A two-dimensional multibody integral approach for forces in inviscid flow with free vortices and vortex production

In this paper, we propose an integral force approach for potential flow around two-dimensional bodies with external free vortices and with vortex production. The method can be considered as an extension of the generalized Lagally theorem to the case with continuous distributed vortices inside and outside of the body and is capable of giving the individual force of each body in the case of multiple bodies. The lift force formulas are validated against two examples. One is the Wagner problem with vortex production and with moving vortices in the form of a vortex sheet. The other is the lift of a flat plate when there is a standing vortex over its middle point. As a first application, the integral approach is applied to study the lift force of a flat plate induced by a bounded vortex above the plate. This bounded vortex may represent a second small airfoil at incidence. For this illustrative example, the lift force is found to display an interesting distance-dependent behavior: for a clockwise circulation, the lift force acting on the main airfoil is attractive for small distance and repulsive for large distance.