NASA
High Performance Computing
and Communications Program

Computational AeroSciences Project

Rotorcraft Maneuver Analysis, Prototype & Delivery, NAS2-14095, Bell Helicopter, Textron

Objective: The objective of this contract work is to develop a more accurate, faster, and less costly computational method for the detailed aerodynamic analysis and design of tiltrotor aircraft.

Approach: The approach in developing this methodology is the porting of the Euler/Navier-Stokes Three-Dimensional AeroElastic (ENS3DAE) code to high-performance parallel computers while incorporating moving grid technology. The resulting code will be used to simulate the aerodynamics of the V-22 aircraft in hover and airplane configurations.

Accomplishments: The first year effort was completed in November 1995 with 100% completion of objectives. The accomplishments of the first year were the significant and extensive parallel benchmark studies and the initial solutions of the V-22 aircraft in hover and airplane mode. The second year effort began in December 1995 and is 80% complete. Accomplishments of the second year include further scalability studies to address rotating to non-rotating grid boundary conditions, refinement of the grids defining the V-22 aircraft, and correlation with experimental data. The surface pressures on the rotor blades in airplane mode are shown in the figure. The blade pressures are shown after several rotor revolutions.

Significance: Significant progress has been made in understanding the scalability of the methodology for grid size variations, compute nodes and hardware platforms. The initial computations of the flow for the V-22's hover and airplane modes have demonstrated the ability of the method to compute these flowfields. Refinement of the grids and correlation with experimental results are validating the methodology. The validated code can then be applied to the analysis of the V-22 aircraft to improve aerodynamic performance in hover and airplane mode.

Status/Plans: The contract is currently in the second year, which is scheduled for completion at the end of November 1996 and is on schedule for contract performance. In the third year of the contract, the research emphasis will address download prediction and reduction in hover mode, and airplane drag reduction in airplane mode. Scalability and code validation efforts will be continued into the third year.

Point of Contact:

Paul M. Stremel, COTR
Ames Research Center
stremel@nas.nasa.gov
(415) 604-4563