Eventos Anais de eventos
COBEM 2023
27th International Congress of Mechanical Engineering
Numerical analysis of endplate drag components for a low speed aircraft
Submission Author:
Breno Lopes Tumelero , SC
Co-Authors:
Breno Lopes Tumelero, Filipe Dutra da Silva, Rafael Cuenca
Presenter: Filipe Dutra da Silva
doi://10.26678/ABCM.COBEM2023.COB2023-1051
Abstract
A greater efficiency in terms of fuel consumption and performance is a recurring target in aeronautical research. In this context, one way to achieve this goal is through drag reduction, allowing an increase in the aerodynamic efficiency of the airplanes, reducing its operation costs and greenhouse gasses emissions. On low flight speeds, most of the total drag is due to induced drag component, as consequence of the high lift coefficient, which increases the downwash along the wing span. One solution to reduce that downwash is the attachment of endplates at the wingtips, which are plates, parallel to the plane's longitudinal axis, working as a barrier that reduces airflow from the lower surface of the wing to the upper. However, depending on the geometry, dimensions and flight conditions, the parasite and interference drag created by the endplate, can reduce the overall benefits of the device. Therefore, this study aims to evaluate, by using computational fluid dynamics tools, the main drag components in different shapes of endplates. Reynolds-averaged Navier Stokes simulations were conducted using the K-ω SST turbulence model, alongside several sensitivity tests, including domain size, grid refinement and turbulence model and parameters. For the validation, the numerical results are compared to experimental wind tunnel results available in the literature for an AR 4 Wortmann FX 63-137 wing, at a Reynolds number of 100000. Thereafter, a parametric analysis was performed in which different sizes of endplates were simulated. The induced and parasite drag components were separated, aiming to discuss the contribution of each drag component to the total drag for each analyzed geometry. Results show an induced drag factor reduction of up to 13.35%, and also that although the parasite drag created by the endplate may reduce its efficiency in some cases, moderate sized geometries can reduce the overall parasite drag on the wing by moving the wingtip vortex away from the surface. Bigger plates were preferred for higher angles of attack, due to its induced drag reduction, while smaller ones proved to be viable choices for cruise flight conditions, avoiding excessive parasite drag increase.
Keywords
Endplates, Unmanned aerial vehicle, Induced drag reduction, CFD Simulation using OpenFoam
