Evaluation of propulsor aerodynamic performance for powered aircraft wind tunnel experiments

Abstract

This thesis describes a methodology to convert electrical power measurements to propulsor mechanical ow power for a 1:11-scale, powered wind tunnel model of an advanced civil aircraft utilizing boundary layer ingestion (BLI); mechanical ow power is a surrogate for aircraft fuel burn. Back-to-back experiments of BLI and non-BLI aircraft configurations to assess the BLI benet directly measured electrical power, and supporting experiments were performed in a 1x1 foot wind tunnel at the MIT Gas Turbine Laboratory to convert these measurements into mechanical flow power. The incoming flow conditions of the powered wind tunnel tests (Reynolds number and inlet distortion) were replicated. This propulsor characterization was found to convert the electrical power measurements to mechanical ow power with experimental uncertainty of roughly 1.6%.