Abstract
Aerodynamic efficiency of an airplane wing can be improved either by increasing its lift generation tendency or by reducing the drag. Recently, Bio-inspired designs have been received greater attention for the geometric modifications of airplane wings. One of the bio-inspired designs contains sinusoidal Humpback Whale (HW) tubercles, i.e., protuberances exist at the wing leading edge (LE). The tubercles have excellent flow control characteristics at low Reynolds numbers. The present work describes about the effect of tubercles on swept back wing performance at various Angle of Attack (AoA). NACA 0015 and NACA 4415 airfoils are used for swept back wing design with sweep angle about 30°. The modified wings (HUMP 0015 A, HUMP 0015 B, HUMP 4415 A, HUMP 4415 B) are designed with two amplitude to wavelength ratios (η) of 0.1 & 0.24 for the performance analysis. It is a novel effort to analyze the tubercle vortices along the span that induce additional flow energy especially, behind the tubercles peak and trough region. Subsequently, Co-efficient of Lift (CL), Co-efficient of Drag (CD) and boundary layer pressure gradients also predicted for modified and baseline (smooth LE) models in the pre & post-stall regimes. It was observed that the tubercles increase the performance of swept back wings by the enhanced CL/CD ratio in the pre-stall AoA region. Interestingly, the flow separation region behind the centerline of tubercles and formation of Laminar Separation Bubbles (LSB) were asymmetric because of the sweep.
Highlights
As novel morphologies and physiological operations are investigated by the biologists, they are serving as a key inspiration for the advancement in technologies
The forelimbs are known as flippers which are rounded protuberances or tubercles along the Leading Edge (LE) of Humpback Whale (HW) that determines the degree of maneuverability
The spanwise line closest to the wing LE indicates the start of the Laminar Separation Bubbles (LSB)
Summary
As novel morphologies and physiological operations are investigated by the biologists, they are serving as a key inspiration for the advancement in technologies. Humpback Whale (HW) (Megaptera Novaengliae À great wing of New England) is a stout rorqual in the Balaenopteridae family. The HW is one of the bio-inspired species which is most acrobatic of baleen whales capable of performing high manoeuvres in the underwater environment. The presence of Leading Edge (LE) tubercles in the flipper of HW is used to execute the loops, rolls and banking turn to capture the prey [1]. The hunting tactic of HW is known as horizontal pectoral herding that is possible because of the presence of its flippers. The forelimbs are known as flippers (like wings) which are rounded protuberances or tubercles along the LE of HW that determines the degree of maneuverability. Cooper et al [2] studied the
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