An Empirical and Numerical Analysis of the Relationship Between Stall Hysteresis and Circulation Parameter

Faculty Mentor Name

Wallace Morris

Format Preference

Demonstration

Abstract

Airplane stall is a pilot’s worst enemy. Last year, the AOPA Air Safety Institute published a report outlining the effects of stall and spin on aviation accidents in the twenty-first century. They found that stall was responsible for almost 25% of fatal airplane accidents between the year 2000 and 2014. In 2002 alone there were 195 reported aviation accidents due to stall, 90 of which were fatal. They also showed that stall-induced plane crashes were more than 50% more likely to result in fatalities than other accidents. These statistics underline the danger of stall and justify further research into its causes.

Despite great interest in stall prevention, the science behind it is not yet fully understood. One of its mysterious characteristics, called “stall hysteresis”, is an aerodynamic anomaly which occurs during a pilot’s recovery from stall, where lift is inexplicably lost and the effects of the stall intensified. We assert that a more complete understanding of this phenomenon may provide the missing link necessary for the development of a more accurate model of stall.

Our experiment explores the hypothesis that stall hysteresis is a product of a factor called “circulation parameter”, which causes the flow of air around a wing to behave as if the wing were substantially deformed. We plan to test this idea, by studying the flow over this deformed shape, called the “effective body” and comparing it to the flow about a wing experiencing stall hysteresis.

Demonstration

IGNITE Grant Award

Location

AC1-Atrium, Eagle Gym

Start Date

3-23-2018 11:00 AM

End Date

3-23-2018 9:00 PM

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Mar 23rd, 11:00 AM Mar 23rd, 9:00 PM

An Empirical and Numerical Analysis of the Relationship Between Stall Hysteresis and Circulation Parameter

AC1-Atrium, Eagle Gym

Airplane stall is a pilot’s worst enemy. Last year, the AOPA Air Safety Institute published a report outlining the effects of stall and spin on aviation accidents in the twenty-first century. They found that stall was responsible for almost 25% of fatal airplane accidents between the year 2000 and 2014. In 2002 alone there were 195 reported aviation accidents due to stall, 90 of which were fatal. They also showed that stall-induced plane crashes were more than 50% more likely to result in fatalities than other accidents. These statistics underline the danger of stall and justify further research into its causes.

Despite great interest in stall prevention, the science behind it is not yet fully understood. One of its mysterious characteristics, called “stall hysteresis”, is an aerodynamic anomaly which occurs during a pilot’s recovery from stall, where lift is inexplicably lost and the effects of the stall intensified. We assert that a more complete understanding of this phenomenon may provide the missing link necessary for the development of a more accurate model of stall.

Our experiment explores the hypothesis that stall hysteresis is a product of a factor called “circulation parameter”, which causes the flow of air around a wing to behave as if the wing were substantially deformed. We plan to test this idea, by studying the flow over this deformed shape, called the “effective body” and comparing it to the flow about a wing experiencing stall hysteresis.

Demonstration

IGNITE Grant Award