Design of high-lift airfoils for low aspect ratio wings with endplates

摘要

High-lift multi-element airfoils for low-aspect ratio wings with endplates find application in race car rear wings used to generate high aerodynamic down force. ^Airfoils for such applications must not only generate maximum lift (to maximize the down force) but also must satisfy several geometric constraints imposed by the race rules. ^Induced effects arising as a result of the low aspect ratio determine the operating angle of attack at which the lift is to be maximized. ^This paper presents some of the challenges involved in designing such airfoils, and briefly describes the design methodology adopted in the current work. ^A parametric study using a baseline two-element airfoil is then presented to illustrate some of the unusual results obtained as a consequence of satisfying the geometric constraints while maximizing the wing down force. ^(Author)