Affiliation:
1. Hangzhou City University
2. Hangzhou City University, School of Information and Electric
Abstract
<div class="section abstract"><div class="htmlview paragraph">With increasing interest in the urban air traffic market for electric Vertical
Take-Off and Landing (eVTOL) vehicles, there are opportunities to enhance flight
performance through new technologies and control methods. One such concept is
the propulsion wing, which incorporates a cross-flow fan (CFF) at the wing's
trailing edge to drive the vehicle's flight. This article presents a wind tunnel
experiment aimed at analyzing the aerodynamic characteristics of the propulsive
wing for the novel eVTOL vehicle. The experiment encompasses variations in
angels of attack, free stream velocities and fan rotational speeds. The result
verifies that cross-flow fans offer unique flow control capabilities, achieving
a tested maximum lift coefficient exceeding 7.6. Since flow from the suction
surface is ingested into the CFF, the flow separation at large angle of attack
(up to 40°) is effectively eliminated. The aerodynamic performance of the
propulsive wing depends on the advance ratio and angle of attack. Generally,
with a high advance ratio and sufficient CFF power for flow control, the
airfoil's lift coefficient increases with angle of attack, while drag
coefficient decreases with higher fan rotational speeds. Additionally, this
study identifies improved flow control capability with the presence of a vortex
cavity. The propulsion wing shows promising application prospects for eVTOL
vehicle.</div></div>