| Abstrakt: |
Understanding the effect of airfoil geometry on the criticality of leading-edge suction is key to modeling the leading-edge vortex (LEV) dynamics of unsteady airfoils in a simple and robust manner. The current work aimed at investigating the dependency of the leading-edge suction parameter (LESP), a nondimensional measure of the leading-edge suction, at its critical value, which is indicative of leading-edge vortex initiation, on airfoil camber. Computational data for six NACA XX12 series airfoils with varying camber magnitude and maximum camber location at Reynolds numbers 30,000 and 3 million were analyzed. Observations indicate that increasing the airfoil camber leads to delayed LEV initiation and suction breakdown due to higher leading-edge flow curvature. The rate of increase of critical LESP with camber was seen to be independent of Reynolds number. Aftward movement of the maximum camber location was seen to have a reducing effect on the airfoil's forces and LEV dynamics. Lift and drag forces were observed to be dependent on camber magnitude and location prior to LEV formation but independent during the LEV-dominated part of the motion. The findings from the current work provide insights into reducing the dependency of the LESP on airfoil geometry. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR] |
