Aeroelastic Tailoring of a Strut-Braced Wing for a Medium Range Aircraft

This study explores the implementation of aeroelastic tailoring in the design of a regional aircraft featuring a strut-braced wing (SBW). Making use of the aeroelastic optimisation framework from Delft University of Technology, PROTEUS, the research addresses two distinct cases. The first case involves a simplified SBW geometry to validate the...

Nonlinear Low-Fidelity Numerical Model of the Flared Folding Wingtip

Previous numerical and experimental studies have shown the load alleviation capabilities of the flared folding wingtip. However, they have also shown the complex dynamics of the system and the limitations in the results obtained by modeling such an aeroelastic system using linear models, which cannot capture the effects of the large wingtip...

Optimization Framework of a Ram Air Inlet Composite Morphing Flap

The ram air inlets flaps are used in some aircraft to modulate the amount of ram<br/>air cooling the Environmental Control System. The current flap design features two metallic plates connected with a hinge. The present work studies an alternative design that replaces the metallic plates with a single composite laminate with morphing...

Wing Stiffness and Hinge Release Threshold Effects on Folding Wingtip Gust Load Alleviation

An aeroelastic wind tunnel experiment to identify the influence of the wing stiffness and hinge release threshold on the gust load alleviation performance of a folding wingtip design is presented in this study. Five models with different stiffness and tailoring properties are tested and the wing root bending moment at different conditions is...