The Effect of Protuberance Structures on the Aerodynamic Performance of an Aerofoil

Lift, and pressure data was modeled on various samples based on NACA0012 aerofoils, which were designed and modified using SOLIDWORKS and then tested from 0° To 20° using a CFD wind tunnel. These aerofoil samples had protuberance structures along the leading edge similar to the tubercles of the humpback whale with varying amplitudes and wavelengths, and the effect these had on aerodynamic performance was determined by a low-speed wind-tunnel test. This project found an improvement of lift over the baseline, ranging from 7.677 to 38.411% greater maximum lift coefficient values, and that hypotheses based on previous studies regarding low-pressure pockets were verified. There are significant implications to these results, including verifying of the hypothesis that low-pressure pockets created by the inclusion of tubercles do improve aerodynamic performance at the onset of flow separation, and that there are significant potential applications for various fields. There is a wide range of potential future exploration and investigation in this topic, specifically with regards to improved aerodynamic and hydrodynamic design. Potential research directions include the optimization of the tubercle effect for high aspect-ratio wings to improve stall performance due to their prevalence in concept aircraft optimized for greater sustainability and efficiency.