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Rotor CFD Analysis at Terrestrial and Martian Atmospheric DensitiesMuch effort has been made to enhance exploration on Mars. In addition to a rover and Mars-orbiting satellites, a Mars helicopter (MH) was proposed in order to augment planetary research. Computational Fluid Dynamics (CFD) simulations have been performed to have a better understanding of the behavior and performance of vertical lift Planetary Aerial Vehicles (PAV). Due to the large differences in atmospheric conditions between Mars and Earth, predicting and testing rotorcraft performance is a complex task. The goal of this project is to understand the capability of the mid-fidelity CFD software RotCFD to predict rotor performance in terms of thrust at 1013.25 milibar and 14 milibar corresponding to Terrestrial and Martian conditions, respectively. Also, in order to characterize the wind tunnel wall effects free field and wind tunnel simulations were performed, analyzed and compared. Different analytical tools have been used in order to aid with the design process for the future vertical lift planetary aerial vehicles. One of them includes experimental tests performed on a rotor in the Aeolian Wind Tunnel (AWT) facility at NASA Ames Research Center under different pressure conditions ranging from Terrestrial to Martian atmospheric conditions. Other software was used as well in order to capture the aerodynamic coefficients of the corresponding rotor sections based on the Mach and Reynolds numbers used for the experimental tests. The aerodynamic coefficients were input into RotCFD, and various simulations were performed under Terrestrial and Martian conditions in order to mimic the experimental test. Then, the obtained results from RotCFD were compared with the AWT collected data.
Document ID
20190001482
Acquisition Source
Ames Research Center
Document Type
Contractor Report (CR)
Authors
Perez Perez, Brenda Natalia
(Science and Technology Corp. Moffett Field, CA, United States)
Date Acquired
March 12, 2019
Publication Date
September 1, 2018
Subject Category
Spacecraft Design, Testing And Performance
Report/Patent Number
ARC-E-DAA-TN53293
NASA/CR-2018-219780
Funding Number(s)
CONTRACT_GRANT: NNA16BD60C
Distribution Limits
Public
Copyright
Public Use Permitted.
Keywords
Atmospheric Pressures
Mars
Comprehensive Analyses
Earth
Rotor
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