Low observable uncrewed aerial vehicle wind tunnel model design, manufacturing, and aerodynamic characterization

Kontis, K. , Aleisa, H. and Nikbay, M. (2024) Low observable uncrewed aerial vehicle wind tunnel model design, manufacturing, and aerodynamic characterization. Aerospace, 11(3), 216. (doi: 10.3390/aerospace11030216)

Abstract

Developing wind tunnel models is time consuming, labor intensive, and expensive. Rapid prototyping for wind tunnel tests is an effective, faster, and cheaper method to obtain aerodynamic performance results while considerably reducing acquisition time and cost for the models. Generally, the rapid prototyping models suffer from insufficient stiffness or strength to withstand the loads generated during a wind tunnel test. In the present study, a rapid prototype model reinforced with metallic inserts was produced to experimentally investigate the aerodynamic characteristics of an uncrewed aerial vehicle with various wingtip deflections. The fused deposition modeling process was used to make the outer mold, whereas the metallic parts were produced using laser cutting and the computer numerical control machining process. Then, the model was evaluated both experimentally and numerically. The test campaign presented in this work was conducted in the de Havilland low-speed wind tunnel facility at the University of Glasgow. For better characterization of flow patterns dominated by leading edge vortices, numerical simulations were run using OpenFOAM 8.0 and validated with experimental data. The experimental data obtained from the hybrid rapid-prototyped model agreed well with the numerical results. This demonstrates the efficacy of hybrid rapid-prototyped models in providing reliable results for initial baseline aerodynamic database development within a short period and at a reduced cost for wind tunnel tests.

• Item Type: Articles
• Additional Information: The authors would like to acknowledge NATO STO Support Project AVT-SP-002 Turbulence and the Aerodynamic Optimization of Nonplanar Lifting Systems. Also, the third author would like to acknowledge Istanbul Technical University Scientific Research Projects Unit for research funding with grant numbers PMA-2023-44884 and MGA-2022-43602.
• Status: Published
• Refereed: Yes
• Glasgow Author(s) Enlighten ID: Kontis, Professor Konstantinos and Aleisa, Hassan Ali A

Creator Roles

Kontis, K.: Conceptualization, Methodology, Software, Validation, Investigation, Resources, Data curation, Writing – original draft, Writing – review and editing, Visualization, Supervision, Project administration, Funding acquisition
Aleisa, H. A. A.: Conceptualization, Methodology, Software, Validation, Formal analysis, Investigation, Resources, Data curation, Writing – original draft, Writing – review and editing, Visualization

• Authors: Kontis, K., Aleisa, H., and Nikbay, M.
• College/School: College of Science and Engineering; College of Science and Engineering > School of Engineering > Autonomous Systems and Connectivity
• Journal Name: Aerospace
• Publisher: MDPI
• ISSN: 2226-4310
• ISSN (Online): 2226-4310
• Copyright Holders: Copyright: © 2024 by the authors
• First Published: First published in Aerospace 11(3): 216
• Publisher Policy: Reproduced under a Creative Commons licence