CFD ANALYSIS AND PERFORMANCE EVALUATION OF A MORPHING WING TRAILING EDGE EQUIPPED WITH A JET FLAP

Due to their responsiveness to changing environments, adaptive and morphing technologies applied to wing structures are gaining increasing attention in civil aviation due to their potential benefits in terms of performance enhancement, weight reduction, and lower operational costs. In addition, controlled adaptation of the wing shape to external operating conditions maximizes aerodynamic efficiency, leading to reduced fuel consumption and pollutant emissions. In particular, a properly morphed flap can achieve superior high-lift performance compared to conventional flaps while significantly simplifying the flap deployment system. This study aims to evaluate how the integration of morphing architectures into the trailing edge can enhance high-lift performance during take-off and landing maneuvers, especially when combined with an active flow control technique like the jet-flap. Morphing technology is assumed to be employed to adjust the inclination of the jet blown from the airfoil’s trailing edge. This not only simplifies wing geometry and actuation systems compared to traditional flaps -eliminating the need for under wing nacelles but also ensures a smoother aerodynamic surface by reducing discontinuities. These advantages contribute to improved aerodynamic efficiency and enhanced aircraft stability and control, addressing the demand for innovative solutions to reduce take-off and landing distances. Beyond a significant increase in the lift coefficient, the jet flap could also have strong potential to generate control moments, enabling precise and immediate stability control of the aircraft during maneuvers. A set of CFD simulations provided insight into the influence of airfoil curvature and jet momentum on aerodynamic characteristics.