Course Catalogue

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This course introduces a range of advanced topics in modern aerodynamics including unsteady flows, aerofoils at high angles of attack, and shock fronts.

2 lectures per week

None

None

None

Assessment

80% Examination

20% Laboratory report

Reassessments are normally available for all courses, except those which contribute to the Honours classification. For non Honours courses, students are offered reassessment in all or any of the components of assessment if the satisfactory (threshold) grade for the overall course is not achieved at the first attempt. This is normally grade D3 for undergraduate students and grade C3 for postgraduate students. Exceptionally it may not be possible to offer reassessment of some coursework items, in which case the mark achieved at the first attempt will be counted towards the final course grade. Any such exceptions for this course are described below.

The aim of the course is to provide the students with an understanding of the unsteady aerodynamics of vehicles designed for high Mach number flight and the various experimental tools used to study their associated flow characteristics.

By the end of this course students will be able to:

■ identify flow patterns and separation regions around high angle of attack aerodynamic objects;

■ apply cross-flow theory to determine the normal force coefficient acting on wing-body combinations and the corresponding location of the centre of pressure at high incidences;

■ describe the flow physics associated with aerodynamic bodies designed for high-speed flight;

■ explain fundamental unsteady gas dynamic interactions involving shock waves and shock-boundary layer interactions;

■ differentiate between intrusive and non-intrusive experimental techniques used to study fluid dynamic phenomena;

■ explain the principles of operation and the setup of modern experimental techniques, e.g. PIV and PSP, and assess their limitations, advantages, and associated errors;

■ given a fluid dynamic flow, be it low-speed or high-speed, be able to apply their understanding of the various experimental techniques to select the appropriate method in order to obtain specific fluidic properties such as pressure or velocity;

■ interpret the results of pressure and velocity measurements on unsteady flow induced by a cavity.

Students must attend the degree examination and submit at least 75% by weight of the other components of the course's summative assessment.

Students must attend the timetabled laboratory classes and submit the laboratory report.

Students should attend at least 75% of the timetabled classes of the course.

Note that these are minimum requirements: good students will achieve far higher participation/submission rates.  Any student who misses an assessment or a significant number of classes because of illness or other good cause should report this by completing a MyCampus absence report.