Book Description

The leading edge flow structure of the NACA 0012 airfoil is experimentally investigated under dynamic stall conditions (M = 0.1; a = 16.7°, 22.4°, Rec = 1 x 106) using planar particle image velocimetry. The airfoil was dynamically pitched about the 1/4 chord at a reduced frequency, k = 0.1. As expected, on the upstroke the flow remains attached in the leading edge region above the static stall angle, whereas during downstroke, the flow remains separated below the static stall angle. A phase averaging procedure involving triple velocity decomposition in combination with the Hilbert transform enables the entire dynamic stall process to be visualized in phase space, with the added benefit of the complete phase space composed of numerous wing oscillations. The formation and complex evolution of the leading edge vortex is observed. This vortex is seen to grow, interact with surrounding vorticity, detach from the surface, and convect downstream. A statistical analysis coupled with instantaneous realizations results in the modification of the classical dynamic stall conceptual model, specifically related to the dynamics of the leading edge vortex. The electronic version of this dissertation is accessible from http://hdl.handle.net/1969.1/148372