Semester

Fall

Date of Graduation

2023

Document Type

Thesis

Degree Type

MS

College

Statler College of Engineering and Mineral Resources

Department

Mechanical and Aerospace Engineering

Committee Chair

Wade Huebsch

Committee Member

Patrick Browning

Committee Member

Christopher Griffin

Committee Member

Steven McCallister

Committee Member

Warren Boord

Abstract

Design and Manufacture of an Aerodynamic Body that Meets Scaling Law Requirements and Survives Severe G-load Environment for Free-Flight Testing

Anthony Gonzalez

Developing scale models to test functionality and ascertain aerodynamic properties is critical before manufacturing full-size products. Through dimensional analysis and similitude, engineers create scale models to test any parameter of interest. This research aims to design a scale model of an aerodynamic body for repeated free-flight testing. The Froude number is the dominant scale model law used to determine the geometric, mass, and inertia scaling laws. A critical requirement for this research is that the model should be relatively undamaged between test flights, with only minor replacement parts needed to recreate a test flight-worthy model. A MATLAB code was created to conduct this scaling analysis to determine the parameters of the new scale model and allow the user to scale for different dimensions quickly.

Numerous engineering challenges occurred through the design, development, and manufacturing phases of a sub-scale model (SSM). The primary challenges dealt with mass and moments of inertia scaling and survivability. The SSM undergoes a peak acceleration of approximately 6000 g. The difficulty of designing a SSM that meets these requirements and survives the violent testing environment requires an iterative process through the use of finite element analysis and experimental testing. Mass distribution throughout the model required multiple iterations and evaluations, as mass placement at specific locations caused the SSM to exceed the mass moments of inertia limits. Rapid prototypes of the SSM are manufactured in collaboration with the West Virginia University Lane Innovation Hub to conduct Sub-scale Flight Testing (SFT). This research effort resulted in over 140 unique components and produced 42 SSM designs. In the creation of a viable SSM, 16 SFTs occurred. During the flight, Edgertronic high-speed cameras with a frame rate of up to 10000 frames per second tracked the SSM, allowing for the identification of failure points during the launch. The SSM's fight dynamic properties were also analyzed with Tracker software to provide velocity and acceleration data. These properties were scaled up to determine if the SSM represents the full-size model accurately.

Embargo Reason

Publication Pending

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