Rotorcraft

Rotorcraft#

Flow360 provides specialized capabilities for rotorcraft aerodynamics simulations, enabling accurate prediction of complex flow phenomena associated with helicopter rotors, propellers, and tiltrotors. This section covers advanced modeling approaches for rotary-wing applications.

🔄 Blade Element Theory (BET) Disk Model

Learn how to implement and configure the Blade Element Theory disk model for efficient rotor simulations without resolving individual blades.

BET Disk
🛩ī¸ DDES Simulation of XV-15 Tiltrotor

Explore a detailed DDES simulation of the XV-15 tiltrotor aircraft, demonstrating advanced rotorcraft modeling techniques.

rans_xv15

Key Rotorcraft Simulation Concepts#

  • Blade Element Theory for efficient rotor modeling

  • Rotating reference frames for detailed blade-resolved simulations

  • Handling of unsteady rotor aerodynamics

  • Wake capturing and vortex modeling

  • Rotor-airframe and rotor-rotor interactions

  • Performance prediction and optimization

Applications#

Flow360’s rotorcraft simulation capabilities support a wide range of applications:

  • Hover performance prediction

  • Forward flight analysis

  • Blade loading and stress analysis

  • Rotor wake interactions

  • Acoustic prediction

  • Design optimization of rotor systems

Modeling Approaches#

Flow360 supports multiple approaches for rotorcraft simulation:

Blade Element Theory (BET) Disk Model: * Represents the rotor as a disk with distributed forces * Computationally efficient for preliminary design * Suitable for studying rotor wake effects on other components

Fully-Resolved Blade Simulations: * Detailed modeling of individual rotor blades * Captures blade-vortex interactions and detailed flow features * Provides high-fidelity predictions of performance and acoustics

Contents