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Flow Control around the UAS-S45 Pitching Airfoil Using a Dynamically Morphing Leading Edge (DMLE): A Numerical Study.
Musavir Bashir1, Nicola Zonzini2, Ruxandra Mihaela Botez1
1Research Laboratory in Active Controls, Avionics and Aeroservoelasticity (LARCASE), Department of Systems Engineering, École de Technolgie Supérieure, 1100 Notre-Dame West, Montreal, QC H3C 1K3, Canada.
Biomimetics (Basel, Switzerland)
|February 22, 2023
Summary
The Dynamically Morphing Leading Edge (DMLE) technology enhances airfoil performance by delaying dynamic stall. This innovation increases lift and stall angles, improving aerodynamic control for unmanned aircraft systems.
Area of Science:
- Aerodynamics
- Fluid Dynamics
- Unmanned Aircraft Systems (UAS)
Background:
- Dynamic stall is a critical phenomenon affecting airfoil performance, particularly in unsteady flight conditions.
- Controlling dynamic stall is essential for improving the efficiency and maneuverability of aircraft, especially UAS.
- Existing methods for stall control often have limitations in adaptability and effectiveness.
Purpose of the Study:
- To investigate the effect of a Dynamically Morphing Leading Edge (DMLE) on flow structure and dynamic stall behavior.
- To control dynamic stall in a pitching UAS-S45 airfoil using an unsteady parametrization framework.
- To analyze the impact of DMLE parameters on aerodynamic performance and stall characteristics.
Main Methods:
- Developed an unsteady parametrization framework to model time-varying leading edge motion.
- Integrated the framework into Ansys-Fluent using a User-Defined Function (UDF) for dynamic mesh control.
- Simulated unsteady flow around a sinusoidally pitching UAS-S45 airfoil using dynamic and sliding mesh techniques.
- Employed the γ-Reθ turbulence model for flow structure analysis.
Main Results:
- An oscillating airfoil with DMLE showed a 20.15% increase in lift coefficient and a 16.58% delay in dynamic stall angle.
- Other DMLE configurations (AD=0.05, AD=0.0075) also yielded significant lift coefficient increases (10.67%, 11.46%).
- Downward leading edge deflection increased stall angle of attack and nose-down pitching moment, delaying Dynamic Stall Vortex (DSV) occurrence.
Conclusions:
- The DMLE effectively controls dynamic stall by modifying the airfoil's radius of curvature.
- This leads to minimized adverse pressure gradients and reduced flow separation.
- DMLE technology offers a promising approach for enhancing UAS aerodynamic performance and control.
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