Aerodynamic shape optimisation of a proprotor and its validation by means of CFD and experiments

Droandi, Giovanni; Gibertini, G.

doi:10.1017/s0001924000011222

Cited by 12 publications

(9 citation statements)

References 23 publications

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“…Thus, the control volume containing the whole rotor can be reduced to one-fourth. This approach was successfully used in the work by Droandi and Gibertini (21) to validate the design of an optimised blade for a proprotor. The computational mesh was composed of two different structured multi-block grids.…”

Section: Resultsmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…The reliability of this simplified methodology was assessed by comparison with the results of a complete 3D Computational Fluid Dynamics (CFD) simulation of the clean blade performed using a high-fidelity compressible Navier-Stokes code. Indeed, CFD simulations provide an accurate estimation of the blade performance for clean blade geometries, as shown, for instance, by the comparison with experimental results reported in Droandi et al (20) and in Droandi and Gibertini (21) . Thus, in the present work, the CFD solution of the clean blade was considered as a reference to estimate the accuracy of the investigated method to evaluate the sectional loads from velocity data under the considered assumptions, as done in the work by Ragni et al (22) .…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 81%

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Experimental investigation of a helicopter rotor with Gurney flaps

et al. 2017

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The present work describes an experimental activity carried out to investigate the performance of Gurney flaps on a helicopter rotor model in hovering. The four blades of the articulated rotor model were equipped with Gurney flaps positioned at 95% of the aerofoil chord, spanning 14% of the rotor radius. The global aerodynamic loads and torque were measured for three Gurney flap configurations characterised by different heights. The global measurements showed an apparent benefit produced by Gurney flaps in terms of rotor performance with respect to the clean blade configuration. Particle image velocimetry surveys were also performed on the blade section at 65% of the rotor radius with and without the Gurney flaps. The local velocity data was used to complete the characterisation of the blade aerodynamic performance through the evaluation of the sectional aerodynamic loads using the the control volume approach

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Section: Resultsmentioning

confidence: 99%

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 81%

Experimental investigation of a helicopter rotor with Gurney flaps

et al. 2017

Self Cite

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“…During the optimisation process, all other parameters of blade geometry could have been changed, including both the blade cross-sections (airfoils) and distributions along the blade span of local parameters such as: chord, relative thickness and geometric twist. Similar design parameters are used in Droandi and Gibertini (2015). Additional design parameters described modifications of sweep and anhedral of the blade tip, i.e.…”

Section: Performance Optimisation Of Main Rotor In Hovermentioning

confidence: 99%

Performance improvement of helicopter rotors through blade redesigning

Stalewski

Zalewski

2019

AEAT

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Purpose The purpose of this paper is to determine dependencies between a rotor-blade shape and a rotor performance as well as to search for optimal shapes of blades dedicated for helicopter main and tail rotors. Design/methodology/approach The research is conducted based on computational methodology, using the parametric-design approach. The developed parametric model takes into account several typical blade-shape parameters. The rotor aerodynamic characteristics are evaluated using the unsteady Reynolds-averaged Navier–Stokes solver. Flow effects caused by rotating blades are modelled based on both simplified approach and truly 3D simulations. Findings The computational studies have shown that the helicopter-rotor performance may be significantly improved even through relatively simple aerodynamic redesigning of its blades. The research results confirm high potential of the developed methodology of rotor-blade optimisation. Developed families of helicopter-rotor-blade airfoils are competitive compared to the best airfoils cited in literature. The finally designed rotors, compared to the baselines, for the same driving power, are characterised by 5 and 32% higher thrust, in case of main and tail rotor, respectively. Practical implications The developed and implemented methodology of parametric design and optimisation of helicopter-rotor blades may be used in future studies on performance improvement of rotorcraft rotors. Some of presented results concern the redesigning of main and tail rotors of existing helicopters. These results may be used directly in modernisation processes of these helicopters. Originality/value The presented study is original in relation to the developed methodology of optimisation of helicopter-rotor blades, families of modern helicopter airfoils and innovative solutions in rotor-blade-design area.

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“…It is used either as the basic aerodynamic model 6 or is combined with another analysis tool such as computational fluid dynamics (CFD) model. [7][8][9][10][11] Because of their high computational cost, CFD simulations are usually used only for analyzing or validating final design results and are less frequently used during the optimization process as in this study.…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Blade shape optimization of an aircraft propeller using space mapping surrogates

Toman

Hassan

Owis

et al. 2019

Advances in Mechanical Engineering

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Propeller performance greatly influences the overall efficiency of the turboprop engines. The aim of this study is to perform a propeller blade shape optimization for maximum aerodynamic efficiency with a minimal number of high-fidelity model evaluations. A physics-based surrogate approach exploiting space mapping is employed for the design process. A space mapping algorithm is utilized, for the first time in the field of propeller design, to link two of the most common propeller analysis models: the classical blade-element momentum theory to be the coarse model; and the high-fidelity computational fluid dynamics tool as the fine model. The numerical computational fluid dynamics simulations are performed using the finite-volume discretization of the Reynolds-averaged Navier–Stokes equations on an adaptive unstructured grid. The optimum design is obtained after few iterations with only 56 computationally expensive computational fluid dynamics simulations. Furthermore, an optimization method based on design of experiments and kriging response surface is used to validate the results and compare the computational efficiency of the two techniques. The results show that space mapping is more computationally efficient.

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Aerodynamic shape optimisation of a proprotor and its validation by means of CFD and experiments

Cited by 12 publications

References 23 publications

Experimental investigation of a helicopter rotor with Gurney flaps

Experimental investigation of a helicopter rotor with Gurney flaps

Performance improvement of helicopter rotors through blade redesigning

Blade shape optimization of an aircraft propeller using space mapping surrogates

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