Optimization of Flexible Wings with Distributed Flaps at Off-Design Conditions

An efficient process to aerodynamically optimize transport wings while addressing static aeroelastic effects is presented. The process is used to assess the aerodynamic performance benefits of a full-span trailing-edge flap system on a generic transport aircraft at off-design conditions. To establish a proper baseline, a transport wing is first aerodynamically optimized at a midcruise flight condition. The optimized wing is then analyzed at several off-design cruise conditions. The aerodynamic optimization is repeated at these off-design conditions to determine how much performance is lost by the wing optimized solely for the midcruise condition. The full-span flap system is then adapted to maximize performance of the midcruise-optimized wing at each off-design condition. The improvement due to the trailing-edge flaps is quantified by examining the degree to which the flaps can recover the performance of a wing designed specifically for the off-design condition. To evaluate the repercussions of aeroelasti...

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