#5 Wake modelling for rotary wings

Wake modelling for Rotary Wings

Host institution

University of Glasgow (UK)

Supervisors

Prof. George Barakos

Co-tutoring institution

Politecnico di Milano (Italy)

Start date

Strictly before end of May 2017

Duration

36 months

Gross salary

44.896,00 € per year

Work location

Mainly Glasgow (UK) and Milano (Italy)

Objective

Rotary wings in the context of NITROS include helicopter, tilt-rotor and wind turbine blades and this project will focus on the specific topic of modelling the wake of these wings using a set of methods. Simple wake models stem from momentum conservation principles and even recently detailed modelling of the wakes was not possible due to the high mesh density CFD method require and the need for high order, robust numerical methods. The project at hand will look at a range of methods including high-fidelity CFD to model the wakes and their interactions with fixed and rotary wing vehicles. The project builds on the HMB3 tool of Glasgow (www.gla.ac.uk/cfd). The tool has been successfully used for modelling rotors and their wakes, complete helicopters and tilt-rotors. Using parallel computing and high order schemes the details of the wake and its breakdown can be revealed. Then, compressing the wakes in simple models suitable for real-time execution will be pursued using several modelling approaches. Some can be based on simple data compression though others will use real-time Lattice Boltzmann methods, and meta-models. Experimental data have already been identified to deliver the necessary code validation for a range of test cases. The ultimate goal of the project is to capture the physics of the wakes to a level sufficient for practical applications: Separation of aircraft during take-off and landing, separation of helicopters and wind turbines for safety, or operations of helicopters near ground, or buildings. The project builds on more than 17 years of experience with modelling rotary wings using CFD and parallel computing.

Research profile

This researcher will be working with Universities of Glasgow and Milan towards a double doctorate. Secondments to industry can be performed with EUROCONTROL, Leonardo Helicopters, CAA, and Siemens. Placements with CAA will investigate the potential of simulation use for changing current regulations and establishing new ones. A placement with Leonardo Helicopters will focus on how wake modelling and ship helicopter operations. Shorter placements will be pursued with NLR to look at wake databases from ship measurements and LiDAR data, while a placement with Siemens will focus on field measurements of wind turbine wakes.