Comparative study of fluid-structure interaction approaches for high aspect ratio wing applications

In recent years, utilization of high aspect ratio (HAR) wings, particularly for high altitude long endurance (HALE) applications, has significantly increased. HAR wings play a crucial role in reducing the induced drag and also enhancing fuel efficiency. Nonetheless, HAR wings exhibit complex geometrical nonlinear behavior, posing challenges for optimal aircraft design. Traditionally, researchers have explored methods to analyze the geometrical nonlinearities through the fluid-structure interaction (FSI) analysis. However, most works for this area are predominantly focused on low aspect ratio wings, neglecting the complexities associated with HAR wings. Consequently, a critical research gap exists in understanding the unique challenges posed by HAR wings in the context of FSI analysis. This study addresses this gap by evaluating the effectiveness of FSI approaches (either using one-way or twoway) in the context of HAR wings using the ANSYS software. Comparative analyses between experimental and simulation results are conducted to verify the computational efficiency of both methods. The results have revealed that two-way FSI analysis closely approximates the experimental data, showing a maximum percentage error of 3.61% at an effective angle of attack of 1˚ and airspeed of 22.5 m/s. Nevertheless, it is important to note that two-way FSI analysis demands significantly more computational time compared to its oneway counterpart. Therefore, for straightforward cases involving HAR wing deformations, one-way FSI analysis is already sufficient to offer efficient and accurate results.