Flight Test Validation of Tandem Propeller Performance with Vertical and Horizontal Offset

Flight Test Validation of Tandem Propeller Performance with Vertical and Horizontal Offset

    Presenter(s)

    Jessica Caitlyn DeMoor, Michael Ryan Foster

    Comments

    Presentation: 11:20-11:40, Kennedy Union 222

    Description

    Tandem propellers in forward flight experience an increase in power consumption when compared to the combined output of two standalone propellers. The increment in power is a function of horizontal and vertical displacement between the propellers (including overlap), the advance ratio based on the front rotor, and the inclination angle of the rotors. This functional relationship was quantified in our previous study through experimental investigations in the University of Dayton Low Speed Wind Tunnel using two KDE propellers. All tests were conducted under trim conditions, where the pitching moment of the two propellers was balanced by increasing the RPM of the rear rotor. To validate some of the functional dependencies identified from the wind tunnel investigations, a custom quad-rotor platform was designed and fabricated to conduct a series of flight tests with various propeller configurations that replicate the parameter space explored in the earlier experimental campaign. The quad-rotor platform will utilize an 8-inch propeller to assess the flight performance at three different horizontal and vertical distances between the propellers. For each test-flight, global positioning data, motor rpm, and motor power consumption will be recorded and compared against each propeller configuration. Comparisons between the flight test data and the wind tunnel experiment results will be made.

    Publication Date

    4-17-2024

    Project Designation

    Independent Research

    Primary Advisor

    Sid Gunasekaran

    Primary Advisor's Department

    Mechanical and Aerospace Engineering

    Keywords

    Stander Symposium, School of Engineering

    Institutional Learning Goals

    Vocation; Scholarship; Practical Wisdom

    Flight Test Validation of Tandem Propeller Performance with Vertical and Horizontal Offset

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