Boundary Layer Suction Research Articles

Analysis of the Aerodynamic Benefit from Boundary Layer Ingestion for Transport Aircraft

Propulsors with boundary layer ingestion (BLI) generate a propulsive force with lower flow power input than conventional engines. This aerodynamic benefit can be traced back to its sources: reductions in jet, surface, and wake dissipation. A framework for BLI analysis is developed based on the power balance method: parametric expressions are derived for the net streamwise force on an aircraft and for the mechanical flow power required, as well as relations for the dissipation components. They illustrate the range of possible comparisons between BLI and non-BLI engine installations, and show how the benefit varies with design choices. Applying the framework to wind tunnel data from powered D8 aircraft model tests, the sources of aerodynamic BLI benefit are quantified for a realistic transport aircraft configuration. With the same propulsors (equal nozzle area) BLI reduces cruise power by 8.2%, of which 5.2% comes from a reduction in jet dissipation, 2.4% from reduced surface dissipation, and 0.6% from reduced wake dissipation. The jet dissipation reduction is equivalent to a 3.4 percentage points increase in propulsive efficiency. If the installations are compared at equal mass flow, the benefit amounts to a 9% lower cruise power.

Aeromechanical Response of a Distortion-Tolerant Boundary Layer Ingesting Fan

Boundary layer ingestion (BLI) is a propulsion technology being investigated at NASA by the Advanced Aircraft Transportation Technology (AATT) Program to facilitate a substantial reduction in aircraft fuel burn. In an attempt to experimentally demonstrate an increase in the propulsive efficiency of a BLI engine, a first-of-its-kind subscale high-bypass ratio 22″ titanium fan, designed to structurally withstand significant unsteady pressure loading caused by a heavily distorted axial air inflow, was built and then tested in the transonic section of the GRC 8′ × 6′ supersonic wind tunnel. The vibratory responses of a subset of fan blades were measured using strain gages placed in four different blade pressure side surface locations. Response highlights include a significant response of the blade's first resonance to engine order excitation below idle as the fan was spooled up and down. The fan fluttered at the design speed under off operating line, low flow conditions. This paper presents the blade vibration response characteristics over the operating range of the fan and compares them to predicted behaviors. It also provides an assessment of this distortion-tolerant fan's (DTF) ability to withstand the harsh dynamic BLI environment over an entire design life of billions of load cycles at design speed.

Investigations on flowfield behavior and resistance backpressure characteristics of supersonic cascade with boundary layer suction

A numerical study aiming at the enhancement of the operating range of supersonic cascade via boundary layer suction is presented. The purpose of this paper is to improve the maximum backpressure ratio of the flowfield by suction control and to learn the flowfield behavior and characteristics with different suction control parameters. An S-shaped supersonic cascade developed and tested at DLR (DLR-PAV-1.5) that operates with a relative entrance Mach number of 1.5 is selected in this paper. A two-dimensional multiblock NS solver has been successfully applied to the cascade flow which is validated using the data of the experiment of Schreiber. An in-deep numerical study has been carried out to investigate the effects of suction locations, widths and angles by comparing the operating range and aerodynamic performance parameters of the supersonic cascade. The results indicate that the maximum backpressure ratio can be enhanced by 17.4% with a loss of 3% mainstream mass flow by suction slot in 60% or 70% length of the axial chord. As the width of the suction slot increases to 7 mm, the maximum backpressure ratio is enhanced by 24%, and the total pressure recovery coefficient is improved to 95.3%. The range of suction slot angle that can effectively improve the maximum backpressure ratio is 60–90° and −90 to −60°. This paper provides guidance for the supersonic cascade to improve its performance parameters through suction control.

An analytical model for predicting rotor broadband noise due to turbulent boundary layer ingestion

A semi-empirical analytical model is developed that predicts the noise produced by a rotor ingesting a boundary layer in proximity to a hard-wall. The rotor boundary layer ingestion noise source is an important source to include when a rotor is installed close to an aircraft fuselage. This is the case for a tail mounted counter rotating open rotor for example. This paper presents three extensions to Amiet's simplified rotor noise model to predict this noise source. The first extension is the method of images, which is used to model the acoustic reflections of the hard-wall. The second extension is an anisotropic velocity spectrum, which is used to model the boundary layer turbulence. The third extension is a numerical switch to account for the partial loading of the rotor as only a part of it is immersed in the boundary layer. The homogeneous anisotropic turbulence model used is a simplification of the actual turbulence the rotor encounters in the boundary layer. In reality, the turbulence in the boundary layer is not homogeneous in the wall-normal direction. Therefore, while the integral length scale in the streamwise direction can be determined from experimental or numerical data, the integral length scale in the wall-normal direction must be chosen empirically. The rotor noise model is validated by comparing its predictions to experimental data at three different advance ratios. The proposed rotor noise model is then used to investigate the effect of the hard-wall on the noise spectrum. The hard-wall affects the downstream directivity more significantly than the upstream directivity for all the rotor operating conditions. Changing the advance ratio of the rotor does not significantly alter the effect that the hard-wall has on the noise spectrum.

Boundary layer suction for high-speed air intakes: A review

The paper summarizes recent developments in boundary layer suction for high-speed air intakes. Bleed has been efficiently used in supersonic and hypersonic intakes for three primary reasons: to improve the performance of the intake, to reduce the starting Mach number of the intake, and to postpone the onset of buzz oscillations. A bleed system has many characteristics such as the bleed entrance and exit areas, bleed entrance slant angle and position, and bleed type (slot or porous and ram-scoop or flush). Each of these parameters has significant impacts on the intake performance and stability that have been reviewed in this study. In addition, the effectiveness of other flow control methods has been compared with the bleed method.

Aero-Propulsive and Propulsor Cross-Coupling Effects on a Distributed Propulsion System

This study aims to characterize the complex propulsive-airframe and cross-propulsor interactions that occur on an overwing distributed propulsion system with boundary-layer ingestion. Wind tunnel experiments were performed on a NACA airfoil model with an array of five ducted fans integrated across the upper-surface trailing edge. Net forces lift, drag, and pitching moment characteristics, as well as pressure distributions and particle image velocimetry (PIV) velocity fields, were experimentally characterized as a function of fan throttle setting. Additionally, various mixed-throttle cases were investigated with certain fans inoperative windmilling. The experimental results revealed nonlinearities in the changes of the streamwise and stream-normal forces lift, drag, and pitching moment polars as a function of and throttle setting. These nonlinear variations in the airfoil model forces and moments were attributed to variation in the magnitude and direction of the fan thrust vector, which is tied to changes in the airfoil pressure distribution and an induced circulation effect. The ingested boundary-layer height was seen to decrease linearly with a uniform increase in throttle setting. The fan-out cases showed that a windmilling inoperative fan on the edge of the array was more detrimental to performance than a windmilling inoperative fan located within the fan array, and a highly three-dimensional flow was observed from the PIV velocity fields and surface pressure distributions.

Energetic assessment of an embedded aircraft propulsion: an analytic approach

This paper investigates the energetic advantage of the embedded propulsion compared to a state-of-the-art propulsion of an aircraft. Hereby, the integral method of boundary layer theory together with the potential theory is applied to analyze the boundary layer thickness and the impact of the flow acceleration due to the embedded propulsion. The aircraft body is treated as a flat plate and the engine as a momentum disk. For an embedded propulsion, there is a trade-off of the engine size, since the propulsion efficiency is affected by the boundary layer. On the one hand, the propulsion inlet momentum is noticeably reduced for a small engine size and the viscous friction is reduced due to boundary layer ingestion. On the other hand, a slow jet speed, i.e., a large engine size, increases the propulsion efficiency as known. The outcome of the energetic assessment is the following: the propulsion efficiency is increased and the drag of the aircraft body is reduced by the embedded propulsion compared to a conventional propulsion. The optimized aircraft engine size depending on Reynolds number is given as well as the dimensionless cost function.

Weight assessment for a blended wing Body-Unmanned aerial vehicle implementing boundary layer ingestion

Boundary Layer Ingestion (BLI) has been studied extensively for implementation in Blended Wing Body (BWB) transport aircrafts, and it has been reported that BLI offers potential benefits mainly in terms of energy, improving the propulsive efficiency of a propulsion system and reducing the fuel consumption. This paper examines potential benefits of BLI related with a reduction on the Take-Off Gross Weight (TOGW) for a BWB-Unmanned Aerial Vehicle (UAV). It is discussed the methodology for weight estimation of a BWB-UAV through parametric models. To evaluate the benefits of BLI in terms of weight reduction, it has been taken into account the removal of pylons and the nacelle weight reduction when embedding nacelles into the airframe. The validation of the parametric models, and the case of study have been carried out for the aircraft NASA X-48B. The results show a reduction in TOGW between 8% and 19% when removing pylons and embedding nacelles into the airframe.

Wing Buffeting Control at Transonic Flight Velocities with the Use of Ejector-Type Pulse Thermal Actuators

A new type of ducted pulse thermal actuators with a high pulse repetition frequency is proposed to control wing buffeting at transonic flight velocities. Ducted pulse thermal actuators can operate up to frequencies of about 1 kHz, which is sufficient for controlling the majority of aerodynamic processes at high subsonic flow velocities. As the use of a pulse thermal actuator in the regime of tangential injection of a jet is less efficient from the energy viewpoint than in the regime of boundary layer suction, an ejector-type pulse thermal actuator is proposed for implementation of the suction regime.

Fan Performance Scaling With Inlet Distortions

Applications such as boundary-layer-ingesting (BLI) fans and compressors in turboprop engines require continuous operation with distorted inflow. A low-speed axial fan with incompressible flow is studied in this paper. The objectives are to (1) identify the physical mechanisms which govern the fan response to inflow distortions and (2) determine how fan performance scales as the type and severity of inlet distortion varies at the design flow coefficient. A distributed source term approach to modeling the rotor and stator blade rows is used in numerical simulations in this paper. The model does not include viscous losses so that changes in diffusion factor are the primary focus. Distortions in stagnation pressure and temperature as well as swirl are considered. The key findings are that unless sharp pitchwise gradients in the diffusion response, strong radial flows, or very large distortion magnitudes are present, the response of the blade rows for strong distortions can be predicted by scaling up the response to a weaker distortion. In addition, the response to distortions which are composed of nonuniformities in several inlet quantities can be predicted by summing up the responses to the constituent distortions.

Influence of Endwall Boundary Layer Suction on the Flow Fields of a Critically Loaded Diffusion Cascade

Boundary layer suction is an effective method used to delay separations in axial compressors. Most studies on boundary layer suction have focused on improving the performance of compressors, whereas few studies investigated the influence on details of the flow fields, especially vortexes in compressors. CFD method is validated with experimental data firstly. Three single-slot and one double-slot endwall boundary layer suction schemes are designed and investigated. In addition to the investigation of aerodynamic performance of the cascades with and without suction, variations in corner open separation, passage vortex, and concentration shedding vortex, which are rarely seen for the flow controlled blades in published literatures, are analyzed. Then, flow models, which are the ultimate aim, of both baseline and aspirated cascades are established. Results show that single-slot endwall suction scheme adjacent to the suction surface can effectively remove the corner open separation. With suction mass flow rate of 0.85%, the overall loss coefficient and endwall loss coefficient of the cascade are reduced by 25.2% and 48.6%, respectively. Besides, this scheme increases the static pressure rise coefficient of the cascade by 3.2% and the flow turning angle of up to 3.3° at 90% span. The concentration shedding vortex decreases, whereas the passage vortex increases. For single-slot suction schemes near the middle pitchwise of the passage, the concentration shedding vortex increases and the passage vortex is divided into two smaller passage vortexes, which converge into a single-passage vortex near the trailing edge section of the cascade. For the double-slot suction scheme, triple-passage vortexes are presented in the blade passage. Some new vortex structures are discovered, and the novel flow models of aspirated compressor cascade are proposed, which are important to improve the design of multi-stage aspirated compressors.

Effect of Inlet Distortion Features on Transonic Fan Rotor Stall

The effect of inlet distortion from curved intake ducts on jet engine fan stability is an important consideration for next-generation passenger aircraft such as the boundary layer ingestion (BLI) “silent aircraft.” Highly complex inlet flows which occur can significantly affect fan stability. Future aircraft designs are likely to feature more severe inlet distortion, pressing the need to understand the important factors influencing design. This paper presents the findings from a large computational fluid dynamics (CFD) investigation into which aspects of inlet distortion cause the most significant reductions in stall margin and, therefore, which flow patterns should be targeted by mitigating technology. The study considers the following aspects of distortion commonly observed in intakes: steady vortical distortion due to secondary flow, unsteady vortical distortion due to vortex shedding and mixing, static pressure distortion due to curved streamlines, and low momentum endwall flow due to thickened boundary layers or separation. Unsteady CFD was used to determine the stall points of a multipassage transonic rotor geometry with each of the inlet distortion patterns applied. Interesting new evidence is provided, which suggests that low momentum flow in the tip region, rather than distortion in the main body of the flow, leads to damaging instability.

Influences of trailing boundary layer velocity profiles on wake vortex formation in a high-subsonic-turbine cascade

In this paper, delayed detached eddy simulations are performed to study wake flows of a turbine blade at a high subsonic exit Mach number, [Formula: see text], and high Reynolds number, [Formula: see text], based on the chord length and outlet velocity. It is found that a slight change in the trailing suction profile would have a big influence on the formation of wake vortex street, which is believed to be caused by the change in the boundary layer state near the trailing edge, and suction boundary layer with a fuller velocity profile tends to destabilize the wake flow, promoting the generation of wake vortex and enhancing the unsteady effect. Local spatial-temporal stability analyses of the wake velocity profiles suggest that wake flows with asymmetric velocity profiles might have a stabilizing effect. It is suggested that the vortex formation and its strength can be controlled by making some slight modifications on the rear blade suction surface, and the mixing loss in the wake can be reduced due to a weaker unsteady effect.

Understanding boundary layer suction and its e ect on wings - A review

Boundary layer suction reduces drag by stabilizing the laminar boundary preventing transition and conceding higher regions of laminar ow. Boundary layer suction(BLS) also postpones boundary layer separation resulting in higher CLmax. This phenomenon is particularly useful in the Aerospace sector and many applications are found and hence understanding the mechanics of BLS becomes critical. Consequently it becomes vital to understand the e ect of BLS during di erent ight regimes and mission pro les. The objective of this review is to understand and document the understanding on BLS and its e ects. The in uence of location and position of suction, suction ow rate and suction hole width on aerodynamic performance by experiments and numerical analysis have been reviewed. It has been brought out that there is a convincing decrease in drag and pressure loss and an increase in max lift which in turn improves the overall performance of the aircraft. While multi-hole suction control can reduce drag much more e ciently than single hole suction control, position of the suction hole has a greater e ect on reducing pressure losses than the suction ow rate. The factors a ecting BLS and its e ects on aerodynamic performance and overall performance of the aircraft has been discussed in this review.

Method for simulating the performance of a boundary layer ingesting propulsion system at design and off-design

Boundary layer ingestion has emerged as a potential propulsion concept on novel aircraft configurations for the future. As these concepts progress, preliminary design tools are required that enable the simulation of these aircraft and the rapid analysis of multiple configurations. Simulation tools for boundary layer ingesting propulsion systems tend to focus on proving performance benefits at design point. However, the simulation of aircraft configurations that utilise boundary layer ingestion requires a method to simulate the propulsion system at a range of flight conditions other than design point. A tool is therefore required to enable simulations at off-design. This research presents a work flow to simulate a boundary layer ingesting propulsion system at design and off-design. The process is intended as a tool for design space exploration and the rapid analysis of concepts at the conceptualisation phase. Boundary layer calculations have been combined with conventional 1-D gas turbine performance methods to predict performance of a propulsion system at design point. This method is then extended to enable simulations at off-design conditions for a range of flight conditions or propulsion system power settings. The formulation provides a thrust-drag representation that supports conventional aircraft simulation tools. A case study of an aircraft configuration which utilises an array of boundary layer ingesting propulsors is used to demonstrate the process. The performance of individual propulsors in the array is compared at off-design. Simulations found that, although each propulsor was sized for the same propulsive force at design point, off-design performance diverged depending on operating conditions. In addition, the performance of the propulsor array as a whole was predicted as a function of altitude and Mach number. The case study is used to draw general conclusions on the performance characteristics of a boundary layer ingesting propulsor.

Modelling of A Boundary Layer Ingesting Propulsor

Boundary layer ingestion is a promising method to decrease the propulsive power consumption of an aircraft, and therefore the fuel consumption. This leads to a reduced environmental impact and an improved cost-efficiency. To get a better understanding of this method and to estimate its benefits, the modelling of a propulsor located at the upper rear centerbody of a blended wing body aircraft is presented in this paper. A parallel compressor model approach is used to analyse the impact of the ingested low velocity fluid which leads to a non-uniform inflow. The required boundary layer data are generated with an analysis tool for 2D subsonic airfoils. Some parameter variations are conducted with the developed programme to study their impact on the power saving potential. In addition, a simple estimation for the benefit of embedded aeroengines is given. Despite the drawback from fan efficiency due to the inflow distortion, the results show a significant decrease in required propulsive power for boundary layer ingestion in combination with integrated engines.

Computational Investigation of a Boundary-Layer-Ingestion Propulsion System

The present paper examines the potential propulsive and aerodynamic benefits of integrating a boundary-layer ingestion propulsion system into the Common Research Model geometry and the NASA tetrahedral unstructured software system. The numerical propulsion system simulation environment is used to generate engine conditions for computational fluid dynamics analyses. Improvements to the boundary-layer ingestion geometry are made using the constrained direct iterative surface curvature design method. The potential benefits of the boundary-layer ingestion system relating to cruise propulsive power are quantified using a power balance method, and a comparison to the baseline case is made. Iterations of the boundary-layer ingestion geometric design are shown, and improvements between subsequent boundary-layer ingestion designs are presented. Simulations are conducted for a cruise flight condition of Mach 0.85 at an altitude of 38,500 ft, with a Reynolds number of 40 million based on the mean aerodynamic chord and an angle of attack of 2 deg for all geometries. The results indicate an 8% reduction in engine power requirements at cruise for the boundary-layer ingestion configuration as compared to the baseline geometry. Small geometric alterations of the aft portion of the fuselage using constrained direct iterative surface curvature are shown to marginally increase the benefit from boundary-layer ingestion further, resulting in an 8.7% reduction in power requirements for cruise, as well as a drag reduction of approximately 12 counts over the baseline geometry.

Performance assessment of a multi-fuel hybrid engine for future aircraft

This paper presents the performance assessment of a novel turbofan engine using two energy sources: Liquid Natural Gas (LNG) and kerosene, called Multi-Fuel Hybrid Engine (MFHE). The MFHE is a new engine concept consisting of several novel features, such as a contra-rotating fan to sustain distortion caused by boundary layer ingestion, a sequential dual-combustion system to facilitate “Energy Mix” in aviation and a Cryogenic Bleed Air Cooling System (CBACS) to cool the turbine cooling air. The MFHE has been envisaged as a propulsion system for a long-range Multi-Fuel Blended Wing Body (MFBWB) aircraft.In this research, we study the uninstalled characteristics of the MFHE covering three aspects: 1) the effects of CBACS on the High Pressure Turbine (HPT) cooling air requirement and its consequence on the engine cycle efficiency; 2) the cycle optimization of the MFHE; 3) the performance of the MFHE at a mission level. An integrated model framework consisting of an engine performance model, a sophisticated turbine-cooling model, and a CBACS model is used. The parametric analysis shows that using CBACS can reduce the bleed air temperature significantly (up to 400 K), thereby decreasing the HPT cooling air by more than 40%. Simultaneously, the LNG temperature increases by more than 200 K. The hybrid engine alone reduces the CO2 emission by about 27% and the energy consumption by 12% compared to the current state-of-the-art turbofan engine. Furthermore, the mission analysis indicates a reduction in NOx emission by 80% and CO2 emission by 50% when compared to the baseline aircraft B-777 200ER.

Wind-Turbine Trailing-Edge Noise Reduction by Means of Boundary-Layer Suction

Distributed boundary-layer suction has numerically and experimentally shown great potential to reduce flow-induced trailing-edge noise. The paper aims at the transfer of this potential to an industrial full-size wind turbine by means of a dedicated suction system design and, hence, is meant to point out whether the predicted, airfoil-related improvements carry over to wind turbines represented by the N117, not hitherto in liaison with active flow control. Guidance is given through the different design steps involving the suction-followed blowing of the fluid and being continually dictated by industrial constraints and requirements. Because the processes of trailing-edge noise reduction and effective power alteration are intimately bound together, great emphasis is put on an accurate prediction of pump power requirement, with the latter being based on a detailed suction hardware system implying pressure losses across each component. Exploiting the limited installation space, a total trailing-edge noise reduction of 3.6 dB is coupled with a net enhancement of total rotor power of 4.75%. As of a cross-over noise reduction level of 5 dB, the enhancement of aerodynamic power no longer compensates for the pump power requirement and, hence, aeroacoustic demands are implemented to the detriment of aerodynamic performance.

Design of a boundary-layer suction system for turbulent trailing-edge noise reduction of wind turbines

Abstract The present work introduces a method for the design of a boundary-layer suction system for turbulent trailing-edge noise reduction of wind turbines. Since the latter hitherto has been primarily assessed in a two-dimensional framework, the paper is meant to point out whether the predicted improvements carry over to wind turbine flow. Since the processes of trailing-edge noise reduction and effective power alteration are intimately bound together, great emphasis is put on an accurate prediction of pump power requirement, the latter being based on a detailed suction hardware system implying pressure losses across each component. An exemplarily performed design reveals that, within a certain design regime, trailing-edge noise reduction is accompanied by an enhancement of rotor power. However, as of a distinct cross-over point at which the pump power requirement exactly compensates the amelioration of aerodynamic power, a trade-off between aeroacoustics and aerodynamics arises. The method bases on fully-resolved URANS computations and is applied to the generic NREL 5 MW turbine.