AOE 4124 Configuration Aerodynamics

Instructor: W.H. Mason Current Version: May 11, 2009
e-mail: whmason@vt.edu
Office Hours: Mon: 11 - 12, Tues: 1-2, Wed: 2-3, Thurs: 11-12, or by appointment
A little background on Professor Mason.

• For literature searches: NASA's Technical Report Server. This also includes the NACA reports.

Course Syllabus (a pdf file)
Weekly plan and diary (a pdf file)

Class Text:

• Cover and Table of Contents version of Jan. 18, 2006
• Preface
• 1. Introduction (a 8.7M pdf) updated April 5, 2004
• 2. Fluid mechanics foundations: governing equations (a 1M pdf) updated April 13, 2004
• 3. Drag (pdf) a 3.7M pdf file from Feb. 6, 2006
• 4. Aircraft Configuration Design Options Feb. 12, 2006 (a 10.8M pdf file)
  • Configuration Options Class Presentation Feb. 12, 2009
• 5. An Overview of Aerodynamic Design including use of Computational Aerodynamics Feb. 15, 2006 (a 1M pdf file)
  • Some sizing considerations (a 464K pdf of a Powerpoint file)
  • Issues with spanloads including the Vulcan and X-29 (a 14M pdf of a Powerpoint file)
• 6. Subsonic aerodynamics of airfoils and wings updated March 10, 2006 (a 2.2 meg pdf file)
  • Subsonic Aerodynamics of Airfoils Class Presentation a 2.5M pdf file (March 12, 2007)
  • Subsonic Aerodynamics of Wings Class Presentation 1 a 6M pdf file (March 23, 2009)
  • Subsonic Aerodynamics of Wings Class Presentation 2 a 5.7M pdf file (March 23, 2009)
• 7. Transonic aerodynamics of airfoils and wings updated March 10, 2006 (a pdf file)
  • Transonic Aerodynamics Class Presentation a 29M pdf file (March 27, 2009)
• 8. Aerodynamics of high lift devices/powered lift updated April 5, 2006 (a pdf file)
  • Mechanical High Lift Systems Class Presentation updated April 13, 2009 (a 39M pdf file)
  • Powered High Lift Systems Class Presentation updated April 13, 2009 (a 49M pdf file)
• 9. High angle of attack aerodynamics updated March 10, 2006 (a 1.1M pdf file)
  • High Alpha Basics Class Presentation a 35M pdf (April 26, 2009)
  • A Forebody Vortex Flow Vis Movie a 5.1M QuickTime movie. First with the lights on, and then with the lights off. In the small scale of this movie you have to look carefully.
  • The Grumman RFC in Free Flight at the old NASA Full Scale Tunnel a 9.2M QuickTime movie.
  • An F-18 spin movie is available from the NASA Dryden web site.
• 10. Supersonic aerodynamics updated March 10, 2006 (an 8.8M pdf file)
  • Supersonic Aerodynamics Basics Class Presentation a 55M pdf file (April 20, 2009)
• 11. Hypersonic aerodynamics updated May 8, 2009 (a 3.5M pdf file)
  • Hypersonic Aerodynamics Basics Class Presentation a 16 pdf file (April 30, 2009)
  • We've also had two terrificX-43 Presentations
    • seminar by Walt Engelund on HyperX (X-43) on May 2, 2001. (a 12 Meg pdf file)
    • seminar by Chris Cotting on HyperX (X-43) on May 4, 2009. (a 20 Meg pptx file)

  • The following documents provide a good description of the progress and frustrations of hypersonic aerodynamics:
    • The Hpersonic Revolution, Air Force History and Museums Program, 1998.
      • Volume I: 1924 - 1967 a 48M pdf file
      • Volume II: 1964 - 1986 a 20M pdf file
      • Volume III: 1983 - 1995 a 19M pdf file
    • A NASA History Series book:
      • Facing the Heat Barrier: A History of Hypersonics, by T.A. Heppenheimer, NASA SP-2007-4243, 2007, a 7M pdf file

• Appendices
  1. Geometry for Aerodynamicists (pdf) version Jan. 16, 2006, and a library of airfoils for use with the codes is available, either as a Zip file or as a Stuffit file. See the pdf file for the airfoil names associated with each filename.The primary airfoil site is the UIUC Airfoil Data Site
     
  2. Fifteen Minutes of Stealth (a 408K pdf file, version: Jan. 17, 2006)
  3. FAR & Mil requirements Version: Feb. 6, 2006
  4. Examples of aerodynamic design using tools from our software suite, version: Feb. 6, 2006
  5. Software with manuals.
  6. Class Discussion Reading List (a pdf file)

Student Projects/Presentations

Rob Roedts gave us a guest lecture on April 3, 2006: Introduction to Helicopter Aerodynamics a Powerpoint file.

Other useful material

• The Applied Computational Aerodynamics, text. Note that the Appendices to those notes contain several useful computer programs not on the software page.
• A bibliography of information useful in airplane design has been assembled.
• Prof. Ilan Kroo's On-line Applied Aerodynamics: A Digital Textbook
• A good supplement: Aerodynamics for Students by Doug Auld and K. Srinva at the University of Sydney
• The NASA Dryden Gallery of airplane photos and movies.
• A software review is also available.

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