Amphibious Aircraft Developments: Computational Studies of Hydrofoil Design for Improvements in Water-Takeoffs

Abstract

Amphibious aircraft designers face challenges to improve takeoffs and landings on both water and land, with water-takeoffs being relatively more complex for analyses. Reducing the water-takeoff distance via the use of hydrofoils was a subject of interest in the 1970s, but the computational power to assess their designs was limited. A preliminary computational design framework is developed to assess the performance and effectiveness of hydrofoils for amphibious aircraft applications, focusing on the water-takeoff performance. The design framework includes configuration selections and sizing methods for hydrofoils to fit within constraints from a flying-boat amphibious aircraft conceptual design for general aviation. The position, span, and incidence angle of the hydrofoil are optimized for minimum water-takeoff distance with consideration for the longitudinal stability of the aircraft. The analyses and optimizations are performed using water-takeoff simulations, which incorporate lift and drag forces with cavitation effects on the hydrofoil. Surrogate models are derived based on 2D computational fluid dynamics simulation results to approximate the force coefficients within the design space. The design procedure is evaluated in a case study involving a 10-seater amphibious aircraft, with results indicating that the addition of the hydrofoil achieves the purpose of reducing water-takeoff distance by reducing the hull resistance.

AG600 Amphibious Aircraft Selection Model Based on Improved Fuzzy Evaluation Algorithm

“…erefore, AG600 selection and evaluation are di cult to use. e fuzzy comprehensive evaluation method [1][2][3] provides an e ective method for multi-factor fuzzy evaluation, which provides an e ective means for multi-factor fuzzy evaluation.…”

Dynamic Features of Non-Return Mechanism in Hatch Door of Amphibious Aircraft

“…Amphibious aircraft have been extensively employed in emergency rescue and land and water transportation due to their ability to take off and land on water [1,2]. The working environment on the water is complex as, when the aircraft stays on the water and opens the hatch door, it will be subjected to strong additional dynamic loads excited by water waves and crosswind, which will seriously affect the reliability of the opening-and-closing process and the brake holding state of the hatch door, especially for the rear left hatch door of the through cabin that opens upward and outward (see Figure 1).…”

Dynamic features of non-return mechanism in hatch door of amphibious aircraft

“…Amphibious aircraft has been extensively employed in emergency rescue and land and water transportation due to its ability to take off and land on water 1,2 . The working environment on water is complex, especially in bad weather.…”