Aerodynamic Impacts of Convergent Slot Implementation on Hinged and Morphed NACA 0012 Airfoil Operating at a High Reynolds Number

Trailing-edge modifications on the NACA 0012 airfoil for lift enhancement are numerically investigated at a Reynolds number 4.58×106. Specifically, three variations in the trailing-edge geometry are tested: a hinged flap with hinge location at 70 % of chord, and two variations of continuous camber-morphed trailing edge: from 70 % chord to 100 % chord and from 70 % chord to 90 % chord. Reynolds-Averaged Navier-Stokes (RANS) simulations are performed using ANSYS Fluent with Menter’s SST k-ω two-equation turbulence model. Predictions of aerodynamic characteristics reveal that the continuous morphing of trailing edge enhances lift generation and improves aerodynamic efficiency compared to the hinged flap. Further, for an angle of attack of 10o, it is shown that boundary-layer separation is less for both camber-morphed trailing-edge configurations compared to hinged flap configuration. The introduction of a convergent slot just upstream of the hinge/start-of-morphing location results in the elimination of flow separation in all cases, and improved aerodynamic efficiency, especially for the hinged-flap configuration.