No CrossRef data available.
Published online by Cambridge University Press: 27 January 2016
In this paper, helicopter rotor blades are analysed inhover using computational fluid dynamics (CFD)coupled with a structural model. The method relieson a mesh deformation algorithm that allows forexchange of forces and deformations between abeam-based finite-element model and the fluid flowvolume mesh. The method is demonstrated againstexperimental data, and the aerodynamic predictionsappear to improve when the aeroelastic model isused. For all employed cases the flexibility of themethod allows the CFD mesh deformation to be spreadover the computational domain in a controlledfashion. The influence of the aeroelasticdeformations on the blade loads was limited yetevident on the rotor performance. The lack ofadequate test cases and experiments for validationof CFD/CSD methods is also highlighted.