A Time-Domain Fluid-Structure Interaction Analysis of Fan Blades

This paper presents aerodynamic and aeromechanical analyses for an entire row of fan blades (i.e. tens of blades with a finite aspect ratio) subject to a uniform incoming flow. In this regard, a new unsteady three-dimensional vortex lattice model has been developed for multiple blades in discrete time domain. Using the new model, the characteristics of the unsteady aerodynamic forces on vibrating blades, including their temporal development, are examined. Also, the new aerodynamic model is applied to examine the aeromechanical behavior of fan blades by using a standard eigenvalue analysis. For this analysis, the fan blades have been modeled as three-dimensional plates, and, increasing the number of blades (or solidity) is predicted to destabilize the fan blade row.