To what extent does angle of attack affect the lift-to-drag ratio of a NACA 4022 airfoil under subsonic flow conditions
DOI:
https://doi.org/10.58445/qj8bbr53Keywords:
NACA 4022 airfoil, Angle of attack (AOA), Lift-to-drag ratio (L/D)Abstract
Aerodynamic efficiency is an important part of aircraft design as it affects how well an aircraft can fly while keeping fuel use as low as possible. One way of measuring this efficiency is through the lift to drag ratio (L/D), which compares the amount of lift produced by an airfoil to the drag acting against it. A major factor that affects this ratio is the angle of attack (AOA), which is the angle between the chord line of the airfoil and the direction of the incoming airflow. Generally, increasing the angle of attack increases lift because a greater pressure difference develops between the upper and lower surfaces of the airfoil. However, drag also increases, meaning that a higher angle of attack does not always result in better performance. At larger angles, the airflow can also begin to separate from the upper surface, reducing lift and eventually causing the airfoil to stall. This research will use Computational fluid dynamics in ANSYS to investigate how changing the angle of attack affects the lift to drag ratio of a NACA 4022 airfoil under subsonic conditions. The airfoil will be tested at several angles of attack and the resulting lift, drag, pressure and airflow patterns will be compared. From these results, the study will aim to identify the angle of attack where the NACA 4022 operates most efficiently and explain why its performance changes as the angle of attack increases.
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