Open Access

ARTICLE

Effects of Heaving Motion on the Aerodynamic Performance of a Double-Element Wing in Ground Effect

Ioannis Oxyzoglou^*, Zheng-Tong Xie

Faculty of Engineering and Physical Sciences, University of Southampton, Southampton, SO17 1BJ, UK

* Corresponding Author: Ioannis Oxyzoglou. Email:

Fluid Dynamics & Materials Processing 2020, 16(6), 1093-1114. https://doi.org/10.32604/fdmp.2020.012237

Received 21 June 2020; Accepted 18 November 2020; Issue published 17 December 2020

Abstract

The broad implication of the paper is to elucidate the significance of the dynamic heaving motion in the aerodynamic performance of multi-element wings, currently considered as a promising aspect for the improvement of the aerodynamic correlation between CFD, wind tunnel and track testing in race car applications. The relationship between the varying aerodynamic forces, the vortex shedding, and the unsteady pressure field of a heaving double-element wing is investigated for a range of mean ride heights, frequencies, and amplitudes, using a two-dimensional (2D) unsteady Reynolds-averaged Navier-Stokes (URANS) approach and an overset mesh method for modelling the moving wing. The analysis of the results shows that at high frequencies, i.e., k ≥ 5:94 and amplitudes a/c ≥ 0:05 the interaction of the shear vorticity between the two elements results in the generation of cohering leading and trailing edge vortices on the flap, associated to the rapid variation of thrust and downforce enhancement. Both the occurrence and intensity of these vortices are dependent upon the frequency, amplitude, and mean ride height of the heaving wing. The addition of the flap significantly alters the frequency of the shed vortices in the wake and maintains the generation of downforce for longer time in ground proximity. The comparison with the static wing provides evidence that the dynamic motion of a race car wing can be beneficial in terms of performance, or detrimental in terms of aerodynamic correlation.

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Citations