Dynamics and Aeroelasticity of Composite Structures.
Abstract
An analytical and experimental investigation was made of the aeroelastic flutter and divergence behavior of a forward swept graphite/epoxy wing aircraft with rigid body freedoms in free flight. Analytically, a transient aeroelastic analysis, using a Rayleigh Ritz formulation, modified strip theory and measured aircraft aerodynamic derivatives, was developed to predict and interpret the aeroelastic behavior and instability mechanisms. The transient aerodynamics approximated the Theodoresen function by Pade approximants and used augmented state variables to investigate stability by standard linear eigenvalue analysis. Some effects of aeroelastic tailoring, wing frequencies, rigid body modes, static stability margins, and inertial coupling effects were explored. Experimentally, a generic, full-span, 30 degree forward swept wing aircraft model allowing both rigid body pitch and plunge was constructed and tested in MIT's low speed wind tunnel. The effects of aeroelastic tailoring were demonstrated by using wings with different ply layups, which covered a range of bending-twisting coupling.
Document Details
- Document Type
- Technical Report
- Publication Date
- Apr 22, 1987
- Accession Number
- ADA182713
Entities
People
- Gun-shing Chen
- John Dugundji
Organizations
- Massachusetts Institute of Technology