DESIGN, 3D PRINTING AND TESTING OF UNCONVENTIONAL GLIDER WING STRUCTURES
Abstract
With the emergence of winglets, especially aerobatic gliders, have considerably improved their aerodynamic performance by increasing lift and aerodynamic fineness. Winglets bring a benefit to the evolution of aerospace engineering and are now used on as many aircraft as possible. In addition, the implementation of the winglet with corrugations, circular or sinusoidal in shape, can be an important step in aviation development by reducing drag, which in turn increases lift. In this paper, three types of wing configurations have been designed, CFD analysed, manufactured by additive technologies and three-point bend tested, namely: conventional, circular leading edge and sinusoidal leading edge. In aerodynamic tests the sinusoidal wing showed a higher lift coefficient at negative angle of attack and zero angle of attack, while the circular wing showed better performance at positive angle of attack. From the mechanical tests, of the three 3D printed wing configurations, the conventional wing showed the highest bending strength and the highest strength to mass ratio.
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