Hydrodynamic analysis of an underwater glider wing using ANSYS fluent as an investigation tool

Abstract

The analysis of the hydrodynamic behavior of the modified trailing edge of an underwater glider wing was conducted using ANSYS Fluent 18.1. The procedure was carried out using the computational fluid dynamics (CFD) approach. A standard four digits NACA0016 aerofoil profile was selected while the geometry points were extracted from NACA online aerofoil generator using Solidworks, which enabled the creation of the 3D wing profile. Since the focus of the study is more toward hydrodynamic behavior or the influence of the modified round trailing edge as opposed to the normal sharp trailing edge, coefficient of lift (CL), coefficient of drag (Cd), coefficient of pressure (Cp) and the drag polar (Cd/CL) are very crucial parameters and have an influence on the accuracy of the results. The results showed lift and drag coefficient are a function of the angle of attack (AOA) and free stream velocities. The investigation showed the optimal design point of the AOA of 12° at the corresponding speed of 0.26 m/s. The critical AOA matched with the optimal design point of 12°. The results also showed that Cp is higher closer to the fuselage and therefore explains why more structural rigidity must be provided in this region of high stress concentration. The drag and lift curve corresponded to the typical wing characteristics of the published experiment data regardless of the operating conditions.