Aeroelastic Response to Gust Using CFD Techniques

Abstract

A numerical method to predict the aeroelastic response of an aircraft to a gust is assessed. It is based on the use of CFD techniques to compute accurately the aerodynamic fields. Gust models are then implemented as a field of grid deformation speed, that depends on both space and time. The numerical method has been first validated for a 2D Naca12 airfoil embedded in an inviscid flow and submitted to a sharp edged gust, by comparisons with results presented by Zaide et al. It has afterwards been validated in the case of a 3D wing submitted to a harmonic gust in the subsonic domain by comparisons with computations using the Doublet Lattice Method. After the validation step, the method has been used first to investigate the influence of the aerodynamic nonlinearities that occurs in the transonic domain, and at last to compute the aeroelastic responses of wings to gust excitations.