Analysis and Validation of CFD Model in Propeller-Wing Configurations

Recent advances in Unmanned Aerial Vehicle (UAV) designs have increasingly incorporated Distributed Electric Propulsion (DEP) systems, characterized by multiple propellers attached on the leading edge of the wing. The increased interest in DEP necessitates understanding the aerodynamic effect of such multi-propeller configurations on aircraft performance. The development of a propeller model using Computational Fluid Dynamics (CFD) ensures flexibility in simulating different situations and analyzing the flow around the wing. In the present study, a CFD model developed to simulate the propeller slipstream was validated in the presence of a wing in different configurations. Simulations were assessed by varying freestream velocity, propeller advance ratio, and wing geometry. The effects produced by a single propeller were examined first before extending the analysis to multi-propeller configurations. The aerodynamic coefficients, specifically lift and drag, were compared to existing experimental results, demonstrating good agreement.