Fluid-structure interaction of a variable camber compliant wing

Date of Award

2015

Degree Name

M.S. in Aerospace Engineering

Department

Department of Mechanical and Aerospace Engineering

Advisor/Chair

Advisor: Markus P. Rumpfkeil

Abstract

This thesis presents results from loosely-coupled fluid-structure interaction (FSI) simulations of a flexible wing which used FUN3D to compute the aerodynamic flow-fields and Abaqus to calculate the structural deformations. NASA Langley also provides a general 3D algorithm to interpolate between dissimilar meshes which is used here to map pressures and displacements between the aerodynamic and structural codes. This method is applied to the AFRL - developed Variable Camber Compliant Wing" (VCCW), which is an adaptable wing designed to target airfoil shapes between a NACA 2410 and 8410. The VCCW was tested in the Vertical Wind Tunnel facility at Wright-Patterson Air Force Base, which provided experimental data in the form of static pressure tap data, digital image correlation, and oil flow visualization. The combined solutions from Abaqus, FUN3D, and mesh interpolation solvers created FSI results that were similar in trend to the experiment, but consistently under-predicted the deformations of the VCCW, due to the differences between the experiment and simulation, including the choice of material models and the assumption of ideal conditions. This thesis has been cleared by the Wright-Patterson AFB Public Affairs Office, case number 88ABW-2015-1502. This provides proof of public release, distribution unlimited."

Keywords

Airplanes Wings Testing, Aerofoils Testing, Fluid-structure interaction, Aerospace Engineering, CFD, FSI, Computational Fluid Dynamics, Fluid-Structure Interaction, Flexible Wings, Compliant Mechanism, Loosely-Coupled, FUN3D, Abaqus, Python

Rights Statement

Copyright © 2015, author

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