Shreyas SrivathsanAdvised By: Dr. Juergen Rauleder
will defend a doctoral thesis entitled,
Experimental Characterization Of Propeller-Wing Interactional Aerodynamics During Cruise And Tiltrotor Conversion.
On
Wednesday, July 2 2025 at 14:00 EDT – 16:00 EDT 317 Montgomery Knight Virtual Link (Microsoft Teams): https://teams.microsoft.com/l/meetup-join/19%3ameeting_NDExNWM5ODctYzUwNS00NmQ0LWEzOTUtZjBhN2M3YWM2OTM3%40thread.v2/0?context=%7b%22Tid%22%3a%22482198bb-ae7b-4b25-8b7a-6d7f32faa083%22%2c%22Oid%22%3a%22119a908e-ab18-4faf-8a8b-b17e5ad8e993%22%7d
Abstract
Recent advances in technology have enabled a range of electric-powered aircraft for human transportation in urban environments. Many of these designs rely on wingborne flight using a combination of propulsive, generally propellers and lifting, usually wings, components. From a safety and performance perspective, it is important to understand the physics and flow phenomena, especially the aerodynamic interactions between these propellers and the wings, and the accompanying performance impact. The present study aims to expand the current knowledge using model-scale wind tunnel testing with a generic multipropeller--wing setup to understand the aerodynamic phenomena and performance effects associated with, e.g., compound lift-and-cruise configurations or tiltrotors to understand fundamental flow phenomena. Measurements were done for a range of operating conditions, concentrating on the propeller–wing distance, propeller tilt angle, number of propellers, and propeller–propeller distance. Collected data included loads on the wing and propeller, static and dynamic wing surface pressures and flow field measurements via stereo particle image velocimetry. The focus was to understand the effect of the propeller on the wing and vice versa, as well as utilize system performance metrics to identify optimum conditions within the interested flight regimes. Significant benefits to the wing performance were identified due to the propeller slipstream. Differences in the wing's blockage and circulatory effects caused variations in the propeller performance. Optimal design spaces were identified based on the operating conditions. These findings are critical as they can increase the safety and performance of modern urban aircraft.
Committee
•Dr. Juergen Rauleder (Advisor) – Daniel Guggenheim School of Aerospace Engineering
•Dr. Marilyn J Smith – Daniel Guggenheim School of Aerospace Engineering
•Dr. Steven A Tran – STC NASA Ames, US Army DEVCOM AVMC
•Dr. Brian J German – Daniel Guggenheim School of Aerospace Engineering
•Dr. Nikolas S Zawodny – NASA LARC D314 Aeroacoustics