Aerodynamic shape optimization and static aeroelastic analysis of a morphing trailing edge wing

Morphing trailing edge wings have the potential to reduce the drag of low speed aircraft. In this paper, we quantify the aerodynamic performance benefits of a morphing trailing using aerodynamic design optimization. The aerodynamic model solves the Euler equations in conjunction with a viscous correction method that computes the surface friction. According to the characteristics of morphing trailing edge airfoils, an airfoil parameterization method that based on cubic B-spline interpolation is developed. The basic Genetic optimization algorithm with constraints is used. The trailing edge of the wing is optimized using 17 independent design variables for each airfoil. The drag coefficient is minimized subject to lift constraint. We observed 3.6% drag reduction at on-design conditions. In addition, the static aeroelastic analysis of the wing is done using CFD/CSD loosely coupled method. The results indicate that the elastic deformation of optimized wing satisfy the static aeroelastic constraint.