Fast Aerodynamic Calculations Based on a Generalized Unsteady Coupling Algorithm

Abstract

An aerodynamic model for applications to external flows is formulated that provides a great tradeoff between computational cost and prediction accuracy. The novelty of the work is the ability to deal with any unsteady flow problem, irrespective of the frequency of motion and motion kinematics. The aerodynamic model, baptized FALCon, combines an in-house unsteady vortex lattice method with an infinite-swept wing Navier–Stokes solver. The two specialized methods are orchestrated by an unsteady coupling algorithm that represents our main research contribution. The paper gives the formulation and algorithmic implementation. FALCon is demonstrated on three test cases of increasing complexity in flow physics, up to flow conditions well outside its validity range. On average, FALCon achieves a computational speed-up of a factor of about 50, compared with a full Navier–Stokes run, while capturing relevant flow physics: three-dimensional, viscous, compressible, and unsteady phenomena.