Keywords

actuator disk, vortex particle method, electric propulsion, ducted rotor, distributed propulsion, blown lift, electric ducted propulsion, aerodynamics

Abstract

Blown lift and distributed electric propulsion aircraft pose strong aeropropulsive coupling effects that cannot be ignored during the early stages of design. In this study, we develop an advanced actuator disk model (ADM) for aeropropulsive coupling effects of ducted fans with the vortex particle method (VPM). The advanced ADM consists of (1) an actuator disk at the rotor plane, (2) a surface vortex sheet modeling the mixing and convection of blade tip vorticity along walls, and (3) a powered wake at the exhaust. With these three components, a propulsion jet with an arbitrary velocity profile is formed and interactions with the airframe are captured. The ADM is validated simulating a blown-lift jetfoil, showing its ability to predict the correct velocity field and surface pressures, thus predicting circulation and lift augmentation in upper surface blowing. Finally, we showcase the capabilities enabled by our ADM in a simulation of the Whisper Jet aircraft. The advanced ADM developed in this study unlocks a path for accurately predicting complex aeropropulsive effects through mid-fidelity aerodynamics methods.

Original Publication Citation

Alvarez, E. J., Ahuja, V., Lakshminarayan, V., Perry, A., Anderson, R., Ning, A

Document Type

Conference Paper

Publication Date

2025-1

Publisher

AIAA

Language

English

College

Ira A. Fulton College of Engineering

Department

Mechanical Engineering

University Standing at Time of Publication

Associate Professor

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