This study examines the biomimicry of wave propagation, a mode of locomotion in aquatic life for the use-case of morphing aircraft surfaces for boundary layer control. Such motion is theorized to inject momentum into the flow on the upper surface of airfoils, and as a consequence, creates a forcible pressure gradient thereby increasing lift. It is thought that this method can be used to control flow separation and reduce likelihood of stall at high angles of attack. The motivation for such a mechanism is especially relevant for aircraft requiring abrupt maneuvers, and especially at high angles of attack as a safety measure against stalling. The actuation mechanism consists of lightweight piezoelectric ceramic transducers placed beneath the upper surface of an airfoil. An open-loop system controls surface morphing. A two-dimensional Fourier Transform technique is used to estimate traveling to standing wave ratio, which is verified analytically using Euler Bernoulli beam theory, and experimentally using a prototype wing. Propagating wave excitations are tuned and verified using a series of scanning laser vibrometry tests. A custom two-dimensional NACA 0018 airfoil tests the concept in a low-speed wind tunnel with approximate Reynolds Number of 50,000. Both traveling waves and the changes in lift and drag will be experimentally characterized.


Flow Control and Separation Delay in Morphing Wing Aircraft Using Traveling Wave Actuation

Division / Sponsors: 
Aerospace Division

Paper Proceedings: https://asmedigitalcollection.asme.org/SMASIS/SMASIS2020/volume/84027

SMASIS2020 - Virtual Conference

Supporting the need among researchers worldwide for additional online and multimedia content, ASME now offers the ASME Conference Video Collection. This platform will collect and provide long-term access to conference presentation videos, encompassing all technology areas within ASME's technical conference and events program. About 30,000-40,000 engineers across all mechanical engineering and related disciplines participate in ASME conferences each year. This includes authors of approximately 6,000 to 8,000 technical papers published by ASME, the majority of whom also submit video presentations for our virtual conferences. The video collection will be available as an add-on to existing product packages or as a separate subscription.