A PROJECT REPORT

AERODYNAMIC CHARACTERISATION OF A 2-D FLAPPING WING USING CFD TECHNIQUE

Submitted in partial fulfillment of requirements for the award of the degree of

BACHELOR OF TECHNOLOGY IN AERONAUTICAL ENGINEERING By

G. SHASHANK MD. AHSAN SHARIEF PRIYANKA CHOLLETI SYED MASIUDDIN

07N31A2106 07N31A2115 07N31A2125 07N31A2140

Under the Esteemed Guidance of Mr. V. Malolan St C Advanced Systems Laboratory

DEPARTMENT OF AERONAUTICAL ENGINEERING

MALLA REDDY COLLEGE OF ENGINEERING AND TECHNOLOGY Jawaharlal Nehru Technological University, Hyderabad, AP, 500014, India
APRIL 2011

JAWAHARLAL NEHRU TECHNOLOGICAL UNIVERSITY MALLA REDDY COLLEGE OF ENGINEERING AND TECHNOLOGY HYD- 500014

BONAFIDE CERTIFICATE
This is to certify that the project report entitled Aerodynamic Characterisation of a 2-D Flapping Wing using CFD Technique submitted by

Mr. G. Shashank Mr. Md. Ahsan Sharief Ms. Priyanka Cholleti Mr. Syed Masiuddin
In partial fulfillment of the requirements for the award of the Degree of Bachelor of Technology in AERONAUTICAL ENGINEERING is a bonafide record of the work carried out under our guidance and supervision.

External guide: Mr. V.Malolan Scientist C Advanced Systems Laboratory Min. of Defence, Govt. of India Hyderabad 500 058

Internal guide: Mr. Srinath Valupadasu Department of Aeronautical Engg. Malla Reddy College of Engg & Tech Hyderabad 500 014

Head of Department: T.Tirupati ANE

This project report was evaluated by us on ..

INTERNAL EXAMINER

EXTERNAL EXAMINER

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ACKNOWLEDGEMENT

We first heartily thank our external guide and we are deeply indebted to Mr. V. Malolan, Scientist-C, Defence Research and Development Laboratory (DRDL), Kanchanbagh, Hyderabad-500058. If not for him, we would not have had the great opportunity of undertaking our undergraduate thesis at the organization. He was the impetus in outlining the methods, applications and solutions and giving us constant ideas, resources and suggestions for improvisations. He extended support even before we came to the organization by exchanging e-mails for us amongst his schedule of work. His expertise in the field of Flapping Wing Aerodynamics, laid the foundation for this work. We would like to thank our Principal Mr. V.S.K. Reddy of Malla Reddy College of Engineering and Technology for extending his support throughout our project. We would also like to show appreciation to him for allowing us to undertake this project in such an erudite organization. We wish to convey our deep appreciation and kind regards to out professor and head Mr. T. Tirupati, Aeronautical Engineering; for his constant encouragement and motivation for the successful completion of this project. We express our heartfelt gratitude for enlightening us with his constructive criticism and valuable guidance without which this project would not have been completed successfully. It would not be fair on our part if we fail to thank our parents, who always stand by us in times of need and who greatly helped this work to become a reality.

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DESCRIPTION OF DRDO

Defence Research and Development Organization (DRDO) is a progressive dynamic organization engaged in the pursuit of self-reliance in critical technologies relevant to national security. It comes under the direct control of Ministry of Defence, India. DRDO is responsible to design, develop and lead to production state-of-the-art sensors, weapon systems, platforms and allied equipment for our Defence Services. Also to provide technological solutions to the Services to optimize combat effectiveness and to promote wellbeing of the troops. While developing infrastructure and committed quality manpower and build strong indigenous technology base for the country. DRDO has 52 well-equipped laboratories all over the country which are deeply engaged in developing defence technologies covering various fields, like aeronautics, armaments, electronic and computer sciences along with many others. It is primarily related to Defence areas such as development of rockets and missiles, explosives and so on; engaged in research of new technologies for defence and combat. The development of a missile is performed by the three divisions of DRDO viz. DRDL (Defence Research and Development Laboratory), ASL (Advanced Systems Laboratory) and RCI (Research Center Imarat), which are popularly known as Missile Complex. Each division performs some unique tasks. DRDO has got the credit of producing of five indigenously developed Missile Systems (Agni, Prithvi, Akash, Trishul and Nag).

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DECLERATION
We hereby declare that the entire work embodied in this dissertation entitled AERODYNAMIC CHARACTERISATION OF A 2-D FLAPPING WING USING CFD TECHNIQUE has been carried out by us and no part of this project work has been submitted to any other University or Institution for the award of any graduation or undergraduation degree previously.

Place: Hyderabad Date:

Signature of Student(s) Name(s):

1. G. Shashank 2. Mohammed Ahsan Sharief 3. Priyanka Cholleti 4. Syed Masiuddin

ABSTRACT

Computational fluid dynamics (CFD) is the art of simulating a flow of fluid or gas in a given geometry. A complex set of partial differential equations are solved on in geometrical domain divided into small volumes, commonly known as a mesh (or grid). CFD enables analysts to simulate and understand fluid flows without the help of instruments for measuring various flow variables. In our project, we deal with the flapping wing, which can be considered as an alternative to the propeller. This mode of propulsion has many applications, such as manoeuvring and flow control, unconventional aerodynamics of micro aerial vehicles and the study of aircraft flutter. Flapping foil propulsion is also important in the area of biofluid dynamics for the study of propulsion in insects, birds and certain aquatic animals. The aim of this project is to estimate the aerodynamic coefficients of a rigid flapping wing profile in pitching and plunging manuvers by using a commercial computational fluid dynamics software package. The objective of this project is to examine and quantify the effect of pitching and plunging motions as a key operational parameter on the evolution of thrust, drag, lift and the aerodynamic performance. This leads to a parameter variation study of the flapping frequency for various flight conditions. A combination of these parameters represented by Strouhal Number and its effect on the flapping flight is also studied. For this study, a generated grid and boundary conditions has been set up in Gambit and Fluent. The use of a user-defined function is necessary in order to prescribe the motion of the airfoil.

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Table of Figures
Figure 1: Aerodynamic Forces acting during Flapping Motion...............8 Figure 2: Leading Edge vortex on the wing........................................14 Figure 3: Translations.......................................................................15 Figure 4: Schematic representation of the clap (A-C) and fling (D-F)....16 Figure 5: Three phases of the wing rotation.......................................17 Figure 6: Wing-wake interaction during stroke reversal......................18 Figure 7: Down Stroke......................................................................19 Figure 8: Flight forces for the drosophila during hovering..................21 Figure 9:Frequency an thrust............................................................22 Figure 10: Unstructured mesh in 2D .................................................31 Figure 11: Reference Guide for Dynamic Mesh-Specific DEFINE Macros38 Figure 12: Dynamic Mesh Parameters................................................40 Figure 13: Dynamic Mesh Parameters specifications ..........................41 Figure 14: Dynamic Mesh Zones........................................................42 Figure 15: Fluent Grid Generation.....................................................44 Figure 16: Airfoil gerenrated.............................................................45 Figure 17: Compiled UDFs.................................................................48 Figure 18: Selected Files ..................................................................49 Figure 19: NACA 0012 Profile............................................................52 Figure 20: Computational domain for NACA 0012...............................53 Figure 21 : Rectangular Mesh............................................................54 Figure 22 : Axis................................................................................55 Figure 23: Flow Filled region.............................................................56 Figure 24: Depiction of boundary conditions for fluent analysis..........61 Figure 25: Mesh Model......................................................................63 Figure 26: Nodes, Zones...................................................................64 Figure 27: Data................................................................................64 Figure 28: Displaying the grid of an Airfoil.........................................65 Figure 29: LES..................................................................................66 Figure 30: Solver..............................................................................66 Figure 31: Materials.........................................................................67 Figure 32: Operating Conditions........................................................68

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Nomenclature
NACA WIGE or WIG CL CD h/c L/D SFC H B C CFD U or V y+ k or K or e or w P V u, v, w ij G G.E. SA KE-R KW-SST AoA A CTmean CL CD CPmean c f National Advisory Committee for Aeronautics Wing In Ground Effect Lift coefficient Drag coefficient Height/Chord (Height to Chord Ratio) Aerodynamic efficiency (Lift / Drag) Specific Fuel Consumption Height Span length Chord length Computational Fluid Dynamics Free stream Velocity Dynamic Viscosity Normalized wall-normal distance Turbulent kinetic energy Rate of dissipation of turbulent kinetic energy Turbulence eddy frequency Density Pressure Velocity Velocity component in the x, y, z directions Viscous Stress tensor Gravitational field Ground Effect Spalart Allmaras k- Realizable k- SST Angle of Attack maximum excursion of trailing edge, m time averaged thrust coefficient coefficient of lift coefficient of drag time averaged power coefficient chord, m frequency of oscillation, Hz
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h k St Uo max P o

non-dimensional plunge amplitude reduced frequency, o U fc 2 Strouhal number, o U fA ( kh for pure plunging) free stream velocity, m/s maximum of angle of attack propulsive efficiency phase angle between pitching and plunging motion non-dimensional pitch amplitude

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Table of Contents
Table of Figures................................................................................................vii Nomenclature.................................................................................viii 1. Introduction...................................................................................1 1.1Computational Fluid Dynamics (CFD)............................................................1 1.2Background...................................................................................................1 1.2.1Literature Survey.....................................................................................2 1.2.3 Fluid Dynamics.......................................................................................9 1.2.4 Aerodynamics ......................................................................................10 2. Non-Dimensional Numbers............................................................11 2.1 Reynolds Number.......................................................................................11 2.2 Strohals Number.........................................................................................11 3. Aerodynamics of flapping wings....................................................13 3.1Wagner Effect..............................................................................................13 3.2Leading Edge Vortex....................................................................................13 3.3Clap and Fling Mechanism...........................................................................15 3.4Rotational lift...............................................................................................16 3.5Wing-wake Interaction.................................................................................17 3.6Pitching and Plunging Motion.......................................................................18 3.7Lift force......................................................................................................19 3.8Thrust Generation in Flapping Wing Flight...................................................21 3.8.1Wing Geometries of Natural Flappers....................................................22 4. CFD..............................................................................................23 4.1 Working of CFD...........................................................................................23 4.1.1The Need for CFD..................................................................................23 4.2Applications of CFD......................................................................................24 4.3Basic Principles of CFD................................................................................25 4.4The Main Discretisation Methods.................................................................26 4.5The Strategy of CFD.....................................................................................27 x

4.6Benefits of CFD............................................................................................28 4.7 Explicit and Implicit Approaches.................................................................28 4.8 Overset Grids..............................................................................................30 5. The CFD process using FLUENT 6.3 software..................................32 5.1Pre-processing.............................................................................................32 5.2Solving.........................................................................................................32 5.3Post processing............................................................................................33 6. User-Defined Function (UDF) ........................................................34 6.1Use of UDFs.................................................................................................35 6.2Limitations...................................................................................................36 6.3Defining Your UDF Using DEFINE Macros.....................................................36 6.4DEFINE Macros.............................................................................................37 6.4.1Introduction...........................................................................................37 6.4.2 Dynamic Mesh DEFINE Macros.............................................................38 6.5DEFINE CG MOTION.....................................................................................38 6.5.1Hooking a Center of Gravity Motion UDF to FLUENT..............................39 6.5.2DEFINE CG MOTION...............................................................................40 6.6Process Overview........................................................................................42 6.7 Steps..........................................................................................................43 7. 2D Investigation...........................................................................51 7.1 NACA 0012 ................................................................................................51 7.1.1Experimental Results.............................................................................51 7.1.2Geometry..............................................................................................52 7.1.3Domain..................................................................................................52 7.2Mesh............................................................................................................53 7.2.1Mesh 1...................................................................................................53 7.2.2Other Grids............................................................................................55 7.3Fluent Settings.............................................................................................56 7.3.1Boundary Conditions.............................................................................56

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7.3.2Solver Settings......................................................................................57 7.3.3Energy Equation....................................................................................57 7.3.4Residual Settings...................................................................................57 8. Sizing of Airfoil for Given Parameters............................................58 8.1 Introduction................................................................................................58 8.2 Basic Sizing Planform..................................................................................58 8.3Fluent..........................................................................................................59 8.3.1 Capabilities of FLUENT.........................................................................59 8.4PROBLEM SPECIFICATION............................................................................60 8.5Geometry Meshing......................................................................................62 8.6Setting up Problem in FLUENT.....................................................................63 8.7Results and Discussion................................................................................69 9. Conclusion....................................................................................75 10. Research Areas...........................................................................76

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1. Introduction
1.1 Computational Fluid Dynamics (CFD)

All the mathematical sciences are founded on relations between physical laws and laws of numbers, so that the aim of exact science is to reduce the problems of nature to the determination of quantities by operations with numbers.
James Clerk Maxwell, 1856

Computational fluid dynamics (CFD) is a branch of fluid mechanics that uses numerical methods and algorithms to solve and analyze problems that involve fluid flows. Computers are used to perform the calculations required to simulate the interaction of liquids and gases with surfaces defined by boundary conditions. With highspeed supercomputers, better solutions can be achieved. The fundamental bases of almost all CFD problems are the NavierStokes equations, which define any single-phase fluid flow. These equations can be simplified by removing terms describing viscosity to yield the Euler equations. Further simplification, by removing terms describing vorticity yields the full potential equations. Computational fluid dynamic results are directly analogous to wind tunnel results obtained in a laboratory--they both represent sets of data for given flow configurations at different Mach numbers, Reynolds numbers, etc. However, unlike a wind tunnel, which is generally a heavy, unwieldy device, a computer program (saying the form of floppy disks) is something you can carry around in your hand. Or better yet, a source program in the memory of a given computer can be accessed remotely by people on terminals that can be thousands of miles away from the computer itself. A computer program is, therefore, a readily transportable tool, a "transportable wind tunnel".

1.2

Background
The development of functional micro aerial vehicles (MAVs) within the last several

years has been hindered by a limited understanding of the aerodynamics of small aircraft flying at low speeds. Classical aerodynamic theory provides reasonably accurate performance
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predictions for airplanes flying at Reynolds numbers larger than approximately one million (typically found in full scale aircraft) [5]. The emergence of remotely piloted vehicles for military surveillance missions during the late seventies led to an increase in research of lower Reynolds numbers aerodynamics (in the range below 500,000). Micro aerial vehicles, in contrast, operate at significantly lower speeds and have smaller dimensions; their Reynolds numbers range is approximately 150,000 or lower. In the last five years, ongoing research has revealed the dominant flight mechanisms present at these Reynolds numbers. Nevertheless, a complete analytical or theoretical procedure for predicting low Reynolds number aircraft performance is not yet available.

1.2.1

Literature Survey

Work carried out by Pavaman Bilgi Numerical solutions of the incompressible Navier-Stokes equations have been generated for the transient flow problem of the aerodynamics of a two dimensional pitching wing section using Open FOAM. The wing profile was that of a quasi-elliptical shape and simulations were conducted in the low Reynolds number regime of the order of 200 to 2000 and Strouhal numbers (pitch frequencies) relevant to insect loco motion .The dynamic mesh method used was the General Grid Interface method which proved to be an effective technique to approach the problem both from viewpoint of computational efficiency and ease of implementation. A key advantage of this method was its ability to handle different rotational motion parameters without any modification which other mesh motion methods require. Validation tests and comparison with experimental data show that questions must still be posed as to the accuracy of the method under different rotation speeds and different mesh resolutions at the interface. Domain and mesh resolution studies showed that a mesh of at least 500,000 elements was required for the problem and a domain of at least 15 chord lengths in both the X and Y directions was required for the effects of the boundary conditions imposed to be negligible. Simulations at Re = 500, st= 0.3 and Re = 1500, st= 0.2 with a pitch angle amplitude = 20 were compared to experimental flow visualizations using Digital PIV equipment at the LTRA&C. Vorticity fields showed that the 2D simulations accurately predicted creation of both the leading and trailing edge vorticies including the evolution of those vortices with time.
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Thus, although the flow is in principle three dimensional, the present study shows that two dimensional simulation scan potentially deliver accurate results. The degree of accuracy seemed to vary between test conditions, however and this is a point requiring further experimentation and study. The results of the PIV experiments were extended to include the effects of Reynolds number, Strouhal number and pitch amplitude angle. The variation of the Strouhal number and pitch angle amplitude induced interesting effects on the development and evolution of the leading edge vortex while the Reynolds number had little effect (in the range that was tested). It was found that when the Strouhal number was increased for a fixed Reynolds number and pitch amplitude, the strength of the LEV was significantly increased leading to increasing thrust and lift generation. Increasing the pitch amplitude angle for fixed Reynolds and Strouhal numbers on the other hand also increased vortex strength but also altered vortex movement resulting in the observation of optimal pitch angle amplitude in terms of lift and drag. The above conclusions are a summary of an introductory study into flapping wing flows using Open FOAM. Many complexities of the flow have been identified and no doubt will attract further study in this area. Based on the findings the following questions for further analysis arise: 1. Increasing the distance of the GGI from the wing reduces the error incurred at the GGI but reduces the maximum allowable time-step for computation. Thus, what is the optimum distance of the GGI from the wing? 2. The present study has been performed for a quasi-elliptical cross section with sharp edges. How do the conclusions change (if at all) for differing wing geometries?

Work carried out by Hao Liu, Charles P. Ellington, Keiji Kawachi, Coen Van Den Berg, and Alexander P. Willmott A computational fluid dynamic (CFD) modelling approach is used to study the unsteady aerodynamics of the flapping wing of a hovering hawk moth. We use the geometry of a Manduca sexta-based robotic wing to define the shape of a three-dimensional virtual wing model and hover this wing, mimicking accurately the three dimensional movements of the wing of a hovering hawk moth. Our CFD analysis has established an overall understanding of the viscous and unsteady flow around the flapping wing and of the time course of instantaneous force production, which reveals that hovering flight is dominated by
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the unsteady aerodynamics of both the instantaneous dynamics and also the past history of the wing. A coherent leading-edge vortex with axial flow was detected during translational motions of both the up- and down strokes. The attached leading-edge vortex causes a negative pressure region and, hence, is responsible for enhancing lift production. The axial flow, which is derived from the span wise pressure gradient, stabilizes the vortex and gives it a characteristic spiral conical shape. The leading-edge vortex created during previous translational motion remains attached during the rotational motions of pronation and supination. This vortex, however, is substantially deformed due to coupling between the translational and rotational motions, develops into a complex structure, and is eventually shed before the subsequent translational motion. Estimation of the forces during one complete flapping cycle shows that lift is produced mainly during the down stroke and the latter half of the upstroke, with little force generated during pronation and supination. The stroke plane angle that satisfies the horizontal force balance of hovering is 23.6 , which shows excellent agreement with observed angles of approximately 2025 . The timeaveraged vertical force is 40 % greater than that needed to support the weight of the hawk moth.

Work carried out by K Knowles, P C Wilkins, S A Ansari, R W Zbikowski Recent research on flapping-wing micro air vehicles based on insect-like aerodynamics; combined analytical, experimental and CFD approach is being adopted to understand and design suitable wing aerodynamics and kinematics. The CFD has used the Fluent 6 commercial code together with the grid-generating software Gambit 2; the experiments have been conducted in air and water, using various rigs and techniques. Part of our work has used 2D CFD and linear experiments (in a water tunnel). This has revealed details on vortex stability, the role of Kelvin-Helmholtz instability and Reynolds number effects. 3D CFD on rotating wings and equivalent experiments in a water tank have then been used to investigate the role of span wise flow in the leading-edge vortex. Since FMAVs will operate at relatively low Reynolds numbers (~35000, based on mean chord and peak tip velocity) at which viscous forces might be thought to be dominant, and since FMAV wings are known to experience three dimensional flow effects, the accuracy of Ansaris model when compared to experimental data is surprising. This paper has
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investigated a number of issues related to this. It has been shown for 2D flows that as chord Reynolds numbers increase from O (100) to O (10000) there are instabilities in the vortex sheets shed from leading and trailing edges. These give rise to higher-frequency force fluctuations than are seen in Ansaris model or in low-Reynolds number experiments. The effect of varying wing cross-section has been examined in order to identify important features which may be needed for an optimum cross-section for a successful FMAV. Little effect of cross-section has been identified. We have shown that for 2D flows the leading-edge vortex is unstable for all but the very lowest (< 50) Reynolds numbers. However, stable leadingedge vortices are thought to be a fundamental part of the reason for the high lift forces produced by insect wings. Our CFD results show that a rotating 3D wing at high angle of attack produces a conical leading-edge vortex, as has been seen in physical experiments. The development of this LEV depends on Reynolds number. For lower Reynolds numbers it is stable for all time, with higher Reynolds numbers producing larger LEVs. If Reynolds number is increased above a critical value, Kelvin-Helmholtz instability occurs in the leading-edge vortex sheet, resulting in the sheet breaking down on outboard sections of the wing. However, this breakdown has little effect on the lift produced by the wing, because the LEV does not break away from the wing completely as it does for 2D flows a von Krmn street-like structure is not seen. This is confirmed by physical experiments. The lift produced by a 3D wing is therefore more stable than that produced by a 2D airfoil. Finally, it has also been demonstrated that a rotary wing motion is an essential element in providing a stable LEV. Overall, the successful development of an operational flapping-wing micro air vehicle will depend on major progress in a number of technology areas. In aerodynamics, this paper has shown how an integrated approach, involving aerodynamic modelling, CFD and experimentation is leading to improved understanding of the flapping wing problem and, hence, a wing design capability (covering aerodynamics, wing kinematics and aero-elastics).

1.2.1 Why Flapping Wing Flight? If the most justifiable missions for MAVs are indoors, then a vehicle must be optimized to negotiate constricted spaces that are bounded on all sides, land and take off with minimal ground roll, and circumvent obstacles (e.g., doors). Fixed wing solutions are immediately discounted because they require high forward speed, large wings, or a method for creating circulation over the wings in the absence of fuselage translation. High speed is not conducive to indoor operations because it results in reduced reaction time, especially
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when autonomously navigating through roofed corridors or amid obstacles. When indoors, slower is better. If, on the other hand, the wings are enlarged to decrease wing loading to accommodate slower flight, the vehicle soon loses its distinction as a micro air vehicle. Current wisdom defines a micro air vehicle as having no dimension greater than 15 cm. Even at this scale, the forward speed required for a fixed wing vehicle to efficiently stay aloft violates the criteria for negotiating constricted spaces. Finally, there are methods for creating circulation over the wings in the absence of fuselage translation. This can be done by blowing the surfaces of the wing to increase lift in an intelligent manner by using an internally-generated pressure source. This has been demonstrated in manned aircraft and certain experimental unmanned vehicles, but is typically inefficient unless there is a source of gas pressure already available (such as bleed air from a gas turbine engine). Another way to move air over a wing without fuselage translation is to move the wing relative to the fuselage and the surrounding air. This can be a circular motion as in a helicopter rotor, or it can be a reciprocating motion as in a flapping wing [19]. Both serve to create a relative wind over an airfoil thereby creating lift. A rotor is mechanically simple to spin, but does not use all parts of the wing (rotor) with the same efficiency since the inner section near the rotor hub moves more slowly than the tip. The same thing can be said for a flapping wing where the greatest relative wind is created at the wing tip, and none at the root. A significant advantage of a flapping wing over a rotor is the rigidity of the wider chord wing relative to the high aspect ratio of a narrow rotor blade, and the fact that it can be fixed relative to the fuselage (e.g., non flapping glide) to reclaim potential energy more efficiently than an auto rotating rotor. There is also a stealth advantage of a flapping implementation over a comparably sized rotor design in that the acoustic signature will be less because the average audible energy imparted to the surrounding air by the beating wing is much less than that of a rotor. The amplitude of vortices shed from the tips of the beating wing grows, and then diminishes to zero as the wing goes through its cyclical beat, whereas the rotor tip vortices (which are the primary high frequency sound generator) are constant and of higher local energy. The sound spectrum of a flapping wing will be distributed over a wider frequency band with less energy occurring at any particular frequency, thereby making it less noticeable to the human ear. All the energy of the rotor spectrum will be concentrated in a narrow band that is proportional to the constant rotor tip velocity. As the diameter of a rotor system decreases with the size of the air vehicle design, it
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will become less efficient since the velocity at the tips will decrease while the useless center portion becomes a larger percentage of the entire rotor disk. To compensate for this, the designer will tend to increase the rotation frequency of the rotor to maintain lift for a given fuselage mass and power source. The increased rotation frequency will increase the frequency and energy content of the sound produced. On the other hand, as the wing span of a flapping wing system is decreased, wing beat frequency must similarly be increased to maintain lift for a given fuselage mass, but the spectrum of the sound produced will simply broaden with more energy occurring at higher frequencies. Though the work produced to lift the fuselage mass may be the same as that for the rotorcraft, the energy will be expended over a wider acoustic bandwidth, but unlike the rotorcraft, it will be non-uniformly distributed in the horizontal plane. The net result is that any flapping wing approach will be less noticeable than a rotary wing approach because the sound spectrum produced will approximate wide band white noise rather than a discrete tone. The flapping wing is conducive to slow flight and even hovers. It allows for short take off and landing, and may have advantages over other techniques in terms of its acoustic signature. Again, the issue of size stands out: flapping is more easily mechanized in small vehicles due to scaling laws; for instance it is much easier to make a structure that will support the forces associated with high-frequency flapping if the wing is small. In addition, micro-machined devices, smart materials, and advanced composites all represent new technologies that could make flapping flight more feasible mechanically on small systems.

1.2.2 Basic Features of Flapping Wing Flight

The principles of the flapping flight of all flying creatures realized either by birds or by insects are just the same. The flapping wing has elasticity both along the span and the chord. The elasticity along the span conduces to the smoothness and high effectiveness of the flapping flight. The adaptive elasticity of the wing along the chord makes it possible to achieve a maximum traction in a wide range of frequencies and amplitudes of the flaps. The traction is created by the outer part of the wing while the inner one generates the main part of the lift. When the inner part of the wing is moving upward the outer part lags and bends downward in relation to the inner part because of the air drag and inertial forces. In this way the drag of the wing as a whole diminishes [20]. When the inner part is nearing the up
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position, the elastic forces raising the outer part upward and latter continues to create traction while the reaction aids the inner part and the wing as a whole to pass across the up position and to begin moving downward. The wing elasticity along the chord is such that the wing practically does not bend in gliding-equilibrium position [19]. The direction of the wing flapping motions is not perpendicular to the flight direction but with declination backwards which decrease by increasing of the flight velocity. The wing behaviour and the aerodynamic forces action during a flapping motion are shown on the below. (The lines of the paths at the scheme are projections of the solid)

Figure 1: Aerodynamic Forces acting during Flapping Motion

It is evident from figure that during both the downward and upward motion the outer part of the wing is creating the traction, while the inner part does the lift. In the course of the flapping motions the wing behaviour automatically results from the inherent elasticity of the wing. The inner part of the wing produce lift during the upstroke too, because the flapping motion velocity U is little in comparison with the flight velocity V and the inner part is twisted downwards in equilibrium position. The forces are different (size and direction) in each section of wing and in every moment of cycle of the flapping flight. The air stream of

the flapping wing is fan-shaped and is in dependence from correlation flight velocity/flapping motion velocity for the different sections. The above statement clarifies the flapping flight mechanism. It is important to point out that the mass distribution and the mass/elasticity ratio are of great significance for maximum flapping wing efficiency. The mass / elasticity ratio is distributed over the wing in a way allowing the wing - when bended and then released - to come back to the equilibrium position without vibration. As result the wing bend along the chord only under air resistance but not under inertial forces. This property determinate the way of bending of the wing at the flapping movements, that decides the problems of the mechanics and aerodynamics of the flapping flight.

1.2.3 Fluid Dynamics Fluid dynamics is a sub-discipline of fluid mechanics that deals with fluid flowthe natural science of fluids (liquids and gases) in motion. It has several sub disciplines itself, including aerodynamics (the study of air and other gases in motion) and hydrodynamics (the study of liquids in motion). Fluid dynamics has a wide range of applications, including calculating forces and moments on aircraft, pipelines, and determining predicting reportedly modelling the mass fission flow weapon rate of petroleum through weather patterns,

understanding nebulae in interstellar space as a continuous fluid.

detonation. Some of its principles are even used in traffic engineering, where traffic is treated

Fluid dynamics offers a systematic structure that underlies these practical disciplines, that embraces empirical and semi-empirical laws derived from flow measurement and used to solve practical problems. The solution to a fluid dynamics problem typically involves calculating various properties of the fluid, such as velocity, pressure, density, and temperature, as functions of space and time [16].

Historically, hydrodynamics meant something different than it does today. Before the twentieth century, hydrodynamics was synonymous with fluid dynamics. This is still reflected to, gases. in names of some fluid dynamics topics, like magneto hydrodynamics and hydrodynamic stabilityboth also applicable in, as well as being applied

1.2.4 Aerodynamics Aerodynamics is a branch of dynamics concerned with studying the motion of air, particularly when it interacts with a moving object. Aerodynamics is a subfield of fluid dynamics and gas dynamics, with much theory shared between them. Aerodynamics is often used synonymously with gas dynamics, with the difference being that gas dynamics applies to all gases. Understanding the motion of air (often called a flow field) around an object enables the calculation of forces and moments acting on the object. Typical properties calculated for a flow field include velocity, pressure, density and temperature as a function of position and time. By defining a control volume around the flow field, equations for the conservation of mass, momentum, and energy can be defined and used to solve for the properties. The use of aerodynamics through mathematical analysis, empirical approximations, wind tunnel experimentation, and computer simulations form the scientific basis for heavier-than-air flight. Aerodynamic problems can be identified in a number of ways. The flow environment defines the first classification criterion. External aerodynamics is the study of flow around solid objects of various shapes. Evaluating the lift and drag on an airplane or the shock waves that form in front of the nose of a rocket are examples of external aerodynamics. Internal aerodynamics is the study of flow through passages in solid objects. For instance, internal aerodynamics encompasses the study of the airflow through a jet engine or through an air conditioning pipe.

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2. Non-Dimensional Numbers 2.1 Reynolds Number

Early investigations into the theory of fluid dynamics have predicted a certain number of constants to which similar disturbances (and an airfoil in the air is a disturbance) produce similar effects - in hydrodynamics, these are referred to as Froude Numbers (hulls of boats); in high speed aerodynamics the Mach Number are other examples. For our smaller and slower aircraft, the only "number" which really needs to be considered is the "Reynolds Number" and it is defined as:

Where: V = Relative speed (m/sec) L = typical "length" of a solid body (M)

= cinematic viscosity of the air (sec/m2)

Re is a dimensionless number, which makes it independent of the measuring systems. The cinematic viscosity is to a certain extent dependent on the density of the air, but for our aircraft flying below 12,000 ft, it can be assumed constant (equivalent to 15 x 106 sec/m2 in metric) it is the ratio of fluid inertial and viscous forces. [8]

2.2 Strohals Number

In dimensional analysis, the Strouhal number is a dimensionless number describing oscillating flow mechanisms. The parameter is named after Vincenc Strouhal, a Czech physicist who experimented in 1878 with wires experiencing vortex shedding. The Strouhal number is an integral part of the fundamentals of fluid mechanics. The Strouhal number is often given as

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Where St is the dimensionless Strouhal number, f is the frequency of vortex shedding, L is the characteristic length (for example hydraulic diameter) and V is the velocity of the fluid. In our case amplitude is taken in the place of length as the parameter is analogical to length itself. For large Strouhal numbers (order of 1), viscosity dominates fluid flow, resulting in a collective oscillating movement of the fluid "plug". For low Strouhal numbers (order of 10 4 and below), the high-speed, quasi steady state portion of the movement dominates the oscillation. Oscillation at intermediate Strouhal numbers is characterized by the buildup and rapidly subsequent shedding of vortices. For spheres in uniform flow in the Reynolds number range of 800 < Re < 200,000 there co-exist two values of the Strouhal number. The lower frequency is attributed to the large-scale instability of the wake and is independent of the Reynolds number Re and is approximately equal to 0.2. The higher frequency Strouhal number is caused by small-scale instabilities from the separation of the shear layer. Non-dimensional frequency, continuous and pulsating flow

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3. Aerodynamics of flapping wings

Compared to fixed wing, light flapping of wings induce, in general, different aerodynamic phenomena. Most of the air flow is turbulent and due to permanently changed wing position and orientation, more the unsteady aerodynamics has to be considered. Because this information could be of use for the development of a flapping wing mechanism, here the main aerodynamics phenomena of flapping wings are described.

3.1

Wagner Effect
When a wing with a high angle of attack starts suddenly to move, the air flow

vortices do not immediately get their steady state value. The circulation slowly approaches to it. This delay results in a combination of two phenomena. Firstly the fluid is not perfect, meaning it has a viscous behaviour on the stagnation point and so it takes some time to establish the Kutta condition. Also during the process the vorticity is generated and again shed at the trailing edge, while this shed vorticity forms a starting vortex; the velocity field near the wing, which is induced by the shed vorticity at the trailing edge counteracts to the bounding of the vortex to the wing. Only when the starting vortex has moved enough far away of the trailing edge, the moved wing gets its maximum circulation. This slow development of circulation was first proposed by Wagner in 1925 and so is called as the Wagner effect [24]. Unlike the other unsteady mechanisms described below, this effect is not as strong. Especially at Reynolds numbers, which are typically for small birds or insects it can be neglected for flapping wings. However for more detailed studies of the aerodynamics, it is still considered.

3.2

Leading Edge Vortex

One of the most important effects for flapping wing flight is the leading edge vortex

(LEV), which is created at high angles of attack. Operating the wing at a high angle of attack leads for a steady flow regime to flow separation and stall. However in unsteady flow, the
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created vortex at the leading edge stays attached to the wing for a great part of the down stroke. This attached vortex induces a velocity downwards and so increases the lift force as shown. Only when the vorticity of the leading edge vortex gets too large, the flow is not reattached before the trailing edge anymore and a trailing edge vortex is formed, where the wing is in state similar to stall, which results in a sudden drop of lift.

Figure 2: Leading Edge vortex on the wing Thick black lines indicate the downwash due to the generated vortex system.

This described behaviour, for a two-dimensional wing motion, is called dynamic or delayed stall. The evolution of the leading edge vortex for a translating wing starting from rest is shown in the below figure. For the three-dimensional case as shown in figure, the leading edge vortex is more stable and no trailing edge vortex forms. Several different studies try to explain the stability of the formed leading edge vortex, which is only present for the three-dimensional case. But still newer studies show, that the LEV has long been underestimated and is far more complex than assumed so far.

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Figure 3: Translations

3.3

Clap and Fling Mechanism

Another phenomenon is the clap and fling mechanism showed in figure below. Here

the wings come together at the end of each upstroke to perform a so called clap. After the clap the trailing edges of the wings stay connected, while the leading edges are increasing their distance to each other, which is called as fling, so an opening angle is created. When the wings then start their down stroke, air is sucked into this funnel-like geometry, which induces a bound vortex at the leading edge of each of the wings, and each created vortex acts as a starting vortex for the other wing. As described by Weis-Fogh this annihilation allows the circulation to be built up more rapidly, because the Wagner effect is suppressed. Another advantage of the clap is that the created vortices during upstroke are vanishing during the clap; they cancel each other out as they are oriented in opposite direction. Many insects make use of the fling to create a rotational air flow circulation, while the clap is not performed by all insects. According to Ellington the clap is avoided by most of the insects because the permanent clapping can damage the wings and more an almost clap is performed. Also for birds similar observations were made, for instance during the takeoff of pigeons. Although no full clap and fling is performed, the wings almost touch each other at the back and it is

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assumed, that in this way similar air circulations are produced, which give additional lift [23].

Figure 4: Schematic representation of the clap (A-C) and fling (D-F) Black lines show trajectory of the air flow, dark blue arrows represent the by the air flow induced velocity, light blue arrow shows the net force on the airfoil.

3.4

Rotational lift
Near the end of every stroke mainly insects but also some small birds (e.g.

hummingbirds) are rotating their wings, which allows maintaining a positive angle of attack during the whole wing beat cycle. The three different phases are shown in figure. The angles of attack during down stroke and upstroke are alpha (d) and alpha (u) respectively. Omega indicates the angular velocity. This rotation at the end of each stroke, also gives additional lift. According to Dickinson the generated lift force strongly depends on the position of the rotation axis. For instance rotations about the trailing edge show a better lift generation compared to rotations about the leading edge for instance. Also the timing of the rotation has an effect on the produced lift, which is analyzed for instance.
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Figure 5: Three phases of the wing rotation.

3.5

Wing-wake Interaction
The back and forth motion of the wings used by insects make the wings interact with

the shed vorticity of the prior strokes, which acts positively on the lift generation. Figure shows the principle of wake capture. At the end of the translational phase (A), the wing starts the rotation (B), which causes the vortices at the edges to shed of the wing (C). This induces a strong velocity field, which pushes against the wing (D) and so increases the lift force at the beginning of the next half stroke (E). In the following translational phase, again a LEV is created (F). This wing wake interaction also allows to let the pitch motion of the wing done passively, as this additional lift, at the beginning of the stroke, rotates the wing to the desired orientation, to maintain a positive angle of attack.

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Figure 6: Wing-wake interaction during stroke reversal

U infinity indicates the free stream velocity; dark blue arrows show the induced velocity field, light blue arrows presents the aerodynamic force.

3.6

Pitching and Plunging Motion

The plunging and pitching motion form a rotational phase. As the up stroke reverses

to the down stroke at the rear of the body, the wing quickly rotates, causing the lower surface of the wing to now become the upper surface. This direction reversal gives the wing a constant leading edge and a positive angle of attack in both half strokes, providing a more efficient flapping motion. Pronation and supination are the terms used to describe the down stroke and up stroke reversals respectively. The plunging motion is given by the wing rotating upward at the end of the up stroke and then down during the down stroke to give a figure eight pattern. This process can be used to control different types of motion. While hovering, the half strokes give close to sinusoidal motion. Horizontal motion is made possible by creating an asymmetry between the up and down strokes and by altering the stroke plane. Forward motion is achieved by increasing the length of the down strokes relative to the up strokes as well as inclining the
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stoke plane of the wings towards the front of the body. Yaw is controlled by creating an asymmetry between left and right wing up and down strokes.

3.7

Lift force
An airplane wing produces lift by moving forward through the air. This force, called

lift, is what keeps the airplane from falling to the ground. The special shape of the wing, combined with the slight upward angle of the wing, causes air to be deflected downward. There is more pressure on the bottom of the wing than there is on the top. This difference in pressure produces lift. That the force produced is not perfectly straight up. There is some drag which tries to hold the airplane back. It is counteracted by the propeller. Birds flap their wings up and down. This motion is added to the forward motion of the birds body, so really the wings move diagonally. They move down and forward during the down stroke, and they move up and forward during the upstroke.

Figure 7: Down Stroke

The down stroke is what keeps the bird going. The wing acts just like an airplane wing, but since its moving at an angle, the force it produces is at an angle too. The wing produces lift, to keep the bird up in the air, and it also produces thrust, to keep the bird moving forward. Thats why birds dont need propellers. The outer part of the wing has a lot of downward movement, but the inner part near the birds body simply moves forward along with the bird. Since the downward motion is greater toward the wingtips, the wing has to twist so that each part of the wing is aligned correctly with the local movement of the wing.
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The upstroke is different from the down stroke, and its function can vary. In general, the upstroke produces lift by relying on the forward motion of the bird through the air. The inner part of the wing, near the body, produces most of the lift. The outer part of the wing, because of its sharp upward motion, can only hinder the birds flight. Birds solve this problem by partially folding their wings [14]. The lift force is produced by the four unsteady effects described above. The most important one is the LEV, because it is the only one, which is responsible for lift during the flapping, the translational phases of the strokes. The other three effects enhance the lift production mainly during the rotational phases. In the figure an example of the generated lift force is shown. During hovering, the horizontal component of the red arrows in figure, cancel out during one whole stroke cycle. The vertical component equals the body weight. Of course the wings play also an important role for the produced lift force. Like for fixed wing aircraft, the wing profile determines lift and drag coefficients (C L & CD). However for flapping flight, these also differ. For a steady state flow regime, like for fixed wing aircraft, these two coefficients can be determined independently from each other. For an unsteady flow field they cannot be separated anymore. Flapping flight is usually performed with a high angle of attack, to get the above described LEV, which induces a force normal to the wing surface. Hence the resultant force is drag- and lift force in one hand. Therefore to have a similar description as for fixed wing flight Dickinson defined a circulatory coefficient, which can be merged out of the usual drag and lift coefficient.

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Figure 8: Flight forces for the drosophila during hovering The red arrows indicate the net forces during down- and upstroke.

3.8

Thrust Generation in Flapping Wing Flight

In natural flyers, it has been shown that insects take advantage of unsteady

aerodynamic phenomena to generate thrust. The generation of thrust can be broken into 4 parts:

First, on the down stroke the wing translates with a fixed collective pitch angle, next near the end of the down stroke, the wing turns so that the blade angle of attack is positive on the upstroke, third is the actual upstroke when the angle of attack is still positive. Fourth is the end of the upstroke/beginning of the down stroke when the wings angle of attack changes from positive to negative.

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Figure shows the lift and thrust generation with respect to the phase of a flapping airfoil. The wing starts at a point, labelled as 18, and then proceeds to complete one full flap (traveling 360) and returning to its starting position. From Figure 2.3, it can be seen that thrust is almost always being generated, but positive lift forces occur primarily on the down stroke. The generation of thrust is also a direct function of flapping frequency. Delaurier et al have shown that as the flapping frequency increases, so does the average thrust generated.

Figure 9:Frequency an thrust

3.8.1

Wing Geometries of Natural Flappers

Part of this research involved designing a wing to be used in the flapping experiments, and therefore was helpful to observe the various types of wings natural flyers have developed. Based on the information found on wing geometries of natural flyers, a decision could be made as to which one to imitate in this report. Birds, insects and bats were studied; once a particular natural flyer was selected, the wings could be studied in more detail, and a simplified version could be constructed for testing purposes. Avian wings were the first kinds of wings studied in the quest to design flight vehicles. In designing wings for fixed wing aerial vehicles engineers used relatively thin airfoils, as those found in birds. Studies conducted on a seagull wing have shown that the wing has two regions of different flexibilities. The wing consists of a stiffer section closer to the root, and has higher flexibility closer to the tip [21].

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4. CFD
4.1 Working of CFD
Computational - having to do with mathematics, computing

Fluid Dynamics - the dynamics of things that flow

CFD - a computational technology that enables to study the dynamics of things that flow. Using CFD, one can build a computational model that represents a system or device that one wants to study. Then apply the fluid flow physics and chemistry to this virtual prototype, and the software will output a prediction of the fluid dynamics and related physical phenomena. Therefore, CFD is a sophisticated computationally-based design and analysis technique. CFD software gives the power to simulate flows of gases and liquids, heat and mass transfer, moving bodies, multiphase physics, chemical reaction, fluid- structure interaction and acoustics through computer modelling. Using CFD software, one can build a 'virtual prototype' of the system or device that to analyze and then apply real-world physics and chemistry to the model, and the software will provide with images and data, which predict the performance of that design [1].

4.1.1

The Need for CFD

Applying the fundamental laws of mechanics to a fluid gives the governing equations for a fluid. The conservation of mass equation and conservation of momentum equation along with the conservation of energy equation form a set of coupled, nonlinear partial differential equations. It is not possible to solve these equations analytically for most engineering problems. However, it is possible to obtain approximate computer-based solutions to the governing equations for a variety of engineering problems. This is the subject matter of Computational Fluid Dynamics (CFD).

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4.2

Applications of CFD

Biomedical

Flow modelling with computational fluid dynamics (CFD) software lets you visualize and predict physical phenomena related to the flow of any substance. It is widely used in medical, pharmaceutical, and biomedical applications to analyze: Manufacturing processes, Device performance, Physiological flows, Fluid-structure interactions, The effectiveness of drug delivery systems, etc.

Electronics

Ansys provides a full spectrum of problem solving products for the electronics industry. The Ansys' flagship CFD software, ANSYS-FLUENT, as well as the electronics industry custom-designed ANSYS-ICEPAK suite, offer high-performance electronics cooling solutions covering a wide range of real life problems on any level:

Component, Board, Package, System. Defense

Defense industries is the premier area of application of CFD, being the second domain (after automotive) to be "penetrated" by CFD. Our customers are engineers first and foremost. CFD is their flow modelling tool of choice. Many had never used CFD before their first successful analyses with ANSYS-FLUENT.

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 Industrial To meet the vast fluid flow modeling needs of a broad spectrum of industries around the world, Ansys has been at the forefront of developing and driving computational fluid dynamics (CFD) for more than two decades. Diverse modeling capabilities allow Ansys' software products to tackle problems from most major industry sectors. Environmental Protecting and improving the quality of our environment today requires innovative design solutions that establish compliance with ever-expanding and more stringent regulations. Flow modeling with Ansys' computational fluid dynamics (CFD) software helps you tackle your environmental flow problems in the most efficient and cost-effective way. Civil Within the built environment, it is critical to assess a number of important building characteristics at the design stage, including the ability to improve the energy efficiency of a building, quantify solar radiation effects, analyze wind flow effects, study possible fire and smoke hazard scenarios, and predict occupant comfort.

4.3

Basic Principles of CFD

The approximation of a continuously-varying quantity in terms of values at a finite

number of points is called discretisation. The fundamental elements of any CFD simulation are:
(1) The flow field is discretised; i.e. field variables (u, v, w, p ) are approximated by

their values at a finite number of nodes.

(2) The equations of motion are discretised (approximated in terms of values at nodes):

control-volume or differential equations algebraic equations (continuous and discrete) (3) The resulting system of algebraic equations is solved to give values at the nodes.

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CFD consists of different stages; as the problem is passed from one stage to the next, the solution becomes more clear and precise. The output is shown as how required by the user. The main stages in a CFD simulation are:
Pre-processing: In this stage the problem is formulated which means the specifics are

entered and the way it is to be solved is also given by the user. The governing equations and the boundary conditions are mentioned in this stage so that as the solution progresses it knows what factors it must include. The computational mesh is also created in this stage. This is a very important step during CFD simulation. If the mesh is properly defined and its elements are many then the solution to be retrieved can be expected to be exact. The finer a mesh is the more accurate the results tend to be. Creating a mesh is difficult as the user needs to know the different elements available to use and which would fit accordingly.

Solving: The next stage in the CFD processes; here the governing equations which

were entered are discretised first so that they can be solved. These governing equations are then numerically solved by various methods available.

Post-processing: The final stage consists of visualizing the solution required. This

can be seen in the form of graphs which plot various characteristics or if a dynamic mesh is used then a animation sequence may show the result of the flow. The results are analyzed and continuous curves can be seen.

4.4

The Main Discretisation Methods

Finite-Difference Method Discretise the governing differential equations directly.

Finite-Volume Method Discretise the governing control-volume equations directly, FiniteElement Method Express the solution as a weighted sum of shape functions S (x), substitute into some form of the governing equations and solve for the coefficients (degrees of freedom

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or weights). The finite-element method is popular in solid mechanics (geotechnics, structures) because it has considerable geometric flexibility. The finite-volume method is popular in fluid mechanics because: it rigorously enforces conservation; it is flexible in terms of both geometry and the variety of fluid phenomena; it is directly relatable to physical quantities (mass flux, etc). In the finite-volume method (1) Flow geometry is defined. (2) The flow domain is decomposed into a set of control volumes or cells called a computational mesh or grid. (3) The control-volume equations are discretised i.e. approximated in terms of values at nodes to form a set of algebraic equations. (4) The discretised equations are solved numerically.

4.5

The Strategy of CFD

Broadly, the strategy of CFD is to replace the continuous problem domain with a

discrete domain using a grid. In the continuous domain, each flow variable is defined at every point in the domain. In the discrete domain, each flow variable is defined only at the grid points. In a CFD solution, one would directly solve for the relevant flow variables only at the grid points. The values at other locations are determined by interpolating the values at the grid points. The governing partial differential equations and boundary conditions are defined in terms of the continuous variables p, V, etc. One can approximate these in the discrete domain in terms of the discrete variables p, I, V, etc. The discrete system is a large set of coupled, algebraic equations in the discrete variables. Setting up the discrete system and solving it (which is a matrix inversion problem) involves a very large number of repetitive calculations, a task we humans palm over to the digital computer. This idea can be extended to any general problem domain.

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4.6

Benefits of CFD
CFD is a tool for predicting as to what would happen under a given set of

circumstances. It can answer May 'what if?' question on a very quickly. It helps to develop deeper technical knowledge how and understanding of the flow within any equipment. CFD helps us to reduce the design and development cycle. Any process or equipment design involves optimization for various design parameters. The cost of testing prototype for all parameters can be prohibitive. CFD helps to simulate flow characteristics and related phenomenon (temperature distribution, for instance) of various design option on a computer to arrive a fewer design options. This reduces physical testing and design cycle time, leading to save in man hours and operating costs the insight and understanding gained from CFD simulation give added confidence to design proposals at reduced risk, avoiding the need to design by over-sizing and over-specification. CFD helps understand and diagnose the defect mechanism in a process and assists in a correcting them. When faced with malfunctioning or insufficient equipments, CFD helps identify the cause, evaluate various solutions and arrive at a redesign quickly. Resulting improvements are implemented with minimal downtime and lesser risk. In addition, CFD modelling is a non-intrusive toll that can provide insight into fluid flow problems that would be too costly or physically prohibitive to explore by experiment technique alone, especially in hospitable environments like furnace and reactors.

4.7 Explicit and Implicit Approaches

The way that the numerical tools are put together and used for a given solution can be called a CFD technique. Once you choose a specific technique to solve your given problem, you will find that the technique falls into one or the other of two different general approaches, an explicit approach or an implicit approach. It is appropriate to introduced and define these two general approaches now; they represent a fundamental distinction between various numerical techniques, a distinction for which we need to have. Explicit approach: In an explicit approach each difference equation contains only one unknown and therefore can be solved explicitly for this unknown in a straightforward
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manner. They are relatively simple to set up and program. But a disadvantage would be that for a given x, t, they must be less than some limit imposed by stability constraints. In some cases, t must be very small to maintain stability; this can result in long computer running times to make calculations over a given interval of t. Implicit approach: An implicit approach is one where the equations applied at all the grid, points arrayed at a given time level. Here stability can be maintained over much larger values of t, hence using considerable fewer time steps to make calculations over a given interval of t. This results in less computer time. However it is more complicated to set up and program. And also since massive matrix manipulations are usually required at each time step, the computer time per time step is much larger than in the explicit approach. Since large t can be taken, the truncation error is large, and the use of implicit methods to follow the exact transients (time variations of the independent variable) may not be as accurate as an explicit approach. However, for a time-dependent solution in which the steady state is the desired result, this relative time wise inaccuracy is not important. The method of deriving the discrete equation using Taylors series expansions is called the finite-difference method. However, most commercial CFD codes use the finitevolume or finite-element methods which are better suited for modelling flow past complex geometries. For example, the FLUENT code uses the finite-volume method whereas ANSYS uses the finite-element method. In a general situation, one would apply the discrete equations to the grid points (or cells in the finite-volume method) in the interior of the domain. For grid points (or cells) at or near the boundary, one would apply a combination of the discrete equations and boundary conditions. In the end, one would obtain a system of simultaneous algebraic equations with the number of equations being equal to the number of independent discrete variables. The process is essentially the same as for the model equation above with the details being much more complex. FLUENT, like other commercial CFD codes, offers a variety of boundary condition options such as velocity inlet, pressure inlet, pressure outlet, etc. It is very important that you specify the proper boundary conditions in order to have a well-defined problem. Also, read through the documentation for a boundary condition option to understand what it does before you use it. A single wrong boundary condition can give you a totally wrong result.

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A lot of work goes into optimizing the matrix inversion in order to minimize the CPU time and memory required. The matrix to be inverted is sparse i.e. most of the entries in it are zeros since the discrete equation at a grid point or cell will contain only quantities at the neighbouring points or cells; verify that this is indeed the case for our matrix system. A CFD code would store only the non-zero values to minimize memory usage. It would also generally use an iterative procedure to invert the matrix; the longer one iterates, the closer one gets to the true solution for the matrix inversion.

4.8 Overset Grids

A common difficulty in simulating complex fluid flow problems is that not every geometry can be well represented using a single, contiguous (structured or unstructured) grid. In many cases, different geometrical features are best represented by different grid types. One approach these difficulties is the construction of a grid system made up of blocks of overlapping structured grids. This technique is referred to as the Chimera or overset grid approach. In a full Chimera grid system, a complex geometry is decomposed into a system of geometrically simple overlapping grids. Boundary information is exchanged between these grids via interpolation of the flow variables, and many grid points may not be used in the solution (these points are sometimes called hole points). Each block has boundary or fringe points, which lie in the interior of a neighbouring block (or blocks) and will require information from that containing block. The data that must be generated to successfully complete a Chimera-type calculation is not insignificant, and thus has been automated to a high degree. In very general terms, there are three steps to setting up an overset simulation: Grid generation. Hole cutting Determination of interpolation weights In some systems, one or more (or all) of these steps may be combined. Finally, while the Chimera technique is most often associated with traditional finite volume/difference CFD codes, it can in principle be applied with other discretization schemes.

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The simplest algorithms directly compute nodal placement from some given function. These algorithms are referred to as algebraic algorithms. Many of the algorithms for the generation of structured meshes are descendents of "numerical grid generation" algorithms, in which a differential equation is solved to determine the nodal placement of the grid. In many cases, the system solved is an elliptic system, so these methods are often referred to as elliptic methods. An unstructured grid is a tessellation of a part of the Euclidean plane by simple shapes, such as triangles or tetrahedra, in an irregular pattern. Grids of this type may be used in finite element analysis (FEM) when the input to be analyzed has an irregular shape. It is difficult make general statements about unstructured mesh generation algorithms because the most prominent methods are very different in nature. The most popular family of algorithms are those based upon triangulation, but other methods, such as quadtree/octree approaches are also used.

Figure 10: Unstructured mesh in 2D

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5. The CFD process using FLUENT 6.3 software

5.1 Pre-processing
This is the first step in building and analyzing a flow model. It includes building the model within a computer-aided design (CAD) package, creating and applying a suitable computational mesh, and entering the flow boundary conditions and fluid materials properties. CAD geometries are easily imported and adapted for CFD solutions in GAMBIT, Fluents own pre-processor. 3D solid modelling options in GAMBIT allow for straightforward geometry construction as well as high quality geometry translation. Among a wide range of geometry tools, Boolean operators provide a simple way of getting from a CAD solid to a fluid domain. A state-of-the-art set of cleanup and conditioning tools prepares the model for meshing. GAMBIT's unique curvature and proximity based "size function" produces a correct and smooth CFD-type mesh throughout the model. Together with boundary layer technology, a number of volumetric meshing schemes produce the right mesh for any application. Parametric variations are also inherent to the process.

5.2

Solving
The CFD solver does the flow calculations and produces the results. FLUENT is

used in most industries. The FLUENT CFD code has extensive interactivity, so one can make changes to the analysis at any time during the process. This saves time and enables to refine ones design more efficiently. Graphical user interface (GUI) is intuitive, which helps to shorten the learning curve and make the modelling process faster. It is also easy to
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customize physics and interface functions to specific needs. In addition, FLUENT's adaptive and dynamic mesh capability is unique among CFD vendors and works with a wide range of physical models. This capability makes it possible and simple to model complex moving objects in relation to flow. One can accurately simulate real-world conditions, including:

multiphase flows reacting flows rotating equipment moving and deforming objects turbulence radiation acoustics dynamic meshing The FLUENT solver has repeatedly proven to be fast and reliable for a wide range of CFD applications. The speed to solution is faster because suite of software enables to stay within one interface from geometry building through the solution process, to post processing and final output. FLUENT's performance has been tried and proven on a variety of multiplatform clusters.

5.3

Post processing
This is the final step in CFD analysis, and it involves the organization and interpretation

of the predicted flow data and the production of CFD images and animations. All of Fluent's software products include full post processing capabilities. Post processing tools enable to provide several levels of reporting, so one can satisfy the needs and interests of all the

33

stakeholders in design process. Quantitative data analysis can be as sophisticated as required. High- resolution images and animations help to tell story in a quick and impactful manner. In addition, FLUENT CFD solutions are easily coupled with structural codes such as ABAQUS, MSC and ANSYS, as well as to other engineering process simulation tools.

6. User-Defined Function (UDF)

A user-defined function, or UDF, is a function that you program that can be dynamically loaded with the FLUENT solver to enhance the standard features of the code. UDFs are written in the C programming language. They are defined using DEFINE macros that are supplied by Fluent Inc. They access data from the FLUENT solver using predefined macros and functions also supplied by Fluent Inc. Every UDF contains the udf.h file inclusion directive (#include "udf.h") at the beginning of the source code file, which allows definitions for DEFINE macros and other Fluent-provided macros and functions to be included during the compilation process. UDFs are executed as either interpreted or compiled functions in FLUENT. Values that are passed to the solver by a UDF or returned by the solver to a UDF must be specified in SI units. In summary, UDFs: Are written in the C programming language. Must have an include statement for the udf.h file. Must be defined using DEFINE macros supplied by Fluent Inc. access FLUENT solver data using predefined macros and functions supplied by Fluent Inc. are executed as interpreted or compiled functions. Must have all values returned to the FLUENT solver specified in SI units. User-defined functions can perform a variety of tasks in FLUENT. They can return a value unless they are defined as void in the udf.h file. If they do not return a value, they can

34

modify an argument, modify a variable not passed as an argument, or perform I/O tasks with case and data files. In summary, UDFs can: Return a value. Modify an argument. Return a value and modify an argument. Modify a FLUENT variable (not passed as an argument). Write information to (or read information from) a case or data file.

UDFs are written in C using any text editor and the source file is saved with a .c file extension. Source files typically contain a single UDF, but they can contain multiple, concatenated functions. Source files can be either interpreted or compiled in FLUENT.

For interpreted UDFs, source files (e.g., pressure profile.c) are interpreted and loaded directly at runtime, in a single-step process. For compiled UDFs, the process involves two separate steps. A shared object code library is first built and then it is loaded into FLUENT. Once interpreted or compiled, UDFs will become visible and selectable in FLUENT graphics panels, and can be hooked to a solver by choosing the function name in the appropriate panel.

6.1

Use of UDFs
UDFs allow you to customize FLUENT to fit your particular modelling needs. UDFs

can be used for a variety of applications, some of which are listed below: Customization of boundary conditions, material property definitions, surface and volume reaction rates, source terms in FLUENT transport equations, source terms in userdefined scalar (UDS) transport equations, diffusivity functions, etc. Adjustment of computed values on a once-per-iteration basis.

35

 Initialization of a solution. Asynchronous execution of a UDF (on demand) Post-processing enhancement. Enhancement of existing FLUENT models (e.g., discrete phase model, multiphase mixture model, discrete ordinates radiation model)

6.2

Limitations
Although the UDF capability in FLUENT can address a wide range of applications, it

is not possible to address every application using UDFs. Not all solution variables or FLUENT models can be accessed by UDFs. Specific heat values, for example, cannot be modified; this would require additional solver capabilities.

6.3

Defining Your UDF Using DEFINE Macros

UDFs are defined using Fluent-supplied function declarations. These function

declarations are implemented in the code as macros, and are referred to in this document as DEFINE (all capitals) macros. Definitions for DEFINE macros are contained in the udf.h header file.

The general format of a DEFINE macro is DEFINE_MACRONAME(udf_name, passed-in variables) where the first argument in the parentheses is the name of your UDF. Name arguments are case-sensitive and must be specified in lowercase. The name that you choose for your UDF will become visible and selectable in drop-down lists in FLUENT, once the function has been interpreted or compiled. The second set of input arguments to the DEFINE macro are variables that are passed into your function from the FLUENT solver.
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For example, the macro DEFINE_PROFILE(inlet_x_velocity, thread, index) Defines a profile function named inlet x velocity with two variables, thread and index, that are passed into the function from FLUENT. These passed-in variables are the boundary condition zone ID (as a pointer to the thread) and the index identifying the variable that is to be stored. Once the UDF has been compiled, its name (e.g., inlet x velocity) will become visible and selectable in drop-down lists in the appropriate boundary condition panel (e.g., Velocity Inlet panel) in FLUENT. Note that all of the arguments to a DEFINE macro need to be placed on the same line in your source code. Splitting the DEFINE statement onto several lines will result in a compilation error.

6.4

DEFINE Macros
6.4.1 Introduction

DEFINE macros have been grouped into the following five categories: General solver Model-specific Multiphase Dynamic mesh model Discrete phase model (DPM) For each of the DEFINE macros listed, a source code example of a UDF that uses it is provided, where available. Definitions for all DEFINE macros are contained in the udf.h header file.

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Note that all of the arguments to a DEFINE macro need to be placed on the same line in your source code. Splitting the DEFINE statement onto several lines will result in a compilation error.

6.4.2

Dynamic Mesh DEFINE Macros

This contains descriptions of DEFINE macros that you can use to define UDFs that control the behaviour of a dynamic mesh. Note that dynamic mesh UDFs that are defined using DEFINE CG MOTION, DEFINE GEOM, and DEFINE GRID MOTION can only be executed as compiled UDFs. The table below provides a quick reference guide to the dynamic mesh DEFINE macros, the functions they define, and the panels where they are activated in FLUENT. Definitions of each DEFINE macro are contained in the udf.h header file. DEFINE CG MOTION DEFINE GEOM DEFINE GRID MOTION

Figure 11: Reference Guide for Dynamic Mesh-Specific DEFINE Macros

6.5

DEFINE CG MOTION

Description: You can use the DEFINE CG MOTION macro to specify the motion of a particular dynamic zone in FLUENT by providing FLUENT with the linear and angular velocities at
38

every time step. FLUENT uses these velocities to update the node positions on the dynamic zone based on solid-body motion. Note that UDFs that are defined using DEFINE CG MOTION can only be executed as compiled UDFs.

Usage:

Macro:

DEFINE CG MOTION (name, dt, vel, omega, time,dtime)

Argument types:

Dynamic Thread *dt realvel[] real omega[] real time realdtime

Function returns:

void

There are six arguments to DEFINE CG MOTION: name, dt, vel, omega, time, and dtime. You will supply name, the name of the UDF. dt, vel, omega, time, and dtime are variables that are passed by the FLUENT solver to your UDF. The linear and angular velocities are returned to FLUENT by overwriting the arrays vel and omega, respectively. dt is a pointer to the structure that stores the dynamic mesh attributes that you have specified (or that are calculated by FLUENT). The current time and time step are provided by FLUENT as time and dtime, respectively.

6.5.1

Hooking a Center of Gravity Motion UDF to FLUENT

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After the UDF that you have defined using DEFINE CG MOTION is interpreted or compiled, the name that you specified in the DEFINE macro argument will become visible in the Dynamic Zones panel in FLUENT.

6.5.2

DEFINE CG MOTION

Once you have interpreted or compiled your DEFINE CG MOTION UDF, the name of the function will become visible and selectable in the Dynamic Zones panel in FLUENT. To hook the UDF to FLUENT, you will first need to enable the dynamic mesh model.

Figure 12: Dynamic Mesh Parameters

Define>> Dynamic Mesh>> Parameters

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Figure 13: Dynamic Mesh Parameters specifications

Select Dynamic Mesh under Model and click OK. The Dynamic Mesh panel will be accessible only when you choose Unsteady as the time method in the Solver panel. Next, open the Dynamic Zones panel. Define>> Dynamic Mesh Zones

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Figure 14: Dynamic Mesh Zones

6.6

Process Overview
A general look at the steps involved in solving our problem in Fluent. These steps

must be followed in order so that there is minimum error obtained and to reduce the work, because if gone wrong there can be chances of needing to start over again. Define your problem. Create a C source code file. Start FLUENT and read in (or set up) the case file. Interpret or compile the source file. Hook the UDF to FLUENT. Run the calculation.
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 Analyze the numerical solution and compare it to expected results To begin the process, you'll need to define the problem you wish to solve using a UDF (Step 1): For example, suppose you want to use a UDF to define a custom boundary profile for your model. You will first need to define the set of mathematical equations that describes the profile. Next you will need to translate the mathematical equation (conceptual design) into a function written in the C programming language

(Step 2): You can do this using any text editor. Save the file with a .c suffix (e.g: Airfoiltrailwit-omega.c) in your working directory. Once you have written the C function, you are ready to start FLUENT and read in (or set up) your case file

(Step 3): You will then need to interpret or compile the source code, debug it

(Step 4): and then hook the function to FLUENT

(Step 5): Finally you'll run the calculation

(Step 6): analyze the results from your simulation, and compare them to expected results

(Step 7): You may loop through this entire process more than once, depending on the results of your analysis. Step by step instructions are given below in detail.

6.7 Steps
Step 1: Define Your Problem

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The first step in creating a UDF and using it in your FLUENT model involves defining your model equation(s).

Consider the airfoil illustrated in figure below. An unstructured grid is used to model the flow field surrounding the airfoil. The domain extends from a periodic boundary on the bottom to an identical one on the top, a velocity inlet on the left, and a pressure outlet on the right.

Figure 15: Fluent Grid Generation

A flow field in which a constant x velocity is applied at the inlet will be compared with various y velocities given to the airfoil. The results of a constant-velocity applied field (of 10 m/s) at the inlet are shown in the below figure. The initial constant-velocity field is distorted as the flow moves around the airfoil.

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The equation given for the airfoil to experience up and down motion in the y direction would correspond to Asin(2(pi)(f)(t)) The equation given to the airfoil to be able to move about the z axis at a certain angle is given as an omega command; the third omega command as it is the z axis we would like to rotate about -sin(2(pi)(f)(t))(theta)

Figure 16: Airfoil gerenrated

Step 2: Create a C Source File Now that you have determined the equation that defines the UDF, you can use any text editor to create a file containing C code that implements the function.

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Save the source code file with a .c extension (e.g: Airfoiltrail-wit-omega.c) in your working directory. The following UDF source code listing contains a single function, only. Your source file can contain multiple concatenated functions. Below is an example of how the equation derived in Step 1 (Equation 3.1-1) can be implemented in a UDF. The functionality of the UDF is designated by the leading DEFINE macro. Here, the DEFINE CG_MOTION macro is used to indicate to the solver that the code preceding it will provide profile information at boundaries.

/********************************************************************** Airfoiltrail-wit-omega.c **********************************************************************/ #include"udf.h" /* must be at the beginning of every UDF you write */

#define f

1.0

/* Frequency in Hz */ /* time step in sec */ /* Stroke Amplitude in m */

#define tstep 0.02 #define A 0.4

#define theta 2.23 /* Max Pitch Anle in rad */ DEFINE_CG_MOTION(plunge, dt, cg_vel, cg_omega, time, dtime) { cg_vel[0] = 0.0; cg_vel[1] = ((A*sin(2*M_PI*f*CURRENT_TIME))-(A*sin(2*M_PI*f*(CURRENT_TIMEtstep))))/tstep; cg_vel[2] = 0.0; cg_omega[0] = 0.0; cg_omega[1] = 0.0; cg_omega[2] = (-sin(2*M_PI*f*CURRENT_TIME))*theta*sin(4*M_PI*f*CURRENT_TIME); }

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The first argument of the DEFINE CG_MOTION macro, plunge is the name

that

you supply. The name will appear in the boundary condition panel once the function is interpreted or compiled. Note that the UDF name you supply cannot contain a number as the first character. The equation that is defined by the function will be applied to all cell faces (identified by f in the face loop) on a given boundary zone (identified by thread). The thread is defined automatically when you hook the UDF to a particular boundary in the FLUENT graphical user-interface. The index is defined automatically through the begin f loop utility. For each face, the coordinates of the face centroid are accessed by F CENTROID.

Step 3: Start FLUENT and Read (or Set Up) the Case File Once you have created the source code for your UDF, you are ready to begin the problem setup in FLUENT. 1. Start FLUENT from your working directory. 2. Read (or set up) your case file.

Step 4: Interpret or Compile the Source File You are now ready to interpret or compile the profile UDF named x velocity) that you created in Step 2 and is contained within the source _le named udfexample.c. In general, you must compile your function as a compiled UDF if the source code contains structured reference calls or other elements of C that are not handled by the FLUENT interpreter. To determine whether you should compile or interpret your UDF you can check the differences between interpreted and compiled UDFs. You can compile your UDF using the text user interface (TUI) or the graphical user interface (GUI) in FLUENT. Make sure that the UDF source file (e.g., udfexample.c) is in the same director that contains your case and data file. Start FLUENT from your working directory. Read (or set up) your case file.
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Open the Compiled UDFs panel Define User-Defined Functions Compiled...

Figure 17: Compiled UDFs

Click Add >> under Source Files in the Compiled UDFs panel. This will open the Select File panel

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Figure 18: Selected Files

In the Select File panel under Directories, choose the directory path that contains the C source file, and then under Files select the desired file (e.g., airfoiltrail-wit-omega.c) you want to compile. (Once selected, the complete path to the source file will be displayed under Source File(s).) Click OK. The Select File panel will close and the file you added will appear in the Source Files list in the Compiled UDFs panel. Repeat the previous step to select the Header Files that need to be included in the compilation.

Compiling the UDF In the Compiled UDFs panel, select the file that is listed under Source Files and type the name of the shared library in the Library Name field (or leave the default name libudf). Click Build. This process will compile the code and will build a shared library in your working directory for the architecture you are running on.
49

As the compile/build process begins, a Warning dialog box will appear, reminding you that the UDF source file must be in the directory that contains your case and data files (i.e., your working directory). If you have an existing library directory (e.g., libudf) then you will need to remove it prior to the build, to ensure that the latest files are used. Click OK to close the dialog box and resume the compile/build process. The results of the build will be displayed on the console window. You can view the compilation history in the `log' file that is saved in your working directory. Click Load to load the shared library into FLUENT, the console will report that the library has been opened and the function loaded.

Step 5: Hook Your UDF to FLUENT Now that we have interpreted or compiled your UDF following the methods outlined in Step 4, you are ready to hook the function to FLUENT using a graphical user interface panel. The name you supplied in the DEFINE macro argument will appear in graphics panels in FLUENT. You will hook the profile UDF in this sample problem to the Velocity Inlet boundary condition panel.

Step 6: Run the Calculation Run the calculation as usual. Solve>> Iterate

Step 7: Analyze the Numerical Solution and Compare to Expected Results: Once the solution is run to convergence, obtain a revised velocity field. The velocity magnitude contours for the inlet x velocity are shown when given 10m/s. The airfoil moves up and down as consequent pitching and plunging motions. For the constant velocity condition, the flow field is distorted as the flow moves around the airfoil. The pressure field for the imposed theta angle is shown as by which pitching and plunging motion can be seen.

50

The flow over the airfoil during these motions is given clearly along with the vortex shedding off [14].

7. 2D Investigation
7.1 NACA 0012
7.1.1 Experimental Results

The experimental results provided from a PhD thesis for the NACA at h/c = 0.3 and AoA = 5 is given in 9.1.1 Table 9.1.1 Experimental Data for NACA 0012 Aerofoil NACA0012 CL, experimental 0.371 CD, experimental 0.02

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7.1.2

Geometry

NACA 0012 is a commonly seen, symmetrical aerofoil with a maximum thickness of 12% of the chord. The coordinates for NACA profile were obtained from an online source.

Figure 19: NACA 0012 Profile

The aerofoil is placed a height of 30% the chord length, so h/c = 0.3 and at an angle of attack, AoA = 5, to match the experimental settings.

7.1.3

Domain

The initial computational domain used is shown in below figure. This domain was divided with the edges of the boundary. Since we took a rectangular mesh we gave the boundary conditions on the various edges. Namely they are inlet, pressure far field, outlet, wall; the airfoil was considered as the wall.

52

Figure 20: Computational domain for NACA 0012

7.2

Mesh
The whole boundary was created as a single face which was meshed by subtracting the

airfoil from it. It was first meshed with structured grid completely. This proved to be difficult and the mesh was also not even around the airfoil as we would have liked it. It was then changed to an unstructured grid which was denser around the airfoil. An advantage of using unstructured grid over structured grid is that it can adapt to complex geometry like an airfoil better, especially when the airfoil is close to a boundary, in this case, the rectangle sides. A disadvantage of such grid is that it generates more cells and would not be the most accurate in terms of results. Different approaches in mesh were tested along the way mainly by splitting the edges of the face containing the aerofoil or by splitting the edges of airfoil itself, so as to have a better control over distribution of cells. 7.2.1 Mesh 1

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Mesh 1 was a very coarse mesh just for purpose of testing different turbulence models by running them on this mesh taking lesser computational time and power.It consisted of only 74736 cells in all and was run with various turbulence models one by one.

Figure 21 : Rectangular Mesh

Mesh 3 & 4 Meshes 3 and 4 were attempts to use boundary layer mesh around the airfoil. An ellipse was first taken around the airfoil and then a circle. It was done to make the mesh, close to the walls, structured; and also to allow the number of cells to be increased without having negative cell volume detected while iterating in Fluent. Structured mesh would have enabled a better control over the y+ values. The main concern while meshing was to construct appropriate cell sizes for the turbulent models in use. Boundary layer meshing techniques was abandoned since the results were not as expected.

54

Figure 22 : Axis 7.2.2

Other Grids

Meshes 5 and 6 were only different in terms of number of cells used to generate them. Different mesh shapes were also created such as the C-Grid. An attempt was made to make the mesh around the aerofoil as dense as possible so as to capture the physics of flow in the boundary layer better. In fact, in doing so the default limit of GAMBIT to allow 500000 cells in a face had to be increased to 1000000 cells for the face containing the airfoil.

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Figure 23: Flow Filled region

7.3

Fluent Settings
7.3.1 Boundary Conditions

To analyse the flow correctly, it is required to specify correct boundary conditions. In real conditions, the wing travels through the air, taking fluid and ground as stationary. Here it was easier to model the fluid and the ground as the moving parts and the aerofoil as stationary. So the ground was set to be moving with the same velocity as the fluid. Table below shows the imported boundary conditions.

Table: Boundary Conditions for 2D Name of edge Inlet Farfield Outlet Airfoil 56 Type of Boundary Condition

Velocity Inlet Absolute , x-component = 10 m/s Velocity Inlet Absolute , x-component = 10 m/s
Pressure outlet Wall

Ground

Wall Moving wall , Absolute, x-component = 10 m/s

7.3.2

Solver Settings

For every turbulence model, a variety of discretization settings were available. The more complex the settings implemented, the greater the computational time required. For Spalart-Allmaras, the discretization settings chosen were: second order for the pressure, and second order upwind for the momentum equations and modified turbulence viscosity. The default values were used for under relaxation factors. Command (rpsetvar les-2d #t) was given in Fluent to activate Large Eddy Simulation which gave us unsteady flow with Eddy losses, second order for the pressure and second order upwind for all the rest. Again the default values were used for under relaxation factors. Wall function wherever applicable, was left to its standard setting provided by FLUENT.

7.3.3

Energy Equation

The energy equation was disabled as the free stream Mach number was less than 0.3, allowing the flow to be modelled as incompressible.

7.3.4

Residual Settings

The criteria were set to 1 10 6 for all the convergence settings. This is a standard value for most 2D cases. The results would converge and iterations would stop once these settings reached the value of 1 106.

57

8. Sizing of Airfoil for Given Parameters

8.1

Introduction
As we are testing a NACA 0012 airfoil during its various pitching and plunging

motions, it is required to model the necessary setup in the best mesh possible so that the values and results obtained can be as accurate as able. For this, the 2D Model was sized in Millimetres (mm) as obtained from the output data.

8.2

Basic Sizing Planform

The figure below depicts the basic plan of the model to be created. The model consists

of the following main parts: Rectangular Mesh: The rectangular mesh is created around the airfoil taking in count the maximum number of elements possible for flow to be generated over. NACA 0012 Airfoil: The airfoil is the main part of the problem as the analysis takes place over this. The flow is studied by varying the frequency and amplitude of the flow as different velocities. Pressure Far Field: Far field depicts the free-stream conditions that exist around the airfoil. This is necessary to model as it required for the fluid flow analysis.

PART INLET PRESSURE FAR FIELD VELOCITY OUTLET WALL

DIMENSION* 100 200 100 10

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8.3

Fluent
FLUENT is a state-of-the-art computer program for modelling fluid flow and heat

transfer in complex geometries. FLUENT provides complete mesh flexibility, including the ability to solve your own problems using unstructured meshes that can be generated about complex geometries with relative ease. Supported mesh types include 2D triangular/quadrilateral, 3D tetrahedral and hybrid meshes. FLUENT also allows you to refine or coarsen your grid based on the solution obtained. FLUENT is written in the C computer language and makes full use of the flexibility and powered by the language. Consequently, true dynamic memory allocation of data structures and flexible solver controls are all possible. In addition, FLUENT uses a client/server architecture, which allows it to run as separate simultaneous processes on client desktop workstations and powerful computer servers. This architecture allows for execution, interactive control, and complete flexibility between different types of machines or operating systems. All functions required to compute a solution and display the results are accessible in FLUENT through an interactive, menu-driven interface.

8.3.1 Capabilities of FLUENT

The FLUENT solver has the following modelling capabilities: 2D planar, 2D axisymmetric, 2D axisymmetric with swirl (rotationally symmetric), and 3D flows Quadrilateral, triangular, hexahedral (brick), tetrahedral, prism (wedge), pyramid, polyhedral, and mixed element meshes Steady-state or transient flows Incompressible or compressible flows, including all speed regimes (low subsonic, transonic, supersonic, and hypersonic flows) Inviscid, laminar, and turbulent flows
59

Newtonian or non-Newtonian flows Heat transfer, including forced, natural, and mixed convection, conjugate (solid/fluid) heat transfer, and radiation

Chemical species mixing and reaction, including homogeneous and heterogeneous combustion models and surface deposition/reaction models

Free surface and multiphase models for gas-liquid, gas-solid, and liquid-solid flows Lagrangian trajectory calculation for dispersed phase (particles/droplets/bubbles), including coupling with continuous phase and spray modeling

Cavitation model Phase change model for melting/solidification applications Porous media with non-isotropic permeability, inertial resistance, solid heat conduction, and porous-face pressure jump conditions

Lumped parameter models for fans, pumps, radiators, and heat exchangers Acoustic models for predicting flow-induced noise Inertial (stationary) or non-inertial (rotating or accelerating) reference frames Multiple reference frame (MRF) and sliding mesh options for modeling multiple moving frames

Mixing-plane model for modeling rotor-stator interactions, torque converters, and similar turbo machinery applications with options for mass conservation and swirl conservation

8.4

PROBLEM SPECIFICATION
The main aim of running Fluent analysis is to determine how the flow will react with

the airfoil moving during pitching and plunging motion. Our special interest is to know how the vortices trace off the trailing edge of the airfoil and where optimum lift is created. To
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determine this we analyze the model by giving some specific boundary conditions and operating conditions. The following figure explains the boundary conditions used for the Fluent analysis and the corresponding input parameters given to study the behaviour of the flow.

Figure 24: Depiction of boundary conditions for fluent analysis

ZONES

TYPE

EXPLAINATION

Airfoil Inlet Farfield Outlet

Wall Symmetry Symmetry Pressure Outlet

Necessary wall conditions Velocity Inlet Absolute , x-component = 10 m/s Velocity Inlet Absolute , x-component = 10 m/s Outlet of the air intake for pressure calculations Wall, Absolute
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Ground

Far field

8.5

Geometry Meshing
The 2D Model needs to be meshed before using it for the fluid flow analysis. Meshing

essentially is sub-dividing the model to be studied into grids, where we can apply certain computational equations to study the behaviour of the model under various conditions. As we are using Fluent 6.3 as a solver, the best way to obtain the necessary mesh file is by meshing the respective 2D model using GAMBIT. Gambit is a meshing tool which is used in conjunction with Fluent. Gambit is used for meshing the geometry and can be used to import a 2D model in various different formats. It allows for refine the meshing attribute like shape, size, count etc. of the mesh grids accordingly. This helps in cases where finer mesh is required in some areas than other in few problems. Gambit is also used to assign each edge, face or volume as a specific boundary type as required by the problem specification. This is required during the fluid flow analysis in Fluent. For our 2D Model, we used a tri mesh grids. The main concern while meshing was to construct appropriate cell sizes for the turbulent models in use. Having the value of y in mind, meshes containing 155,056 up to 693,383 cells were constructed. An attempt to use boundary layer was made, to match the value of y, where a completely new domain was constructed to accommodate the needs of the boundary layer, but it was soon abandoned since the results were not as expected. Following figure depicts the mesh model generated after meshing in Gambit:

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Figure 25: Mesh Model

8.6

Setting up Problem in FLUENT

After the required meshing is obtained, the mesh file (.msh) is imported into fluent

solver. Here all the necessary solver properties and governing equations required to solve a certain problem is specified. For every turbulence model, a variety of discretization settings are available. The more complex the settings implemented, the greater the computational time required. Following steps are to be followed to setup our problem into FLUENT: 1. Launch Fluent : Start-Programs-Fluent INC-Fluent 6.3.26-Fluent 6.3.26
2. Select 2ddp from the list of options and click Run 3. Import file: Main Menu-File-Read-Case; Navigate to the working directory and select

the meshed geometry. Click OK 4. The following appears in FLUENT window:

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Figure 26: Nodes, Zones

5. Check and display Grid : First the grid is checked to make sure there are no errors; Main Menu-Grid-Check Any errors in the grid are reported if any. Grid-Info-Size Following window appears giving the info. On number of cells, nodes and meshed geometry:

Figure 27: Data

6. Displaying the Grid; Main Menu Display Grid

Figure below shows the complete meshed grid of the 2D model:

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Figure 28: Displaying the grid of an Airfoil

Before we can proceed with the calculations, we have to make sure to scale the grid to mm units as the default units used by fluent is m (metres). Go to Grid Scale. Choose mm in Grid was created in list and click Scale change the units.
7. Define Solver properties ; Define Models Solver , Fluent offer 2 methods for

solving the governing equations: Pressure based and Density based. We use density based as we are analysing for subsonic case. For our problem we incorporate large eddy simulation. In order to activate this in FLUENT a command must be typed That is (rpestvar les-2d? #t)

Then under Viscous Models the LES option is chosen

65

Figure 29: LES Following figure shows the necessary solver settings for this problem:

Figure 30: Solver

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8. Viscous model: Define Models Viscous. Choose LES. Click OK.

This defines the viscous model to be used for turbulence conditions. The large Eddy Simulation option turns on this case and is used in flows at this speed. This automatically turns on the Unsteady option in the Solver.
9. Energy equation: Define Models Energy. The energy equation needs to be turned

off since this is an incompressible flow.

10. Materials: Define-Materials. Select air under fluid materials. Under properties, choose

Ideal gas next to density. This makes fluent use the ideal gas equation of state to relate density to the static pressure and temperature.

Figure 31: Materials 11. Specifying Operating conditions: Define Operating conditions. Set the operating

pressure to 101325.

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Figure 32: Operating Conditions 12. Boundary conditions: Define Boundary conditions. Set boundary conditions for the

following surfaces: Inlet. Select inlet under zone and pick velocity-inlet under type as its boundary condition. Click set to open up the velocity inlet window. Set the Velocity Specification Method to components, set X-Velocity to 10 m/s. Click OK 13. Solve: Now the settings for solving the problem are set. Go to Solve Control Solution, change discretization pressure: to second order and momentum: second order upwind. Click OK Set initial guess: Main Menu Solve Initialize Initialize Select inlet under compute from. Click init: The above values of pressure, velocity and temperature are now assigned to each cell in the grid. This completes initialization. Set convergence criteria: FLUENT reports a residual for each governing equation being solved. The residual is a measure of how well the current solution satisfies the discrete form of each governing equation. For our problem, the flow properties start generating only from 1e-02; therefore for complete analysis we shall assign a value of convergence as 1e-06 Main Menu Solve Monitors Residual Iterate until convergence: Main menu Solve Iterate The iterations start to solve the flow for indicated problem.

68

Our main aim is to find out whether optimum lift and minimum drag are produced by the airfoil when it goes through pitching and plunging motions. By calculating Strohal number and taking various values of amplitude and frequency, we are able to produce graphs that tell us which value is more beneficial to take. When the frequency is increased at higher amplitudes the airfoil will pitch and plunge more rapidly at a higher distance from the mean position, in short intervals of time. Due to this the flow around the airfoil gets disturbed and vortexes and formed at the trailing edges. The free stream velocity plays an important role to the analysis of the flow. We observe as the velocity is increased the vortices slide off the airfoil more smoothly which leaves the flow to be towards the laminar side. To ensure the pressure of the flow on the airfoil is what is required, we shall analyze the contours of the pressure after the flow field starts to develop [3].

8.7

Results and Discussion

Many runs and simulations were performed with various mesh designs. A choice

among them was essential to limit the results and discussion, with criteria solely on the accuracy (for the estimation of drag and lift). The outcome of running mesh 1 using different turbulence model gave a clear indication that CL and CD were accurate, at least in estimation of drag and hence all the other mesh designs were run using these two turbulence models. Velocity & pressure are dependent on each other. According to Bernoullis equation says that increasing the velocity decreases the local pressure and vice versa. Thus the higher velocities on the upper airfoil side result in lower than ambient pressure whereas the pressure on the lower side is higher that the ambient pressure. For all flapping vehicles where amplitude (tip excursion) and flight speed are known the Strouhal number is between 0.2 and 0.4, for birds it is around 0.25. That means if you draw the beat as a cosine wave, showing the path of the wingtip through the air, then the wave starts at the top on the vertical axis, goes through a minimum, and rises back to a peak, and that peak lies somewhere between the lines of slope 0.2 and 0.4. This holds true for

69

published data and also shown true as the work carried out here. We have carried out the measurements of efficiency and forces produced by a flapping airfoil. In addition to Strouhal number, the pitch amplitude also determines the regime of high efficiency, with the peak of efficiency seen at lower Strouhal numbers for low pitch amplitudes and at higher Strouhal numbers at higher pitch amplitudes.

70

71

72

73

74

From the graphs above, it can be seen that the Strouhal Number peaks at a range of 0.2 to 0.3. This data provides us with knowledge that as the frequency increases the value of Strouhal number changes with varying amplitude. Bearing in mind that vortices and turbulence, in general, cannot be modelled perfectly in 2D, predictions for lift coefficient and thrust coefficient are close enough to the experimental value.

9. Conclusion

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10.

Research Areas
A flapping winged aircraft has certain areas of operation in which it is a preferable

option to conventional aircraft. A flapping winged aircraft is preferable at small sizes and small speeds, making a flapping winged aircraft preferable for M.A.V.s. A flapping winged aircraft may be suited for an urban combat aircraft that combines VTOL capability with maneuverability in small spaces. A flapping winged aircraft is better in low Reynolds number flow (low speed or low size) than a fixed wing aircraft or a rotorcraft. This means that a M.A.V. is an excellent application for future research into flapping winged aircraft. A M.A.V. is also required to have VTOL capability for effective operation in hostile territory or urban environments. M.A.V.s operating in urban environments also requires maneuverability in confined spaces which a flapping winged aircraft allows. It is desirable for a M.A.V. to possess the ability to hover to allow more accurate surveillance which the flapping winged design includes. A M.A.V. operating in hostile environments requires a small noise signature which is achievable through the use of a flapping winged design. A M.A.V. also requires good endurance to enable constant surveillance which is still an issue with all designs but already flapping winged M.A.V.s have preferable endurance to rotorcraft. A flapping winged aircraft is an excellent research area for M.A.V. design, combining the strengths of the design while reducing the impact of flapping winged weaknesses [8]. An unmanned urban combat aircraft with size between that of a M.A.V. and conventional helicopters would be achievable with a flapping winged design. This aircraft, sized somewhat smaller than a motorbike could fulfill a role in neutralizing terrorist threats in an urban environment where conventional aircraft would prove too intrusive and incapable of operating between buildings. A flapping winged design would allow VTOL required in this urban environment and also prevent the civilian injury issues
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posed by a propeller powered fixed wing aircraft or rotorcrafts spinning blades. This aircraft would allow a larger relative battery size to reduce endurance issues with flapping 26 winged designs in M.A.V.s while the low speed maneuverability of the flapping wing type of aircraft would be an asset in this situation. This aircraft would also be useful for possible offensives in urban conditions, allowing the neutralization of hostile forces without risking friendly casualties in infantry confrontation situations. An unmanned urban combat aircraft is an area of possible future research for future flapping winged designs. The strengths and weaknesses of flapping winged aircraft allow two main areas of development to be considered. A flapping winged M.A.V. would enable the strengths of flapping wings in small sized, low speed VTOL capable maneuverable aircraft designs to be utilized. An unmanned urban combat aircraft allows the strengths of a flapping winged design in the areas of maneuverability and small sized operation to be utilized and the endurance issues related to flapping winged designs to be overcome. Flapping winged aircraft will be a major area of research for future M.A.V.s and unmanned urban combat vehicles.

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