Implementation of a PAFV turbulence model for airfoil flow simulation on OpenFOAM

Abstract To further develop a more effective turbulence model and to improve the calculation accuracy of the flow around airfoil, a new PAFV turbulence model has here been constructed by using a deformation rate tensor and the grouping of an average fluctuation velocity. To evaluate the applicability of the PAFV turbulence model, the numerical calculations of flow around the airfoil have here been implemented, which was based on the OpenFOAM calculation platform. On the basis of grid independence research, the model was used to calculate the low-speed flow-around problem for the plano-convex airfoil NACA4412 and the symmetric airfoil NACA0012. It was also compared with the S-A (Spalart-Allmaras) and SST (Shear Stress Transport) k-ω turbulence models. Firstly, the maximum lift angle-of-attack case of the NACA4412 airfoil was calculated. Thereafter, numerical calculations were performed for the flow around the airfoil in the multi-angle-of-attack case of NACA0012 airfoil. The results showed that the NACA4412 airfoil had an obviously separated vortex at the trailing edge of the airfoil at the maximum lift angle of attack. Also, there was a certain velocity loss downstream of the trailing edge, as was calculated by all three models. However, the results of the PAFV turbulence model were found to be better than those of the S-A and SST turbulence models. The three turbulence models showed comparable accuracies for the calculations of the surface pressure coefficients of the NACA0012 airfoil. However, the S-A and SST k-ω turbulence models were slightly better for the calculations of the mean velocity profiles of the NACA0012 airfoil. Also, the PAFV turbulence model was more accurate for the calculations of the lift and drag coefficients. In conclusion, the PAFV model can make effective predictions for the airfoil low-speed flow around the problem at hand, which in turn preliminarily verifies the applicability of this turbulence model for the low-speed flow around airfoil problems.