Numerical Study of STU.1.M Unmanned Aerial Vehicles Stability at the Unsteady State Conditions

Unmanned Aerial Vehicle (UAV) is becoming more important across various industries, including agriculture, civil aviation, the military, and the environment. Therefore, this study aimed to investigate the aerodynamic stability of a transient STU.1.M UAV at speed of 40, 60, and 80 m/s with an angle of attack of 6 degrees, corresponding to the lift-to-drag coefficient ratio's maximum value in a steady state. For the numerical analysis, Ansys Fluent was used, while grid-independence evaluation and validity of the numerical solution were conducted by comparing the results of the proposed mathematical model on NACA 0012 airfoil with experimental data using same mathematical model. The results showed that vortices formed and decayed behind aircraft due to flow field's oscillations at specific frequencies. The magnitude of these vortices grew as aircraft speed increased. When the speed increased to 80 m/s, the lift coefficient and lift-to-drag ratio rose by 0.56% and 2.85%, respectively. The lift-to-drag ratio oscillation frequency rose by 102.5%, while the vertical oscillation frequency corresponding to the oscillations of the lift force decreased by 71.7%.

Computation fluid dynamic; Drag; Frequency; Lift; Unmanned aerial vehicles

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