Date of Award:

8-2020

Document Type:

Dissertation

Degree Name:

Doctor of Philosophy (PhD)

Department:

Mechanical and Aerospace Engineering

Committee Chair(s)

Douglas F. Hunsaker

Committee

Douglas F. Hunsaker

Committee

Andreas Malmendier

Committee

Geordie Richards

Committee

Barton L. Smith

Committee

Zhongquan C. Zheng

Abstract

Lifting-line theory is one simple method of predicting the lift produced by a wing. The traditional implementation of lifting-line theory, developed in 1918, is limited to predicting the lift of traditional straight wings. In this work, lifting-line theory is extended to predict the lift produced by modern swept (or "v-shaped") wings by strategically handling the singularities inherent to the theory. The resulting formulation is shown to be both accurate and computationally inexpensive, when compared to experimental and higher-fidelity computational results, demonstrating the method's usefulness as an aerodynamic design tool. Because of the low computational cost and accuracy of the method described in this work, it is of interest to a range of persons involved in the design, flight, and control of aircraft. The method can be used in large design-space studies, for which high-fidelity aerodynamic tools are computationally prohibitive, and in real-time applications, such as flight simulation and aircraft control systems.

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