Multi-disciplinary optimisation approach for a light turboprop aircraft-engine integration and improvement

Abstract

Purpose The purpose of this paper is to present application of multidisciplinary design optimisation (MDO) in redesign of a small composite aircraft. The redesign process was integration of the turboprop engine in a small composite aircraft. The process requires cooperation of specialists from many disciplines and definition of their tasks. For selected tasks, the authors present results of the calculation. Design/methodology/approach The authors used collaborative optimisation (CO) algorithm to solve the problem. They decomposed this complex process into a set of tasks in different engineering/research disciplines and used techniques and methods specific for each task (research/engineering discipline) to find a proper solution. The computer-aided design (CAD), computational fluid dynamics (CFD) and computational structural mechanics (CSM) commercial software were used as common tools as well as intentionally developed computer programmes were used as basic tools in some tasks, in particular, for aerodynamic optimisation, calculation of load and stability of aircraft. The exchange of data between separate tasks allowed achieving the main goal of complex design process. Findings Selected optimisation algorithm, CO, proved efficient for the authors’ purposes. The effectiveness of multidisciplinary optimisation depends as much on organisational parameters as it does on technical and technology parameters. Practical implications Multidisciplinary optimisation needs to be an integral part of analysis and design process. The successful optimisation results allowed to meet the requirements and to proceed to the next phase of work – preparing technical documentation for manufacturing the components necessary for integration of the airplane with the new engine. Originality/value Presented results of design process are a valuable example of how to achieve the final goal in an ongoing project.

Ground and in-Fligh Testing of Cooling Efficiency of Turboprop Engine Compartment

“…These features make the proposed solution suitable for Small Aircraft Transport (SAT) Aircraft Family Program [6], as well as for redesign of small aircraft to replace piston propulsion with turboprop one [7].…”

Flight Tests of Turboprop Engine with Reverse Air Intake System

“…Advantages of the proposed installation system are: simplicity of the design, low weight, good access for servicing engine components, opportunity to use various types of inlet deicing, protection against ingestion of foreign objects. These features make the proposed solution suitable for Small Aircraft Transport (SAT) Aircraft Family Program [11], as well as for redesign of small aircraft to replace piston propulsion with turboprop one [12].…”

Single engine turboprop aeroplane class in small air transport

“…The aeroplane that could pretend to be included in the new class, as proposed by the author, is the I-31T prototype ( Figure 5), designed in the Institute of Aviation in Warsaw, Poland -IoA (Iwaniuk et al, 2016). It is four-seat, low-wing monoplane with retractable undercarriage, driven by PBS TP-100 turbopropeller engine, manufactured by PBS Velka Bites, Czech.…”