Numerical analyses and wind tunnel tests for the aerodynamic characteristics of the ducted fan for the VTOL UAV propulsion

Abstract

Ducted fan VTOL UAV can hover, but are unlike helicopters and can dash at high speeds, but are like airplanes. Ducted fan UAV is offers a supplementary safety feature attributed to enclosing the rotating fan in the duct, therefore making it an attractive option for various advanced UAV configurations. The ducted fan, which consists of a rotor and stator blades, has higher performance characteristics and higher propulsion efficiency compared with commercial isolated propellers. The purpose of this study is numerical analyses and wind tunnel tests for the aerodynamic characteristics of the ducted fan for the VTOL UAV propulsion, including high efficiency, sufficient thrust and acceptable blade noise and vibration characteristics. In this present paper, aerodynamic design for the rotor and the stator blades of the ducted fan is following the process of a series of steps which are the meanline analysis, the though-flow analysis and the aerodynamic analysis with design requirements. When the performance characteristics of the designed ducted fan do not satisfy the design requirements at each design step, the design process is started again at the previous design step.