Analysis of the flow field around the wing section of a FanWing aircraft under various flow conditions

A novel horizontal-axis open-rotor configuration for a distributed propulsion system was numerically investigated. URANS simulations were performed using the compressible flow solver of Fluent (ANSYS) 14 with Spalart-Allmaras turbulence closure. The effects of the rotational speed, aircraft cruise speed, geometrical parameters and angle of attack were investigated and their contributions to the optimum lift and thrust forces analyzed. The effects of the geometrical attributes such as wing chord, fan blade airfoil shape and rotation mechanism were also investigated in the analysis. The present paper discusses in detail an alternative high lift propulsion system by dissecting the aerodynamic attributes of its components.