Naca 4-Digit Airfoil Modeling and CFD
Naca 4-Digit Airfoil Modeling and CFD
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PROJECT OVERVIEW
I utilized Siemens NX and Star CCM+ to model and simulate various profiles in the Naca 4-digit series. The lift and drag on the profiles were solved in the simulation, providing very interesting results of standard foil behavior.
This project was fully motivated by self-interest. Through my Summer 2024 Mechanical Design Engineering Internship at Natel Energy, I gained access to Star CCM+ software. Of course, as a fanatic of all things flying, my first idea was to play with Naca airfoils.
*Note: unfortunately most pictures were saved locally on a loaner laptop during my latest summer internship and were not transferred.
Top: Example Naca 2412 with thickness (purple) and camber (red)
Bottom: Equation for camber line in 4-digit series.
PROFILE SET UP USING SIEMENS NX
PROFILE SET UP USING SIEMENS NX
The profiles were created using law curves in NX. Since the full profile is defined by a few parametric curves and dictated by the 4 digits, I made a profile defined by a few law curves. This allowed for the model and simulation to change geometries in just a few seconds.
I was able to test any 4-digit Naca profile at any angle of attack. The entire process was self-taught, and took a lot of trial and error. The blade is rectangular (no taper), with 5 meters in length and a chord length of 1m.
STAR CCM+ SIMULATIONS
STAR CCM+ SIMULATIONS
Profiles were then put into Siemens Star CCM+ computational fluid dynamics (CFD) software. Using this software I was able to calculate lift vs drag for various profiles at different angles of attack. I also was able to visualize different flow characteristics, including velocity and pressure.
Experiments out of curiosity included adding various geometries as flow disruptors upstream and even changing the flume profile. As well as adding non-airfoil profiles to the simulations for fun.
Example of an added flow disruptor. This timelapse is taken early in the software's solving process. In this case, the vortex shedding from a cylinder is inherently unstable and will continue. Star CCM+ was unable to converge to a solution.
ADDITIONAL PHOTOS OF OTHER SIMULATIONS
TOP LEFT: Realtime graphics of solving for Naca 0018
TOP RIGHT: Solving with jagged upstream flume boundary with Naca 4418
LEFT: Early vortex forming from a flow disruptor and Naca 2412.
Interesting Note. For the simulations I was conducting in STAR CCM+ the software was trying to converge to a steady state. Thus for inherently unsteady configurations, like vortex shedding, the solver would usually error out after a long solving period. However, the model would sometimes converge to a solution that was essentially a long-term average of the unsteady state.
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