Objetivo
The DREAm-TILT project is focused on the assessment of drag reduction achieved through the aerodynamic optimization of some critical components of the ERICA tiltrotor fuselage. This will be accomplished both from an experimental and a numerical point of view.
A CFD-based optimization activity has been carried out in GRC2, and proper shapes of some fuselage components (i.e. wing/fuselage junction, wing/nacelle junction, nose, landing gear sponson and empennage) have been identified, that contribute to reduce aircraft drag and enhance aerodynamic efficiency.
In DREAm-TILT, the benefits obtained from the aerodynamic optimization in terms of drag reduction will be thoroughly assessed through a dedicated wind tunnel campaign: specifically, the final optimized fuselage will be tested and the drag reduction with respect to the original configuration will be determined. All the optimized components will be tested sequentially with the aim of getting an accurate drag breakdown and identifying the contribution of each component to the overall aerodynamic performance of the fuselage. Additional classical flow visualization runs and infrared thermography will be finally carried out to enhance knowledge on the transition and separation regions for the different drag reduction configurations.
Moreover, a CFD activity will be carried out on both the model scaled and the full scale aircraft in order to evaluate rotor effects and the full scale (Mach dependent) characteristics. In a first phase, a series of blind test simulations at wind tunnel conditions will be performed for both basic and optimized configurations. In a second stage, the numerical results on both the baseline and optimized ERICA geometries will be compared with the acquired wind tunnel data. Finally, the numerical models already tested and validated will be used for the assessment of the aerodynamic performance of the optimized ERICA fuselage at full scale conditions (Mach = 0.58) including the rotor effects.
Ámbito científico
Convocatoria de propuestas
SP1-JTI-CS-2012-03
Consulte otros proyectos de esta convocatoria
Régimen de financiación
JTI-CS - Joint Technology Initiatives - Clean SkyCoordinador
35137 Padova Pd
Italia