Design of Supercritical Low-Reynolds-Number Airfoils for Fixed-Wing Flight on Mars

AbstractAerodynamic shape optimization for the high-subsonic low-Reynolds-number flow regime represents an area of ongoing research. The interaction between supercritical compressible flow and laminar boundary layer separation is not well understood due to the significant challenges associated with...

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Bibliographic Details
Published in:Journal of aerospace engineering 2020-09, Vol.33 (5)
Main Authors: Şugar-Gabor, Oliviu, Koreanschi, Andreea
Format: Article
Language:English
Subjects:
Aerodynamics
Aircraft configurations
Aircraft design
Boundary layer transition
Compressible flow
Design analysis
Fixed wings
Flow separation
Fluid dynamics
High lift
Laminar boundary layer
Laminar flow
Low Reynolds number flow
Mars
Mars atmosphere
Shape optimization
Subsonic aircraft
Subsonic flight
Technical Papers
Turbulent flow
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Summary:AbstractAerodynamic shape optimization for the high-subsonic low-Reynolds-number flow regime represents an area of ongoing research. The interaction between supercritical compressible flow and laminar boundary layer separation is not well understood due to the significant challenges associated with setting up relevant experimental work. However, in the design of future fixed-wing aircraft for flight in extraterrestrial atmospheres, such flow conditions might commonly occur. The present study presents a family of single-point and multipoint optimized airfoils designed for high-subsonic flight at a high-lift condition in the Martian atmosphere. A gradient-based optimizer is used, with a second-order finite-volume flow solver and a second-order continuous adjoint solver for determining surface sensitivities with respect to the objective function of minimizing drag. Both fully turbulent and transitional flow are considered to evaluate the impact on the resulting design and to stress the importance of continuing research to develop robust shape optimization, including laminar boundary layer and transition prediction. Both on-design and off-design conditions are evaluated, the airfoils obtained when considering transition effects demonstrating good overall performance.
ISSN:0893-1321
1943-5525
DOI:10.1061/(ASCE)AS.1943-5525.0001166