Euler calculations for rotor configurations in unsteady forward flight

Abstract

A solution procedure is presented for the lifting transonic flow past modern rotor configurations in forward flight. In this procedure, the three-dimensional, unsteady Euler equations are solved in strong conservation form on a body-fitted moving coordinate system. A hybrid procedure of second order spatial accuracy and first order temporal accuracy is used to integrate the governing equations. In lifting flows, the effect of the elements of wake not captured by the computational procedure, and other aeroelastic effects are accounted for as local angle of attack corrections. Detailed comparisons with experimental data are presented for a 1/7 scale model of the Cobra OLS rotor, and for a three-bladed rotor tested in France. Some preliminary results are also presented for a three-dimensional blade vortex interaction problem.