Influence of Spanwise FGM and Numerical Parameters on the Fluid-Structure Interaction Response of a Cantilevered Plate Wing

This study investigates the nonlinear aeroelastic response and flutter behavior of a cantilevered plate wing using a two-way fluid–structure interaction framework in ANSYS, coupling Fluent and Mechanical. Both isotropic Aluminum and a spanwise functionally graded Al/Al₂O₃ material system are examined. The aerodynamic solver is validated against published S۸۰۹ airfoil data, followed by validation of the cantilevered wing model. A sensitivity analysis is performed by varying the time step size (۰.۰۲–۰.۰۰۲ s) and the number of coupling iterations (۵ and ۱۰). Larger time steps introduce fluctuations in peak oscillation amplitudes and can delay growth through the critical flow speed window, whereas smaller time steps reduce these fluctuations and diminish iteration sensitivity. A mid-range configuration (∆t = ۰.۰۰۵ s, ۱۰ iterations) provides results comparable to the finest settings at substantially lower computational cost. Using these parameters, the aeroelastic response of a spanwise functionally graded wing—constructed by dividing the span into ten segments with linear grading (k = ۱)—is assessed. The FGM wing exhibits no flutter within the investigated flow speed range and shows markedly reduced tip displacement, maintaining RMS amplitudes below ۰.۰۱ mm, in contrast to the Aluminum baseline, which displays the expected increase in response with flow speed. The results demonstrate that a time step of ۰.۰۰۵ s with ten coupling iterations is sufficient for reliable flutter prediction under ANSYS student license constraints, and that spanwise FGM application significantly enhances aeroelastic stability.

کلیدواژه ها:

Vibration and Instability ، Aeroelastic analysis ، Flutter prediction ، Fluid-Structure Interaction ، Functionally Graded Material ، Nonlinear analysis ، Finite volume and CFD