Hybrid Immersed Boundary Method for Airfoils with a Trailing-Edge Flap

Abstract

In this paper, a hybrid immersed boundary technique has been developed for simulating turbulent flows past airfoils with moving trailing-edge flaps. Over the main fixed part of the airfoil, the equations are solved using a standard body-fitted finite volume technique, whereas the moving trailing-edge flap is simulated using the immersed boundary method on a curvilinear mesh. An existing in-house-developed flow solver is employed to solve the incompressible Reynolds-Averaged Navier–Stokes equations together with the turbulence model. To achieve consistent wall boundary conditions at the immersed boundaries the turbulence model is modified and adapted to the local conditions associated with the immersed boundary method. The obtained results show that the hybrid approach is an efficient and accurate method for solving turbulent flows past airfoils with a trailing-edge flap and that flow control using an adjustable trailing-edge flap is an efficient way to regulate the aerodynamic loading on airfoils.