Design and flow analysis of a variable sweep wing on a commercial aircraft

Published on 28 May 2021. Written by Gurudutt

A variable-sweep wing is a type of wing configuration, that changes the sweep angle of the wing during flight. This is a concept of hybrid wings used for a sudden increase in velocity and aerobatic purpose.

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In this project, you will build a scaled model of an aircraft with a variable-sweep wing configuration which can fold its wing-back and align it with the tail wing to form a delta wing and thereby it can able to fly at both supersonic and subsonic speeds efficiently. Normally, subsonic aircraft fly below Mach 1 and supersonic aircraft fly more than Mach 1. Our design is intended to fly at both subsonic and supersonic speeds efficiently.

Advantages:

• Commercial aircraft can fly at supersonic speed without structural damage.
• The normal runway is enough to land the aircraft thus it has a variable-sweep wing.
• Travel time is decreased
• L/D ratio is low during takeoff and landing than delta-winged aircraft.

Methodology:

Step 1: Modeling

1. 2D drawing of the proposed design using solid edge software is done using specific design parameters.
2. The design of the aircraft with a retracted wing is done.
3. The design of the aircraft with a conventional wing is done.

Step 2: Fabrication

Model fabrication is done using the additive manufacturing technique or also known as the 3D printing technique.

Step 3: CFD analysis

1. ANSYS FLUENT 16.0: Fluent software contains capabilities of physical designs to model flow, turbulence, heat transfer, and reactions for industrial applications.
2. Grid independent study: A grid independent study for this analysis is done precisely using the same domain and model to achieve the finest possible result.

Step 4: Wind tunnel test

The wind tunnel is a setup having large tubes with air moving inside. The tunnels are used to copy the actions of an object in flight. The wing folding movement is divided into three transitions based on the angle it makes with the fuselage central line. For each transition velocity and pressure, distribution is calculated.

Conclusion:

As far as the design is completely new, there exists the situation to validate many physical parameters, to prove that the design can provide sufficient lift force.

Kit required to develop Design and flow analysis of a variable sweep wing on a commercial aircraft:

• CATIA
• ANSYS

Technologies you will learn by working on Design and flow analysis of a variable sweep wing on a commercial aircraft:

• Analysis
• CATIA
• Aerodynamics

Any Questions?