M-DAW - Modelling and design of advanced wing tip devices
Overview
Background & policy context:
To maintain growth of the European commercial aircraft industry new, more efficient, environmentally friendly aircraft products must be launched over the next decade and existing products upgraded. Advanced wing tip devices have been identified as a technology that can deliver benefits in reducing emissions and community noise by improving aircraft efficiency at all phases of a flight. Such a technology can be retrofitted on existing ircraft products with relatively little cost.
The project M-DAW is concerned with understanding the aerodynamics of conventional wing tip devices and exploiting this to design and assess novel devices through the use of advanced CFD methods. The most promising novel design will then be demonstrated by wind tunnel testing to determine the benefit on future aircraft products.
Objectives:
“To Deliver to the European Aerospace Industry a Novel Wing Tip Device to Improve Aircraft Efficiency and Environmental Impact together with a Capability to Accurately Predict the Effect of Wing Tip Device Design on Aircraft Performance”
- Develop a deeper understanding of the aerodynamics of wing tip devices
- Delivering a unique and extensive experimental databas
- Assess the capabilities of advanced CFD to predict tip device effects
- Delivering validated flow simulation methods
- Explore novel wing tip device concepts
- Delivering an assessment of a range of advanced wing tip device concepts
- Demonstrate the most promising device by wind tunnel testing
- Delivering a demonstrated performance improvement by an advancedwing tip device
- M-DAW performance targets were stated as
- A further 1% reduction in aerodynamic drag at cruise
- A 2% increase in L/D at take-off
- Relative to a wing with a conventional tip device for a constantaerodynamic wing root bending moment in cruise
Methodology:
1. Experimental Investigation
- Conventional Baseline Performance
- Validation DataDetailed
- Study of Flow Physics
2. Application of CFD
- Validated CFD Design & Analysis Capability
3. Novel Wing Tip Device Design
- Study of a Range of Concepts Combining to Deliver One Novel Device
4. Assessment, Selection & Demonstration
- Selection & Demonstration of One Novel Device
Design Studies Based on:
- Retrofit scenario
- “Equivalent Drag”
Design Studies Included:
- Novel shapes
- Optimised shapes
- Movable elements
- Aeroelastic and Structural effects
Approach:
- Vortex Lattice Method study
- Euler optimisation
- N-S analysis
Small Downward Device:
- Modest drag reduction
- Good WRBM behaviour
Analysis:
- High and low speed
- Lateral stability
- High-g structural impact
Share this page