A numerical investigation on finite wings with leading-edge protuberances

Abstract

This study aims to study the performance variations of an airfoil when leading edge sinusoidal protuberances or tubercles are implemented using numerical investigation. The shape of the tubercles is mimicking a Humpback whale's flippers., which are extremely agile despite its massive size. This research's objective is to examine the possible advantages of implementing tubercles to an airfoil's leading edge. The NACA 634-021 airfoil has been selected as the base model because it bears a striking resemblance to the structure of the Humpback whale’s flipper. According to earlier research, tubercles improve airfoil performance mainly in the post-stall regime in terms of lift and drag but also has decreased benefits in the pre-stall regime. Through optimisation of the wavelength and amplitude of tubercles, it leads to increased post-stall characteristics while pre-stall performance gets closer to that of the unmodified airfoil. This study shows that the addition of tubercles led to improvements in prestall lift but a decrease in post-stall lift and drag mainly in the pre-stall regime. After further optimization of the wavelength and amplitude of the tubercles, it is possible to improve the post-stall lift performance to that of the unmodified airfoil and greatly reduce the increase in drag experienced. The simulation of aircraft wings is a very important and crucial component of aircraft design. Simulations are used to replicate a real-life environment as well as the behaviour of an aircraft while flying. As compared to experimental simulations, a numerical simulation is more efficient and has much lower costs especially with the rapid advancements in computing power. For this project, the wings will be created using CAD software and the simulations will be run on Ansys Fluent.