Hostname: page-component-77c89778f8-m42fx Total loading time: 0 Render date: 2024-07-23T04:07:04.103Z Has data issue: false hasContentIssue false
  • English
  • Français

On the wing density and the inflation factor of aircraft

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  29 February 2016

R. J. Huyssen ,
E. H. Mathews ,
L. Liebenberg  and
G. R. Spedding
R. J. Huyssen*
Affiliation:
Center for Research and Continued Engineering Development, North-West University, PretoriaSouth Africa
E. H. Mathews*
Affiliation:
Center for Research and Continued Engineering Development, North-West University, PretoriaSouth Africa
L. Liebenberg*
Affiliation:
Center for Research and Continued Engineering Development, North-West University, PretoriaSouth Africa
G. R. Spedding
Affiliation:
Department of Aerospace and Mechanical Engineering, University of Southern California, Los Angeles, CaliforniaUSAgeoff@usc.edu
*
joachim.Huyssen@up.ac.za
ehmathews@researchtoolbox.com
lliebenberg@researchtoolbox.com
Get access Rights & Permissions [Opens in a new window]

Abstract

The aviation industry is dominated by the domain of heavier-than-air, fixed-wing, subsonic flight, and central to any design in this domain is the wing itself. One of the earliest debates in aviation still centres around the usefulness of the wing volume. On the one hand it is held that the wing, as an inevitable necessity, should provide the volume also for the payload. On the other, it is argued that more efficient wings do not even have sufficient volume for the entire wing structure. This work proposes precise definitions of the Wing Density and the Inflation Factor, two parameters that can quantitatively reflect the economic and technological trends in aviation. The wing volume of a hypothetical Ideal Wing is derived from the Operational Parameters of any given Flight Objective and compared to the volume requirement of that flight objective. We conclude that the dominant aircraft configuration of the future is likely to remain within the same family of the current dominant configuration, in conflict with some older predictions.

Keywords

Aircraft ConfigurationFlight ObjectiveIdeal WingFlying WingWing DensityInflation FactorAircraft Design
Type
Research Article
Information
The Aeronautical Journal , Volume 120 , Issue 1224 , February 2016 , pp. 291 - 312
Copyright
Copyright © Royal Aeronautical Society 2016 

Access options

Get access to the full version of this content by using one of the access options below. (Log in options will check for institutional or personal access. Content may require purchase if you do not have access.)

References

1.Prandtl, L. Über Flüssigkeitsbewegung bei sehr kleiner Reibung, Verh 3 int. Math-Kongr, Heidelberg, 1904. Reprinted in Prandtl, L. and Betz, A. Vier Abhandlungen zur Hydrodynamik und Aerodynamik, 1927, Kaiser-Wilhelm Institut für Strömungsforschung, Göttingen, Germany.Google Scholar
2.Junkers, H.Metal aeroplane construction, J Roy Aero Soc, 1923, 27, (153), pp 406–449.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
3.Horton, R. and Selinger, P.F.Nurflügel: Die Geschichte der Horten-Fluzeuge 1933–1960, Weishaupt Verlag, Graz; 4., unveränderte Auflage, 1987.Google Scholar
4.Nickel, K., Wohlfahrt, M. and Brown, E.M. (transl.). Tailless Aircraft in Theory and Practice, AIAA Education Series, Edward Arnold, London, UK, 1994.Google Scholar
5.Liebeck, R.H., Page, M.A. and Rawdon, B.K. Blended-wing-body subsonic commercial transport, Proceedings of the 36 Aerospace Sciences Meeting and Exhibit, AIAA 98–0438, Reno, Nevada, US, 12-15 January 1998.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
6.Gundlach, J.F., Tetrault, P.-A., Gern, F.H., Nagshineh-Pour, A.H., Ko, A.K., Schetz, J.A., Mason, W.H., Kapania, R.K., Grossman, B. and Haftka, R.T.Conceptual design studies of a strut-braced wing transonic transport, J. Aircraft, 2000, 37, (6), pp 976–983.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
7.Gur, O., Schetz, J.A. and Mason, W.H.Aerodynamic considerations in the design of truss-braced-wing aircraft, J. Aircraft, 2011, 48, (3), pp 919–939.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
8.Dénos, R. Aeronautics and air transport research, 7th Framework Programme 2007–2013, Vol. 2 Project synopses, European Commission, Directorate-General for Research and Innovation, ISBN: 978-92-79-22538-3, 2012.Google Scholar
9.Torenbeek, E.Advanced Aircraft Design: Conceptual Design, Technology and Optimization of Subsonic Civil Airplanes, 2013, John Wiley & Sons, New York, US.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
10.Raymer, D.P.Aircraft Design: A Conceptual Approach, August 2012, AIAA Education Series, American Institute of Aeronautics & Astronautics.Google Scholar
11.Roskam, J.Airplane Design, Part II: Preliminary Configuration Design and Integration of the Propulsion System, 1999, Design, Analysis & Research (DAR) Corporation, Lawrence, Kansas, US.Google Scholar
12.Stinton, D.The Anatomy of the Aeroplane, 2nd ed, 1998, Blackwell Science Ltd, Oxford, UK.Google Scholar
13.Torenbeek, E. Aerodynamic Performance of the Wing-Body Configurations and the Flying Wing, Delft University of Technology, SAE Technical Paper 911019, 1991, doi: 10.4271/911019.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
14.Wood, R.M. The contributions of Vincent Justus Burnelli, Proceedings of the 41st Aerospace Sciences Meeting and Exhibit, Paper AIAA 2003-0292, Reno, Nevada, US, 6–9 January 2003.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
15.Lowther, S. Blended wing bodies, Aerospace Projects Review, 2007, Electronic Edition Volume 1, Number 3, pp 30-64.Google Scholar
16.Mason, W.H. Flying Wings/Tailless Aircraft (from the Virginia Tech Aircraft Design Information Sources pages), http://www.dept.aoe.vt.edu/~mason/Mason/ACiFlyWngs.html (accessed 12 March 2013).Google Scholar
17.Wakayama, S. and Kroo, I.Subsonic wing planform design using multidisciplinary optimization, J Aircraft, 1995, 32, (4), pp 746–753.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
18.McGeer, T.Wing design for minimum drag with practical constraints, J Aircraft, 1984, 21, (11), pp 879–886.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
19.Boermans, L.M.M. Research on sailplane aerodynamics at Delft University of Technology. Recent and present developments. Presented to the Netherlands Association of Aeronautical Engineers (NVvL) on 1 June 2006.Google Scholar
20.Somers, D.M. Design and experimental results for a natural-laminar-flow aerofoil for general aviation applications, 1981, NASA-TP-1861, L-14117, p 104.Google Scholar
21.Fujino, M., Yoshizaki, Y. and Kawamura, Y.Natural-laminar-flow aerofoil development for a lightweight business jet J Aircraft, 2003, 40, (4), pp 609–615.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
22.Althaus, D. and Xaver, F.Stuttgarter Profilkatalog: Messergebnisse aus dem Laminarwindkanal des Instituts für Aerodynamik und Gasdynamik der Universität Stuttgart, 1981, Vieweg & Sohn, Braunschweig, Germany.Google Scholar
23.Johl, W.A.T.A further case for variable geometry, Aero J, 2012, 116, (1175), pp 23–44.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
24.Thomas, F.Fundamentals of Sailplane Design, 1979, Motorbuch Verlag, Stuttgart, Germany.Google Scholar