Experimental assessment of wing lower surface buffet effects induced by the installation of a UHBR nacelle

Abstract

The installation of large bypass ratio engines on classical under wing configurations may lead to shock/boundary layer interaction on the wing lower surface, limiting the flight envelope in a similar way to classical buffet occurring on the wing suction side at high incidences in transonic flight. In this study, buffet effects on the lower surface of the wing induced by the installation of a Ultra-High-Bypass-Ratio through flow nacelle are assessed by means of wind tunnel testing. Unsteady pressure sensitive paint measurements were used to assess the pressure field on the wing with high temporal and spatial resolution. Strong unsteady shock motion associated with shock induced separation was found on the wing lower surface for various combinations of Mach number, Reynolds number and angle of attack. The wing lower surface buffet effects are found to increase with reducing angle of attack and are present over a wide range of Reynolds numbers. Preliminary spectral analysis suggests an upper limit for the buffet frequency at a Strouhal number of about 0.4.