Aerodynamic design of multi-rotor UAV blades for heavy-duty transportation

Abstract As the primary source of propulsion for unmanned aerial vehicles (UAVs), rotors consume a significant portion of the UAV’s electrical energy and directly determine its maximum endurance. The aerodynamic design of heavy-duty UAV blades is pivotal to various performance indicators, ultimately influencing the transport capacity of these UAVs. This design primarily involves the selection and optimization of low-Reynolds-number airfoils in tandem with the optimization of geometric parameters. In this study, mathematical modeling and numerical comparative analysis were employed to select the RAF (produced by Royal Aircraft Factory) series airfoils. The blades were designed with a diameter of 1.8 meters and a rotational speed of 1800 revolutions per minute (rpm). The resulting rotor was capable of lifting a single-axis six-rotor UAV with a payload capacity of 150 kilograms, achieving a hover efficiency exceeding 0.8.