On the effects of leading edge vortex generators on an OA209 airfoil

Leading edge vortex generators have been found to significantly increase the aerodynamic performance of an airfoil under dynamic stall conditions. However, the principle of operation of these devices is still unclear. Therefore static wind and water tunnel experiments as well as CFD simulations have been conducted on a rotary aircraft wing profile OA209. A POD analysis applied to the vector fields generated by PIV measurements showed that the vortex generators break larger flow structures into small scale formations. They are able to decrease the impact of the dynamic stall vortex and decrease the undesirable aerodynamic fluctuations associated with dynamic stall.