Understanding aerodynamics : arguing from the real physics

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Title:

Personal Author:

McLean, Doug, 1943-

Publication Information:

Chichester, West Sussex, United Kingdom : Wiley, a John Wiley & Sons, Ltd., Publication, 2013

Physical Description:

xxv, 550 p. : ill. ; 25 cm.

ISBN:

9781119967514

Subject Term:

Aerodynamics

Available:*

Library	Item Barcode	Call Number	Material Type	Item Category 1	Status
Searching... PSZ JB	30000010306186	TL570 M35 2013	Open Access Book	Book	Searching... Unknown
Searching... Razak School	30000010306874	TL570 M35 2013	Open Access Book	Book	Searching... Unknown

Summary

Much-needed, fresh approach that brings a greater insight into the physical understanding of aerodynamics

Based on the author's decades of industrial experience with Boeing, this book helps students and practicing engineers to gain a greater physical understanding of aerodynamics. Relying on clear physical arguments and examples, Mclean provides a much-needed, fresh approach to this sometimes contentious subject without shying away from addressing "real" aerodynamic situations as opposed to the oversimplified ones frequently used for mathematical convenience. Motivated by the belief that engineering practice is enhanced in the long run by a robust understanding of the basics as well as real cause-and-effect relationships that lie behind the theory, he provides intuitive physical interpretations and explanations, debunking commonly-held misconceptions and misinterpretations, and building upon the contrasts provided by wrong explanations to strengthen understanding of the right ones.

Provides a refreshing view of aerodynamics that is based on the author's decades of industrial experience yet is always tied to basic fundamentals. Provides intuitive physical interpretations and explanations, debunking commonly-held misconceptions and misinterpretations Offers new insights to some familiar topics, for example, what the Biot-Savart law really means and why it causes so much confusion, what "Reynolds number" and "incompressible flow" really mean, and a real physical explanation for how an airfoil produces lift. Addresses "real" aerodynamic situations as opposed to the oversimplified ones frequently used for mathematical convenience, and omits mathematical details whenever the physical understanding can be conveyed without them.

Author Notes

Doug Mclean, Boeing Commercial Airplanes, USA
Doug McLean is a Boeing Technical Fellow in the Enabling Technology and Research unit within Aerodynamics Engineering at Boeing Commercial Airplanes. He received a BA in physics from the University of California at Riverside in 1965 and a PhD in aeronautical engineering from Princeton University in 1970. He joined the Boeing Commercial Airplane Group in 1974 and has worked there ever since on a range of problems, both computational and experimental, in the areas of viscous flow, drag reduction, and aerodynamic design. Computer programs he developed for the calculation of three-dimensional boundary layers and swept shock/boundary-layer interactions were in use by wing-design groups at Boeing for many years.

Reviews 1

Choice Review

To make the best use of this graduate-level book, students should have taken a couple of fluid dynamics courses and one in aerodynamics, and should have gained exposure to computational fluid dynamical methods in these courses. McLean (ret., Boeing) is an aeronautical engineer with extensive experience in the field. His objective is to provide the student and professional aerodynamicist a deeper physical understanding of the complex and sometimes confusing phenomena involved in two- and three-dimensional flows, which often involve the generation of patterns of vortices and turbulence. However, in order to follow the author's physical reasoning, readers must thoroughly understand the Navier-Stokes equations and their mathematical and physical consequences. The chapters titled "Drag and Propulsion," "Lift and Wings in 3D at Subsonic Speeds," and "Modeling Aerodynamic Flows in Computational Fluid Dynamics" are very good. This is a sophisticated book for people immersed in the study of fluid dynamics and aerodynamics; it will give them in-depth knowledge of both the physical phenomena and the mathematical equations that are used to describe and predict these phenomena. Summing Up: Recommended. Graduate students in aerospace engineering, researchers/faculty, and aircraft design professionals. A. M. Strauss Vanderbilt University

Foreword	p. xi
Series Preface	p. xiii
Preface	p. xv
List of Symbols	p. xix
1 Introduction to the Conceptual Landscape	p. 1
2 From Elementary Particles to Aerodynamic Flows	p. 5
3 Continuum Fluid Mechanics and the Navier-Stokes Equations	p. 13
3.1 The Continuum Formulation and Its Range of Validity	p. 13
3.2 Mathematical Formalism	p. 16
3.3 Kinematics: Streamlines, Streaklines, Timelines, and Vorticity	p. 18
3.3.1 Streamlines and Streaklines	p. 18
3.3.2 Streamtubes, Stream Surfaces, and the Stream Function	p. 19
3.3.3 Timelines	p. 22
3.3.4 The Divergence of the Velocity and Green's Theorem	p. 23
3.3.5 Vorticity and Circulation	p. 24
3.3.6 The Velocity Potential in Irrotational Flow	p. 26
3.3.7 Concepts that Arise in Describing the Vorticity Field	p. 26
3.3.8 Velocity Fields Associated with Concentrations of Vorticity	p. 29
3.3.9 The Biot-Savart Law and the "Induction" Fallacy	p. 31
3.4 The Equations of Motion and their Physical Meaning	p. 33
3.4.1 Continuity of the Flow and Conservation of Mass	p. 34
3.4.2 Forces on Fluid Parcels and Conservation of Momentum	p. 35
3.4.3 Conservation of Energy	p. 36
3.4.4 Constitutive Relations and Boundary Conditions	p. 37
3.4.5 Mathematical Nature of the Equations	p. 37
3.4.6 The Physics as Viewed in the Eulerian Frame	p. 38
3.4.7 The Pseudo-Lagrangian Viewpoint	p. 40
3.5 Cause and Effect, and the Problem of Prediction	p. 40
3.6 The Effects of Viscosity	p. 43
3.7 Turbulence, Reynolds Averaging, and Turbulence Modeling	p. 48
3.8 Important Dynamical Relationships	p. 55
3.8.1 Galilean Invariance, or Independence of Reference Frame	p. 55
3.8.2 Circulation Preservation and the Persistence of Irrotationality	p. 56
3.8.3 Behavior of Vortex Tubes in Inviscid and Viscous Flows	p. 57
3.8.4 Bernoulli Equations and Stagnation Conditions	p. 58
3.8.5 Crocco's Theorem	p. 60
3.9 Dynamic Similarity	p. 60
3.9.1 Compressibility Effects and the Mach Number	p. 63
3.9.2 Viscous Effects and the Reynolds Number	p. 63
3.9.3 Scaling of Pressure Forces: the Dynamic Pressure	p. 64
3.9.4 Consequences of Failing to Match All of the Requirements for Similarity	p. 65
3.10 "Incompressible" Flow and Potential Flow	p. 66
3.11 Compressible Flow and Shocks	p. 70
3.11.1 Steady ID Isentropic Flow Theory	p. 71
3.11.2 Relations for Normal and Oblique Shock Waves	p. 74
4 Boundary Layers	p. 79
4.1 Physical Aspects of Boundary-Layer Flows	p. 80
4.1.1 The Basic Sequence: Attachment, Transition, Separation	p. 80
4.1.2 General Development of the Boundary-Layer Flowfield	p. 82
4.1.3 Boundary-Layer Displacement Effect	p. 90
4.1.4 Separation from a Smooth Wall	p. 93
4.2 Boundary-Layer Theory	p. 99
4.2.1 The Boundary-Layer Equations	p. 100
4.2.2 Integrated Momentum Balance in a Boundary Layer	p. 108
4.2.3 The Displacement Effect and Matching with the Outer Flow	p. 110
4.2.4 The Vorticity "Budget" in a 2D Incompressible Boundary Layer	p. 113
4.2.5 Situations That Violate the Assumptions of Boundary-Layer Theory	p. 114
4.2.6 Summary of Lessons from Boundary-Layer Theory	p. 117
4.3 Flat-Plate Boundary Layers and Other Simplified Cases	p. 117
4.3.1 Flat-Plate Flow	p. 117
4.3.2 2D Boundary-Layer Flows with Similarity	p. 121
4.3.3 Axisymmetric Flow	p. 123
4.3.4 Plane-of-Symmetry and Attachment-Line Boundary Layers	p. 125
4.3.5 Simplifying the Effects of Sweep and Taper in 3D	p. 128
4.4 Transition and Turbulence	p. 130
4.4.1 Boundary-Layer Transition	p. 131
4.4.2 Turbulent Boundary Layers	p. 138
4.5 Control and Prevention of Flow Separation	p. 150
4.5.1 Body Shaping and Pressure Distribution	p. 150
4.5.2 Vortex Generators	p. 150
4.5.3 Steady Tangential Blowing through a Slot	p. 155
4.5.4 Active Unsteady Blowing	p. 157
4.5.5 Suction	p. 157
4.6 Heat Transfer and Compressibility	p. 158
4.6.1 Heat Transfer, Compressibility, and the Boundary-Layer Temperature Field	p. 158
4.6.2 The Thermal Energy Equation and the Prandtl Number	p. 159
4.6.3 The Wall Temperature and Other Relations for an Adiabatic Wall	p. 159
4.7 Effects of Surface Roughness	p. 162
5 General Features of Flows around Bodies	p. 163
5.1 The Obstacle Effect	p. 164
5.2 Basic Topology of Flow Attachment and Separation	p. 168
5.2.1 Attachment and Separation in 2D	p. 169
5.2.2 Attachment and Separation in 3D	p. 171
5.2.3 Streamline Topology on Surfaces and in Cross Sections	p. 176
5.3 Wakes	p. 186
5.4 Integrated Forces: Lift and Drag	p. 189
6 Drag and Propulsion	p. 191
6.1 Basic Physics and Flowfield Manifestations of Drag and Thrust	p. 192
6.1.1 Basic Physical Effects of Viscosity y	p. 193
6.1.2 The Role of Turbulence	p. 193
6.1.3 Direct and Indirect Contributions to the Drag Force on the Body	p. 194
6.1.4 Determining Drag from the Flowfield: Application of Conservation Laws	p. 196
6.1.5 Examples of Flowfield Manifestations of Drag in Simple 2D Flows	p. 204
6.1.6 Pressure Drag of Streamlined and Bluff Bodies A	p. 207
6.1.7 Questionable Drag Categories: Parasite Drag, Base Drag, and Slot Drag	p. 210
6.1.8 Effects of Distributed Surface Roughness on Turbulent Skin Friction	p. 212
6.1.9 Interference Drag	p. 222
6.1.10 Some Basic Physics of Propulsion	p. 225
6.2 Drag Estimation	p. 241
6.2.1 Empirical Correlations	p. 242
6.2.2 Effects of Surface Roughness on Turbulent Skin Friction	p. 243
6.2.3 CFD Prediction of Drag	p. 250
6.3 Drag Reduction	p. 250
6.3.1 Reducing Drag by Maintaining a Run of Laminar Flow	p. 251
6.3.2 Reduction of Turbulent Skin Friction	p. 251
7 Lift and Airfoils in 2D at Subsonic Speeds	p. 259
7.1 Mathematical Prediction of Lift in 2D	p. 260
7.2 Lift in Terms of Circulation and Bound Vorticity	p. 265
7.2.1 The Classical Argument for the Origin of the Bound Vorticity	p. 267
7.3 Physical Explanations of Lift in 2D	p. 269
7.3.1 Past Explanations and their Strengths and Weaknesses	p. 269
7.3.2 Desired Attributes of a More Satisfactory Explanation	p. 284
7.3.3 A Basic Explanation of Lift on an Airfoil, Accessible to a Nontechnical Audience	p. 286
7.3.4 More Physical Details on Lift in 2D, for the Technically Inclined	p. 302
7.4 Airfoils	p. 307
7.4.1 Pressure Distributions and Integrated Forces at Low Math Numbers	p. 307
7.4.2 Profile Drag and the Drag Polar	p. 316
7.4.3 Maximum Lift and Boundary-Layer Separation on Single-Element Airfoils	p. 319
7.4.4 Multielement Airfoils and the Slot Effect	p. 329
7.4.5 Cascades	p. 335
7.4.6 Low-Drag Airfoils with Laminar Flow	p. 338
7.4.7 Low-Reynolds-Number Airfoils	p. 341
7.4.8 Airfoils in Transonic Flow	p. 342
7.4.9 Airfoils in Ground Effect	p. 350
7.4.10 Airfoil Design	p. 352
7.4.11 Issues that Arise in Defining Airfoil Shapes	p. 354
8 Lift and Wings in 3D at Subsonic Speeds	p. 359
8.1 The Flowfield around a 3D Wing	p. 359
8.1.1 General Characteristics of the Velocity Field	p. 359
8.1.2 The Vortex Wake	p. 362
8.1.3 The Pressure Field around a 3D Wing	p. 371
8.1.4 Explanations for the Flowfield	p. 371
8.1.5 Vortex Shedding from Edges Other Than the Trailing Edge	p. 375
8.2 Distribution of Lift on a 3D Wing	p. 376
8.2.1 Basic and Additional Spanloads	p. 376
8.2.2 Linearized Lifting-Surface Theory	p. 379
8.2.3 Lifting-Line Theory	p. 380
8.2.4 3D Lift in Ground Effect	p. 382
8.2.5 Maximum Lift, as Limited by 3D Effects	p. 384
8.3 Induced Drag	p. 385
8.3.1 Basic Scaling of Induced Drag	p. 385
8.3.2 Induced Drag from a Farfield Momentum Balance	p. 386
8.3.3 Induced Drag in Terms of Kinetic Energy and an Idealized Rolled-Up Vortex Wake	p. 389
8.3.4 Induced Drag from the Loading on the Wing Itself: Treffiz-Plane Theory	p. 391
8.3.5 Ideal (Minimum) Induced-Drag Theory	p. 394
8.3.6 Span-Efficiency Factors	p. 396
8.3.7 The Induced-Drag Polar	p. 397
8.3.8 The Sin-Series Spanloads	p. 398
8.3.9 The Reduction of Induced Drag in Ground Effect	p. 401
8.3.10 The Effect of a Fuselage on Induced Drag	p. 402
8.3.11 Effects of a Canard or Aft Tail on Induced Drag	p. 404
8.3.12 Biplane Drag	p. 409
8.4 Wingtip Devices	p. 411
8.4.1 Myths Regarding the Vortex Wake, and Some Questionable Ideas for Wingtip Devices	p. 411
8.4.2 The Facts of Life Regarding Induced Drag and Induced-Drag Reduction	p. 414
8.4.3 Milestones in the Development of Theory and Practice	p. 420
8.4.4 Wingtip Device Concepts	p. 422
8.4.5 Effectiveness of Various Device Configurations	p. 423
8.5 Manifestations of Lift in the Atmosphere at Large	p. 427
8.5.1 The Net Vertical Momentum Imparted to the Atmosphere	p. 427
8.5.2 The Pressure Far above and below the Airplane	p. 429
8.5.3 Downwash in the Treffiz Plane and Other Momentum-Conservation Issues	p. 431
8.5.4 Sears's Incorrect Analysis of the Integrated Pressure Far Downstream	p. 435
8.5.5 The Real Flowfield Far Downstream of the Airplane	p. 436
8.6 Effects of Wing Sweep	p. 444
8.6.1 Simple Sweep Theory	p. 444
8.6.2 Boundary Layers on Swept Wings	p. 449
8.6.3 Shock/Boundary-Layer Interaction on Swept Wings	p. 464
8.6.4 Laminar-to-Turbulent Transition on Swept Wings	p. 465
8.6.5 Relating a Swept, Tapered Wing to a 2D Airfoil	p. 468
8.6.6 Tailoring of the Inboard Pail of a Swept Wing	p. 469
9 Theoretical Idealizations Revisited	p. 471
9.1 Approximations Grouped According to how the Equations were Modified	p. 471
9.1.1 Reduced Temporal and/or Spatial Resolution	p. 472
9.1.2 Simplified Theories Based on Neglecting Something Small	p. 472
9.1.3 Reductions in Dimensions	p. 472
9.1.4 Simplified Theories Based on Ad hoc Flow Models	p. 472
9.1.5 Qualitative Anomalies and Other Consequences of Approximations	p. 481
9.2 Some Tools of MFD (Mental Fluid Dynamics)	p. 482
9.2.7 Simple Conceptual Models for Thinking about Velocity Fields	p. 482
9.2.2 Thinking about Viscous and Shock Drag	p. 485
9.2.3 Thinking about Induced Drag	p. 486
9.2.4 A Catalog of Fallacies	p. 487
10 Modeling Aerodynamic Flows in Computational Fluid Dynamics	p. 491
10.1 Basic Definitions	p. 493
10.2 The Major Classes of CFD Codes and Their Applications	p. 493
10.2.1 Navier-Stokes Methods	p. 493
10.2.2 Coupled Viscous/Inviscid Methods	p. 497
10.2.3 Inviscid Methods	p. 498
10.2.4 Standalone Boundary-Layer Codes	p. 501
10.3 Basic Characteristics of Numerical Solution Schemes	p. 501
10.3.1 Discretization	p. 501
10.3.2 Spatial Field Grids	p. 502
10.3.3 Grid Resolution and Grid Convergence	p. 506
10.3.4 Solving the Equations, and Iterative Convergence	p. 507
10.4 Physical Modeling in CFD	p. 508
10.4.1 Compressibility and Shocks	p. 508
10.4.2 Viscous Effects and Turbulence	p. 510
10.4.3 Separated Shear Layers and Vortex Wakes	p. 511
10.4.4 The Farfield	p. 513
10.4.5 Predicting Drag	p. 514
10.4.6 Propulsion Effects	p. 515
10.5 CFD Validation?	p. 515
10.6 Integrated Forces and the Components of Drag	p. 516
10.7 Solution Visualization	p. 517
10.8 Things a User Should Know about a CFD Code before Running it	p. 524
References	p. 527
Index	p. 539

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Summary

Summary

Author Notes

Reviews 1

Choice Review

Table of Contents