A new noise metric has been developed that may be used for optimization problems involving aerodynamic noise from a clean wing. The modeling approach uses a classical trailing edge noise theory as the starting point. The final form of the noise metric includes characteristic velocity and length scales that are obtained from three-dimensional, steady, RANS simulations with a two- equation k-omega turbulence model. The noise metric is not the absolute value of the noise intensity, but an accurate relative noise measure as shown in the validation studies. One of the unique features of the new noise metric is the modeling of the length scale, which is directly related to the turbulent structure of the flow at the trailing edge. The proposed noise metric model has been formulated so that it can capture the effect of different design variables on the clean wing airframe noise such as the aircraft speed, lift coefficient, and wing geometry. It can also capture three-dimensional effects which become important at high lift coefficients, since the characteristic velocity and the length scales are allowed to vary along the span of the wing. Noise metric validation was performed with seven test cases that were selected from a two-dimensional NACA 0012 experimental database. The agreement between the experiment and the predictions obtained with the new noise metric was very good at various speeds, angles of attack, and Reynolds Number, which showed that the noise metric is capable of capturing the variations in the trailing edge noise as a relative noise measure when different flow conditions and parameters are changed. Parametric studies were performed to investigate the effect of different design variables on the noise metric. Two-dimensional parametric studies were done using two symmetric NACA four-digit airfoils (NACA 0012 and NACA 0009) and two supercritical (SC(2)-0710 and SC(2)-0714) airfoils. The three-dimensional studies were performed with two versions of a conventional transport wing at realistic approach conditions. The twist distribution of the baseline wing was changed to obtain a modified wing which was used to investigate the effect of the twist on the trailing edge noise. An example study with NACA 0012 and NACA 0009 airfoils demonstrated a reduction in the trailing edge noise by decreasing the thickness ratio and the lift coefficient, while increasing the chord length to keep the same lift at a constant speed. Both two- and three-dimensional studies demonstrated that the trailing edge noise remains almost constant at low lift coefficients and gets larger at higher lift values. The increase in the noise metric can be dramatic when there is separation on the wing. Three-dimensional effects observed in the wing cases indicate the importance of calculating the noise metric with a characteristic velocity and length scale that vary along the span. The twist change does not have a significant effect on the noise at low lift coefficients, however it may give significant noise reduction at higher lift values. The results obtained in this study show the importance of the lift coefficient on the airframe noise of a clean wing and favors having a larger wing area to reduce the lift coefficient for minimizing the noise. The results also point to the fact that the noise reduction studies should be performed in a multidisciplinary design and optimization framework, since many of the parameters that change the trailing edge noise also affect the other aircraft design requirements. It's hoped that the noise metric developed here can aid in such multidisciplinary design and optimization studies. / Ph. D.

Within the overarching area of airplane noise, landing gear noise has been proven to be a major contributor to airframe noise. Despite a large focus given to it by past research work, landing gear noise investigations have continuously failed to include landing lights, completely disregarding their potential for seriously altering the landing gear wake structure and overall noise signature. This thesis is one of the first studies to focus on the effect of landing light orientation on landing gear wake and landing gear noise. Pressure fluctuations in the wake of a simplified single light landing gear model are investigated experimentally for several freestream velocities and at various elevations of measurement plane. The effect of the distance between the light and the landing gear strut is also investigated. Three-dimensional flow is found in the wake at the center, or zero elevation, plane. This three-dimensionality is found to be much weaker at the highest elevation from the light, where the wake is found to be primarily two-dimensional. The nature of the transition region between the three-dimensional flow and two-dimensional flow is not investigated, but it is acknowledged that a transition region exists. Complex flow behaviour leading to a wake width larger than twice the size of the light-strut assembly width is found to be present at the zero elevation, and phase-locked PIV imaging is unable to capture any periodic motion within the wake at this elevation. In contrast, the wake at the highest elevation is found to resemble the flow in the wake of circular cylinders, and phase-locked PIV imaging at this elevation clearly captures an alternate vortex shedding scheme. Due to this difference in wake structures, the periodicity at the highest elevation is found to be stronger than that observed at the zero elevation. Changes in light-strut spacing are found to inversely affect the strength of the periodicity in the wake, as larger spacing is linked to greater influence of three-dimensionality, and therefore a weaker periodicity. Changes in light-strut spacing are also found to be inversely related to the oscillation frequency of the periodicity, with the cause for this relationship possibly explained by the wider wake at increased spacing. It is found that the oscillation frequency of periodicity in the single light landing gear wake is consistently in the Strouhal number range of St=0.16-0.18 for all light-strut spacing distances, freestream velocities, and elevations. The flow around the light-strut assembly is therefore characterized as modulated flow around a cylindrical strut because alternate vortex shedding is dominant except for a slight region where the light acts to generate three-dimensionality, and because the oscillation frequency is near that of vortex shedding from a circular cylinder, St=0.19. The wakes of the single light landing gear and two-light landing gear models are compared, but neither design can be supported as quieter than the other at this time due to the unknown amount of vertical radiation from the landing gear wakes. / Thesis / Master of Applied Science (MASc)

ABSTRACTThe purpose of this thesis is to design and analyze the new generation leading edge slat of a commercial jet to reduce the structural noise with the application of new conceptual design approaches. Recent scientific research show that the leading edge slats account for the structural noise during the flight operation therefore, when the leading edge slat is deployed under different flight conditions, an open gap/slot is formed between the high lift device and the wing box. However, since the leading edge slat includes flexible sections, it is assumed that defining an adaptive system inside the leading edge slat may reduce the structural noise by utilizing bending properties of these flexible sections. Hence, electromechanical actuator designing gains also great importance in the whole process. In this study, we have used, finite element modelling of the slat structure to examine the required structural deformations and strengths; our work is based on the software ANSYS/Workbench. To be realistic in deciding the right geometry in the follow up steps, we have first studied a generic geometry having no aerodynamics or actuator forces application. The whole simulation was performed by defining dummy forces and dummy material properties. The simulation lead to having a global overview of the mechanical behaviour of the structure; further, once the influent parameters were tested, realistic aerodynamic forces and material properties were defined, and as a result of bending of the flexible sections the required gap closure was formed between the trailing edge of the slat and the wing box. Subsequently, the suitable actuator design and required strength analysis are also performed on the last section. This study has also proved that the use of adaptive systems on the leading edge slats improves flight comfort by reducing the structural noise and provides less fuel consumption; this is significant for the long run considerations of aeroplane manufacturers. / es Zentrum für Luft- und Raumfahrt e. V. (DLR)

The first bypass turbofan engines came into operation in the early 1970s. The need for reductions in the fuel consumption affected aircraft noise positively through reductions in the jet noise. Over the past decades, the bypass ratio of turbofan engines has continuously increased and, as a result, aircraft engine noise has decreased to a level comparable to the noise originated from the turbulent flow around the airframe for take-off and landing conditions. Although aircraft have become quieter, the number of individuals affected by the aviation growth is likely to increase. Airframe noise has been currently identified as the ultimate aircraft noise barrier and many efforts devoted to its reductions have focused specifically on landing gears and high-lift devices, which are the most relevant noise contributors. Some devices have been designed to reduce flap noise, however, not all of them have been successfully tested in a detailed large-scale flap model due to their difficult implementation in real flap side-edges. This research investigates the relationship between the parameters of a large-scale flap model at 1.50×106 Reynolds number and the physics responsible for flap side-edge noise generation, one of the most dominant sources of the airframe noise. Experimental tests were conducted in a wind-tunnel and flow-field measurements were taken by a multi-hole pitot probe and an aerodynamic balance and complemented by phased microphone array techniques towards a deeper understanding of flap side-edge noise sources and their correlations to unsteady vorticity fluctuations. Conventional beamforming and CLEAN-SC and DAMAS deconvolution methodologies provided far-field acoustic spectra estimations and noise source mapping. The model used for the tests consists of an unswept isolated flap element with representative tip details present in conventional medium-range transport aircraft. The instrumentation includes 106 steady pressure taps distributed chord-wise and span-wise and a sand trip tape to transition the laminar boundary layer. Different side-edge devices were assessed towards airframe noise reductions. A perforated side-edge treatment was also applied to the flap side-edge. Results of aerodynamic and aeroacoustic tests conducted in the LAE-1 closed circuit wind tunnel with a closed test section at the São Carlos School of Engineering - University of São Paulo (EESC-USP) at up to 40 m/s flow speeds provided specific information on the aeroacoustic and aerodynamic characterization of the dominant acoustic source mechanisms of the flap model. / Os primeiros motores turbofan com razão de desvio entraram em operação no início dos anos 70. A necessidade de reduções no consumo de combustível afetou positivamente o ruído das aeronaves através de reduções no ruído do jato. Nas últimas décadas, a razão de desvio de motores turbofan aumentou continuamente e, como resultado, o ruído do motor da aeronave diminuiu para um nível comparável ao ruído originado do fluxo turbulento ao redor do airframe para as condições de decolagem e pouso. Embora as aeronaves tenham-se tornado mais silenciosas, é provável que o número de indivíduos afetados pelo crescimento da aviação aumente. Atualmente, o ruído de airframe tem sido identificado como a barreira máxima de ruído para aeronaves e muitos esforços dedicados à sua redução se concentraram especificamente no trem de pouso e dispositivos de alta sustentação, que são os contribuidores de ruído mais relevantes. Alguns dispositivos foram projetados para reduzir o ruído do flap, no entanto, nem todos deles foram testados com sucesso em um modelo detalhado de flap de grande escala, devido a sua difícil implementação nas bordas laterais do flap real. Esta pesquisa investiga a relação entre os parâmetros de um modelo de flap de grande escala com número de Reynolds de 1.50 × 106 e a física responsável pela geração de ruído na borda lateral do flap, uma das fontes mais dominantes do ruido de airframe. Testes experimentais foram realizados em um túnel de vento e as medidas do escoamento foram tomadas por uma sonda pitot de múltiplos furos e uma balança aerodinâmica e complementadas por técnicas de antenas de microfones para um entendimento mais profundo das fontes de ruído da ponta do flap e suas correlações com flutuações instáveis de vorticidade. O beamforming convencional e as metodologias de deconvolução CLEAN-SC e DAMAS forneceram estimativas de espectros acústicos de campo distante e mapeamento de fontes de ruído. O modelo usado para os testes consiste em um elemento de flap isolado, sem enflechamento, com detalhes de ponta representativos presentes em aeronaves convencionais de transporte de médio alcance. A instrumentação inclui 106 tomadas de pressão estacionárias distribuídas na corda e na envergadura e um trip de fita de areia para fazer a transição da camada limite laminar. Diferentes dispositivos de borda lateral foram avaliados em relação às reduções de ruído de airframe. Um tratamento perfurado de borda lateral também foi aplicado à borda lateral do flap. Os resultados dos testes aerodinâmicos e aeroacústicos realizados no túnel de vento de circuito fechado LAE-1, com seção de provas fechada na Escola de Engenharia de São Carlos - Universidade de São Paulo (EESC-USP) com velocidade de fluxo de até 40 m/s forneceram informações específicas sobre a caracterização aeroacústica e aerodinâmica dos mecanismos dominantes de fonte acústica do modelo de flap.

Since the 1970s, when the reaction engines had their noise reduced by the increase in their bypass ratio, airframe became the most prominent aerodynamic noise source during the approach to landing. From the airframe noise sources, the high-lift devices are one of the most significant. The most studied and applied solutions for these noise sources refer to passive flow control, and there are relatively few studies related to active flow control. Active flow control is achieved by adding energy to the flow in order to manipulate it. One way to accomplish this is through the dielectric barrier discharge plasma actuators. These devices create an intense electric field between two electrodes separated by a dielectric. This strong electric field ionizes and accelerates the air through collision of charged particles of the plasma with neutral air molecules. Thus, a wall jet is produced without using moving parts. In this research, plasma actuators were installed at the flap side edge, at the cove and at the cusp of the slat. Wind tunnel tests have demonstrated the potential of these devices for high-lift noise reduction, allowing for a decrease up to 0.75 dB in the overall flap noise and up to 3.3 dB in overall slat noise (with a reduction of 12 dB at the higher peak). / Desde a década de 1970, quando os motores a reação tiveram seu ruído reduzido devido ao aumento da razão de derivação, o ruído de célula se tornou o mais proeminente durante a fase de aproximação para pouso. Do ruído de plataforma aeronáutica, destacam-se os ruídos gerados pela interação do escoamento com os dispositivos hipersustentadores. As soluções mais estudadas e aplicadas para estas fontes de ruído se referem a controle passivo do escoamento, havendo relativamente poucos estudos relacionados a controle ativo. Controle ativo do escoamento é obtido adicionando-se energia ao mesmo, e uma forma de realizar isto é através dos atuadores de plasma de descarga de barreira dielétrica. Nestes dispositivos um intenso campo elétrico entre dois eletrodos separados por um dielétrico é gerado, ionizando e acelerando o ar através da colisão de partículas carregadas do plasma com moléculas neutras. Desta forma, um jato de parede é produzido sem o uso de partes móveis. Nesta pesquisa, atuadores de plasma foram instalados na borda lateral do flape, na cova e na cúspide do eslate. Ensaios em túnel de vento demonstraram o potencial destes dispositivos para redução de ruído de hipersustentadores, permitindo a redução de até 0.75 dB no ruído global de flape e de até 3.3 dB no ruído global de eslate (com redução de 12 dB no maior pico).