Computational Evaluation of Aerodynamics and Aeroacoustics of a Propeller for a Multirotor Unmanned Aerial Vehicle

Abstract

The development of aircraft propulsion systems requires a comprehensive understanding of propeller performance characteristics under various operating conditions. While experimental testing traditionally provides reliable data for propeller performance curves at different cruising speeds and rotational velocities the associated costs and time investments have driven researchers toward alternative evaluation methods including computational and analytical approaches. This research presents a detailed computational investigation of a quadrotor unmanned aerial vehicles propeller focusing on two critical performance aspects thrust coefficient variation and aeroacoustic behaviour. The study employed computational fluid dynamics simulations to analyze a 9-inch propeller under vertical climbing conditions examining multiple advance ratios and rotational speeds. Computational accuracy was ensured through mesh independence studies which determined the optimal discretization of the solution domain. The CFD results demonstrated strong correlation with experimental data regarding thrust coefficient predictions, thereby validating the computational approach. The aeroacoustic analysis revealed favourable noise characteristics with the propeller maintaining consistently moderate sound pressure levels across all measured angular positions. These findings validate both the effectiveness of the computational methodology and confirm the balanced performance of the propeller design in terms of both aerodynamic efficiency and noise generation.

Keywords

• Aerodynamic
• APC 9x4.5
• UAV
• Propeller
• Aeroacoustics
• CFD

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