Drag Ratio Research Articles

Aerodynamic Performance of Micro Aerial Wing Structures at Low Reynolds Number

Corrugations are folds on a surface as found on wings of dragon fly insects. Although they fly at relatively lower altitudes its wings are adapted for better aerodynamic and aero-elastic characteristics. In the present work, three airfoil geometries were studied using the 2-D panel method to evaluate the aerodynamic performance for low Reynolds number. The experiments were conducted in wind tunnel for incompressible flow regime to demonstrate the coefficients of lift drag and glide ratio at two Reynolds numbers 1.9x104 and 1.5x105 and for angles of attack ranging between 00 and 160. The panel method results have been validated using the current and existing experiment data as well as with the computational work from cited literature. A good agreement between the experimental and the panel methods were found for low angles of attack. The results showed that till 80 angle of attack higher lift coefficient and lower drag coefficient are obtainable for corrugated airfoils as compared to NACA 0010. The validation of surface pressure coefficients for all three airfoils using the panel method at 40 angles of attack was done. The contours of the non-dimensional pressure and velocity are illustrated from -100 to 200 angles of attack. A good correlation between the experiment data and the computational methods revealed that the corrugated airfoils exhibit better aerodynamic performance than NACA 0010.

On the arrangement of tidal turbines in rough and oscillatory channel flow

Fast tidal streams are a promising source of clean, predictable power, but the task of arranging tidal turbines for maximum power capture is complicated. Actuator disc models, such as the two-scale actuator disc theory, have proven useful in seeking optimal turbine arrangements, yet these models assume flows that are frictionless and steady, and thus quite unlike the channel flow conditions that actual tidal turbines experience. In this paper, we use numerical methods to relax these assumptions and explore how optimal turbine arrangements change as the flow transitions from frictionless and steady to rough and oscillatory. In so doing, we show that, under certain conditions, the assumption of quasi-steady flow in models of tidal turbines may neglect leading-order physics. When the ratio of drag to inertial forces in the unexploited channel is very low, for instance, the optimal turbine arrangements are found to be quite different, and the potential for enhanced power capture is found to be much greater than predicted by two-scale actuator disc theory.

Wave damping by flexible vegetation: Connecting individual blade dynamics to the meadow scale

Aquatic vegetation provides ecosystem services of great value, including the damping of waves, which protects shorelines and reduces resuspension. This study proposes a physically-based model to predict the wave decay associated with a submerged meadow as a function of plant morphology, flexibility, and shoot density. In particular, the study considers both the rigid (sheath) and flexible (blade) segments of the plant. Flexible plants reconfigure in response to wave orbital velocity, which diminishes wave decay relative to a rigid plant of the same morphology. The impact of reconfiguration on wave decay can be characterized using an effective blade length, le, which represents the length of a rigid blade that generates the same drag as the flexible blade of length l. The effective blade length depends on the Cauchy number, which defines the ratio of hydrodynamic drag to blade stiffness, and the ratio of blade length to wave orbital excursion. This laboratory study considered how the scaling laws determined for individual blades can be used to predict the wave decay over a meadow of multiple plants, each consisting of multiple blades attached at a rigid stem (sheath). First, the drag force on and motion of individual model blades (made of low-density polyethylene) was studied for a range of wave conditions to provide empirical coefficients for the theoretically determined scaling laws for effective blade length, le. Second, the effective blade length predicted for individual blades was incorporated into a meadow-scale model to predict wave decay over a meadow. The meadow-scale model accounts for both the rigid and flexible parts of individual plants. Finally, wave decay was measured over meadows of different plant density (shoots per bed area), and the measured decay was used to validate the wave-decay model. Wave decay was shown to be similar over meadows with regular and random arrangements of plants.

Numerical Analysis of Aerodynamic Characteristics of Hyperloop System

The Hyperloop system is a new concept that allows a train to travel through a near-vacuum tunnel at transonic speeds. Aerodynamic drag is one of the most important factors in analyzing such systems. The blockage ratio (BR), pod speed/length, tube pressure, and temperature affect the aerodynamic drag, but the specific relationships between the drag and these parameters have not yet been comprehensively examined. In this study, we investigated the flow phenomena of a Hyperloop system, focusing on the effects of changes in the above parameters. Two-dimensional axisymmetric simulations were performed in a large parameter space covering various BR values (0.25, 0.36), pod lengths (10.75–86 m), pod speeds (50–350 m/s), tube pressures (~100–1000 Pa), and tube temperatures (275–325 K). As BR increased, the pressure drag was significantly affected. This is because of the smaller critical Mach number for a larger BR. As the pod length increased, the total drag and pressure drag did not change significantly, but there was a considerable influence on the friction drag. As the pod speed increased, strong shock waves occurred near the end of the pod. At this point, the flows around the pod were severely choked at both BR values, and the ratio of the pressure drag to the total drag converged to its saturation level. At tube pressures above 500 Pa, the friction drag increased significantly under the rapidly increased turbulence intensity near the pod surface. High tube temperatures increase the speed of sound, and this reduces the Mach number for the same pod speed, consequently delaying the onset of choking and reducing the aerodynamic drag. The results presented in this study are applicable to the fundamental design of the proposed Hyperloop system.

Investigation of drag properties for flow through and around square arrays of cylinders at low Reynolds numbers

The drag properties of flow through and around square arrays of 10 × 10 evenly spaced circular cylinders with a wide range of solid fraction ϕ from 9.69×10-11 to 0.785 and Reynold number of the array Re from 1 to 50 are investigated numerically. The purpose of the present study is to better understand the phenomena of flow through and around permeable bodies that appear in bioreactors and fluid–solid reactors, for example. Instead of using the semi-empirical porous medium model, the direct numerical simulation is employed in order to investigate the flow mechanism from a microscopic point of view. A peak in drag coefficient is observed for the range of ϕ investigated, which appears at a smaller ϕ as Re increases. Three flow regimes are identified based on the shape effects quantified via the averaged velocity within the array, and the drag property in each regime is analyzed. A novel drag formula is also found by investigating the dependence of drag on ϕ and R (Reynolds number based on the mean velocity within the array). Finally, the dimensionless macroscopic permeability Da is estimated via the Darcy’s law. The drag ratio computed is in a good agreement with the previous results from porous media models.

Unravelling hagfish slime.

Hagfish slime is a unique predator defence material containing a network of long fibrous threads each ∼10 cm in length. Hagfish release the threads in a condensed coiled state known as skeins (∼100 µm), which must unravel within a fraction of a second to thwart a predator attack. Here we consider the hypothesis that viscous hydrodynamics can be responsible for this rapid unravelling, as opposed to chemical reaction kinetics alone. Our main conclusion is that, under reasonable physiological conditions, unravelling due to viscous drag can occur within a few hundred milliseconds, and is accelerated if the skein is pinned at a surface such as the mouth of a predator. We model a single skein unspooling as the fibre peels away due to viscous drag. We capture essential features by considering simplified cases of physiologically relevant flows and one-dimensional scenarios where the fibre is aligned with streamlines in either uniform or uniaxial extensional flow. The peeling resistance is modelled with a power-law dependence on peeling velocity. A dimensionless ratio of viscous drag to peeling resistance appears in the dynamical equations and determines the unraveling time scale. Our modelling approach is general and can be refined with future experimental measurements of peel strength for skein unravelling. It provides key insights into the unravelling process, offers potential answers to lingering questions about slime formation from threads and mucous vesicles, and will aid the growing interest in engineering similar bioinspired material systems.

Study of board bending degree on hydrodynamic performances of a single-layer cambered otter-board

The effect of board bending degree on hydrodynamic performances of a single-layer cambered otter-board was investigated using engineering models in a wind tunnel. Three different bending degree boards were evaluated at a wind speed of 28 m/s. Parameters measured included: drag coefficient Cx, lift coefficient Cy, pitch moment coefficient Cm, center of pressure coefficient Cp , over a range of angle of attack (0° to 70°). These coefficients were used in analyzing the differences in the performance among the three otter-board models. Results showed that the bending of the board(No. 2, No. 3) increased the water resistance of the otter-board, and improved the lift coefficient of the otter-board in the small angle of attack (0°<α≤20 °) ; the maximum lift coefficients Cy of otter-board model (No. 1) was higher (1.680, α = 25°). the maximum lift–drag ratios of models (No. 1, No. 2 and No. 3) are 6.822 (α = 7.5 °), 6.533 (α = 2.5 °) and 6.384 (α = 5.0°), which showed that the board bending reduces the lift-to-drag ratio of the otter-board.The stability of the No. 3 model was better than those two models (No. 1, No. 2) in most range of attack angle, but No. 1 otter-board model had a better stability in roll of otter-board. The findings of this study can offer useful reference data for the structural optimization of otter-boards for trawling.

Application of the building block approach to characterize the pressure loss of water and fracturing fluid in contraction-expansion pipe

In the fracturing pipeline, the contraction-expansion pipe structure is various. Accurate calculation of pressure loss can provide a theoretical support for the design of high sand ratio fracturing process parameter and tools selection. In this paper, the building block approach is used to describe the general framework for calculating the pressure loss of water in contraction-expansion pipe [D1≠D2、Ld/(D1/2 + D2/2)＜2.00] and expansion-contraction pipe (d1≠d2、LD/D＜3.75). The drag ratio method was used to describe the pressure loss of the fracturing fluid based on the pressure loss of water in the contraction-expansion pipe and the expansion-contraction pipe. Finally, the calculation methods for the pressure loss of water and fracturing fluid were described. The data from the experimental test showed that the relative error was less than 15%. The experimental study of water in the contraction-expansion pipe showed that the pressure loss was positively correlated with the flow rate, but it was negatively correlated with the ratio of inlet-outlet diameter and the ratio of flow path length. And for the expansion-contraction pipe, pressure loss was positively correlated with the flow rate and ratio of flow path length. When the ratio of flow path length was close to 3.75, the ratio of inlet-outlet diameter was positively correlated with the pressure loss, and when the ratio of flow path length was close to 0.05, the ratio of inlet-outlet diameter was negatively correlated with the pressure loss. Analysis of fracturing fluid in contraction-expansion pipe and expansion-contraction pipe showed that the flow rate, proppant concentration and thickener concentration were positively correlated with pressure loss, and the drag rate of fracturing fluid reached 72%.

Design and Testing of a LUT Airfoil for Straight-Bladed Vertical Axis Wind Turbines

The airfoil plays an important role in improving the performance of wind turbines. However, there is less research dedicated to the airfoils for Vertical Axis Wind Turbines (VAWTs) compared to the research on Horizontal Axis Wind Turbines (HAWTs). With the objective of maximizing the aerodynamic performance of the airfoil by optimizing its geometrical parameters and by considering the law of motion of VAWTs, a new airfoil, designated the LUT airfoil (Lanzhou University of Technology), was designed for lift-driven VAWTs by employing the sequential quadratic programming optimization method. Afterwards, the pressure on the surface of the airfoil and the flow velocity were measured in steady conditions by employing wind tunnel experiments and particle image velocimetry technology. Then, the distribution of the pressure coefficient and aerodynamic loads were analyzed for the LUT airfoil under free transition. The results show that the LUT airfoil has a moderate thickness (20.77%) and moderate camber (1.11%). Moreover, compared to the airfoils commonly used for VAWTs, the LUT airfoil, with a wide drag bucket and gentle stall performance, achieves a higher maximum lift coefficient and lift–drag ratios at the Reynolds numbers 3 × 105 and 5 × 105.

A Study of Model Separation Flow Behavior at High Angles of Attack Aerodynamics

This paper analyzes the aerodynamic performance and flow separation characteristics of a rectangular wing for varying Reynolds numbers. The mechanism of separation and its effect on the rectangular wing were simulated in ANSYS FLUENT using K-ω SST turbulence model. A detailed analysis was performed to discuss aspects like the lift and drag force of the wing surface, surface pressure distribution around the wing surface, flow separation characteristics for different angles of attack, velocity profiles at different sections of the wing surface along the chord length, and the effect of wing tip vortices. The simulation results showed that by increasing the angles of attack, the separation point moves towards the leading edge and the onset of stalling is very much closer to the leading edge. Also, the experimental and numerical results indicated that NACA4415 airfoil had enhanced coefficient of lift to coefficient of drag ratio at the angles of attack (AoA) ranging between 4◦ and6◦,which are distinctively advantageous for the better performance of small-scale wind turbine rotors. The experimental and computational results were analyzed in the context of effective change in stalling characteristics at different Reynolds numbers.

Aerodynamic Analysis on Wind Turbine Aerofoil

The aerofoils of wind turbine blades have crucial influence on aerodynamic efficiency of wind turbine. There are numerous amounts of research being performed on aerofoils of wind turbines. Initially, I have done a brief literature survey on wind turbine aerofoil. This project involves the selection of a suitable aerofoil section for the proposed wind turbine blade. A comprehensive study of the aerofoil behaviour is implemented using 2D modelling. NACA 4412 aerofoil profile is considered for analysis of wind turbine blade. Geometry of this aerofoil is created using GAMBIT and CFD analysis is carried out using ANSYS FLUENT. Lift and Drag forces along with the angle of attack are the important parameters in a wind turbine system. These parameters decide the efficiency of the wind turbine. The lift force and drag force acting on aerofoil were determined with various angles of attacks ranging from 0° to 12° and wind speeds. The coefficient of lift and drag values are calculated for 1×105 Reynolds number. The pressure distributions as well as coefficient of lift to coefficient of drag ratio of this aerofoil were visualized. The CFD simulation results show close agreement with those of the experiments, thus suggesting a reliable alternative to experimental method in determining drag and lift.

Kelvin-cell-based metal foam heat exchanger with elliptical struts for low energy consumption

Conventional Kelvin-cell-based metal foam (KMF) has triangular or circular struts. This study proposes a KMF with elliptical struts instead of such struts. Two schemes of transforming a circular strut into an elliptical strut are proposed: (1) maintaining the same circumference as the circular strut cross-section and (2) maintaining the same cross-section area as the circular strut cross-section. Five KMFs with different struts were designed. The fluid flow, heat transfer, and performance characteristics of the KMFs were numerically investigated. Two dimensionless diameters for the strut section are introduced to analyze the hydro-thermal characteristics of KMFs: λa, the major diameter ratio of the elliptical strut to the circular strut, and λb, the minor diameter ratio of the elliptical strut to the circular strut. The major axis of all struts was set parallel to the main flow direction. The pressure drop and heat transfer characteristics of KMFs are explained by the pressure drag and friction drag. As λb decreases from 1.000 to 0.556, the pressure drop of the KMF decreases by 44% because the pressure drag and blockage ratio decrease with λb. However, the decrease of λb results in decreases in the free stream velocity around the strut, which has a penalty on the heat transfer performance. This can be partially compensated by increasing λa by increasing the flow tortuosity, surface area, and separation angle. Therefore, using the scheme with the same cross-sectional area provides better performance than using the scheme with the same circumference. A KMF using the scheme with the same cross-section area scheme required 32% less pumping power than a KMF with circular struts and the same thermal resistance.

Modeling the long-term evolution of dilute solid solutions in the presence of vacancy fluxes

This work investigates the long-term evolution of dilute solute atoms in face-centered-cubic (fcc) alloys driven by sustained vacancy fluxes, as for instance in the case of materials subjected to energetic particle irradiation. Employing the five-jump frequency framework, we provide compact analytic expressions of the Onsager matrix for dilute vacancy-solute systems in form of a ratio of polynomial functions of jump frequencies. The drag ratio is found to be a function of only two independent variables, which enables a systematic study of both the flux coupling and trapping behavior between solutes and point defects. Using an existing diffusivity database for a total of 182 solutes in 5 fcc solvents, we show that, while most vacancy-binding solutes have indeed a positive drag ratio, there are some solutes with positive, but small, or even negative drag ratio. This previously unnoticed feature is interesting as it would ensure that the trapping solute remains in the matrix despite the accumulation of irradiation dose. In the case where the drag ratio is positive, we propose a kinetic model of solute depletion over time due to flux coupling with vacancies and apply it to a Cu-1 at. % Sb alloy. This study reveals that solutes are not simply dragged to sinks by point defects, but affect the flux of point defects to sinks by modifying the transport coefficients and the driving force for point-defect elimination.

THE EFFECTS OF ANGLE OF ATTACK, REYNOLD NUMBERS AND WINGLET STRUCTURE ON THE PERFORMANCE OF CESSNA 172 SKYHAWK

This research aims to investigate the effects of angle of attack, Reynold numbers and winglet structure on the performance of Cessna 172 Skyhawk aircraft with winglets variation design. Winglets improve efficiency by diffusing the shed wingtip vortex, which reducing the drag due to lift and improving the wing’s lift over drag ratio. In this research, the specimens are the duplicated of Cesnna 172 Skyhawk wing with 1:40 ratio made of balsa wood. There are three different winglet designs that are compared with the one without winglet. The experiments are conducted in an open wind tunnel to measure the lift and drag force with Reynold numbers of 25,000 and 33,000. It can be concluded that the wings with winglets have higher lift coefficient than wing without winglet for both Reynold numbers. It was also found that all wings with winglets have higher lift-to-drag ratio than wings without winglet where the blended 45o cant angle has the highest value.

Method of C groove on vortex suppression and energy performance improvement for a NACA0009 hydrofoil with tip clearance in tidal energy

Tidal energy induced by the gravitation between the earth and moon is the most widespread energy with great development potential by hydraulic machineries. Tip leakage vortex (TLV) has significant influence on the flow pattern and energy performance of hydraulic machineries. In the present work, a C groove method is proposed to suppress the TLV and improve the energy performance of a NACA0009 hydrofoil in tidal energy conversion. The numerical approach with mesh generation and Navior-Stokes equation solution is employed to evaluate the effect of C groove. The geometric and flow parameters including groove width, groove edge rotation, groove position, tip clearance size, and inlet velocity are systematically investigated. The function of the C groove is to suppress the primary TLV by groove jet impingement and weaken the secondary TLV by groove breaking flow, and then improve the flow pattern resulting in a higher energy performance. Results show that the C groove can suppress the vortex area under all conditions, and the maximum decrease of vortex area is 66.55% and 67.94% under tip clearance of 0.2 and 0.4, respectively. The C groove can improve the lift drag ratio of foil under all conditions, and the maximum increase of lift drag ratio is 2.79% and 2.10% under tip clearance of 0.2 and 0.4, respectively. With the C groove, newborn vortexes are induced, which can be classified into three types: newborn groove vortex (NGV) in groove, newborn primary TLV (NPTLV) above suction side downstream groove, and newborn secondary TLV (NSTLV) in tip clearance downstream groove.

Computational Analysis for Random Winglet Designs on Light Aircraft

This paper describes 3-dimensional wing-winglet analysis that was performed on random winglet designs on varying cross-sections of air foil. A total of four random wing-winglet pairs have been studied and their performance has been investigated according to their suitability on a light aircraft. The performance characteristics have been studied with CFD solver, static structural analysis for aluminum alloy material, when subjected to loads and moments experienced during turbulence and transient thermal analysis with initial temperature being 278 K and increasing up to 373 K. The heat flux at the first contact point of fluid-body interface is taken to be about 373 K; various simulation solutions have been developed. The angle of attack of the wing has been varied 0–15 degree with increments of 5, and lift to drag (L/D) ratio, drag coefficient have been found.

A numerical and experimental study on the performance of a twisted rudder with wavy configuration

In this paper, a Wavy Twisted Rudder (WTR) is proposed to address the discontinuity of the twisted section and increase the stalling angle in comparison to a conventional full-spade Twisted Rudder (TR). The wave configuration was applied to a KRISO Container Ship (KCS) to confirm the characteristics of the rudder under the influence of the propeller wake. The resistance, self-propulsion performance, and rudder force at high angles of the wavy twisted rudder and twisted rudder were compared using Computational Fluid Dynamics (CFD). The numerical results were compared with the experimental results. The WTR differed from the TR in the degree of separation flow at large rudder angles. This was verified by visualizing the streamline around the rudder. The results confirmed the superiority of the WTR in terms of its delayed stall and high lift–drag ratio.

Study of Pressure Oscillations in Supersonic Parachute

Supersonic parachutes are a critical element of planetary mission whose simple structure, light-weight characteristics together with high ratio of aerodynamic drag makes them the most suitable aerodynamic decelerators. The use of parachute in supersonic flow produces complex shock/shock and wake/shock interaction giving rise to dynamic pressure oscillations. The study of supersonic parachute is difficult, because parachute has very flexible structure which makes obtaining experimental pressure data difficult. In this study, a supersonic wind tunnel test using two rigid bodies is done. The wind tunnel test was done at Mach number 3 by varying the distance between the front and rear objects, and the distance of a bundle point which divides suspension lines and a riser. The analysis of Schlieren movies revealed shock wave oscillation which was repetitive and had large pressure variation. The pressure variation differed in each case of change in distance between the front and rear objects, and the change in distance between riser and the rear object. The causes of pressure oscillation are: interaction of wake caused by front object with the shock wave, fundamental harmonic vibration of suspension lines, interference between shock waves, and the boundary layer of suspension lines.

Numerical Simulation of Wave Drag during Downslope Windstorms in Different Regions of Russia

The wave drag is considered for downslope windstorms in Novorossiysk, on Novaya Zemlya, and in Pevek. The research is based on the results of numerical simulation with the WRF-ARW model. Special attention is paid to the evaluation of the contribution that wave processes make to the overall dynamics of the phenomenon (based on the ratio of wave and orographic drag) and to the specific features of wave drag for different downslope windstorms.

Anti-flutter optimization design of airfoil for wind turbine blade

An anti-flutter optimization design of DU 98-W-210 airfoil for wind turbine blades is carried out by employing the particle swarm optimization algorithm. As is well known, the increase in the torsional blade stiffness, which is in proportion to the polar moment of inertia, will improve the anti-flutter ability of airfoil. Thus, maximizing the polar moment of inertia is selected as the design objective, within the aerodynamic performance constraints (i.e., the lift-to drag ratios in a wide range of AOAs (Angle of Attack) should not be lower than the original value). The commercially available software CFX is employed to calculate the flow field by solving the Reynolds-averaged Navier-Stokes equations coupled with the shear stress transport turbulence model. The results show a significant improvement in both the polar moment of inertia and the lift-to-drag ratios in a wide range of AOAs of the optimized airfoil compared to the original DU 98-W-210 airfoil.