticity of integration.

Aerodynamic characteristics of wings designed with a combined-theory method to cruise at a Mach number of 4.5

Science.gov (United States)

Mack, Robert J.

1988-01-01

A wind-tunnel study was conducted to determine the capability of a method combining linear theory and shock-expansion theory to design optimum camber surfaces for wings that will fly at high-supersonic/low-hypersonic speeds. Three force models (a flat-plate reference wing and two cambered and twisted wings) were used to obtain aerodynamic lift, drag, and pitching-moment data. A fourth pressure-orifice model was used to obtain surface-pressure data. All four wing models had the same planform, airfoil section, and centerbody area distribution. The design Mach number was 4.5, but data were also obtained at Mach numbers of 3.5 and 4.0. Results of these tests indicated that the use of airfoil thickness as a theoretical optimum, camber-surface design constraint did not improve the aerodynamic efficiency or performance of a wing as compared with a wing that was designed with a zero-thickness airfoil (linear-theory) constraint.

Genetic toxicity in surface water from Guaiba Hydrographic Region under the influence of industrial, urban and agricultural sewage in the Drosophila Wing-Spot Test

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Souza do Amaral, Viviane; Sinigaglia, Marialva; Reguly, Maria Luiza; Rodrigues de Andrade, Heloisa Helena

2006-01-01

Mutagenic and recombinagenic activity of surface waters in the Guaiba Hydrographic Region (RS, Brazil) was investigated using the SMART in Drosophila melanogaster. Two positive results in Cai River (September 2000 and August 2001) and in Taquari River (August 2001 and February 2002) - linked to direct recombinagenic toxicants were observed. In Jacui samples, an indirect mutagenic and recombinagenic action was detected in a September 2000 collection and a direct recombinational activity was observed in February 2002. Also in February 2002 - samples from Diluvio Brook and Guaiba Lake (GPC) were able to induce wing spots by mitotic recombinagenesis. The former sampling site showed toxicants to have a direct action, and the latter an increment in mitotic recombination that depended on metabolic action. The SMART wing test shows that all positive responses were mainly related to homologous mitotic recombination. - Drosophila Wing-Spot Test can be used for detection of environmental mutagenesis

Timed Knickkopf function is essential for wing cuticle formation in Drosophila melanogaster.

Science.gov (United States)

Li, Kaixia; Zhang, Xubo; Zuo, Ying; Liu, Weimin; Zhang, Jianzhen; Moussian, Bernard

2017-10-01

The insect cuticle is an extracellular matrix that consists of the polysaccharide chitin, proteins, lipids and organic molecules that are arranged in distinct horizontal layers. In Drosophila melanogaster, these layers are not formed sequentially, but, at least partially, at the same time. Timing of the underlying molecular mechanisms is conceivably crucial for cuticle formation. To study this issue, we determined the time period during which the function of Knickkopf (Knk), a key factor of chitin organization, is required for wing cuticle differentiation in D. melanogaster. Although knk is expressed throughout metamorphosis, we demonstrate that its expression 30 h prior and 48 h after pupariation is essential for correct wing cuticle formation. In other words, expression beyond this period is futile. Importantly, manipulation of Knk expression during this time causes wing bending suggesting an effect of Knk amounts on the physical properties of the wing cuticle. Manipulation of Knk expression also interferes with the structure and function of the cuticle surface. First, we show that the shape of surface nano-structures depends on the expression levels of knk. Second, we find that cuticle impermeability is compromised in wings with reduced knk expression. In summary, despite the extended supply of Knk during metamorphosis, controlled amounts of Knk are important for correct wing cuticle differentiation and function in a concise period of time. Copyright © 2017 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

Surface flow in severe plastic deformation of metals by sliding

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Mahato, A; Yeung, H; Chandrasekar, S; Guo, Y

2014-01-01

An in situ study of flow in severe plastic deformation (SPD) of surfaces by sliding is described. The model system – a hard wedge sliding against a metal surface – is representative of surface conditioning processes typical of manufacturing, and sliding wear. By combining high speed imaging and image analysis, important characteristics of unconstrained plastic flow inherent to this system are highlighted. These characteristics include development of large plastic strains on the surface and in the subsurface by laminar type flow, unusual fluid-like flow with vortex formation and surface folding, and defect and particle generation. Preferred conditions, as well as undesirable regimes, for surface SPD are demarcated. Implications for surface conditioning in manufacturing, modeling of surface deformation and wear are discussed

DNS of Laminar-Turbulent Transition in Swept-Wing Boundary Layers

Science.gov (United States)

Duan, L.; Choudhari, M.; Li, F.

2014-01-01

Direct numerical simulation (DNS) is performed to examine laminar to turbulent transition due to high-frequency secondary instability of stationary crossflow vortices in a subsonic swept-wing boundary layer for a realistic natural-laminar-flow airfoil configuration. The secondary instability is introduced via inflow forcing and the mode selected for forcing corresponds to the most amplified secondary instability mode that, in this case, derives a majority of its growth from energy production mechanisms associated with the wall-normal shear of the stationary basic state. An inlet boundary condition is carefully designed to allow for accurate injection of instability wave modes and minimize acoustic reflections at numerical boundaries. Nonlinear parabolized stability equation (PSE) predictions compare well with the DNS in terms of modal amplitudes and modal shape during the strongly nonlinear phase of the secondary instability mode. During the transition process, the skin friction coefficient rises rather rapidly and the wall-shear distribution shows a sawtooth pattern that is analogous to the previously documented surface flow visualizations of transition due to stationary crossflow instability. Fully turbulent features are observed in the downstream region of the flow.

A Survey of Factors Affecting Blunt Leading-Edge Separation for Swept and Semi-Slender Wings

Science.gov (United States)

Luckring, James M.

2010-01-01

A survey is presented of factors affecting blunt leading-edge separation for swept and semi-slender wings. This class of separation often results in the onset and progression of separation-induced vortical flow over a slender or semi-slender wing. The term semi-slender is used to distinguish wings with moderate sweeps and aspect ratios from the more traditional highly-swept, low-aspect-ratio slender wing. Emphasis is divided between a selection of results obtained through literature survey a section of results from some recent research projects primarily being coordinated through NATO s Research and Technology Organization (RTO). An aircraft context to these studies is included.

Hydraulic investigation on free surface flow of windowless target

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Hu Chen; Gu Hanyang

2015-01-01

The formation and control of free surface are the most essential parts in the studies of windowless target in ACCELERATOR-DRIVEN sub-critical system (ADS). Water model experiments and 360° full scale three dimensional simulations were conducted. The experimental study demonstrates that the free surface is significantly affected by the inlet flow velocity and outlet pressure. The length of free surface decreases in the second order with the increase of inlet flow velocity, while it decreases linearly with the outlet pressure. The structure and feature of flow field were investigated. The results show that the free surface is vulnerable to the vortex movement. Transient simulations were performed with volume of fluid (VOF) method, large eddy simulation (LES) and the pressure implicit with splitting of operators (PISO) algorithm. The simulation results agree qualitatively well with the experimental data related to both free surface flow and flow field. These simulation models and methods are proved to be applicable in the hydraulic simulations of liquid heavy metal target. (authors)

Analogy between a flapping wing and a wind turbine with a vertical axis of revolution

Science.gov (United States)

Gorelov, D. N.

2009-03-01

Based on an analysis of available experimental data, the hypothesis about an analogy between a flapping wing and a wind turbine of the Darrieus rotor type is justified. It is demonstrated that the torque on the shaft of the Darrieus rotor is generated by thrust forces acting on the blades in a pulsed flow. A conclusion is drawn that it is necessary to perform aerodynamic calculations of blades on the basis of the nonlinear theory of the wing in an unsteady flow with allowance for the airfoil thickness.

Novel four-wing and eight-wing attractors using coupled chaotic Lorenz systems

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Grassi, Giuseppe

2008-01-01

This paper presents the problem of generating four-wing (eight-wing) chaotic attractors. The adopted method consists in suitably coupling two (three) identical Lorenz systems. In analogy with the original Lorenz system, where the two wings of the butterfly attractor are located around the two equilibria with the unstable pair of complex-conjugate eigenvalues, this paper shows that the four wings (eight wings) of these novel attractors are located around the four (eight) equilibria with two (three) pairs of unstable complex-conjugate eigenvalues. (general)

Analysis of Asymmetric Aircraft Aerodynamics Due to an Experimental Wing Glove

Science.gov (United States)

Hartshorn, Fletcher

2011-01-01

Aerodynamic analysis on a business jet with a wing glove attached to one wing is presented and discussed. If a wing glove is placed over a portion of one wing, there will be asymmetries in the aircraft as well as overall changes in the forces and moments acting on the aircraft. These changes, referred to as deltas, need to be determined and quantified to make sure the wing glove does not have a drastic effect on the aircraft flight characteristics. TRANAIR, a non-linear full potential solver was used to analyze a full aircraft, with and without a glove, at a variety of flight conditions and angles of attack and sideslip. Changes in the aircraft lift, drag and side force, along with roll, pitch and yawing moment are presented. Span lift and moment distributions are also presented for a more detailed look at the effects of the glove on the aircraft. Aerodynamic flow phenomena due to the addition of the glove and its fairing are discussed. Results show that the glove used here does not present a drastic change in forces and moments on the aircraft, but an added torsional moment around the quarter-chord of the wing may be a cause for some structural concerns.

Evaluation of Aircraft Wing-Tip Vortex Using PIV

Science.gov (United States)

Alsayed, Omer A.; Asrar, Waqar; Omar, Ashraf A.

2010-06-01

The formation and development of a wing-tip vortex in a near and extended near filed were studied experimentally. Particle image velocimetry was used in a wind tunnel to measure the tip vortex velocity field and hence investigate the flow structure in a wake of aircraft half-wing model. The purpose of this investigation is to evaluate the main features of the lift generated vortices in order to find ways to alleviate hazardous wake vortex encounters for follower airplanes during start and approach such that the increase in airport capacity can be achieved. First the wake structure at successive downstream planes crosswise to the axis of the wake vortices was investigated by measuring parameters such as core radius, maximum tangential velocities, vorticities and circulation distributions. The effect of different angles of attack setting on vortex parameters was examined at one downstream location. In very early stages the vortex sheet evolution makes the tip vortex to move inward and to the suction side of the wing. While the core radius and circulation distributions hardly vary with the downstream distance, noticeable differences for the same vortex parameters at different angles of attack settings were observed. The center of the wing tip vortices scatter in a circle of radius nearly equal to 1% of the mean wing chord and wandering amplitudes shows no direct dependence on the vortex strength but linearly increase with the downstream distance.

The role of flow field structure in determining the aerodynamic response of a delta wing

Science.gov (United States)

Addington, Gregory Alan

Delta wings have long been known to exhibit nonlinear aerodynamic responses as a result of the presence of helical leading-edge vortices. This nonlinearity, found under both steady-state and unsteady conditions, is particularly profound in the presence of vortex burst. Modeling such aerodynamic responses with the Nonlinear Indicial Response (NIR) methodology provides a means of simulating these nonlinearities through its inclusion of motion history in addition to superposition. The NIR model also includes provisions for a finite number of discrete locations where the aerodynamic response is discontinuous with response to a state variable. These critical states also separate regions of states where the unsteady aerodynamic responses are potentially of highly-disparate characters. Although these critical states have been found in the past, their relationship with flow field bifurcation is uncertain. The purpose of this dissertation is to explore the relationship between nonlinear aerodynamic responses, critical states and flow field bifurcations from an experimental approach. This task has been accomplished by comparing a comprehensive database of skin-friction line topologies with static and unsteady aerodynamic responses. These data were collected using a 65sp° delta wing which rolled about an inclined longitudinal body axis. In this study, compelling, but not conclusive, evidence was found to suggest that a bifurcation in the skin-friction line topology was a necessary condition for the presence of a critical state. Although the presence of critical states was well predicted through careful observation and analysis of highly-resolved static loading data alone, their precise placement as a function of the independent variable was aided through the consideration of the locations of skin-friction line bifurcations. Furthermore, these static data were found to contain indications of the basic lagged or unlagged behavior of the unsteady aerodynamic response. This

Study on surface wave characteristics of free surface flow of liquid metal lithium for IFMIF

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Hoashi, Eiji; Sugiura, Hirokazu; Yoshihashi-Suzuki, Sachiko; Yamaoka, Nobuo; Horiike, Hiroshi; Kanemura, Takuji; Kondo, Hiroo

2011-01-01

The international fusion materials irradiation facility (IFMIF) presents an intense neutron source to develop fusion reactor materials. The free surface flow of a liquid metal Lithium (Li) is planned as a target irradiated by two deuteron beams to generate intense neutrons and it is thus important to obtain knowledge of the surface wave characteristic for the safety and the efficiency of system in the IFMIF. We have been studying on surface wave characteristics experimentally using the liquid metal Li circulation facility at Osaka University and numerically using computational fluid dynamics (CFD) code, FLUENT. This paper reports the results of the surface fluctuation, the wave height and the surface velocity in the free surface flow of the liquid metal Li examined experimentally and numerically. In the experiment, an electro-contact probe apparatus was used to obtain the surface fluctuation and the wave height, and a high speed video was used to measure the surface velocity. We resulted in knowledge of the surface wave growth mechanism. On the other hand, a CFD simulation was also conducted to obtain information on the relation of the free surface with the inner flow. In the simulation, the model included from a two-staged contraction nozzle to a flow channel with a free surface flow region and simulation results were compared with the experimental data. (author)

Wake development behind paired wings with tip and root trailing vortices: consequences for animal flight force estimates.

Science.gov (United States)

Horstmann, Jan T; Henningsson, Per; Thomas, Adrian L R; Bomphrey, Richard J

2014-01-01

Recent experiments on flapping flight in animals have shown that a variety of unrelated species shed a wake behind left and right wings consisting of both tip and root vortices. Here we present an investigation using Particle Image Velocimetry (PIV) of the behaviour and interaction of trailing vortices shed by paired, fixed wings that simplify and mimic the wake of a flying animal with a non-lifting body. We measured flow velocities at five positions downstream of two adjacent NACA 0012 aerofoils and systematically varied aspect ratio, the gap between the wings (corresponding to the width of a non-lifting body), angle of attack, and the Reynolds number. The range of aspect ratios and Reynolds number where chosen to be relevant to natural fliers and swimmers, and insect flight in particular. We show that the wake behind the paired wings deformed as a consequence of the induced flow distribution such that the wingtip vortices convected downwards while the root vortices twist around each other. Vortex interaction and wake deformation became more pronounced further downstream of the wing, so the positioning of PIV measurement planes in experiments on flying animals has an important effect on subsequent force estimates due to rotating induced flow vectors. Wake deformation was most severe behind wings with lower aspect ratios and when the distance between the wings was small, suggesting that animals that match this description constitute high-risk groups in terms of measurement error. Our results, therefore, have significant implications for experimental design where wake measurements are used to estimate forces generated in animal flight. In particular, the downstream distance of the measurement plane should be minimised, notwithstanding the animal welfare constraints when measuring the wake behind flying animals.

Wake development behind paired wings with tip and root trailing vortices: consequences for animal flight force estimates.

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Jan T Horstmann

Full Text Available Recent experiments on flapping flight in animals have shown that a variety of unrelated species shed a wake behind left and right wings consisting of both tip and root vortices. Here we present an investigation using Particle Image Velocimetry (PIV of the behaviour and interaction of trailing vortices shed by paired, fixed wings that simplify and mimic the wake of a flying animal with a non-lifting body. We measured flow velocities at five positions downstream of two adjacent NACA 0012 aerofoils and systematically varied aspect ratio, the gap between the wings (corresponding to the width of a non-lifting body, angle of attack, and the Reynolds number. The range of aspect ratios and Reynolds number where chosen to be relevant to natural fliers and swimmers, and insect flight in particular. We show that the wake behind the paired wings deformed as a consequence of the induced flow distribution such that the wingtip vortices convected downwards while the root vortices twist around each other. Vortex interaction and wake deformation became more pronounced further downstream of the wing, so the positioning of PIV measurement planes in experiments on flying animals has an important effect on subsequent force estimates due to rotating induced flow vectors. Wake deformation was most severe behind wings with lower aspect ratios and when the distance between the wings was small, suggesting that animals that match this description constitute high-risk groups in terms of measurement error. Our results, therefore, have significant implications for experimental design where wake measurements are used to estimate forces generated in animal flight. In particular, the downstream distance of the measurement plane should be minimised, notwithstanding the animal welfare constraints when measuring the wake behind flying animals.

78 FR 3356 - Airworthiness Directives; Various Aircraft Equipped With Wing Lift Struts

Science.gov (United States)

2013-01-16

...) of this AD, inspect the wing lift strut forks for cracks using magnetic particle procedures, such as... for Non-destructive Testing, or MIL-STD-410. (i) If no external corrosion is found on any wing lift..., the surface should be sanded or polished smooth before testing to assure a consistent and smooth...

Determination of aerodynamic sensitivity coefficients for wings in transonic flow

Science.gov (United States)

Carlson, Leland A.; El-Banna, Hesham M.

1992-01-01

The quasianalytical approach is applied to the 3-D full potential equation to compute wing aerodynamic sensitivity coefficients in the transonic regime. Symbolic manipulation is used to reduce the effort associated with obtaining the sensitivity equations, and the large sensitivity system is solved using 'state of the art' routines. The quasianalytical approach is believed to be reasonably accurate and computationally efficient for 3-D problems.

Can Wing Tip Vortices Be Accurately Simulated?

Science.gov (United States)

2011-07-01

Aerodynamics , Flow Visualization, Numerical Investigation, Aero Suite 16. SECURITY CLASSIFICATION OF: Unclassified 17. LIMITATION OF ABSTRACT 18...additional tail buffeting.2 In commercial applications, winglets have been installed on passenger aircraft to minimize vortex formation and reduce lift...air. In military applications, wing tip In commercial applications, winglets have been installed on passenger aircraft to minimize increases with downstream distances.

Structural analysis and testing of a carbon-composite wing using fiber Bragg gratings

Science.gov (United States)

Nicolas, Matthew James

The objective of this study was to determine the deflected wing shape and the out-of-plane loads of a large-scale carbon-composite wing of an ultralight aerial vehicle using Fiber Bragg Grating (FBG) technology. The composite wing was instrumented with an optical fiber on its top and bottom surfaces positioned over the main spar, resulting in approximately 780 strain sensors bonded to the wings. The strain data from the FBGs was compared to that obtained from four conventional strain gages, and was used to obtain the out-of-plane loads as well as the wing shape at various load levels using NASA-developed real-time load and displacement algorithms. The composite wing measured 5.5 meters and was fabricated from laminated carbon uniaxial and biaxial prepreg fabric with varying laminate ply patterns and wall thickness dimensions. A three-tier whiffletree system was used to load the wing in a manner consistent with an in-flight loading condition.

Comments on prospects of fully adaptive aircraft wings

Science.gov (United States)

Inman, Daniel J.; Gern, Frank H.; Robertshaw, Harry H.; Kapania, Rakesh K.; Pettit, Greg; Natarajan, Anand; Sulaeman, Erwin

2001-06-01

New generations of highly maneuverable aircraft, such as Uninhabited Combat Air Vehicles (UCAV) or Micro Air Vehicles (MAV) are likely to feature very flexible lifting surfaces. To enhance stealth properties and performance, the replacement of hinged control surfaces by smart wings and morphing airfoils is investigated. This requires a fundamental understanding of the interaction between aerodynamics, structures, and control systems. The goal is to build a model consistent with distributed control and to exercise this model to determine the progress possible in terms of flight control (lift, drag and maneuver performance) with an adaptive wing. Different modeling levels are examined and combined with a variety of distributed control approaches to determine what types of maneuvers and flight regimes may be possible. This paper describes the current progress of the project and highlights some recent findings.

Local grid refinement for free-surface flow simulations

NARCIS (Netherlands)

van der Plas, Peter

2017-01-01

The principal goal of the current study is to explore and investigate the potential of local grid refinement for increasing the numerical efficiency of free-surface flow simulations in a practical context. In this thesis we propose a method for local grid refinement in the free-surface flow model

Analysis of energy flow during playground surface impacts.

Science.gov (United States)

Davidson, Peter L; Wilson, Suzanne J; Chalmers, David J; Wilson, Barry D; Eager, David; McIntosh, Andrew S

2013-10-01

The amount of energy dissipated away from or returned to a child falling onto a surface will influence fracture risk but is not considered in current standards for playground impact-attenuating surfaces. A two-mass rheological computer simulation was used to model energy flow within the wrist and surface during hand impact with playground surfaces, and the potential of this approach to provide insights into such impacts and predict injury risk examined. Acceleration data collected on-site from typical playground surfaces and previously obtained data from children performing an exercise involving freefalling with a fully extended arm provided input. The model identified differences in energy flow properties between playground surfaces and two potentially harmful surface characteristics: more energy was absorbed by (work done on) the wrist during both impact and rebound on rubber surfaces than on bark, and rubber surfaces started to rebound (return energy to the wrist) while the upper limb was still moving downward. Energy flow analysis thus provides information on playground surface characteristics and the impact process, and has the potential to identify fracture risks, inform the development of safer impact-attenuating surfaces, and contribute to development of new energy-based arm fracture injury criteria and tests for use in conjunction with current methods.

Application of the adjoint optimisation of shock control bump for ONERA-M6 wing

Science.gov (United States)

Nejati, A.; Mazaheri, K.

2017-11-01

This article is devoted to the numerical investigation of the shock wave/boundary layer interaction (SWBLI) as the main factor influencing the aerodynamic performance of transonic bumped airfoils and wings. The numerical analysis is conducted for the ONERA-M6 wing through a shock control bump (SCB) shape optimisation process using the adjoint optimisation method. SWBLI is analyzed for both clean and bumped airfoils and wings, and it is shown how the modified wave structure originating from upstream of the SCB reduces the wave drag, by improving the boundary layer velocity profile downstream of the shock wave. The numerical simulation of the turbulent viscous flow and a gradient-based adjoint algorithm are used to find the optimum location and shape of the SCB for the ONERA-M6 airfoil and wing. Two different geometrical models are introduced for the 3D SCB, one with linear variations, and another with periodic variations. Both configurations result in drag reduction and improvement in the aerodynamic efficiency, but the periodic model is more effective. Although the three-dimensional flow structure involves much more complexities, the overall results are shown to be similar to the two-dimensional case.

Beneficial aerodynamic effect of wing scales on the climbing flight of butterflies.

Science.gov (United States)

Slegers, Nathan; Heilman, Michael; Cranford, Jacob; Lang, Amy; Yoder, John; Habegger, Maria Laura

2017-01-30

It is hypothesized that butterfly wing scale geometry and surface patterning may function to improve aerodynamic efficiency. In order to investigate this hypothesis, a method to measure butterfly flapping kinematics optically over long uninhibited flapping sequences was developed. Statistical results for the climbing flight flapping kinematics of 11 butterflies, based on a total of 236 individual flights, both with and without their wing scales, are presented. Results show, that for each of the 11 butterflies, the mean climbing efficiency decreased after scales were removed. Data was reduced to a single set of differences of climbing efficiency using are paired t-test. Results show a mean decrease in climbing efficiency of 32.2% occurred with a 95% confidence interval of 45.6%-18.8%. Similar analysis showed that the flapping amplitude decreased by 7% while the flapping frequency did not show a significant difference. Results provide strong evidence that butterfly wing scale geometry and surface patterning improve butterfly climbing efficiency. The authors hypothesize that the wing scale's effect in measured climbing efficiency may be due to an improved aerodynamic efficiency of the butterfly and could similarly be used on flapping wing micro air vehicles to potentially achieve similar gains in efficiency.

Body-surface pressure data on two monoplane-wing missile configurations with elliptical cross sections at Mach 2.50

Science.gov (United States)

Allen, J. M.; Hernandez, G.; Lamb, M.

1983-01-01

Tabulated body surface pressure data for two monoplane-wing missile configurations are presented and analyzed. Body pressure data are presented for body-alone, body-tail, and body-wing-tail combinations. For the lost combination, data are presented for tail-fin deflection angles of 0 deg and 30 deg to simulate pitch, yaw, and roll control for both configurations. The data cover angles of attack from -5 deg to 25 deg and angles of roll from 0 deg to 90 deg at a Mach number of 2.50 and a Reynolds number of 6.56 x 1,000,000 per meter. Very consistent, systematic trends with angle of attack and angle of roll were observed in the data, and very good symmetry was found at a roll angle of 0 deg. Body pressures depended strongly on the local body cross-section shape, with very little dependence on the upstream shape. Undeflected fins had only a small influence on the pressures on the aft end of the body; however, tail-fin deflections caused large changes in the pressures.

Quad-thopter: Tailless Flapping Wing Robot with 4 Pairs of Wings

NARCIS (Netherlands)

de Wagter, C.; Karasek, M.; de Croon, G.C.H.E.; J.-M. Moschetta G. Hattenberger, H. de Plinval

2017-01-01

We present a novel design of a tailless flapping wing Micro Air Vehicle (MAV), which uses four independently driven pairs of flapping wings in order to fly and perform agile maneuvers. The wing pairs are arranged such that differential thrust generates the desired roll and pitch moments, similar to

A novel hovering type of fixed wing aircraft with stealth capability

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Valeriu DRĂGAN

2010-12-01

Full Text Available The tactical need for fixed wing aircraft with hovering capably has long been recognized bythe military for two reasons: increased safety when landing on aircraft carriers and higher velocitiesthat the ones obtainable with rotary wing aircraft.Thus far, the only concept governing the field of vertical flight was to use thrust either from a liftfan-F35, puffer ducts –Harrier or smaller jet engines-D0 31 or Yak-141, i.e. direct lift thrust.In this paper we will look at the prospect of using a combination of the Coanda effect with theVenturi effect to generate lift by so- called “supercirculation”. This novel approach can yield manyadvantages to conventional vertical lifting by providing a more stable platform and requiring lowerpower settings – and thus lower fuel consumption.The aircraft has a fixed, negatively sweped wing that uses circulation control to achieve lift atzero air speed. The fluid used for supercirculation will come from the fan thrust reversers – which, ifcorrectly managed, can give a sufficient flow for lifting the craft and also a negative thrust componentto compensate for the positive thrust of the primary flow (not diverted.

The development of a closed-loop flight controller with panel method integration for gust alleviation using biomimetic feathers on aircraft wings

Science.gov (United States)

Blower, Christopher J.; Lee, Woody; Wickenheiser, Adam M.

2012-04-01

This paper presents the development of a biomimetic closed-loop flight controller that integrates gust alleviation and flight control into a single distributed system. Modern flight controllers predominantly rely on and respond to perturbations in the global states, resulting in rotation or displacement of the entire aircraft prior to the response. This bio-inspired gust alleviation system (GAS) employs active deflection of electromechanical feathers that react to changes in the airflow, i.e. the local states. The GAS design is a skeletal wing structure with a network of featherlike panels installed on the wing's surfaces, creating the airfoil profile and replacing the trailing-edge flaps. In this study, a dynamic model of the GAS-integrated wing is simulated to compute gust-induced disturbances. The system implements continuous adjustment to flap orientation to perform corrective responses to inbound gusts. MATLAB simulations, using a closed-loop LQR integrated with a 2D adaptive panel method, allow analysis of the morphing structure's aerodynamic data. Non-linear and linear dynamic models of the GAS are compared to a traditional single control surface baseline wing. The feedback loops synthesized rely on inertial changes in the global states; however, variations in number and location of feather actuation are compared. The bio-inspired system's distributed control effort allows the flight controller to interchange between the single and dual trailing edge flap profiles, thereby offering an improved efficiency to gust response in comparison to the traditional wing configuration. The introduction of aero-braking during continuous gusting flows offers a 25% reduction in x-velocity deviation; other flight parameters can be reduced in magnitude and deviation through control weighting optimization. Consequently, the GAS demonstrates enhancements to maneuverability and stability in turbulent intensive environments.

An Experimental Study on Active Flow Control Using Synthetic Jet Actuators over S809 Airfoil

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Gul, M; Uzol, O; Akmandor, I S

2014-01-01

This study investigates the effect of periodic excitation from individually controlled synthetic jet actuators on the dynamics of the flow within the separation and re-attachment regions of the boundary layer over the suction surface of a 2D model wing that has S809 airfoil profile. Experiments are performed in METUWIND's C3 open-loop suction type wind tunnel that has a 1 m × 1 m cross-section test section. The synthetic jet array on the wing consists of three individually controlled actuators driven by piezoelectric diaphragms located at 28% chord location near the mid-span of the wing. In the first part of the study, surface pressure, Constant Temperature Anemometry (CTA) and Particle Image Velocimetry (PIV) measurements are performed over the suction surface of the airfoil to determine the size and characteristics of the separated shear layer and the re-attachment region, i.e. the laminar separation bubble, at 2.3x10 5 Reynolds number at zero angle of attack and with no flow control as a baseline case. For the controlled case, CTA measurements are carried out under the same inlet conditions at various streamwise locations along the suction surface of the airfoil to investigate the effect of the synthetic jet on the boundary layer properties. During the controlled case experiments, the synthetic jet actuators are driven with a sinusoidal frequency of 1.45 kHz and 300Vp-p. Results of this study show that periodic excitation from the synthetic jet actuators eliminates the laminar separation bubble formed over the suction surface of the airfoil at 2.3x10 5 Reynolds number at zero angle of attack

Side Flow Effect on Surface Generation in Nano Cutting.

Science.gov (United States)

Xu, Feifei; Fang, Fengzhou; Zhang, Xiaodong

2017-12-01

The side flow of material in nano cutting is one of the most important factors that deteriorate the machined surface quality. The effects of the crystallographic orientation, feed, and the cutting tool geometry, including tool edge radius, rake angle and inclination angle, on the side flow are investigated employing molecular dynamics simulation. The results show that the stagnation region is formed in front of tool edge and it is characterized by the stagnation radius R s and stagnation height h s . The side flow is formed because the material at or under the stagnation region is extruded by the tool edge to flow to the side of the tool edge. Higher stagnation height would increase the size of the side flow. The anisotropic nature of the material which partly determines the stagnation region also influences the side flow due to the different deformation mechanism under the action of the tool edge. At different cutting directions, the size of the side flow has a great difference which would finally affect the machined surface quality. The cutting directions of {100} , {110} , and {110}  are beneficial to obtain a better surface quality with small side flow. Besides that, the side flow could be suppressed by reducing the feed and optimizing the cutting tool geometry. Cutting tool with small edge radius, large positive rake angle, and inclination angle would decrease the side flow and consequently improve the machined surface quality.

Retention mechanisms and the flow wetted surface - implications for safety analysis

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Elert, M.

1997-02-01

The purpose of this report is to document the state-of-the-art concerning the flow wetted surface, its importance for radionuclide transport in the geosphere and review various suggestions on how to increase the present knowledge. Definitions are made of the various concepts used for the flow wetted surface as well as the various model parameters used. In the report methods proposed to assess the flow wetted surface are reviewed and discussed, tracer tests, tunnel and borehole investigations, geochemical studies, heat transport studies and theoretical modelling. Furthermore, a review is made of how the flow wetted surface has been treated in various safety analyses. Finally, an overall discussion with recommendations is presented, where it is concluded that at present no individual method for estimating the flow wetted surface can be selected that satisfies all requirements concerning giving relevant values, covering relevant distances and being practical to apply. Instead a combination of methods must be used. In the long-term research as well as in the safety assessment modelling focus should be put on assessing the ratio between flow wetted surface and water flux. The long-term research should address both the detailed flow within the fractures and the effective flow wetted surface along the flow paths. 55 refs

Combined particle-image velocimetry and force analysis of the three-dimensional fluid-structure interaction of a natural owl wing.

Science.gov (United States)

Winzen, A; Roidl, B; Schröder, W

2016-04-01

Low-speed aerodynamics has gained increasing interest due to its relevance for the design process of small flying air vehicles. These small aircraft operate at similar aerodynamic conditions as, e.g. birds which therefore can serve as role models of how to overcome the well-known problems of low Reynolds number flight. The flight of the barn owl is characterized by a very low flight velocity in conjunction with a low noise emission and a high level of maneuverability at stable flight conditions. To investigate the complex three-dimensional flow field and the corresponding local structural deformation in combination with their influence on the resulting aerodynamic forces, time-resolved stereoscopic particle-image velocimetry and force and moment measurements are performed on a prepared natural barn owl wing. Several spanwise positions are measured via PIV in a range of angles of attack [Formula: see text] 6° and Reynolds numbers 40 000 [Formula: see text] 120 000 based on the chord length. Additionally, the resulting forces and moments are recorded for -10° ≤ α ≤ 15° at the same Reynolds numbers. Depending on the spanwise position, the angle of attack, and the Reynolds number, the flow field on the wing's pressure side is characterized by either a region of flow separation, causing large-scale vortical structures which lead to a time-dependent deflection of the flexible wing structure or wing regions showing no instantaneous deflection but a reduction of the time-averaged mean wing curvature. Based on the force measurements the three-dimensional fluid-structure interaction is assumed to considerably impact the aerodynamic forces acting on the wing leading to a strong mechanical loading of the interface between the wing and body. These time-depending loads which result from the flexibility of the wing should be taken into consideration for the design of future small flying air vehicles using flexible wing structures.

The Aerodynamic Behavior of a Harmonically Oscillating Finite Sweptback Wing in Supersonic Flow

National Research Council Canada - National Science Library

Chang, Chieh-Chien

1951-01-01

By an extension of Evvard's "diaphragm" concept outside the wing tip, the present paper presents two approximate methods for calculating the aerodynamic behavior of harmonically oscillating, sweptback...

An investigation of the effects of the propeller slipstream of a laminar wing boundary layer

Science.gov (United States)

Howard, R. M.; Miley, S. J.; Holmes, B. J.

1985-01-01

A research program is in progress to study the effects of the propeller slipstream on natural laminar flow. Flight and wind tunnel measurements of the wing boundary layer have been made using hot-film velocity sensor probes. The results show the boundary layer, at any given point, to alternate between laminar and turbulent states. This cyclic behavior is due to periodic external flow turbulence originating from the viscous wake of the propeller blades. Analytic studies show the cyclic laminar/turbulent boundary layer to result in a significantly lower wing section drag than a fully turbulent boundary layer. The application of natural laminar flow design philosophy yields drag reduction benefits in the slipstream affected regions of the airframe, as well as the unaffected regions.

All-theoretical prediction of cabin noise due to impingement of propeller vortices on a wing structure

Science.gov (United States)

Martinez, R.; Cole, J. E., III; Martini, K.; Westagard, A.

1987-01-01

Reported calculations of structure-borne cabin noise for a small twin engine aircraft powered by tractor propellers rely on the following three-stage methodological breakup of the problem: (1) the unsteady-aerodynamic prediction of wing lift harmonics caused by the whipping action of the vortex system trailed from each propeller; (2) the associated wing/fuselage structural response; (3) the cabin noise field for the computed wall vibration. The first part--the estimate of airloads--skirts a full-fledged aeroelastic situation by assuming the wing to be fixed in space while cancelling the downwash field of the cutting vortices. The model is based on an approximate high-frequency lifting-surface theory justified by the blade rate and flight Mach number of application. Its results drive a finite-element representation of the wing accounting for upper and lower skin surfaces, spars, ribs, and the presence of fuel. The fuselage, modeled as a frame-stiffened cylindrical shell, is bolted to the wing.

Liquid flow along a solid surface reversibly alters interfacial chemistry.

Science.gov (United States)

Lis, Dan; Backus, Ellen H G; Hunger, Johannes; Parekh, Sapun H; Bonn, Mischa

2014-06-06

In nature, aqueous solutions often move collectively along solid surfaces (for example, raindrops falling on the ground and rivers flowing through riverbeds). However, the influence of such motion on water-surface interfacial chemistry is unclear. In this work, we combine surface-specific sum frequency generation spectroscopy and microfluidics to show that at immersed calcium fluoride and fused silica surfaces, flow leads to a reversible modification of the surface charge and subsequent realignment of the interfacial water molecules. Obtaining equivalent effects under static conditions requires a substantial change in bulk solution pH (up to 2 pH units), demonstrating the coupling between flow and chemistry. These marked flow-induced variations in interfacial chemistry should substantially affect our understanding and modeling of chemical processes at immersed surfaces. Copyright © 2014, American Association for the Advancement of Science.

Aerodynamic comparison of a butterfly-like flapping wing-body model and a revolving-wing model

Science.gov (United States)

Suzuki, Kosuke; Yoshino, Masato

2017-06-01

The aerodynamic performance of flapping- and revolving-wing models is investigated by numerical simulations based on an immersed boundary-lattice Boltzmann method. As wing models, we use (i) a butterfly-like model with a body and flapping-rectangular wings and (ii) a revolving-wing model with the same wings as the flapping case. Firstly, we calculate aerodynamic performance factors such as the lift force, the power, and the power loading of the two models for Reynolds numbers in the range of 50-1000. For the flapping-wing model, the power loading is maximal for the maximum angle of attack of 90°, a flapping amplitude of roughly 45°, and a phase shift between the flapping angle and the angle of attack of roughly 90°. For the revolving-wing model, the power loading peaks for an angle of attack of roughly 45°. In addition, we examine the ground effect on the aerodynamic performance of the revolving-wing model. Secondly, we compare the aerodynamic performance of the flapping- and revolving-wing models at their respective maximal power loadings. It is found that the revolving-wing model is more efficient than the flapping-wing model both when the body of the latter is fixed and where it can move freely. Finally, we discuss the relative agilities of the flapping- and revolving-wing models.

Surface roughness effects on turbulent Couette flow

Science.gov (United States)

Lee, Young Mo; Lee, Jae Hwa

2017-11-01

Direct numerical simulation of a turbulent Couette flow with two-dimensional (2-D) rod roughness is performed to examine the effects of the surface roughness. The Reynolds number based on the channel centerline laminar velocity (Uco) and channel half height (h) is Re =7200. The 2-D rods are periodically arranged with a streamwise pitch of λ = 8 k on the bottom wall, and the roughness height is k = 0.12 h. It is shown that the wall-normal extent for the logarithmic layer is significantly shortened in the rough-wall turbulent Couette flow, compared to a turbulent Couette flow with smooth wall. Although the Reynolds stresses are increased in a turbulent channel flow with surface roughness in the outer layer due to large-scale ejection motions produced by the 2-D rods, those of the rough-wall Couette flow are decreased. Isosurfaces of the u-structures averaged in time suggest that the decrease of the turbulent activity near the centerline is associated with weakened large-scale counter-rotating roll modes by the surface roughness. This research was supported by the National Research Foundation of Korea (NRF) funded by the Ministry of Education (NRF-2017R1D1A1A09000537) and the Ministry of Science, ICT & Future Planning (NRF-2017R1A5A1015311).

Robust Backstepping Control of Wing Rock Using Disturbance Observer

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Dawei Wu

2017-02-01

Full Text Available Wing rock is a highly nonlinear phenomenon when the aircraft suffers undesired roll-dominated oscillatory at high angle of attack (AOA. Considering the strong nonlinear and unsteady aerodynamic characteristics, an uncertain multi-input and multi-output (MIMO nonlinear wing rock model is studied, and system uncertainties, unsteady aerodynamic disturbances and externaldisturbancesareconsideredinthedesignofwingrockcontrollaw. Tohandletheproblemof multipledisturbances,arobustcontrolschemeisproposedbasedontheextendedstateobserver(ESO and the radial basis function neural network (RBFNN technique. Considering that the effectiveness of actuators are greatly decreased at high AOA, the input saturation problem is also handled by constructing a corresponding auxiliary system. Based on the improved ESO and the auxiliary system, a robust backstepping control law is proposed for the wing rock control. In addition, the dynamic surface control (DSC technique is introduced to avoid the tedious computations of time derivatives for the virtual control laws in the backstepping method. The stability of the closed-loop system is guaranteed via rigorously Lyapunov analysis. Finally, simulation results are presented to illustrate the effectiveness of the ESO and the proposed wing rock control approach.

An Experimental Study into Pylon, Wing, and Flap Installation Effects on Jet Noise Generated by Commercial Aircraft

Science.gov (United States)

Perrino, Michael

A pylon bottom bifurcation and a wing with variable flaps were designed and built to attach to a scaled model of a coaxial exhaust nozzle system. The presence of the pylon bifurcation, wing, and flaps modify the characteristics of the exhaust flow forc- ing asymmetric flow and acoustics. A parametric study was carried out for assessing and relating the flow field characteristics to the near-field pressure and far-field acous- tic spectra. The flow field was investigated experimentally using both stream-wise and cross-stream PIV techniques where the near-field pressure and far-field acoustic spectra were measured using microphone arrays. Contour mapping of the flow field characteristics (e.g. mean velocity and turbulence kinetic energy levels) and near-field acoustics with and without installation effects were used to explain the changes in the far-field acoustics.

Experimental Investigation on Aerodynamic Control of a Wing with Distributed Plasma Actuators

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Han Menghu; Li Jun; Liang Hua; Zhao Guangyin; Niu Zhongguo

2015-01-01

Experimental investigation of active flow control on the aerodynamic performance of a flying wing is conducted. Subsonic wind tunnel tests are performed using a model of a 35° swept flying wing with an nanosecond dielectric barrier discharge (NS-DBD) plasma actuator, which is installed symmetrically on the wing leading edge. The lift and drag coefficient, lift-to-drag ratio and pitching moment coefficient are tested by a six-component force balance for a range of angles of attack. The results indicate that a 44.5% increase in the lift coefficient, a 34.2% decrease in the drag coefficient and a 22.4% increase in the maximum lift-to-drag ratio can be achieved as compared with the baseline case. The effects of several actuation parameters are also investigated, and the results show that control efficiency demonstrates a strong dependence on actuation location and frequency. Furthermore, we highlight the use of distributed plasma actuators at the leading edge to enhance the aerodynamic performance, giving insight into the different mechanism of separation control and vortex control, which shows tremendous potential in practical flow control for a broad range of angles of attack. (paper)

Visualization of Flow Field of Weis-Fogh Type Water Turbine Using the PIV

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Ro, Ki Deok [Gyeongsang Nat’l Univ., Jinju (Korea, Republic of)

2017-03-15

In this study, the visualization of the unsteady flow field of a Weis-Fogh-type water turbine was investigated using particle-image velocimetry. The visualization experiments were performed in a parameter range that provided relatively high-efficiency wing conditions, that is, at a wing opening angle α= 40 .deg. and at a velocity ratio of the uniform flow to the moving wing U/V = 1.5~2.5. The flow fields at the opening, translational, and closing stages were investigated for each experimental parameter. In the opening stage, the fluid was drawn in between the wing and wall at a velocity that increased with an increase in the opening angle and velocity ratio. In the translational stage, the fluid on the pressure face of the wing moved in the direction of the wing motion, and the boundary layer at the back face of the wing was the thinnest and had a velocity ratio of 2.0. In the closing stage, the fluid between the wing and wall was jetted at a velocity that increased as the opening angle decreased; however, the velocity was independent of the velocity ratio.

Fluidic actuators for active flow control on airframe

Science.gov (United States)

Schueller, M.; Weigel, P.; Lipowski, M.; Meyer, M.; Schlösser, P.; Bauer, M.

2016-04-01

One objective of the European Projects AFLoNext and Clean Sky 2 is to apply Active Flow Control (AFC) on the airframe in critical aerodynamic areas such as the engine/wing junction or the outer wing region for being able to locally improve the aerodynamics in certain flight conditions. At the engine/wing junction, AFC is applied to alleviate or even eliminate flow separation at low speeds and high angle of attacks likely to be associated with the integration of underwing- mounted Ultra High Bypass Ratio (UHBR) engines and the necessary slat-cut-outs. At the outer wing region, AFC can be used to allow more aggressive future wing designs with improved performance. A relevant part of the work on AFC concepts for airframe application is the development of suitable actuators. Fluidic Actuated Flow Control (FAFC) has been introduced as a Flow Control Technology that influences the boundary layer by actively blowing air through slots or holes out of the aircraft skin. FAFC actuators can be classified by their Net Mass Flux and accordingly divided into ZNMF (Zero Net Mass Flux) and NZNMF (Non Zero Net-Mass-Flux) actuators. In the frame of both projects, both types of the FAFC actuator concepts are addressed. In this paper, the objectives of AFC on the airframe is presented and the actuators that are used within the project are discussed.

Tidally-driven Surface Flow in a Georgia Estuarine Saltmarsh

Science.gov (United States)

Young, D.; Bruder, B. L.; Haas, K. A.; Webster, D. R.

2016-02-01

Estuarine saltmarshes are diverse, valuable, and productive ecosystems. Vegetation dampens wave and current energy, thereby allowing the estuaries to serve as a nursery habitat for shellfish and fish species. Tidally-driven flow transports nutrients into and out of the estuary, nourishing inshore and offshore vegetation and animals. The effects of vegetation on the marsh hydrodynamics and on the estuary creek and channel flow are, unfortunately, poorly understood, and the knowledge that does exist primarily originates from modeling studies. Field studies addressing marsh surface flows are limited due to the difficulty of accurately measuring the water surface elevation and acquiring concurrent velocity measurements in the dense marsh vegetation. This study partially bridges the gap between the model observations of marsh flow driven by water surface elevation gradients and flume studies of flow through vegetation. Three current meters and three pressure transducers were deployed for three days along a transect perpendicular to the main channel (Little Ogeechee River) in a saltmarsh adjacent to Rose Dhu Island (Savannah, Georgia, USA). The pressure transducer locations were surveyed daily with static GPS yielding highly accurate water surface elevation data. During flood and ebb tide, water surface elevation differences between the marsh and Little Ogeechee River were observed up to 15 cm and pressure gradients were observed up to 0.0017 m of water surface elevation drop per m of linear distance. The resulting channel-to-saltmarsh pressure gradients substantially affected tidal currents at all current meters. At one current meter, the velocity was nearly perpendicular to the Little Ogeechee River bank. The velocity at this location was effectively modeled as a balance between the pressure gradient and marsh vegetation-induced drag force using the Darcy-Weisbach/Lindner's equations developed for flow-through-vegetation analysis in open channel flow.

Low-Reynolds Number Aerodynamics of an 8.9 Percent Scale Semispan Swept Wing for Assessment of Icing Effects

Science.gov (United States)

Broeren, Andy P.; Woodard, Brian S.; Diebold, Jeffrey M.; Moens, Frederic

2017-01-01

Aerodynamic assessment of icing effects on swept wings is an important component of a larger effort to improve three-dimensional icing simulation capabilities. An understanding of ice-shape geometric fidelity and Reynolds and Mach number effects on the iced-wing aerodynamics is needed to guide the development and validation of ice-accretion simulation tools. To this end, wind-tunnel testing and computational flow simulations were carried out for an 8.9 percent-scale semispan wing based upon the Common Research Model airplane configuration. The wind-tunnel testing was conducted at the Wichita State University 7 by 10 ft Beech wind tunnel from Reynolds numbers of 0.8×10(exp 6) to 2.4×10(exp 6) and corresponding Mach numbers of 0.09 to 0.27. This paper presents the results of initial studies investigating the model mounting configuration, clean-wing aerodynamics and effects of artificial ice roughness. Four different model mounting configurations were considered and a circular splitter plate combined with a streamlined shroud was selected as the baseline geometry for the remainder of the experiments and computational simulations. A detailed study of the clean-wing aerodynamics and stall characteristics was made. In all cases, the flow over the outboard sections of the wing separated as the wing stalled with the inboard sections near the root maintaining attached flow. Computational flow simulations were carried out with the ONERA elsA software that solves the compressible, threedimensional RANS equations. The computations were carried out in either fully turbulent mode or with natural transition. Better agreement between the experimental and computational results was obtained when considering computations with free transition compared to turbulent solutions. These results indicate that experimental evolution of the clean wing performance coefficients were due to the effect of three-dimensional transition location and that this must be taken into account for future

Power reduction and the radial limit of stall delay in revolving wings of different aspect ratio.

Science.gov (United States)

Kruyt, Jan W; van Heijst, GertJan F; Altshuler, Douglas L; Lentink, David

2015-04-06

Airplanes and helicopters use high aspect ratio wings to reduce the power required to fly, but must operate at low angle of attack to prevent flow separation and stall. Animals capable of slow sustained flight, such as hummingbirds, have low aspect ratio wings and flap their wings at high angle of attack without stalling. Instead, they generate an attached vortex along the leading edge of the wing that elevates lift. Previous studies have demonstrated that this vortex and high lift can be reproduced by revolving the animal wing at the same angle of attack. How do flapping and revolving animal wings delay stall and reduce power? It has been hypothesized that stall delay derives from having a short radial distance between the shoulder joint and wing tip, measured in chord lengths. This non-dimensional measure of wing length represents the relative magnitude of inertial forces versus rotational accelerations operating in the boundary layer of revolving and flapping wings. Here we show for a suite of aspect ratios, which represent both animal and aircraft wings, that the attachment of the leading edge vortex on a revolving wing is determined by wing aspect ratio, defined with respect to the centre of revolution. At high angle of attack, the vortex remains attached when the local radius is shorter than four chord lengths and separates outboard on higher aspect ratio wings. This radial stall limit explains why revolving high aspect ratio wings (of helicopters) require less power compared with low aspect ratio wings (of hummingbirds) at low angle of attack and vice versa at high angle of attack. © 2015 The Author(s) Published by the Royal Society. All rights reserved.

Optimum Wing Shape of Highly Flexible Morphing Aircraft for Improved Flight Performance

Science.gov (United States)

Su, Weihua; Swei, Sean Shan-Min; Zhu, Guoming G.

2016-01-01

In this paper, optimum wing bending and torsion deformations are explored for a mission adaptive, highly flexible morphing aircraft. The complete highly flexible aircraft is modeled using a strain-based geometrically nonlinear beam formulation, coupled with unsteady aerodynamics and six-degrees-of-freedom rigid-body motions. Since there are no conventional discrete control surfaces for trimming the flexible aircraft, the design space for searching the optimum wing geometries is enlarged. To achieve high performance flight, the wing geometry is best tailored according to the specific flight mission needs. In this study, the steady level flight and the coordinated turn flight are considered, and the optimum wing deformations with the minimum drag at these flight conditions are searched by utilizing a modal-based optimization procedure, subject to the trim and other constraints. The numerical study verifies the feasibility of the modal-based optimization approach, and shows the resulting optimum wing configuration and its sensitivity under different flight profiles.

CFD analysis of supercritical water flow and heat transfer in single channel with mixing vane

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Zuo Guoping; Xie Hongyan; Yu Tao

2012-01-01

Three-dimensional rectangular channel with the mixing wane in supercritical water reactor is investigated with CFX. The mixing vane elevation influenced on temperature distribution and flow field are simulated in the model. The results showed the mixing vane cause fluid circumferential flow, making flow hot and cold fluids mixed and fluid temperature uniform distribution, effectively improve the fuel rod surface temperature distribution and reduced hot temperature. Among the mixing wing elevation of 15, 30, 45, 50, 60 and 70 angle, the 30 angle is the best case in improving temperature distribution. (authors)

Comparison of High-Fidelity Computational Tools for Wing Design of a Distributed Electric Propulsion Aircraft

Science.gov (United States)

Deere, Karen A.; Viken, Sally A.; Carter, Melissa B.; Viken, Jeffrey K.; Derlaga, Joseph M.; Stoll, Alex M.

2017-01-01

A variety of tools, from fundamental to high order, have been used to better understand applications of distributed electric propulsion to aid the wing and propulsion system design of the Leading Edge Asynchronous Propulsion Technology (LEAPTech) project and the X-57 Maxwell airplane. Three high-fidelity, Navier-Stokes computational fluid dynamics codes used during the project with results presented here are FUN3D, STAR-CCM+, and OVERFLOW. These codes employ various turbulence models to predict fully turbulent and transitional flow. Results from these codes are compared for two distributed electric propulsion configurations: the wing tested at NASA Armstrong on the Hybrid-Electric Integrated Systems Testbed truck, and the wing designed for the X-57 Maxwell airplane. Results from these computational tools for the high-lift wing tested on the Hybrid-Electric Integrated Systems Testbed truck and the X-57 high-lift wing presented compare reasonably well. The goal of the X-57 wing and distributed electric propulsion system design achieving or exceeding the required ?? (sub L) = 3.95 for stall speed was confirmed with all of the computational codes.

Computational Fluid Dynamics (CFD) Design of a Blended Wing Body (BWB) with Boundary Layer Ingestion (BLI) Nacelles

Science.gov (United States)

Morehouse, Melissa B.

2001-01-01

A study is being conducted to improve the propulsion/airframe integration for the Blended Wing-Body (BWB) configuration with boundary layer ingestion nacelles. TWO unstructured grid flow solvers, USM3D and FUN3D, have been coupled with different design methods and are being used to redesign the aft wing region and the nacelles to reduce drag and flow separation. An initial study comparing analyses from these two flow solvers against data from a wind tunnel test as well as predictions from the OVERFLOW structured grid code for a BWB without nacelles has been completed. Results indicate that the unstructured grid codes are sufficiently accurate for use in design. Results from the BWB design study will be presented.

Aerodynamic study, design and construction of a Blended Wing Body (BWB) Unmanned Aircraft (UA)

OpenAIRE

De Toro Diaz, Aleix

2015-01-01

During this project a Blended Wing Body (BWB) UA (Unmanned Aircraft) model is built. BWBs are a combination of a common airplane with tail control surfaces and a flying wing. BWBs lack tail control surfaces, which makes its design to be very different and more complex regarding stability. To first start the BWB design, some research has been done about the basic parameters of the BWB designs. Moreover, different airfoils are considered to improve the stability of the UA. Two designs are creat...

Flow structure from a horizontal cylinder coincident with a free surface in shallow water flow

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Kahraman Ali

2012-01-01

Full Text Available Vortex formation from a horizontal cylinder coincident with a free surface of a shallow water flow having a depth of 25.4 [mm] was experimentally investigated using the PIV technique. Instantaneous and time-averaged flow patterns in the wake region of the cylinder were examined for three different cylinder diameter values under the fully developed turbulent boundary layer condition. Reynolds numbers were in the range of 1124£ Re£ 3374 and Froude numbers were in the range of 0.41 £ Fr £ 0.71 based on the cylinder diameter. It was found that a jet-like flow giving rise to increasing the flow entrainment between the core and wake regions depending on the cylinder diameter was formed between the lower surface of the cylinder and bottom surface of the channel. Vorticity intensity, Reynolds stress correlations and the primary recirculating bubble lengths were grown to higher values with increasing the cylinder diameter. On the other hand, in the case of the lowest level of the jet-like flow emanating from the beneath of the smallest cylinder, the variation of flow characteristics were attenuated significantly in a shorter distance. The variation of the reattachment location of the separated flow to the free-surface is a strong function of the cylinder diameter and the Froude number.

Measurements of the near-surface flow over a hill

Science.gov (United States)

Vosper, S. B.; Mobbs, S. D.; Gardiner, B. A.

2002-10-01

The near-surface flow over a hill with moderate slope and height comparable with the boundary-layer depth is investigated through field measurements of the mean flow (at 2 m), surface pressure, and turbulent momentum flux divergence between 8 and 15 m. The measurements were made along an east-west transect across the hill Tighvein (height 458 m, approximate width 8 km) on the Isle of Arran, south-west Scotland, during two separate periods, each of around three-weeks duration. Radiosonde ascents are used to determine the variation of a Froude number, FL = U/NL, where U is the wind speed at the middle-layer height, hm, N is the mean Brunt-Väisälä frequency below this height and L is a hill length-scale. Measurements show that for moderately stratified flows (for which FL 0.25) a minimum in the hill-induced surface-pressure perturbation occurs across the summit and this is accompanied by a maximum in the near-surface wind speed. In the more strongly stratified case (FL 0.25) the pressure field is more asymmetric and the lee-slope flow is generally stronger than on the windward slope. Such a flow pattern is qualitatively consistent with that predicted by stratified linear boundary-layer and gravity-wave theories. The near-surface momentum budget is analysed by evaluating the dominant terms in a Bernoulli equation suitable for turbulent flow. Measurements during periods of westerly flow are used to evaluate the dominant terms, and the equation is shown to hold to a reasonable approximation on the upwind slope of the hill and also on the downwind slope, away from the summit. Immediately downwind of the summit, however, the Bernoulli equation does not hold. Possible reasons for this, such as non-separated sheltering and flow separation, are discussed.

Aeroelastic Wing Shaping Using Distributed Propulsion

Science.gov (United States)

Nguyen, Nhan T. (Inventor); Reynolds, Kevin Wayne (Inventor); Ting, Eric B. (Inventor)

2017-01-01

An aircraft has wings configured to twist during flight. Inboard and outboard propulsion devices, such as turbofans or other propulsors, are connected to each wing, and are spaced along the wing span. A flight controller independently controls thrust of the inboard and outboard propulsion devices to significantly change flight dynamics, including changing thrust of outboard propulsion devices to twist the wing, and to differentially apply thrust on each wing to change yaw and other aspects of the aircraft during various stages of a flight mission. One or more generators can be positioned upon the wing to provide power for propulsion devices on the same wing, and on an opposite wing.

Estimation of real ship propelling performance by the surface velocity lattice method using model ship flow field data; Mokeisen ryujo data wo mochiita hyomen uzu koshiho ni yoru jissen suishin seino no suitei

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Kai, H; Ikehata, M; Sakai, S [Yokohama National University, Yokohama (Japan). Faculty of Engineering

1997-10-01

This is basically a technique wherein the wing element method is replaced by a surface vortex lattice method. A horseshoe vortex of unknown intensity and source surface of known intensity are distributed on the wing surface and, under conditions that the fluid will not cross the boundary, the intensity of horseshoe vortex circulation is calculated for the solution of the fluid field. For the simulation of a real ship in navigation, the required propeller revolution thrust is determined using the real ship resistance value and real ship thrust reduction factor estimated from a model ship resistance test by extrapolation. The calculation of propeller performance is conducted in the quasi-steady condition using the force of fluid working on one wing for each wing angle (with the wing rotated at the increment of 6 degrees), and the thrust and torque are determined using the averages of values obtained in one cycle. It is found that the torque value is overestimated in a considerable degree in the wing element theory. In the surface vortex lattice method, both thrust and torque values agree with experimental values mostly, and this method is found to be accurate enough as a navigation element calculation tool when many panels are considered. 4 refs., 5 figs., 1 tab.

Flight test operations using an F-106B research airplane modified with a wing leading-edge vortex flap

Science.gov (United States)

Dicarlo, Daniel J.; Brown, Philip W.; Hallissy, James B.

1992-01-01

Flight tests of an F-106B aircraft equipped with a leading-edge vortex flap, which represented the culmination of a research effort to examine the effectiveness of the flap, were conducted at the NASA Langley Research Center. The purpose of the flight tests was to establish a data base on the use of a wing leading-edge vortex flap as a means to validate the design and analysis methods associated with the development of such a vortical flow-control concept. The overall experiment included: refinements of the design codes for vortex flaps; numerous wind tunnel entries to aid in verifying design codes and determining basic aerodynamic characteristics; design and fabrication of the flaps, structural modifications to the wing tip and leading edges of the test aircraft; development and installation of an aircraft research instrumentation system, including wing and flap surface pressure measurements and selected structural loads measurements; ground-based simulation to assess flying qualities; and finally, flight testing. This paper reviews the operational aspects associated with the flight experiment, which includes a description of modifications to the research airplane, the overall flight test procedures, and problems encountered. Selected research results are also presented to illustrate the accomplishments of the research effort.

F-16XL Ship #2 Laminar Flow Glove mounting

Science.gov (United States)

1995-01-01

NASA's two-seat F-16XL research aircraft is shown in the modification hangar at NASA's Dryden Flight Research Center, Edwards, California, during installation of a titanium 'glove' on the upper surface of its modified left wing. The aircraft subsequently carried out a 13-month-long, 45-flight research program which investigated drawing off a small part of the boundary-layer air in order to provide laminar--or smooth--flow over a major portion of a wing flying at supersonic speeds. A turbo-compressor in the aircraft's fuselage provided suction to draw air through more than 10 million tiny laser-drilled holes in the glove via a manifold system employing 20 valves. Data obtained during the program could assist designers of future aircraft in developing a more efficient high-speed civil transport.

Do the Golden-winged Warbler and Blue-winged Warbler Exhibit Species-specific Differences in their Breeding Habitat Use?

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Laura L. Patton

2010-12-01

Full Text Available We compared habitat features of Golden-winged Warbler (Vermivora chrysoptera territories in the presence and absence of the Blue-winged Warbler (V. cyanoptera on reclaimed coal mines in southeastern Kentucky, USA. Our objective was to determine whether there are species specific differences in habitat that can be manipulated to encourage population persistence of the Golden-winged Warbler. When compared with Blue-winged Warblers, Golden-winged Warblers established territories at higher elevations and with greater percentages of grass and canopy cover. Mean territory size (minimum convex polygon was 1.3 ha (se = 0.1 for Golden-winged Warbler in absence of Blue-winged Warbler, 1.7 ha (se = 0.3 for Golden-winged Warbler coexisting with Blue-winged Warbler, and 2.1 ha (se = 0.3 for Blue-winged Warbler. Territory overlap occurred within and between species (18 of n = 73 territories, 24.7%. All Golden-winged and Blue-winged Warblers established territories that included an edge between reclaimed mine land and mature forest, as opposed to establishing territories in open grassland/shrubland habitat. The mean distance territories extended from a forest edge was 28.0 m (se = 3.8 for Golden-winged Warbler in absence of Blue-winged Warbler, 44.7 m (se = 5.7 for Golden-winged Warbler coexisting with Blue-winged Warbler, and 33.1 m (se = 6.1 for Blue-winged Warbler. Neither territory size nor distances to forest edges differed significantly between Golden-winged Warbler in presence or absence of Blue-winged Warbler. According to Monte Carlo analyses, orchardgrass (Dactylis glomerata, green ash (Fraxinus pennsylvanica seedlings and saplings, and black locust (Robinia pseudoacacia saplings were indicative of sites with only Golden-winged Warblers. Sericea lespedeza, goldenrod (Solidago spp., clematis vine (Clematis spp., and blackberry (Rubus spp. were indicative of sites where both species occurred. Our findings complement recent genetic studies and add

Experiments on a low aspect ratio wing at low Reynolds numbers

Science.gov (United States)

Morse, Daniel R.

At the start of the 21st century much of the focus of aircraft design has been turned to unmanned aerial vehicles (UAVs) which generally operate at much lower speeds in higher risk areas than manned aircraft. One subset of UAVs are Micro Air Vehicles (MAVs) which usually are no larger than 20cm and rely on non-traditional shapes to generate lift at very low velocities. This purpose of this work is to describe, in detail with experimental methods, the flow field around a low aspect ratio wing operating at low Reynolds numbers and at high angles of attack. Quantitative measurements are obtained by Three Component Time Resolved Particle Image Velocimetry (3C TR PIV) which describe the mean and turbulent flow field. This research focuses on the leading edge separation zone and the vortex shedding process which occurs at the leading edge. Streamwise wing tip vortices which dominate the lift characteristics are described with flow visualization and 3C TR PIV measurements. Turbulent Kinetic Energy (TKE) is described at the leading edge over several angles of attack. Turbulent Reynolds stresses in all three directions are described over the wing span and several Reynolds numbers. Two primary cyclic processes are observed within the flow field; one low frequency oscillation in the separated region and one high frequency event associated with leading edge vortex formation and convection. Two length scales are proposed and are shown to match well with each other, one based on leading edge vortex shedding frequency and convective velocity and the other based on mean vortex separation distance. A new method of rendering velocity frequency content over large data sets is proposed and used to illustrate the different frequencies observed at the leading edge.

High-performance flexible surface-enhanced Raman scattering substrates fabricated by depositing Ag nanoislands on the dragonfly wing

Science.gov (United States)

Wang, Yuhong; Wang, Mingli; Shen, Lin; Sun, Xin; Shi, Guochao; Ma, Wanli; Yan, Xiaoya

2018-04-01

Natural dragonfly wing (DW), as a template, was deposited on noble metal sliver (Ag) nanoislands by magnetron sputtering to fabricate a flexible, low-cost, large-scale and environment-friendly surface-enhanced Raman scattering (SERS) substrate (Ag/DW substrate). Generally, materials with regular surface nanostructures are chosen for the templates, the selection of our new material with irregular surface nanostructures for substrates provides a new idea for the preparation of high-performance SERS-active substrates and many biomimetic materials. The optimum sputtering time of metal Ag was also investigated at which the prepared SERS-active substrates revealed remarkable SERS activities to 4-aminothiophenol (4-ATP) and crystal violet (CV). Even more surprisingly, the Ag/DW substrate with such an irregular template had reached the enhancement factor (EF) of ∼1.05 × 105 and the detection limit of 10-10 M to 4-ATP. The 3D finite-different time-domain (3D-FDTD) simulation illustrated that the "hot spots" between neighbouring Ag nanoislands at the top of pillars played a most important role in generating electromagnetic (EM) enhancement and strengthening Raman signals.

Morphometric characterisation of wing feathers of the barn owl Tyto alba pratincola and the pigeon Columba livia

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Klaas Michael

2007-11-01

description of the feathers and the specific structures of owl feathers can be used as a model for the construction of a biomimetic airplane wing or, in general, as a source for noise-reducing applications on any surfaces subjected to flow fields.

Surface Runoff in Watershed Modeling—Turbulent or Laminar Flows?

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Mark E. Grismer

2016-05-01

Full Text Available Determination of overland sheet flow depths, velocities and celerities across the hillslope in watershed modeling is important towards estimation of surface storage, travel times to streams and soil detachment rates. It requires careful characterization of the flow processes. Similarly, determination of the temporal variation of hillslope-riparian-stream hydrologic connectivity requires estimation of the shallow subsurface soil hydraulic conductivity and soil-water retention (i.e., drainable porosities parameters. Field rainfall and runoff simulation studies provide considerable information and insight into these processes; in particular, that sheet flows are likely laminar and that shallow hydraulic conductivities and storage can be determined from the plot studies. Here, using a 1 m by 2 m long runoff simulation flume, we found that for overland flow rates per unit width of roughly 30–60 mm2/s and bedslopes of 10%–66% with varying sand roughness depths that all flow depths were predicted by laminar flow equations alone and that equivalent Manning’s n values were depth dependent and quite small relative to those used in watershed modeling studies. Even for overland flow rates greater than those typically measured or modeled and using Manning’s n values of 0.30–0.35, often assumed in physical watershed model applications for relatively smooth surface conditions, the laminar flow velocities were 4–5 times greater, while the laminar flow depths were 4–5 times smaller. This observation suggests that travel times, surface storage volumes and surface shear stresses associated with erosion across the landscape would be poorly predicted using turbulent flow assumptions. Filling the flume with fine sand and conducting runoff studies, we were unable to produce sheet flow, but found that subsurface flows were onflow rate, soil depth and slope dependent and drainable porosities were only soil depth and slope dependent. Moreover, both the sand

Wing Torsional Stiffness Tests of the Active Aeroelastic Wing F/A-18 Airplane

Science.gov (United States)

Lokos, William A.; Olney, Candida D.; Crawford, Natalie D.; Stauf, Rick; Reichenbach, Eric Y.

2002-01-01

The left wing of the Active Aeroelastic Wing (AAW) F/A-18 airplane has been ground-load-tested to quantify its torsional stiffness. The test has been performed at the NASA Dryden Flight Research Center in November 1996, and again in April 2001 after a wing skin modification was performed. The primary objectives of these tests were to characterize the wing behavior before the first flight, and provide a before-and-after measurement of the torsional stiffness. Two streamwise load couples have been applied. The wing skin modification is shown to have more torsional flexibility than the original configuration has. Additionally, structural hysteresis is shown to be reduced by the skin modification. Data comparisons show good repeatability between the tests.

Hypersonic aerodynamic characteristics of a family of power-law, wing body configurations

Science.gov (United States)

Townsend, J. C.

1973-01-01

The configurations analyzed are half-axisymmetric, power-law bodies surmounted by thin, flat wings. The wing planform matches the body shock-wave shape. Analytic solutions of the hypersonic small disturbance equations form a basis for calculating the longitudinal aerodynamic characteristics. Boundary-layer displacement effects on the body and the wing upper surface are approximated. Skin friction is estimated by using compressible, laminar boundary-layer solutions. Good agreement was obtained with available experimental data for which the basic theoretical assumptions were satisfied. The method is used to estimate the effects of power-law, fineness ratio, and Mach number variations at full-scale conditions. The computer program is included.

The hydraulic mechanism in the hind wing veins of Cybister japonicus Sharp (order: Coleoptera

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Jiyu Sun

2016-06-01

Full Text Available The diving beetles (Dytiscidae, Coleoptera are families of water beetles. When they see light, they fly to the light source directly from the water. Their hind wings are thin and fragile under the protection of their elytra (forewings. When the beetle is at rest the hind wings are folded over the abdomen of the beetle and when in flight they unfold to provide the necessary aerodynamic forces. In this paper, the unfolding process of the hind wing of Cybister japonicus Sharp (order: Coleoptera was investigated. The motion characteristics of the blood in the veins of the structure system show that the veins have microfluidic control over the hydraulic mechanism of the unfolding process. A model is established, and the hind wing extending process is simulated. The blood flow and pressure changes are discussed. The driving mechanism for hydraulic control of the folding and unfolding actions of beetle hind wings is put forward. This can assist the design of new deployable micro air vehicles and bioinspired deployable systems.

Calculations of the flow past bluff bodies, including tilt-rotor wing sections at alpha = 90 deg

Science.gov (United States)

Raghavan, V.; Mccroskey, W. J.; Baeder, J. D.; Van Dalsem, W. R.

1990-01-01

An attempt was made to model in two dimensions the effects of rotor downwash on the wing of the tilt-rotor aircraft and to compute the drag force on airfoils at - 90 deg angle of attack, using a well-established Navier-Stokes code. However, neither laminar nor turbulent calculations agreed well with drag and base-pressure measurements at high Reynolds numbers. Therefore, further efforts were concentrated on bluff-body flows past various shapes at low Reynolds numbers, where a strong vortex shedding is observed. Good results were obtained for a circular cylinder, but the calculated drag of a slender ellipse at right angles to the freestream was significantly higher than experimental values reported in the literature for flat plates. Similar anomalous results were obtained on the tilt-rotor airfoils, although the qualitative effects of flap deflection agreed with the wind tunnel data. The ensemble of results suggest that there may be fundamental differences in the vortical wakes of circular cylinders and noncircular bluff bodies.

Singularities in Free Surface Flows

Science.gov (United States)

Thete, Sumeet Suresh

Free surface flows where the shape of the interface separating two or more phases or liquids are unknown apriori, are commonplace in industrial applications and nature. Distribution of drop sizes, coalescence rate of drops, and the behavior of thin liquid films are crucial to understanding and enhancing industrial practices such as ink-jet printing, spraying, separations of chemicals, and coating flows. When a contiguous mass of liquid such as a drop, filament or a film undergoes breakup to give rise to multiple masses, the topological transition is accompanied with a finite-time singularity . Such singularity also arises when two or more masses of liquid merge into each other or coalesce. Thus the dynamics close to singularity determines the fate of about-to-form drops or films and applications they are involved in, and therefore needs to be analyzed precisely. The primary goal of this thesis is to resolve and analyze the dynamics close to singularity when free surface flows experience a topological transition, using a combination of theory, experiments, and numerical simulations. The first problem under consideration focuses on the dynamics following flow shut-off in bottle filling applications that are relevant to pharmaceutical and consumer products industry, using numerical techniques based on Galerkin Finite Element Methods (GFEM). The second problem addresses the dual flow behavior of aqueous foams that are observed in oil and gas fields and estimates the relevant parameters that describe such flows through a series of experiments. The third problem aims at understanding the drop formation of Newtonian and Carreau fluids, computationally using GFEM. The drops are formed as a result of imposed flow rates or expanding bubbles similar to those of piezo actuated and thermal ink-jet nozzles. The focus of fourth problem is on the evolution of thinning threads of Newtonian fluids and suspensions towards singularity, using computations based on GFEM and experimental

Surface roughness influences on the behaviour of flow inside microchannels

Science.gov (United States)

Farias, M. H.; Castro, C. S.; Garcia, D. A.; Henrique, J. S.

2018-03-01

This work discusses influence of the surface roughness on the behavior of liquids flowing inside microchannels. By measuring the flow profile using the micro-PIV technique, the flow of water inside two rectangular microchannels of different wall roughness and in a circular smooth microchannel was studied. Comparisons were made among the experimental results, showing that a metrological approach concerning surface characteristics of microdevices is required to ensure reliability of the measurements for flow analyses in microfluidic processes.

An Adjoint-Based Approach to Study a Flexible Flapping Wing in Pitching-Rolling Motion

Science.gov (United States)

Jia, Kun; Wei, Mingjun; Xu, Min; Li, Chengyu; Dong, Haibo

2017-11-01

Flapping-wing aerodynamics, with advantages in agility, efficiency, and hovering capability, has been the choice of many flyers in nature. However, the study of bio-inspired flapping-wing propulsion is often hindered by the problem's large control space with different wing kinematics and deformation. The adjoint-based approach reduces largely the computational cost to a feasible level by solving an inverse problem. Facing the complication from moving boundaries, non-cylindrical calculus provides an easy extension of traditional adjoint-based approach to handle the optimization involving moving boundaries. The improved adjoint method with non-cylindrical calculus for boundary treatment is first applied on a rigid pitching-rolling plate, then extended to a flexible one with active deformation to further increase its propulsion efficiency. The comparison of flow dynamics with the initial and optimal kinematics and deformation provides a unique opportunity to understand the flapping-wing mechanism. Supported by AFOSR and ARL.

Morphing Wing: Experimental Boundary Layer Transition Determination and Wing Vibrations Measurements and Analysis =

Science.gov (United States)

Tondji Chendjou, Yvan Wilfried

This Master's thesis is written within the framework of the multidisciplinary international research project CRIAQ MDO-505. This global project consists of the design, manufacture and testing of a morphing wing box capable of changing the shape of the flexible upper skin of a wing using an actuator system installed inside the wing. This changing of the shape generates a delay in the occurrence of the laminar to turbulent transition area, which results in an improvement of the aerodynamic performances of the morphed wing. This thesis is focused on the technologies used to gather the pressure data during the wind tunnel tests, as well as on the post processing methodologies used to characterize the wing airflow. The vibration measurements of the wing and their real-time graphical representation are also presented. The vibration data acquisition system is detailed, and the vibration data analysis confirms the predictions of the flutter analysis performed on the wing prior to wind tunnel testing at the IAR-NRC. The pressure data was collected using 32 highly-sensitive piezoelectric sensors for sensing the pressure fluctuations up to 10 KHz. These sensors were installed along two wing chords, and were further connected to a National Instrument PXI real-time acquisition system. The acquired pressure data was high-pass filtered, analyzed and visualized using Fast Fourier Transform (FFT) and Standard Deviation (SD) approaches to quantify the pressure fluctuations in the wing airflow, as these allow the detection of the laminar to turbulent transition area. Around 30% of the cases tested in the IAR-NRC wind tunnel were optimized for drag reduction by the morphing wing procedure. The obtained pressure measurements results were compared with results obtained by infrared thermography visualization, and were used to validate the numerical simulations. Two analog accelerometers able to sense dynamic accelerations up to +/-16g were installed in both the wing and the aileron boxes

DYNAMIC TUNING OF INSECT AND BIRD WINGS AND COPEPOD AND DAPHNIA APPENDAGES

Science.gov (United States)

Compressible flow theory suggests, and dimensional analysis and growing empirical evidence confirm that, to aid flight, many insects and even some birds, notably hummingbirds, tune their wing-beat frequency to a corresponding characteristic harmonic frequency of air. The same pro...

Free surface flows: coalescence, spreading and dewetting

NARCIS (Netherlands)

Hernandez Sanchez, J.F.

2015-01-01

Capillary and wetting phenomena are an essential part of nature. Its presence is noticed in many circumstances where solid and liquid surfaces come into contact. In this thesis different types of capillary free surface flows are studied. The topics discussed are mainly the coalescence of viscous

Turbulence modeling and surface heat transfer in a stagnation flow region

Science.gov (United States)

Wang, C. R.; Yeh, F. C.

1987-01-01

Analysis for the turbulent flow field and the effect of freestream turbulence on the surface heat transfer rate of a stagnation flow is presented. The emphasis is on modeling and its augmentation of surface heat transfer rate. The flow field considered is the region near the forward stagnation point of a circular cylinder in a uniform turbulent mean flow.

Topological Fluid Mechanics with Applications to Free Surfaces and Axisymmetric Flows

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Brøns, Morten

1996-01-01

Topological fluid mechanics is the study of qualitative features of fluid patterns. We discuss applications to the flow beneath a stagnant surface film, and to patterns in axisymmetric flow.......Topological fluid mechanics is the study of qualitative features of fluid patterns. We discuss applications to the flow beneath a stagnant surface film, and to patterns in axisymmetric flow....

Surface-acoustic-wave (SAW) flow sensor

Science.gov (United States)

Joshi, Shrinivas G.

1991-03-01

The use of a surface-acoustic-wave (SAW) device to measure the rate of gas flow is described. A SAW oscillator heated to a suitable temperature above ambient is placed in the path of a flowing gas. Convective cooling caused by the gas flow results in a change in the oscillator frequency. A 73-MHz oscillator fabricated on 128 deg rotated Y-cut lithium niobate substrate and heated to 55 C above ambient shows a frequency variation greater than 142 kHz for flow-rate variation from 0 to 1000 cu cm/min. The output of the sensor can be calibrated to provide a measurement of volume flow rate, pressure differential across channel ports, or mass flow rate. High sensitivity, wide dynamic range, and direct digital output are among the attractive features of this sensor. Theoretical expressions for the sensitivity and response time of the sensor are derived. It is shown that by using ultrasonic Lamb waves propagating in thin membranes, a flow sensor with faster response than a SAW sensor can be realized.

Aerodynamic Optimization Based on Continuous Adjoint Method for a Flexible Wing

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Zhaoke Xu

2016-01-01

Full Text Available Aerodynamic optimization based on continuous adjoint method for a flexible wing is developed using FORTRAN 90 in the present work. Aerostructural analysis is performed on the basis of high-fidelity models with Euler equations on the aerodynamic side and a linear quadrilateral shell element model on the structure side. This shell element can deal with both thin and thick shell problems with intersections, so this shell element is suitable for the wing structural model which consists of two spars, 20 ribs, and skin. The continuous adjoint formulations based on Euler equations and unstructured mesh are derived and used in the work. Sequential quadratic programming method is adopted to search for the optimal solution using the gradients from continuous adjoint method. The flow charts of rigid and flexible optimization are presented and compared. The objective is to minimize drag coefficient meanwhile maintaining lift coefficient for a rigid and flexible wing. A comparison between the results from aerostructural analysis of rigid optimization and flexible optimization is shown here to demonstrate that it is necessary to include the effect of aeroelasticity in the optimization design of a wing.

Effect of external jet-flow deflector geometry on OTW aero-acoustic characteristics. [Over-The-Wing

Science.gov (United States)

Von Glahn, U.; Groesbeck, D.

1976-01-01

The effect of geometry variations in the design of external deflectors for use with OTW configurations was studied at model scale and subsonic jet velocities. Included in the variations were deflector size and angle as well as wing size and flap setting. A conical nozzle (5.2-cm diameter) mounted at 0.1 chord above and downstream of the wing leading edges was used. The data indicate that external deflectors provide satisfactory take-off and approach aerodynamic performance and acoustic characteristics for OTW configurations. These characteristics together with expected good cruise aerodynamics, since external deflectors are storable, may provide optimum OTW design configurations.

X-ray Tomography and Chemical Imaging within Butterfly Wing Scales

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Chen Jianhua; Lee Yaochang; Tang, M.-T.; Song Yenfang

2007-01-01

The rainbow like color of butterfly wings is associated with the internal and surface structures of the wing scales. While the photonic structure of the scales is believed to diffract specific lights at different angle, there is no adequate probe directly answering the 3-D structures with sufficient spatial resolution. The NSRRC nano-transmission x-ray microscope (nTXM) with tens nanometers spatial resolution is able to image biological specimens without artifacts usually introduced in sophisticated sample staining processes. With the intrinsic deep penetration of x-rays, the nTXM is capable of nondestructively investigating the internal structures of fragile and soft samples. In this study, we imaged the structure of butterfly wing scales in 3-D view with 60 nm spatial resolution. In addition, synchrotron-radiation-based Fourier transform Infrared (FT-IR) microspectroscopy was employed to analyze the chemical components with spatial information of the butterfly wing scales. Based on the infrared spectral images, we suggest that the major components of scale structure were rich in protein and polysaccharide

Experimental and numerical studies on free surface flow of windowless target

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Su, G.Y.; Gu, H.Y.; Cheng, X.

2012-01-01

Highlights: ► Experimental and CFD studies on free surface flow have been performed in a scaled windowless target. ► Flow structure inside spallation area can be divided into three typical zones. ► Under large Reynolds number, large scale vortex can be observed. ► CFD studies have been conducted by using both LES and RANS (k-ω SST) turbulence models. ► LES model provides better numerical prediction on free surface behavior and flow transient. - Abstract: The formation and control method of the coolant free surface is one of the key technologies for the design of windowless targets in the accelerator driven system (ADS). In the recent study, experimental and numerical investigations on the free surface flow have been performed in a scaled windowless target by using water as the model fluid. The planar laser induced fluorescence technique has been applied to visualize the free surface flow pattern inside the spallation area. Experiments have been carried out with the Reynolds number in the range of 30,000–50,000. The structure and features of flow vortex have been investigated. The experimental results show that the free surface is vulnerable to the vortex movement. In addition, CFD simulations have been performed under the experimental conditions, using LES and RANS (k-ω SST) turbulence models, respectively. The numerical results of LES model agree qualitatively well with the experimental data related to both flow pattern and free surface behavior.

Drag Performance of Twist Morphing MAV Wing

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Ismail N.I.

2016-01-01

Full Text Available Morphing wing is one of latest evolution found on MAV wing. However, due to few design problems such as limited MAV wing size and complicated morphing mechanism, the understanding of its aerodynamic behaviour was not fully explored. In fact, the basic drag distribution induced by a morphing MAV wing is still remained unknown. Thus, present work is carried out to compare the drag performance between a twist morphing wing with membrane and rigid MAV wing design. A quasi-static aeroelastic analysis by using the Ansys-Fluid Structure Interaction (FSI method is utilized in current works to predict the drag performance a twist morphing MAV wing design. Based on the drag pattern study, the results exhibits that the morphing wing has a partial similarities in overall drag pattern with the baseline (membrane and rigid wing. However, based CD analysis, it shows that TM wing induced higher CD magnitude (between 25% to 82% higher than to the baseline wing. In fact, TM wing also induced the largest CD increment (about 20% to 27% among the wings. The visualization on vortex structure revealed that TM wing also produce larger tip vortex structure (compared to baseline wings which presume to promote higher induce drag component and subsequently induce its higher CD performance.

Observations of Traveling Crossflow Resonant Triad Interactions on a Swept Wing

Science.gov (United States)

Eppink, Jenna L.; Wlezien, Richard

2012-01-01

Experimental evidence indicates the presence of a triad resonance interaction between traveling crossflow modes in a swept wing flow. Results indicate that this interaction occurs when the stationary and traveling crossflow modes have similar and relatively low amplitudes (approx.1% to 6% of the total freestream velocity). The resonant interaction occurs at instability amplitudes well below those typically known to cause transition, yet transition is observed to occur just downstream of the resonance. In each case, two primary linearly unstable traveling crossflow modes are nonlinearly coupled to a higher frequency linearly stable mode at the sum of their frequencies. The higher-frequency mode is linearly stable and presumed to exist as a consequence of the interaction of the two primary modes. Autoand cross-bicoherence are used to determine the extent of phase-matching between the modes, and wavenumber matching confirms the triad resonant nature of the interaction. The bicoherence results indicate a spectral broadening mechanism and the potential path to early transition. The implications for laminar flow control in swept wing flows are significant. Even if stationary crossflow modes remain subcritical, traveling crossflow interactions can lead to early transition.

Drag Measurements over Embedded Cavities in a Low Reynolds Number Couette Flow

Science.gov (United States)

Gilmer, Caleb; Lang, Amy; Jones, Robert

2010-11-01

Recent research has revealed that thin-walled, embedded cavities in low Reynolds number flow have the potential to reduce the net viscous drag force acting on the surface. This reduction is due to the formation of embedded vortices allowing the outer flow to pass over the surface via a roller bearing effect. It is also hypothesized that the scales found on butterfly wings may act in a similar manner to cause a net increase in flying efficiency. In this experimental study, rectangular embedded cavities were designed as a means of successfully reducing the net drag across surfaces in a low Reynolds number flow. A Couette flow was generated via a rotating conveyor belt immersed in a tank of high viscosity mineral oil above which the plates with embedded cavities were placed. Drag induced on the plate models was measured using a force gauge and compared directly to measurements acquired over a flat plate. Various cavity aspect ratios and gap heights were tested in order to determine the conditions under which the greatest drag reductions occurred.

Turbulent flow simulations around the front wing of a racing car

OpenAIRE

Liang, Chen

2010-01-01

Aerodynamics has played a more and more important role in motorsports for maximising the race car performance. Amongst all the aerodynamic devices of race car, the front wing plays a vital role. In order to evaluate aerodynamic forces and develop new solutions for the race car, Computational Fluid Dynamics (CFD) has become a powerful tool. The most classical numerical simulations are based on solving the Reynolds Averaged Navier-Stokes (RANS) equations. In this project, the ...

Water Tunnel Studies of Dynamic Wing Flap Effects

Science.gov (United States)

2016-06-01

NAVAL POSTGRADUATE SCHOOL MONTEREY, CALIFORNIA THESIS Approved for public release; distribution is unlimited WATER TUNNEL...Master’s Thesis 4. TITLE AND SUBTITLE WATER TUNNEL STUDIES OF DYNAMIC WING FLAP EFFECTS 5. FUNDING NUMBERS 6. AUTHOR(S) Edgar E. González 7. PERFORMING...ABSTRACT (maximum 200 words ) The flow features developing over a two-element NACA 0012 airfoil, with the rear portion serving as a trailing edge flap

Computational Analysis of Powered Lift Augmentation for the LEAPTech Distributed Electric Propulsion Wing

Science.gov (United States)

Deere, Karen A.; Viken, Sally A.; Carter, Melissa B.; Viken, Jeffrey K.; Wiese, Michael R.; Farr, Norma L.

2017-01-01

A computational study of a distributed electric propulsion wing with a 40deg flap deflection has been completed using FUN3D. Two lift-augmentation power conditions were compared with the power-off configuration on the high-lift wing (40deg flap) at a 73 mph freestream flow and for a range of angles of attack from -5 degrees to 14 degrees. The computational study also included investigating the benefit of corotating versus counter-rotating propeller spin direction to powered-lift performance. The results indicate a large benefit in lift coefficient, over the entire range of angle of attack studied, by using corotating propellers that all spin counter to the wingtip vortex. For the landing condition, 73 mph, the unpowered 40deg flap configuration achieved a maximum lift coefficient of 2.3. With high-lift blowing the maximum lift coefficient increased to 5.61. Therefore, the lift augmentation is a factor of 2.4. Taking advantage of the fullspan lift augmentation at similar performance means that a wing powered with the distributed electric propulsion system requires only 42 percent of the wing area of the unpowered wing. This technology will allow wings to be 'cruise optimized', meaning that they will be able to fly closer to maximum lift over drag conditions at the design cruise speed of the aircraft.

Differential pressure distribution measurement with an MEMS sensor on a free-flying butterfly wing

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Takahashi, Hidetoshi; Matsumoto, Kiyoshi; Shimoyama, Isao; Tanaka, Hiroto

2012-01-01

An insect can perform various flight maneuvers. However, the aerodynamic force generated by real insect wings during free flight has never been measured directly. In this study, we present the direct measurement of the four points of the differential pressures acting on the wing surface of a flying insect. A small-scale differential pressure sensor of 1.0 mm × 1.0 mm × 0.3 mm in size was developed using microelectromechanical systems (MEMS) and was attached to a butterfly wing. Total weight of the sensor chip and the flexible electrode on the wing was 4.5 mg, which was less than 10% of the wing weight. Four points on the wing were chosen as measurement points, and one sensor chip was attached in each flight experiment. During takeoff, the wing's flapping motion induced a periodic and symmetric differential pressure between upstroke and downstroke. The average absolute value of the local differential pressure differed significantly with the location: 7.4 Pa at the forewing tip, 5.5 Pa at the forewing center, 2.1 Pa at the forewing root and 2.1 Pa at the hindwing center. The instantaneous pressure at the forewing tip reached 10 Pa, which was ten times larger than wing loading of the butterfly. (paper)

A lifting line model to investigate the influence of tip feathers on wing performance

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Fluck, M; Crawford, C

2014-01-01

Bird wings have been studied as prototypes for wing design since the beginning of aviation. Although wing tip slots, i.e. wings with distinct gaps between the tip feathers (primaries), are very common in many birds, only a few studies have been conducted on the benefits of tip feathers on the wing's performance, and the aerodynamics behind tip feathers remains to be understood. Consequently most aircraft do not yet copy this feature. To close this knowledge gap an extended lifting line model was created to calculate the lift distribution and drag of wings with tip feathers. With this model, is was easily possible to combine several lifting surfaces into various different birdwing-like configurations. By including viscous drag effects, good agreement with an experimental tip slotted reference case was achieved. Implemented in C++ this model resulted in computation times of less than one minute per wing configuration on a standard notebook computer. Thus it was possible to analyse the performance of over 100 different wing configurations with and without tip feathers. While generally an increase in wing efficiency was obtained by splitting a wing tip into distinct, feather-like winglets, the best performance was generally found when spreading more feathers over a larger dihedral angle out of the wing plane. However, as the results were very sensitive to the precise geometry of the feather fan (especially feather twist) a careless set-up could just as easily degrade performance. Hence a detailed optimization is recommended to realize the full benefits by simultaneously optimizing feather sweep, twist and dihedral angles. (paper)

Wing configuration on Wind Tunnel Testing of an Unmanned Aircraft Vehicle

Science.gov (United States)

Daryanto, Yanto; Purwono, Joko; Subagyo

2018-04-01

Control surface of an Unmanned Aircraft Vehicle (UAV) consists of flap, aileron, spoiler, rudder, and elevator. Every control surface has its own special functionality. Some particular configurations in the flight mission often depend on the wing configuration. Configuration wing within flap deflection for takeoff setting deflection of flap 20° but during landing deflection of flap set on the value 40°. The aim of this research is to get the ultimate CLmax for take-off flap deflection setting. It is shown from Wind Tunnel Testing result that the 20° flap deflection gives optimum CLmax with moderate drag coefficient. The results of Wind Tunnel Testing representing by graphic plots show good performance as well as the stability of UAV.

Butterfly effects: novel functional materials inspired from the wings scales.

Science.gov (United States)

Zhang, Wang; Gu, Jiajun; Liu, Qinglei; Su, Huilan; Fan, Tongxiang; Zhang, Di

2014-10-07

Through millions of years of evolutionary selection, nature has created biological materials with various functional properties for survival. Many complex natural architectures, such as shells, bones, and honeycombs, have been studied and imitated in the design and fabrication of materials with enhanced hardness and stiffness. Recently, more and more researchers have started to research the wings of butterflies, mostly because of their dazzling colors. It was found that most of these iridescent colors are caused by periodic photonic structures on the scales that make up the surfaces of these wings. These materials have recently become a focus of multidiscipline research because of their promising applications in the display of structural colors, and in advanced sensors, photonic crystals, and solar cells. This paper review aims to provide a perspective overview of the research inspired by these wing structures in recent years.

Investigation of the Three-Dimensional Hinge Moment Characteristics Generated by the ONERA-M6 Wing with an Aileron

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

G. Q. Zhang

2013-01-01

Full Text Available The hinge moment characteristics for ONERA-M6 wing with aileron configuration have been investigated numerically based on the different gaps and deflecting angles. The results show that the effects on the wing made by the deflecting aileron are notable. Comparing with the nonaileron case, the chordwise pressure coefficient distribution for the wing with aileron has shown the totally different trends. The small gap can force the air flow through and form the extremely strong spraying flow. It can directly destroy the previously formed leading edge vortex (LEV. Due to the presence of the positive deflecting angle, the trailing edge vortex (TEV will begin to generate at the trailing edge of the aileron. The induced secondary LEV will be mixed with the developing TEVs and form the stronger TEVs at the downstream position. Comparing with the subsonic flow, the curve for the supersonic flow has shown a good linear. The corresponding hinge moments are also extremely sensitive to the changing angle of attack, and the slope of curves is also bigger than that of the subsonic flow. The bigger gap and deflecting angle can result in the curve of hinge moment bending upward at high angle of attack. The corresponding pressure cloud and streamlines have also been obtained computationally and analyzed in detail.

The Effect of Pitching Phase on the Vortex Circulation for a Flapping Wing During Stroke Reversal

Science.gov (United States)

Burge, Matthew; Ringuette, Matthew

2017-11-01

We study the effect of pitching-phase on the circulation behavior for the 3D flow structures produced during stroke reversal for a 2-degree-of-freedom flapping wing executing hovering kinematics. Previous research has related the choice in pitching-phase with respect to the wing rotation during stroke reversal (advanced vs. symmetric pitch-timing) to a lift peak preceding stroke reversal. However, results from experiments on the time-varying circulation contributions from the 3D vortex structures across the span produced by both rotation and pitching are lacking. The objective of this research is to quantitatively examine how the spanwise circulation of these structures is affected by the pitching-phase for several reduced pitching frequencies. We employ a scaled wing model in a glycerin-water mixture and measure the time-varying velocity using multiple planes of stereo digital particle image velocimetry. Data-plane positions along the wing span are informed by the unsteady behavior of the 3D vortex structures found in our prior flow visualization movies. Individual vortices are identified to calculate their circulation. This work is aimed at understanding how the behavior of the vortex structures created during stroke reversal vary with key motion parameters. This work is supported by the National Science Foundation, Award Number 1336548, supervised by Dr. Ronald Joslin.

Flight tests of a supersonic natural laminar flow airfoil

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Frederick, M A; Banks, D W; Garzon, G A; Matisheck, J R

2015-01-01

A flight test campaign of a supersonic natural laminar flow airfoil has been recently completed. The test surface was an 80 inch (203 cm) chord and 40 inch (102 cm) span article mounted on the centerline store location of an F-15B airplane. The test article was designed with a leading edge sweep of effectively 0° to minimize boundary layer crossflow. The test article surface was coated with an insulating material to avoid significant heat transfer to and from the test article structure to maintain a quasi-adiabatic wall. An aircraft-mounted infrared camera system was used to determine boundary layer transition and the extent of laminar flow. The tests were flown up to Mach 2.0 and chord Reynolds numbers in excess of 30 million. The objectives of the tests were to determine the extent of laminar flow at high Reynolds numbers and to determine the sensitivity of the flow to disturbances. Both discrete (trip dots) and 2D disturbances (forward-facing steps) were tested. A series of oblique shocks, of yet unknown origin, appeared on the surface, which generated sufficient crossflow to affect transition. Despite the unwanted crossflow, the airfoil performed well. The results indicate that the sensitivity of the flow to the disturbances, which can translate into manufacturing tolerances, was similar to that of subsonic natural laminar flow wings. (paper)

Structural Analysis of a Dragonfly Wing

NARCIS (Netherlands)

Jongerius, S.R.; Lentink, D.

2010-01-01

Dragonfly wings are highly corrugated, which increases the stiffness and strength of the wing significantly, and results in a lightweight structure with good aerodynamic performance. How insect wings carry aerodynamic and inertial loads, and how the resonant frequency of the flapping wings is tuned

Butterflies regulate wing temperatures using radiative cooling

Science.gov (United States)

Tsai, Cheng-Chia; Shi, Norman Nan; Ren, Crystal; Pelaez, Julianne; Bernard, Gary D.; Yu, Nanfang; Pierce, Naomi

2017-09-01

Butterfly wings are live organs embedded with multiple sensory neurons and, in some species, with pheromoneproducing cells. The proper function of butterfly wings demands a suitable temperature range, but the wings can overheat quickly in the sun due to their small thermal capacity. We developed an infrared technique to map butterfly wing temperatures and discovered that despite the wings' diverse visible colors, regions of wings that contain live cells are the coolest, resulting from the thickness of the wings and scale nanostructures. We also demonstrated that butterflies use behavioral traits to prevent overheating of their wings.

Novel method for measuring a dense 3D strain map of robotic flapping wings

Science.gov (United States)

Li, Beiwen; Zhang, Song

2018-04-01

Measuring dense 3D strain maps of the inextensible membranous flapping wings of robots is of vital importance to the field of bio-inspired engineering. Conventional high-speed 3D videography methods typically reconstruct the wing geometries through measuring sparse points with fiducial markers, and thus cannot obtain the full-field mechanics of the wings in detail. In this research, we propose a novel system to measure a dense strain map of inextensible membranous flapping wings by developing a superfast 3D imaging system and a computational framework for strain analysis. Specifically, first we developed a 5000 Hz 3D imaging system based on the digital fringe projection technique using the defocused binary patterns to precisely measure the dynamic 3D geometries of rapidly flapping wings. Then, we developed a geometry-based algorithm to perform point tracking on the precisely measured 3D surface data. Finally, we developed a dense strain computational method using the Kirchhoff-Love shell theory. Experiments demonstrate that our method can effectively perform point tracking and measure a highly dense strain map of the wings without many fiducial markers.

Surface Effects on Nanoscale Gas Flows

Science.gov (United States)

Beskok, Ali; Barisik, Murat

2010-11-01

3D MD simulations of linear Couette flow of argon gas confined within nano-scale channels are performed in the slip, transition and free molecular flow regimes. The velocity and density profiles show deviations from the kinetic theory based predictions in the near wall region that typically extends three molecular diameters (s) from each surface. Utilizing the Irwin-Kirkwood theorem, stress tensor components for argon gas confined in nano-channels are investigated. Outside the 3s region, three normal stress components are identical, and equal to pressure predicted using the ideal gas law, while the shear stress is a constant. Within the 3s region, the normal stresses become anisotropic and the shear stress shows deviations from its bulk value due to the surface virial effects. Utilizing the kinetic theory and MD predicted shear stress values, the tangential momentum accommodation coefficient for argon gas interacting with FCC structured walls (100) plane facing the fluid is calculated to be 0.75; this value is independent of the Knudsen number. Results show emergence of the 3s region as an additional characteristic length scale in nano-confined gas flows.

A Level Set Discontinuous Galerkin Method for Free Surface Flows

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Grooss, Jesper; Hesthaven, Jan

2006-01-01

We present a discontinuous Galerkin method on a fully unstructured grid for the modeling of unsteady incompressible fluid flows with free surfaces. The surface is modeled by embedding and represented by a levelset. We discuss the discretization of the flow equations and the level set equation...

Turbulent oscillating channel flow subjected to a free-surface stress.

NARCIS (Netherlands)

Kramer, W.; Clercx, H.J.H.; Armenio, V.

2010-01-01

The channel flow subjected to a wind stress at the free surface and an oscillating pressure gradient is investigated using large-eddy simulations. The orientation of the surface stress is parallel with the oscillating pressure gradient and a purely pulsating mean flow develops. The Reynolds number

Local mesh refinement for incompressible fluid flow with free surfaces

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Terasaka, H.; Kajiwara, H.; Ogura, K. [Tokyo Electric Power Company (Japan)] [and others

1995-09-01

A new local mesh refinement (LMR) technique has been developed and applied to incompressible fluid flows with free surface boundaries. The LMR method embeds patches of fine grid in arbitrary regions of interest. Hence, more accurate solutions can be obtained with a lower number of computational cells. This method is very suitable for the simulation of free surface movements because free surface flow problems generally require a finer computational grid to obtain adequate results. By using this technique, one can place finer grids only near the surfaces, and therefore greatly reduce the total number of cells and computational costs. This paper introduces LMR3D, a three-dimensional incompressible flow analysis code. Numerical examples calculated with the code demonstrate well the advantages of the LMR method.

Energy conserving numerical methods for the computation of complex vortical flows

Science.gov (United States)

Allaneau, Yves

One of the original goals of this thesis was to develop numerical tools to help with the design of micro air vehicles. Micro Air Vehicles (MAVs) are small flying devices of only a few inches in wing span. Some people consider that as their size becomes smaller and smaller, it would be increasingly more difficult to keep all the classical control surfaces such as the rudders, the ailerons and the usual propellers. Over the years, scientists took inspiration from nature. Birds, by flapping and deforming their wings, are capable of accurate attitude control and are able to generate propulsion. However, the biomimicry design has its own limitations and it is difficult to place a hummingbird in a wind tunnel to study precisely the motion of its wings. Our approach was to use numerical methods to tackle this challenging problem. In order to precisely evaluate the lift and drag generated by the wings, one needs to be able to capture with high fidelity the extremely complex vortical flow produced in the wake. This requires a numerical method that is stable yet not too dissipative, so that the vortices do not get diffused in an unphysical way. We solved this problem by developing a new Discontinuous Galerkin scheme that, in addition to conserving mass, momentum and total energy locally, also preserves kinetic energy globally. This property greatly improves the stability of the simulations, especially in the special case p=0 when the approximation polynomials are taken to be piecewise constant (we recover a finite volume scheme). In addition to needing an adequate numerical scheme, a high fidelity solution requires many degrees of freedom in the computations to represent the flow field. The size of the smallest eddies in the flow is given by the Kolmogoroff scale. Capturing these eddies requires a mesh counting in the order of Re³ cells, where Re is the Reynolds number of the flow. We show that under-resolving the system, to a certain extent, is acceptable. However our