Limit Cycle Oscillations of a Wing Section with a Tip Mass

Abstract

This paper presents an investigation into the limit cycleoscillation phenomenon for a nonlinear aeroelasticsystem under unsteady aerodynamics. The system consists of a sweptbackwing section carrying a tip mass with one degree of freedom. Thejunction stiffness considered between the wing and the tip mass istrilinear. The method of harmonic balance, which can be very practicalin the study of nonlinear flutter, is used for the theoretical analysisof limit cycle oscillations. Stable, unstable and semi-stable limitcycles are predicted in the system for both cases of hardening andsoftening springs. Results found by numerical simulation provide theamplitudes of limit cycles. The experimental results in wind tunneltests agree well with the predictions obtained both theoretically andnumerically.