A numerical study on the optimization of an airfoil design

Abstract

How to optimize the design of an airfoil to achieve excellent aerodynamic performance has always been a popular research topic, because the wing is the main source of the lift of an airplane. Improving the lift-to-drag ratio (L/D ratio) is often taken as the aim for airfoil design optimization. In the optimization process, it is required to optimize one of the shape parameters of the airfoil under the premise of keeping the rest of the shape parameters consistent till the optimal L/D ratio is reached. This paper studies how the camber affects the L/D ratio of an airfoil using the CFD method and optimizes the airfoil design based on the camber. Three airfoils with different camber were simulated in 2D using the software COMSOL. The graphs of the L/D ratio at different angles of attack (AOA) for these three airfoils were plotted, and the results reveal that the airfoil with the highest camber has the optimal L/D ratio. Therefore, high camber is a good choice to improve the L/D ratio of an airfoil in airfoil design.