INVESTIGATION OF THE FLOW-TRANSITION BEHAVIOR ON A MICRO

AIR VEHICLE

Shiyu Long1, Liang Wang1*

1
School of Aerospace Engineering, Tsinghua University, Beijing, China, 100084
*
Email: wangliang12@tsinghua.edu.cn

In this paper, a computational study was conducted on a micro air vehicle (MAV) to simulate flows at specific Reynolds
numbers (Re) of 1.16 × 105 , with the rotating speed of the main rotor of 3000 revolutions per minute. The computational
fluid dynamics (CFD) tool utilized in this study is a Reynolds-averaged Navier-Stokes solver, incorporating various
turbulence models and laminar-turbulent transition models. The investigation focused on a single-rotor configuration,
analyzing its lift and drag performance, as well as surface pressure, skin friction, and flow field characteristics. Notably,
the study observed flow-transition behavior on the rotor, significantly influencing its performance through changes in
laminar boundary layer separation.

Keywords: flow-transition, micro aerial vehicle, low Reynolds numbers, unstructured overset mesh, unsteady flow

Introduction
Due to the stringent constraints on size, weight, and endurance, the development of micro-rotors necessitates the resolution
of numerous technical challenges. Among these obstacles, the aerodynamics of micro-rotors stands as the fundamental and
highly scrutinized bottleneck. It remains a compelling area of research that garners extensive attention from experts and
enthusiasts alike. Efforts to overcome these hurdles are imperative to unlocking the full potential of micro-rotor technology.
Laminar-turbulent transition can significantly affect the aerodynamic performance of rotors at low Reynolds numbers by
altering the presence and extent of laminar boundary layer separation. This effect can cause the performance of micro air
vehicles to be significantly dependent on free-stream turbulence intensity, rotor surface roughness, and rotor vibrations.
The Black Hornet III is a compact and advanced unmanned aerial vehicle (UAV). With its miniature helicopter design, it
features main and tail rotors, a streamlined fuselage, and an efficient propulsion system. This UAV excels in stability and
precise control, making it ideal for reconnaissance and surveillance missions. It can navigate tight spaces, gather valuable
intelligence, and transmit real-time data. The Black Hornet III’s small size allows for covert operations and easy
deployment by personnel in the field. Its cutting-edge technology and versatility make it a valuable asset for military,
security, and emergency response applications.
The goal of this paper is thus to numerically simulate transitional flows on the configuration of Black Hornet III, at the
Reynolds number (Re) of 1.16 × 105 . The rotating speed of the main rotors is set to 3000 and 5000 revolutions per minute,
respectively. The computational fluid dynamics tool used in this study is a Reynolds-averaged Navier-Stokes solver with
several turbulence models as well as laminar-turbulent transition models, including 𝛾𝛾 − 𝑅𝑅𝑒𝑒𝜃𝜃 transition model1, 𝑅𝑅 − 𝛾𝛾
transition model2, SST turbulence model3, and cubic 𝑘𝑘 − 𝜀𝜀 turbulence model4.

Numerical methodologies and results

In order to effectively handle multiple bodies in relative motion, an overset mesh scheme was adopted, with the main and
tail rotor meshes corresponding to the rotating domain and the fuselage mesh corresponding to the background fixed
domain. As shown in Fig.1, unstructured meshes were generated for the 3 separate components, adding up to a total of 34.6
million cells.
From initial numerical investigations of the configuration, characteristics of the unsteady behavior are already known. A
separate study of the influence of time step size indicated that a typical time step of Δt =1 × 10−4 𝑠𝑠 is sufficient to obtain
results independent of the temporal resolution, corresponding to 200 time steps for one rotation of the main rotor. By
separating the time integration into pseudo-time and physical time steps, dual time stepping is turned on for better control
over the numerical scheme and enables efficient resolution of complex flow features and disparate time scales5. To reduce
the extensive computational time required to manage a large number of cells, a parallel computational algorithm was
implemented. All computations were performed on a Linux-based supercomputer with 448 Intel CPU cores.
An impression of the geometry and flow in question is given by Figure 2. The mixed-mode transition scenario on the main
rotor, as shown in Figure 3, significantly influences the rotor performance through changes in laminar boundary layer
separation. Further analyses of lift and drag performance, as well as surface pressure, skin friction, and flow field
characteristics, will be provided in the full paper.

Figure 1: computational mesh distribution details.

Figure 2: Instantaneous flow using the λ2 vortex core criterion at λ2 = - 500 s-2, shaded by dimensionless velocity
magnitude (left), and contours of time-averaged pressure coefficient 𝑪𝑪𝒑𝒑 (right).

𝜸𝜸 − 𝑹𝑹𝒆𝒆𝜽𝜽 𝑹𝑹 − 𝜸𝜸 𝑺𝑺𝑺𝑺𝑺𝑺 𝒄𝒄𝒄𝒄𝒄𝒄𝒄𝒄𝒄𝒄 𝒌𝒌 − 𝜺𝜺 𝑳𝑳𝑳𝑳𝑳𝑳𝑳𝑳𝑳𝑳𝑳𝑳𝑳𝑳

Blade root

Leading Trailing
edge edge

Blade tip

Figure 2: Contours of skin friction on the main rotor, calculated from different RANS models.

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