Aerodynamics of a flying wing UAV with backward facing stepped wing profile

A flying wing possesses no definite fuselage and no horizontal tail surfaces resulting in lesser drag surfaces, a larger wing area with a better range and endurance as compared to a conventional unmanned aerial vehicle (UAV). The present work explores an efficient and stable flight of a flying wing UAV at a lower Reynolds number using backward facing step wing profile. Numerical simulations for flow over a wing with NACA0012 airfoil, having a backward facing step along the length of its chord, on its upper surface were performed. The depth of the step was also varied to find out an optimum depth of the step to improve its aerodynamic performance. This work involves two-dimensional and three-dimensional steady state and transient simulations followed by the introduction of the wing end-plates to control the wingtip vortices. Here, the wings were designed, based on their aspect- and taper-ratios. Structural analysis was carried out to investigate the natural modes and frequencies in the current wing configurations.