Center of pressure and Aerodynamic center

The resultant aerodynamic force and moment acting on body must have the same effect as the distributed load.
The resultant moment will depend on where ever the resultant force is placed on the body.

For example, let x be the coordinate measured along the chord line of an airfoil, from the leading edge towards the trailing edge.
The resultant moment about some arbitrary point on the chord line a distance x from the leading edge be 𝑀 . Then
𝑀 𝑁 𝟏
𝑴𝑳𝑬 = 𝑴𝒙 − 𝒙. 𝑵 𝐶 = 𝐶 = 𝒒. 𝑺. 𝒄
𝑞. 𝑆. 𝑐 𝑞. 𝑆
𝑥
𝐶 = 𝐶 − 𝐶
𝑐
Two particular locations along the chord line are of special interest.

 𝑥 → Center of pressure: The point about which the resultant moment is zero.

 𝑥 → Aerodynamic center: The point about which the change in the resultant moment with respect to the angle of attack
is zero.

3/5/2023 DR. MOHAMMED SALEH & DR. TAHA AHMAD 1

 Center of Pressure ( )
By definition, 𝐶 =0
𝑥
For 𝑥 = 𝑥 , this gives, 𝑀 = −𝑥 𝑁 𝐶 = − 𝐶
𝑐

For any point 𝑥, this gives,

𝑥 𝒙𝒄𝒑 𝐶 𝑥
𝐶 =𝐶 − 𝐶 𝑑𝑖𝑣𝑖𝑑𝑖𝑛𝑔 𝑏𝑦 𝐶 − = −
𝑐 𝒄 𝐶 𝑐

Hence, the location of 𝑥 at any given angle of attack (α) can be determined from the 𝐶 normal force
coefficient and 𝐶 moment coefficient about any point on the airfoil chord line.

In general, 𝒙𝒄𝒑 may vary significantly with α.

3/5/2023 DR. MOHAMMED SALEH & DR. TAHA AHMAD 2

 Aerodynamic Center ( )
Aerodynamic center: The point about which the change in the resultant moment with respect to the angle
of attack is zero. Moment not depend on angle of attack
𝒙 𝒙𝒂𝒄 𝒙 𝒙𝒂𝒄
𝑪𝒎𝑳𝑬 = 𝑪𝒎𝒙 − 𝑪𝑵 𝑪𝒎𝑳𝑬 = 𝑪𝒎𝒂𝒄 − 𝑪𝑵 𝑪𝒎𝒙 − 𝑪𝑵 = 𝑪𝒎𝒂𝒄 − 𝑪
𝒄 𝒄 𝒄 𝒄 𝑵
𝑥 𝑥 𝒙𝒂𝒄 𝒙
𝐶 =𝐶 − 𝐶 + 𝐶 𝑪𝒎𝒂𝒄 = 𝑪𝒎𝒙 + ( − )𝑪𝑵
𝑐 𝑐 𝒄 𝒄

From definition of aerodynamic center, or 𝑥 = 𝑥 , we have,

𝜕𝐶 𝜕𝐶 𝜕𝐶 𝑥 𝑥 𝜕𝐶
=0 = + − =0
𝜕𝛼 𝜕𝛼 𝜕𝛼 𝑐 𝑐 𝜕𝛼

𝝏𝑪𝒎𝒂𝒄
𝒙𝒂𝒄 𝒙
= − 𝝏𝜶
𝒄 𝒄 𝝏𝑪𝑵
𝝏𝜶

3/5/2023 DR. MOHAMMED SALEH & DR. TAHA AHMAD 3

 Aerodynamic Center ( )
Location of aerodynamic center does not depend on magnitude of the aerodynamic coefficient.

It depends on the derivative of the aerodynamic coefficient with respect to angle of attack.

𝝏𝑪𝒎𝒂𝒄
𝒙𝒂𝒄 𝒙
= − 𝝏𝜶
𝒄 𝒄 𝝏𝑪𝑵
𝝏𝜶

In contrast, location of center of pressure depends on the magnitude of aerodynamic coefficient.

3/5/2023 DR. MOHAMMED SALEH & DR. TAHA AHMAD 4

 Characteristic Graphs of an Airfoil
In the process of wing airfoil selection, we do not look at airfoil geometry only, or its pressure
distribution. Instead,

W examine the airfoil operational outputs that are more informative to satisfy design requirements

There are several graphs that illustrate the characteristics of each airfoil when compared to other airfoils
in the wing airfoil selection process.

These are mainly the variations of non-dimensional lift, drag, and pitching moment relative with angle of
attack.

where l, d, and m are lift, drag, and pitching moment of a two-dimensional airfoil. The area (𝑐 × 1)

3/5/2023 DR. MOHAMMED SALEH & DR. TAHA AHMAD 5

 Characteristic Graphs of an Airfoil
Thus we evaluate the performance and characteristics of an airfoil by looking at the following graphs.
1. The variations lift coefficient versus angle of attack
2. The variations pitching moment coefficient versus angle of attack
3. The variations of pitching moment coefficient versus lift coefficient
4. The variations of drag coefficient versus lift coefficient

5. The variations of lift-to-drag ratio versus angle of attack

These graphs have several critical features that are essential to the airfoil selection process.
Lets first have a review on these graphs.

3/5/2023 DR. MOHAMMED SALEH & DR. TAHA AHMAD 6

 The graph of lift coefficient ( ) versus angle of attack (α)
Figure shows the typical variations of lift coefficient versus angle of attack for a positive cambered airfoil.
Seven significant features of this graph are:
1. Stall angle (𝛼 ),
2. Maximum lift coefficient (𝐶𝑙 ),
3. Zero lift angle of attack (αo),
4. Ideal lift coefficient (𝐶𝑙 )
5. Angle of attack corresponding to ideal lift coefficient (𝛼 ),
6. Lift coefficient at zero angle of attack (𝐶𝑙 )
7. Lift curve slope (𝐶𝑙 ).
These are critical to identify the performance of an airfoil.

3/5/2023 DR. MOHAMMED SALEH & DR. TAHA AHMAD 7

 stall angle ( )
The stall angle (𝛼 ) is the angle of attack at which the airfoil stalls. The lift coefficient will no longer increase with increasing
angle of attack. The maximum lift coefficient that corresponds to stall angle is the maximum angle of attack.

The stall angle is directly related to the flight safety, since the aircraft will lose the balance of forces in a cruising flight. The
aircraft may enter a spin and eventually crash.

In general, the higher the stall angle, the safer is the aircraft, 𝑪𝒍𝒎𝒂𝒙

thus a high stall angle is sought in airfoil selection.

The typical stall angles for majority of airfoils are between 12 to 16 degrees.
𝑪𝒍𝒊
This means that the pilot is not allowed to increase the angle of attack 𝑪𝒍𝟎

more than about 16 degrees.

Therefore the airfoil which has the higher stall angle is more desirable. 𝜶𝒄 𝜶𝒔
𝜶𝟎

3/5/2023 DR. MOHAMMED SALEH & DR. TAHA AHMAD 8

 Maximum lift coefficient (𝑪𝒍𝒎𝒂𝒙 )

The maximum lift coefficient (𝑪𝒍𝒎𝒂𝒙 ) is the maximum capacity of an airfoil to produce lift; i.e. the capacity of an aircraft
to lift a load (i.e. aircraft weight).

The maximum lift coefficient is usually occurs at the stall angle.

The stall speed (Vs) is inversely a function of maximum lift coefficient, thus the higher Clmax leads in the lower Vs.
Thus the higher Clmax results in a safer flight. Therefore, the higher maximum lift coefficient is desired in an airfoil
selection process.

𝑪𝒍𝒎𝒂𝒙

𝜶𝒔
3/5/2023 DR. MOHAMMED SALEH & DR. TAHA AHMAD 9
 Zero lift angle of attack (αo)

The zero lift angle of attack (αo) is the airfoil angle of attack at which the lift coefficient is zero.
A typical number for αo is around -2 degrees when no high lift

𝜶=𝟎 𝑳=𝟎

𝜶≠𝟎 𝑳=𝟎

3/5/2023 DR. MOHAMMED SALEH & DR. TAHA AHMAD 10

 Ideal lift coefficient ( )
The ideal lift coefficient (𝑪𝒍𝒊 ) is the lift coefficient at which the drag coefficient does not vary
significantly with the slight variations of angle of attack.

The ideal lift coefficient is usually corresponding to the minimum drag coefficient. This is very critical in
airfoil selection, since the lower drag coefficient means the lower flight cost. Thus, the design objective is to
cruise at flight situation such that the cruise lift coefficient is as close as possible to the ideal lift coefficient.

𝑪𝒍𝒊

𝑪𝒍𝟎

𝜶𝟎 𝜶𝒄

3/5/2023 DR. MOHAMMED SALEH & DR. TAHA AHMAD 11

 Angle of attack corresponding to ideal lift coefficient (𝛼 ),

The angle of attack corresponding to ideal lift coefficient (𝛼 ) is self explanatory.

The wing setting angle is often selected to be the same as this angle, since it will result in a minimum drag. On the
other hand, the minimum drag is corresponding to the minimum engine thrust, which means the minimum flight
cost. This will be discussed in more details, when wing setting angle is discussed. The typical value of 𝛼 is
around 2 to 5 degrees. Thus, such an angle will be a optimum candidate for the cruising angle of attack.

The lift coefficient at zero angle of attack (𝑪𝒍𝟎)

is the lift coefficient when angle of attack is zero. From design point of
𝑪𝒍𝒊
view, the more 𝑪𝒍𝟎 is the better, since it implies we can produce a positive
𝑪𝒍𝟎
lift even at zero angle of attack. Thus, the more 𝑪𝒍𝟎 is the better.

𝜶𝟎 𝜶𝒄𝒍𝒊

3/5/2023 DR. MOHAMMED SALEH & DR. TAHA AHMAD 12

 The lift curve slope
The lift curve slope (𝑪𝒍𝜶) is another important performance feature of an airfoil.
The lift curve slope is the slope of variation of lift coefficient with respect to the change in the angle of attack,
and its unit is 1/deg or 1/rad.
Since the main function of an airfoil is to produce lift, the higher the slope, the better the airfoil.
The typical value of lift curve slope of a 2d airfoil is about 0.1 per degrees.
It implies that for each 1 degree of change in the airfoil angle of attack, the lift coefficient will be increased by 0.1.
The lift curve slope (1/rad) may be found by the following empirical equation:

where c is the maximum thickness to chord ratio of the airfoil.

3/5/2023 DR. MOHAMMED SALEH & DR. TAHA AHMAD 13

 shape of the lift curve at the stall angle of attack (stall behavior)
Another airfoil characteristic is the shape of the lift curve at and beyond the stall angle of attack (stall
behavior). An airfoil with a gentle drop in lift after the stall, safer than an abrupt or sharp rapid lift loss,

This leads to a safer stall from which the pilot can more easily recover .

3/5/2023 DR. MOHAMMED SALEH & DR. TAHA AHMAD 14

 The variations of pitching moment coefficient versus angle of attack
The slope of this graph is usually negative and it is in the region of negative 𝑪𝒎 for typical range angle of
attacks.
The negative slope is desirable, since it stabilizes the flight, if the angle of attack is disturbed by a wind.
The negative 𝑪𝒎 is sometimes referred to as nose-down pitching moment. This is due to its negative direction
about y-axis which means the aircraft nose will be pitched down by such moment.

3/5/2023 DR. MOHAMMED SALEH & DR. TAHA AHMAD 15

 pitching moment coefficient versus lift coefficient
For a positive cambered airfoil. The magnitude of 𝑪𝒎 is almost constant for the typical ranges of lift
coefficient.
The typical magnitude is usually about -0.02 to -0.05.
The design objective is to have the 𝑪𝒎 close to zero as much as possible.
The reason is that the aircraft must be in equilibrium in cruising flight.
This pitching moment must be nullified by another component of the aircraft, such as tail.
Thus, the higher 𝑪𝒎 (more negative) results in a larger Tail, which means the heavier aircraft.
Therefore the airfoil which has the lower 𝑪𝒎 is more Desirable.
It is interesting to note that the pitching 𝑪𝒎 for a symmetrical airfoil section is zero.

3/5/2023 DR. MOHAMMED SALEH & DR. TAHA AHMAD 16

 The variations of drag coefficient as a function of lift coefficient
For a positive cambered airfoil. The lowest point of this graph is called minimum drag coefficient (𝑪𝒅𝒎𝒊𝒏 ).
The corresponding lift coefficient to the minimum drag coefficient is called 𝑪𝒍𝒎𝒊𝒏
As the drag is directly related to the cost of flight, the 𝑪𝒅𝒎𝒊𝒏 is of great importance in airfoil design or airfoil selection.
A typical value for 𝑪𝒅𝒎𝒊𝒏 is about 0.003 to 0.006. Therefore the airfoil which has the lower 𝑪𝒅𝒎𝒊𝒏 is more desirable.

A line drawn through the origin and tangent to the graph locates
a point that denotes to the minimum slope

This point is also of great importance, since it indicates the flight

situation that maximum Cl-to-Cd ratio is generated, 𝑪𝒅𝒎𝒊𝒏

since (𝑪𝒅/𝑪𝒍)𝒎𝒊𝒏 = (𝑪𝒍/𝑪𝒅)𝒎𝒂𝒙 .

𝑪𝒍𝒎𝒊𝒏 (𝑪𝒅/𝑪𝒍)𝒎𝒊𝒏

3/5/2023 DR. MOHAMMED SALEH & DR. TAHA AHMAD 17

 It is referred to as the maximum lift-to-drag ratio.

In addition of requirement of lowest 𝑪𝒅𝒎𝒊𝒏 the highest (𝑪𝒍/𝑪𝒅)𝒎𝒂𝒙 is also desired.

These two objectives may not happen at the same time in one airfoil, but based on aircraft mission and
weight of each design requirement, one of them gets more attention.

The variation of drag coefficient as a function of lift coefficient may be mathematically modeled by the following
second order equation:
𝑪𝒅 = 𝑪𝒅 + 𝐾(𝑪𝑙 − 𝑪𝑙 )

where K is called section drag factor. The parameter K can be determined by

selecting a point on the graph (𝑪𝑙1 and 𝑪𝒅1) and plugging in the equation

3/5/2023 DR. MOHAMMED SALEH & DR. TAHA AHMAD 18

Variations of 𝑪𝒅 as a function of 𝑪𝒍 for a laminar airfoil; such as in 6-series NACA airfoils.
This graph has a unique feature which is the bucket, due to the bucket shape of the lower portion of the graph.
𝑪𝒅𝒎𝒊𝒏 will not vary for a limited range of 𝑪𝒍. this is very significant, since it implies that the pilot can stay at
the lowest drag point while changing the angle of attack.
This situation matches with the cruising flight,

The middle point of the bucket is called ideal lift coefficient (𝑪𝒍𝒊), while the
highest 𝑪𝒍 in the bucket region is referred to as design lift coefficient (𝑪𝒍𝒅 ).
These two points are among the list of significant criteria to select/design an
airfoil.
Remember that the design lift coefficient occurs at the point whose 𝐶𝑑/𝐶𝑙 is
minimum or Cl/Cd is maximum. For some flight operations

An airfoil designed for minimum drag and uninterrupted flow of the boundary layer is called a laminar airfoil.

3/5/2023 DR. MOHAMMED SALEH & DR. TAHA AHMAD 19

 The variations of (Cl/Cd) as a function of angle of attack
This graph has one maximum point where the value of the lift-to-drag ratio is the highest at this point.
The angle of attack corresponding to this point is an optimum candidate for a loitering flight (𝜶𝒍 ).

3/5/2023 DR. MOHAMMED SALEH & DR. TAHA AHMAD 20

 Airfoil Selection Criteria
A subsonic flight design requirements are very much different from a supersonic flight design

objectives. On the other hand, flight in the transonic region requires a special airfoil

The designer must also consider other requirements such as airworthiness, structural,

manufacturability, and cost requirements.

In general, the following are the criteria to select an airfoil for a wing with a collection of design

requirements:

3/5/2023 DR. MOHAMMED SALEH & DR. TAHA AHMAD 21

 Airfoil Selection Criteria
1. The airfoil with the highest maximum lift coefficient (𝑪𝒍𝒎𝒂𝒙 )
2. The airfoil with the proper ideal or design lift coefficient (𝑪𝒍𝒅 𝒐𝒓 𝑪𝒍𝒊)
3. The airfoil with the lowest minimum drag coefficient (𝑪𝒅𝒎𝒊𝒏 )
4. The airfoil with the highest lift-to-drag ratio ((𝑪𝒍/𝑪𝒅)𝒎𝒂𝒙 ).
5. The airfoil with the highest lift curve slope (𝑪𝒍𝜶𝒎𝒂𝒙 )
6. The airfoil with the lowest pitching moment coefficient (𝑪𝒎).
7. The proper stall quality in the stall region (the variation must be gentile, not sharp)
8. The airfoil must be structurally reinforceable. The airfoil should not that much thin that spars
cannot be placed inside.
9. The airfoil must be such that the cross section is manufacturable.

3/5/2023 DR. MOHAMMED SALEH & DR. TAHA AHMAD 22

3/5/2023 DR. MOHAMMED SALEH & DR. TAHA AHMAD 23
 Example
Consider an NACA2412 airfoil with a chord of 0.64 m in
an airstream at standard sea level conditions. The free
stream velocity is 70 m/s. The lift per unit span is 1254
Calculate the angle of attack and the drag per unit spam

At standard sea level ρ=1.23 kg/m3

3/5/2023 DR. MOHAMMED SALEH & DR. TAHA AHMAD 24

3/5/2023 DR. MOHAMMED SALEH & DR. TAHA AHMAD 25
NACA 2412
Airfoil Data

3/5/2023 DR. MOHAMMED SALEH & DR. TAHA AHMAD 26

3/5/2023 DR. MOHAMMED SALEH & DR. TAHA AHMAD 27
 high-lift devices
The passive high-lift devices, commonly referred to as flaps, are based
on the following three principles:
Increase of camber.
Increase of wet surface (typically by increasing the chord).
Control of the boundary layer.
There are many different types of flaps depending on the size, speed,
and complexity of the aircraft they are to be used on, as well as the era
in which the aircraft was designed.
Plain flaps,
slotted flaps,
and Fowler flaps are the most common trailing edge flaps.

3/5/2023 DR. MOHAMMED SALEH & DR. TAHA AHMAD 28

3/5/2023 DR. MOHAMMED SALEH & DR. TAHA AHMAD 29
3/5/2023 DR. MOHAMMED SALEH & DR. TAHA AHMAD 30
 high-lift devices
Leading edge Flaps used on the wings of many airplane
Krueger flaps,
slats,
and slots (Notice that slots are not explicitly flaps, but more precisely boundary
layer control devices).
The plain flap is the simplest flap. The basic idea is to design the airfoil so that
the trailing edge can rotate around an axis. The angle of that deflection is the
flap deflection δf
The effect is an increase in the camber of the airfoil, resulting in an increase in
the coefficient of lift.

3/5/2023 DR. MOHAMMED SALEH & DR. TAHA AHMAD 31

3/5/2023 DR. MOHAMMED SALEH & DR. TAHA AHMAD 32