One of the most commonly used techniques in aerospace engineering is the RANS (Reynolds average Navier–Stokes) approach for calculating the transonic compressor flow field, where the accuracy of the computation is significantly affected by the turbulence model used. In this work, we use SA, SST, k-ɛ, and the PAFV turbulence model developed based on the side-biased mean fluctuations velocity and the mean strain rate tensor to numerically simulate the transonic compressor NASA Rotor 67 to evaluate the accuracy of turbulence modeling in numerical calculations of transonic compressors. The simulation results demonstrate that the four turbulence models are generally superior in the numerical computation of NASA Rotor 67, which essentially satisfies the requirements of the accuracy of engineering calculations; by comparing and analyzing the ability of the four turbulence models to predict the aerodynamic performance of transonic compressors and to capture the details of the flow inside the rotor. The errors of the Rotor 67 clogging flow rate calculated by the SA, SST, k-ɛ, and PAFV turbulence models with the experimental data are 0.9%, 0.8%, 0.7%, and 0.6%, respectively. The errors of the calculated peak efficiencies are 2.2%, 1.6%, 0.9%, and 4.9%. The SA and SST turbulence models were developed for the computational characteristics of the aerospace industry. Their computational stability is better and their outputs for Rotor 67 are comparable. The k-ɛ turbulence model calculates the pressure ratio and efficiency that are closest to the experimental data, but the computation of its details of the flow field near the wall surface is not ideal because the k-ɛ turbulence model cannot accurately capture the flow characteristics of the region of high shear stresses. The PAFV turbulence model has a better prediction of complex phenomena such as rotor internal shock wave location, shock–boundary layer interaction, etc., due to the use of a turbulent velocity scale in vector form, but the calculated rotor efficiency is small.

Aircraft propellers produce relatively large in-plane loads, called propeller 1P loads, during maneuvers such as turning, diving, and lifting, and these loads can negatively affect the flight and control of the aircraft. In order to study the change rule of 1P aerodynamic loads, in this paper, a mathematical model of the propeller 1P aerodynamic loads has been developed based on the blade element momentum theory. This mathematical model was then corrected using the Pitt–Peters incoming flow correction method, the Prandtl tip correction method, and the propeller root flow correction method. Based on this mathematical model, a calculation procedure for the propeller 1P aerodynamic loads was developed using MATLAB software, and the accuracy of the procedure was verified by comparing the results with CFD simulation results. Numerical simulations show that the results calculated based on the proposed mathematical model for the coefficients of thrust, power, bending moment, and the tangential force of the propeller have an error of less than ±6.00% compared to the CFD simulation results. For a small inflow angle, the coefficients of bending moment and tangential force of the whole propeller fluctuate in a small range. But, as the inflow angle increases, the fluctuation range of the aerodynamic characteristic parameters of the propeller increases and the fluctuation becomes more complicated. Through numerical calculations, it has been shown that the mathematical model presented herein is reliable and accurate. In addition, it greatly shortens the calculation time and improves the calculation efficiency. It is expected that the proposed model can provide a certain help for the strength design of the propeller structure and the study of the aerodynamic performance of the whole aircraft.

To further develop a more effective turbulence model and to improve the calculation accuracy of the flow around airfoil, a new PAFV turbulence model has here been constructed by using a deformation rate tensor and the grouping of an average fluctuation velocity. To evaluate the applicability of the PAFV turbulence model, the numerical calculations of flow around the airfoil have here been implemented, which was based on the OpenFOAM calculation platform. On the basis of grid independence research, the model was used to calculate the low-speed flow-around problem for the plano-convex airfoil NACA4412 and the symmetric airfoil NACA0012. It was also compared with the S-A (Spalart-Allmaras) and SST (Shear Stress Transport) k-ω turbulence models. Firstly, the maximum lift angle-of-attack case of the NACA4412 airfoil was calculated. Thereafter, numerical calculations were performed for the flow around the airfoil in the multi-angle-of-attack case of the NACA0012 airfoil. The results showed that the NACA4412 airfoil had an obviously separated vortex at the trailing edge of the airfoil at the maximum lift angle of attack. Also, there was a certain velocity loss downstream of the trailing edge, which was calculated by all three models. However, the results of the PAFV turbulence model were found to be better than those of the S-A and SST turbulence models. The three turbulence models showed comparable accuracies for the calculations of the surface pressure coefficients of the NACA0012 airfoil. However, the S-A and SST k-ω turbulence models were slightly better for the calculations of the mean velocity profiles of the NACA0012 airfoil. Also, the PAFV turbulence model was more accurate for the calculations of the lift and drag coefficients. In conclusion, the PAFV model can make effective predictions of the airfoil low-speed flow around the problem at hand, which in turn preliminarily verifies the applicability of this turbulence model for the low-speed flow around the airfoil problems.