New helicopter rotor designs are desired that offer increased efficiency, reduced vibration, and reduced noise. This problem is multidisciplinary, requiring knowledge of structural dynamics, aerodynamics, and aeroacoustics. Rotor optimization requires achieving multiple, often conflicting objectives. There is no longer a single optimum but rather an optimal trade-off space, the Pareto Frontier. Rotor Designers in industry need methods that allow the most accurate simulation tools available to search for Pareto designs. Computer simulation and optimization of rotors have been advanced by the development of "comprehensive" rotorcraft analysis tools. These tools perform aeroelastic analysis using Computational Structural Dynamics (CSD). Though useful in optimization, these tools lack built-in high fidelity aerodynamic models. The most accurate rotor simulations utilize Computational Fluid Dynamics (CFD) coupled to the CSD of a comprehensive code, but are generally considered too time consuming where numerous simulations are required like rotor optimization. An approach is needed where high fidelity CFD/CSD simulation can be routinely used in design optimization. This thesis documents the development of physics based rotor simulation frameworks. A low fidelity model uses a comprehensive code with simplified aerodynamics. A high fidelity model uses a parallel processor capable CFD/CSD methodology. Both frameworks include an aeroacoustic simulation for prediction of noise. A synergistic process is developed that uses both frameworks together to build approximate models of important high fidelity metrics as functions of certain design variables. To test this process, a 4-bladed hingeless rotor model is used as a baseline. The design variables investigated include tip geometry and spanwise twist. Approximation models are built for high fidelity metrics related to rotor efficiency and vibration. Optimization using the approximation models found the designs having maximum rotor efficiency and minimum vibration. Various Pareto generation methods are used to find frontier designs between these two anchor designs. The Pareto anchors are tested in the high fidelity simulation and shown to be good designs, providing evidence that the process has merit. Ultimately, this process can be utilized by industry rotor designers with their existing tools to bring high fidelity analysis into the preliminary design stage of rotors.

This study presents an approach based on the floating frame of reference method to model complex three-dimensional bodies in a multibody system. Unlike most of the formulations based on the floating frame of reference method, which assume small or moderate deformations, the present formulation allows large elastic deformations within each frame by using the co-rotational form of the updated Lagrangian description of motion. The implicit integration scheme is based on the Generalized-alpha method, and kinematic joints are invoked in the formulation through the coordinate partitioning method. The resulting numerical scheme permits the usage of relatively large time steps even though the flexible bodies may experience large elastic deformations. A triangular element, based on the first order shear deformable theory, has been developed specifically for folded plate and shell structures. The plate element does not suffer from either shear or aspect-ratio locking under transverse and membrane bending, respectively. A stiffened plate element has been developed that combines a shear deformable plate with a Timoshenko beam. A solid element, that utilized the isoparametric formulation along with incompatible modes, and one-dimensional elements are also included in the element library. The tools developed in the present work are then utilized for detailed rotorcraft applications. As opposed to the conventional approach of using beam elements to represent the rotor blade, the current approach focuses on detailed modeling of the blade using plate and solid elements. A quasi-steady model based on lifting line theory is utilized to compute the aerodynamic loads on the rotor blade in order to demonstrate the capabilities of the proposed tool to model rotorcraft aeroelasticity.

Future management of helicopter fleets will be more heavily based on individual component damage tracking and less on legacy usage monitoring (flight parameter-based) methods. This enhances health assessment capabilities by taking into account the actual loads on a component-by-component basis. However, accurate loads prediction in rotating frame components remains a challenge. Even with advanced computational fluid dynamics (CFD) techniques, prediction of the unsteady aerodynamic loads acting on the rotor blades is computationally intensive and problematic in terms of accurate loads prediction across the entire flight regime of the helicopter. High-speed flight can potentially introduce both shock and near-stall effects within a given rotor rotation. Low-speed flight can include blade-vortex interaction effects, wherein flow from a given blade (vorticity loading from tip vortices) impinges upon the preceding blade, causing unsteady aerodynamic loading that is difficult to quantity and predict numerically. Vehicle maneuvering can produce significantly higher blade pitching moments than steady flight. All of these regimes combine to represent the loading history of the rotor system. Therefore, accurate loads prediction methods, in terms of matching peak-to-peak, magnitude, phase, as well as vibratory/harmonic content, are required that capture all flight regimes for all critical structural components. This research focuses on the development of a loads prediction method, known as the Load Confluence Algorithm (LCA), and its application to the analysis of a large set of flight test data from the NASA/US Army UH-60A Airloads Program. The LCA combines measured response at a prescribed set of locations with a numerical model of the rotor system. For a given flight condition (steady flight, maneuvers, etc.) the numerical simulation's predicted loads distribution is iteratively incremented (by harmonic) until convergence with measured loads is reached at the prescribed locations (control points). Predicted loads response at non-instrumented locations is shown to be improved as well, thus enhancing fatigue lifing methods for these components. The procedure specifically investigates the harmonic content of the applied loads and the improved prediction of the harmonic components. The impact of the enhanced accuracy on loads predictions on component structural fatigue is illustrated by way of an example. Results show that, for a limited sensor set (two 3-axis sensors per blade), blade loads are accurately predicted across a full range of flight regimes. Hub loads are best modeled using the pushrod as the control point. Results also show that load magnitude has a tremendous influence on damage, with a 25% over-estimation of vibratory load resulting in a damage factor of nearly 3. This research highlights the importance of accurate loads prediction for a rotorcraft life tracking program. Small inaccuracies in loads lead to dramatic errors in damage assessment.

A method to find solutions to multi-objective design problems that involve poor information available was proposed. The method quantified the designers intuition in a systematic manner, and utilized it to approximate inaccurate and/or vague numbers. In the context of possibility theory, uncertain values were expressed through possibility distributions, i.e. fuzzy membership functions. Based on the membership functions of the value, levels of confidence of the solutions to multi-objective problems were defined through the notions of possibility and necessity. An evolutionary algorithm was modified to find sets of solutions that allow certain levels of confidence instead of the crisp sets of the solutions. The method was applied to a design problem of the gyrodyne configuration and sets of the solutions of the specified possibility and necessity were found. The results of the design problem and the suggestions for future research were discussed.

In this thesis analysis and design of helicopter rotor blades were discussed for reduced vibrational level. For this purpose an optimization procedure was developed which involves coupling of the comprehensive rotorcraft analysis tool CAMRAD JA and the gradient based optimization algorithm. The main goal was to achieve favorable blade structural dynamics characteristics that would lead to reduction in vibrational level. For this purpose blade stiffness and mass distributions were considered as the design variables. In order to avoid likely occurrences of unrealistic results, the analyses were subjected to constraints which were sensitive to the design variables. The optimization procedure was applied on two isolated rotor blades and a full helicopter with main rotor, tail rotor and fuselage by using natural frequency separation and hub load minimization respectively. While the former approach relied on the blade natural frequencies, the latter approach involved higher harmonic aerodynamic and blade motion calculations. For both approaches, the improvement in vibration characteristics and blade mass and stiffness distributions of the initial design and the design after optimization analyses were compared and discussed.

The first part of this dissertation focuses on the development, implementation and validation of models that capture the behavior of joints in a realistic manner. These models are presented within the framework of finite element based, nonlinear multibody dynamics formulations that ensure unconditional nonlinear stability of the computation for systems of arbitrary topology. The proposed approach can be divided into three parts. First, the joint configuration: this purely kinematic part deals with the description of the configuration of the joint and the evaluation of the relative distance and relative tangential velocity between the contacting bodies. Second, the contact conditions: in most cases, contact at the joint is of an intermittent nature. And finally, the contact forces: this last part deals with the evaluation of the forces that arise at the interface between contacting bodies. The advantage of the proposed approach is that the three parts of the problem can be formulated and implemented independently. Many articulated rotor helicopters use hydraulic dampers, which provide high levels of damping but are also associated with high maintenance costs and difficulties in evaluating their conditions due to the presence of seals, lubricants and numerous moving parts, all operating in a rotating frame. To avoid problems associated with hydraulic dampers, the industry is now switching to elastomeric lead-lag dampers that feature simpler mechanical design, lower part count, and result in "dry" rotors. However, the design of robust elastomeric dampers is hampered by the lack of reliable analytical tools that can predict their damping behavior in the presence of large multi-frequency motions experienced by the rotor and thus the damper. The second part of this dissertation focuses on the development of an elastomeric damper model which predicts the behavior of the elastomeric damper based on a continuum mechanics approach: the configuration of the damper is modeled using a finite element approach, and material behavior is represented by a set of nonlinear constitutive laws and material parameters. The validated finite element model of the elastomeric damper is then coupled with a comprehensive, multibody dynamics analysis code to predict the behavior of complex systems featuring elastomeric components.

Helicopters are versatile flying machines that have capabilities that are unparalleled by fixed wing aircraft, such as operating in hover, performing vertical take-off and landing on unprepared sites. However, modern helicopters still suffer from high levels of noise and vibration caused by the physical phenomena occurring in the vicinity of the rotor blades. Therefore, improvement in rotorcraft design to reduce the noise and vibration levels requires understanding of the underlying physical phenomena, and accurate prediction capabilities of the resulting rotorcraft aeromechanics. The goal of this research is to study the aeromechanics of rotors in steady and maneuvering flight using hybrid Computational Fluid Dynamics (CFD) methodology. The hybrid CFD methodology uses the Navier-Stokes equations to solve the flow near the blade surface but the effect of the far wake is computed through the wake model. The hybrid CFD methodology is computationally efficient and its wake modeling approach is non-dissipative making it an attractive tool to study rotorcraft aeromechanics. Several enhancements were made to the CFD methodology and it was coupled to a Computational Structural Dynamics (CSD) methodology to perform a trimmed aeroelastic analysis of a rotor in forward flight. The coupling analyses, both loose and tight were used to identify the key physical phenomena that affect rotors in different steady flight regimes. The modeling enhancements improved the airloads predictions for a variety of flight conditions. It was found that the tightly coupled method did not impact the loads significantly for steady flight conditions compared to the loosely coupled method. The coupling methodology was extended to maneuvering flight analysis and the flight test control angles were employed to enable the maneuvering flight analysis. The fully coupled model provided the presence of three dynamic stall cycles on the rotor in maneuver. Analysis of maneuvering flight requires knowledge of the pilot input control pitch settings, and the vehicle states. As the result, these computational tools cannot be used for analysis of loads in a maneuver that has not been duplicated in a real flight. This is a significant limitation if these tools are to be selected during the design phase of a helicopter where its handling qualities are evaluated in different trajectories. Therefore, a methodology was developed to couple the CFD/CSD simulation with an inverse flight mechanics simulation to perform the maneuver analysis without using the flight test control input. The methodology showed reasonable convergence in steady and maneuvering flight regimes and control angle predictions compared fairly well with test data. In the maneuvering flight regions, the convergence was slower due to relaxation techniques used for the numerical stability. Further, the enhancement of the rotor inflow computations in the inverse simulation through implementation of a Lagrangean wake model improved the convergence of the coupling methodology.

Dynamic stall deeply affects the response of helicopter rotor blades, making its modeling accuracy very important. Two commonly used dynamic stall models were implemented in a comprehensive code, validated, and contrasted to provide improved analysis accuracy and versatility. Next, computational fluid dynamics and computational structural dynamics loose coupling methodologies are reviewed, and a general tight coupling approach was implemented and tested. The tightly coupled computational fluid dynamics and computational structural dynamics methodology is then used to assess the stability characteristics of complex rotorcraft problems. An aeroelastic analysis of rotors must include an assessment of potential instabilities and the determination of damping ratios for all modes of interest. If the governing equations of motion of a system can be formulated as linear, ordinary differential equations with constant coefficients, classical stability evaluation methodologies based on the characteristic exponents of the system can rapidly and accurately provide the system's stability characteristics. For systems described by linear, ordinary differential equations with periodic coefficients, Floquet's theory is the preferred approach. While these methods provide excellent results for simplified linear models with a moderate number of degrees of freedom, they become quickly unwieldy as the number of degrees of freedom increases. Therefore, to accurately analyze rotorcraft aeroelastic periodic systems, a fully nonlinear, coupled simulation tool is used to determine the response of the system to perturbations about an equilibrium configuration and determine the presence of instabilities and damping ratios. The stability analysis is undertaken using an algorithm based on a Partial Floquet approach that has been successfully applied with computational structural dynamics tools on rotors and wind turbines. The stability analysis approach is computationally inexpensive and consists of post processing aeroelastic data, which can be used with any aeroelastic rotorcraft code or with experimental data.

In modern times, the ability to investigate the aeroelastic behavior of dynamic components on rotorcraft has become essential for the prediction of their useful fatigue life. At the same time, the aeroelastic modeling of a rotorcraft is particularly complex and costly. Inaccuracies in numerical predictions are mostly due to imprecisions in the structural modeling, to the presence of structural degradation or to the limited information on aerodynamic loads. The integration of experimental measurements on dynamic components such as rotor blades has the potential to improve fatigue estimation, augment the knowledge of the dynamic behavior and inform numerical models. The objective of this research is the development of a combined numerical and experimental approach, named Confluence Algorithm, that accurately predicts the response of dynamic components with a limited set of experimental data. The integration of experimental measurements into a numerical algorithm enables the continuous and accurate tracking of the dynamic strain and stress fields. The Confluence Algorithm systematically updates the numerical model of the external loads, and mass and stiffness distributions to improve the representation and extrapolation of the experimental data, and to extract information on the response of the system at non-measured locations. The capabilities of this algorithm are first verified in a numerical framework and with well-controlled lab experiments. Numerical results from a comprehensive UH-60A multibody model are then compared with available experimental data. These analyses demonstrate that the integration of the Confluence Algorithm improves the accuracy of the numerical prediction of the dynamic response of systems characterized by a periodic behavior, even in presence of non-linearities. The algorithm enables the use of simplified models that are corrected through experimental data to achieve accurate tracking of the system.

Offshore wind power production is an attractive clean energy option, but the difficulty of access can lead to expensive and rare opportunities for maintenance. Smart loads management (controls) are investigated for their potential to increase the fatigue life of damaged offshore wind turbine rotor blades. This study will consider two commonly encountered damage types for wind turbine blades, the trailing edge disbond (bond line failure) and shear web disbond, and show how 3D finite element modeling can be used to quantify the effect of operations and control strategies designed to extend the fatigue life of damaged blades. Modern wind turbine blades are advanced composite structures, and blade optimization problems can be complex with many structural design variables and a wide variety of aeroelastic design requirements. The multi-level design method is an aeroelastic structural design technique for beam-like structures in which the general design problem is divided into a 1D beam optimization and a 2D section optimization. As a demonstration of aeroelastic design, the multi-level design method is demonstrated for the internal structural design of a modern composite rotor blade. Aeroelastic design involves optimization of system geometry features as well as internal features, and this is demonstrated in the design of a flying wing aircraft. Control methods such as feedback control also have the capability alleviate aeroelastic design requirements and this is also demonstrated in the flying wing aircraft example. In the case of damaged wind turbine blades, load mitigation control strategies have the potential to mitigate the effects of damage, and allow partial operation to avoid shutdown. The load mitigation strategies will be demonstrated for a representative state-of-the-art wind turbine (126m rotor diameter). An economic incentive will be provided for the proposed operations strategies, in terms of weighing the cost and risk of implementation against the benefits of increased revenue due to operation of damaged turbines. The industry trend in wind turbine design is moving towards very large blades, causing the basic design criterion to change as aeroelastic effects become more important. An ongoing 100 m blade (205 m rotor diameter) design effort intends to investigate these design challenges. As a part of that effort, this thesis will investigate damage tolerant design strategies to ensure next-generation blades are more reliable.