scholarly journals Experimental Investigation on Flutter Similitude of Thin-Flat Plates

2017 ◽  
Vol 2017 ◽  
pp. 1-8 ◽  
Author(s):  
I. P. G. Sopan Rahtika ◽  
I. N. G. Wardana ◽  
A. A. Sonief ◽  
E. Siswanto

This paper shows the experimental results of the flutter speed of thin-flat plates with free leading edge in axial flow as a function of plates’ geometry, fluid densities, and viscosities, as well as natural frequencies of the plates. The experiment was developed based on similitude theory using dimensional analysis and Buckingham Pi Theorem. Dimensional analysis generates four dimensionless numbers. Experiment was conducted by placing the thin-flat plates in a laminar flow wind tunnel in order to obtain the relationship among those dimensionless numbers. The flutter speed was measured by varying the flow velocity until the instability occurred. The dimensional analysis gives a map of the flutter Reynolds number as a function of a new type of dimensionless number that is hereby called flutter fluid structure interaction number, thickness-to-length, and aspect ratios as the correcting factors. This map is a very useful tool for predicting the flutter speed of thin-flat plates in general. This investigation found that the flutter Reynolds number is very high at the region of high flutter fluid structure and thickness-to-length ratios numbers; however, it is very sensitive to the change of those two dimensionless numbers. The sensitivity is higher at lower aspect ratio.

2021 ◽  
Vol 11 (6) ◽  
pp. 2450
Author(s):  
Jong-Seob Han ◽  
Christian Breitsamter

A sweptback angle can directly regulate a leading-edge vortex on various aerodynamic devices as well as on the wings of biological flyers, but the effect of a sweptback angle has not yet been sufficiently investigated. Here, we thoroughly investigated the effect of the sweptback angle on aerodynamic characteristics of low-aspect-ratio flat plates at a Reynolds number of 2.85 × 104. Direct force/moment measurements and surface oil-flow visualizations were conducted in the wind-tunnel B at the Technical University of Munich. It was found that while the maximum lift at an aspect ratio of 2.03 remains unchanged, two other aspect ratios of 3.13 and 4.50 show a gradual increment in the maximum lift with an increasing sweptback angle. The largest leading-edge vortex contribution was found at the aspect ratio of 3.13, resulting in a superior lift production at a sufficient sweptback angle. This is similar to that of a revolving/flapping wing, where an aspect ratio around three shows a superior lift production. In the oil-flow patterns, it was observed that while the leading-edge vortices at aspect ratios of 2.03 and 3.13 fully covered the surfaces, the vortex at an aspect ratio of 4.50 only covered up the surface approximately three times the chord, similar to that of a revolving/flapping wing. Based on the pattern at the aspect ratio of 4.50, a critical length of the leading-edge vortex of a sweptback plate was measured as ~3.1 times the chord.


2021 ◽  
Vol ahead-of-print (ahead-of-print) ◽  
Author(s):  
Mustafa Serdar Genç ◽  
Hacımurat Demir ◽  
Mustafa Özden ◽  
Tuna Murat Bodur

Purpose The purpose of this exhaustive experimental study is to investigate the fluid-structure interaction in the flexible membrane wings over a range of angles of attack for various Reynolds numbers. Design/methodology/approach In this paper, an experimental study on fluid-structure interaction of flexible membrane wings was presented at Reynolds numbers of 2.5 × 104, 5 × 104 and 7.5 × 104. In the experimental studies, flow visualization, velocity and deformation measurements for flexible membrane wings were performed by the smoke-wire technique, multichannel constant temperature anemometer and digital image correlation system, respectively. All experimental results were combined and fluid-structure interaction was discussed. Findings In the flexible wings with the higher aspect ratio, higher vibration modes were noticed because the leading-edge separation was dominant at lower angles of attack. As both Reynolds number and the aspect ratio increased, the maximum membrane deformations increased and the vibrations became visible, secondary vibration modes were observed with growing the leading-edge vortices at moderate angles of attack. Moreover, in the graphs of the spectral analysis of the membrane displacement and the velocity; the dominant frequencies coincided because of the interaction of the flow over the wings and the membrane deformations. Originality/value Unlike available literature, obtained results were presented comparatively using the sketches of the smoke-wire photographs with deformation measurement or turbulence statistics from the velocity measurements. In this study, fluid-structure interaction and leading-edge vortices of membrane wings were investigated in detail with increasing both Reynolds number and the aspect ratio.


2017 ◽  
Vol 7 (1) ◽  
pp. 20160079 ◽  
Author(s):  
Alexander Widmann ◽  
Cameron Tropea

The impact of chord-based Reynolds number on the formation of leading-edge vortices (LEVs) on unsteady pitching flat plates is investigated. The influence of secondary flow structures on the shear layer feeding the LEV and the subsequent topological change at the leading edge as the result of viscous processes are demonstrated. Time-resolved velocity fields are measured using particle image velocimetry simultaneously in two fields of view to correlate local and global flow phenomena in order to identify unsteady boundary-layer separation and the subsequent flow structures. Finally, the Reynolds number is identified as a parameter that is responsible for the transition in mechanisms leading to LEV detachment from an aerofoil, as it determines the viscous response of the boundary layer in the vortex–wall interaction.


2010 ◽  
Vol 132 (2) ◽  
Author(s):  
Nobuyuki Yamaguchi ◽  
Masayuki Ogata ◽  
Yohei Kato

The stall-prevention effect of air separators incorporating radial vanes in place of the existing axial vanes was investigated on a low-speed, single-stage, lightly loaded axial-flow fan for effective and compact air separators of a simplified structure. From the survey, paying attention to several geometrical dimensions of the device, the following conclusions are obtained: (1) Simplified radial vanes made of flat plates could show strong stall-prevention effect comparable to those of the curved-vane type one. The most favorable ones showed no stall up to the fan shut-off conditions. (2) Radial heights of the recirculation passage within the air separator showed significant influences on the stall improvement. It should be larger than some critical size experimentally given in the study. (3) The axial length of the device should be larger than some critical size given experimentally in the study. Too much reduced axial length could give rise to an abrupt loss in the effect. (4) The optimum axial locations of the rotor-tip blade leading edge within the device inlet opening were found to lie near the center of the width of the inlet opening from both aspects of stall improvement and fan efficiency.


Author(s):  
Nicola Bianco ◽  
Giovanni Lacasa ◽  
Oronzio Manca

Mixed convection in air in a convergent channel with the two principal flat plates at uniform heat flux is analyzed numerically by Fluent code. In the considered system two parallel adiabatic extensions are placed downstream of the convergent channel. The forced flow is obtained by imposing a pressure drop between the inlet and the outlet of the channel. The flow in the channel is assumed to be two-dimensional, turbulent and incompressible. A k-ε turbulent model is employed. Results in terms of dimensionless wall temperature distribution as a function of the walls converging angle, the Grashof number, the pressure drop and the channel aspect ratio are presented in the ranges: 0° ≤ θ ≤ 10°; 4.10 102 ≤ Gr ≤ 32.1 105, 0 ≤ ΔP ≤ 8.82·107, 10.15 < Lw/bmin < 58.0. Results show that Reynolds number, and then the mass flow rate flowing in the channel, increases at decreasing aspect ratios, Lw/bmin. The converging angle that optimizes the fluid-dynamic within the channel is equal to 5°. Dimensionless maximum wall temperature values decreases at increasing Reynolds number and the larger the aspect ratio, the larger the decrease. The Reynolds number over which natural convection become negligible, with respect to forced convection, increases at increasing converging angle and at decreasing aspect ratio.


2016 ◽  
Vol 799 ◽  
Author(s):  
John N. Fernando ◽  
David E. Rival

Impulsively started, low-aspect-ratio elliptical flat plates have been investigated experimentally to understand the vortex pinch-off dynamics at transitional and fully turbulent Reynolds numbers. The range of Reynolds numbers investigated is representative of those observed in animals that employ rowing and paddling modes of drag-based propulsion and manoeuvring. Elliptical flat plates with five aspect ratios ranging from one to two have been considered, as abstractions of propulsor planforms found in nature. It has been shown that Reynolds-number scaling is primarily determined by plate aspect ratio in terms of both drag forces and vortex pinch-off. Due to vortex-ring growth time scales that are longer than those associated with the development of flow instabilities, the scaling of drag is Reynolds-number-dependent for the aspect-ratio-one flat plate. With increasing aspect ratio, the Reynolds-number dependency decreases as a result of the shorter growth time scales associated with high-aspect-ratio elliptical vortex rings. Large drag peaks are observed during early-stage vortex growth for the higher-aspect-ratio flat plates. The collapse of these peaks with Reynolds number provides insight into the evolutionary convergence process of propulsor planforms used in drag-based swimming modes over diverse scales towards aspect ratios greater than one.


Author(s):  
K Parker ◽  
A T Sayers

The use of surface modifications as a means of reducing viscous drag on a body has potential aerodynamic and hydrodynamic applications. V-grooves of specific dimensions are machined in a longitudinal direction onto the surface of a smooth plate and the resulting effect on the drag force of the plate is observed. Experiments show that V-grooves (riblets) could reduce turbulent skin friction drag by up to 7 per cent, depending on the size of the groove. The drag-reducing performance of riblets with aspect ratios, h/s, of 0.22 and 1 are examined. A boundary layer analysis of the turbulent flow characteristics over the smooth surface and the riblet surfaces indicated an increase in the laminar sublayer thickness and local Reynolds number while reducing the boundary layer thickness for the ribbed surfaces. A maximum drag reduction of 6.83 per cent was recorded for the surface covered with the symmetric riblet, at a Reynolds number of 117 101. It is felt that riblets hamper the momentum and turbulent energy exchange from regions of high velocity to lower-velocity regions. Riblets impede the cross-flow of stream-wise vortices that prevail in the viscous sublayer of a turbulent boundary layer. By suppressing these streamwise vortices, turbulent mixing and hence turbulent shear stress are reduced. Results obtained agree with results suggested from research elsewhere.


1971 ◽  
Vol 15 (04) ◽  
pp. 278-288
Author(s):  
Justin H. McCarthy

A method is developed for prediction of frictional-drag reduction in high Reynolds number flows past smooth flat plates with polymer injection near the leading edge. Numerical results are given for water-Polyox WSR 301 solutions with either uniform concentration or injection.


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