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The NASA B737-100 high-lift flight research programme — measurements and computations

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  04 July 2016

L. P. Yip ,
C. P. van Dam ,
J. H. Whitehead ,
J. D. Hardin ,
S. J. Miley ,
R. C. Potter ,
A. Bertelrud ,
D. C. Edge  and
P.E. Willard
L. P. Yip
Affiliation:
NASA Langley Research Center Hampton, VA, USA
C. P. van Dam
Affiliation:
University of California Davis, CA, USA
J. H. Whitehead
Affiliation:
NASA Langley Research Center Hampton, VA, USA
J. D. Hardin
Affiliation:
Lockheed Engineering and Sciences Hampton, VA, USA
S. J. Miley
Affiliation:
Old Dominion University Norfolk, VA, USA
R. C. Potter
Affiliation:
McDonnell Douglas Aerospace Long Beach, CA, USA
A. Bertelrud
Affiliation:
Analytical Services & Materials Hampton, VA, USA
D. C. Edge
Affiliation:
Nortn Carolina State University Raleigh NC USA
P.E. Willard
Affiliation:
Boeing Commercial Airplane Group Seattle, WA, USA
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Abstract

The aerodynamic performance of a multi-element high-lift system has a critical influence on the direct operating cost of a subsonic civil transport aircraft. A thorough understanding of the aerodynamic characteristics of these multi-element aerofoils and wings allows aircraft companies to design and build more competitive aircraft with high-lift systems that are less complex and lighter for given high-lift performance or that have improved lift and drag characteristics for given system complexity and weight. Flight experiments on NASA Langley's B737-100 aircraft have been conducted to further enhance the understanding of the complex flows about multi-element high-lift systems at full-scale flight conditions. In this paper, an overview of the flight program is provided, followed by highlights of experimental results and computational analysis. Measurements included surface pressures on the slats, main element and flap elements using flush pressure ports and pressure belts, surface shear stresses using Preston tubes, off-surface velocity distributions using boundary layer/wake rakes, aeroelastic deformations of the flap elements using an optical positioning system, and boundary layer transition detection using hot-film anemometers and an infrared imaging system. Boundary layer transition measurements on the slat using hot-film sensors are correlated with the flow visualisation results from an infrared imaging technique. Extensive application of several computational techniques and comparisons with flight measurements are shown for a limited number of cases. This program has generated an extensive set of data, much of which are still being analysed.

Type
Research Article
Information
The Aeronautical Journal , Volume 99 , Issue 989: Special issue on high lift and separation control , November 1995 , pp. 372 - 386
Copyright
Copyright © Royal Aeronautical Society 1995 

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