Browsing by Author "Taflan, Murat"

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    Parametric analysis for structural design and weight estimation of cantilever and strut-braced wing-boxes
    (AIAA, 2023-01-19) Taflan, Murat; Smith, Howard; Loughlan, Joseph
    Computationally cheap and accurate enough weight estimation tools are needed for the multidisciplinary design optimization and the design exploration studies of novel aircraft at the conceptual design stage. In this study, a new wing-box structural design and weight estimation method for conceptual or early preliminary design of novel aircraft configurations is introduced. The wing-box weight estimation is achieved through structural sizing using standard structural theoretical procedures. To achieve this, a new wing geometric description with a new wing-box idealization model is introduced. Realistic symmetric maneuver, rolling, and combined loading cases are generated following CS.25 requirements. The structure is sized considering bending, shear, and buckling constraints, and the total weight is estimated from the sized components. The tool is validated against data from nine cantilever and one strut-braced aircraft with aluminum and composite wing- boxes, and a standard error of 1.7% and an average error of -0.2% are achieved. The effect of the strut addition on the total wing-box weight of high aspect-ratio wings is studied. It was shown that the strut helped reduce the wing-box weight of aluminum and composite wing-boxes by 11.9% and 16.2%, respectively. The capabilities and sensitivity of the new wing-box weight estimation method are also successfully presented through an in-depth parametric study. The effects of fourteen aircraft design parameters on the total wing-box weight of moderate and high aspect-ratio cantilever and strut-braced wings are investigated. It was shown that some design parameters have a significant effect on the wing-box weight of cantilever and SBW aircraft, and any wing-box weight estimation model not covering these effects is likely to have limited accuracy or sensitivity.
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    Structural sizing and mass estimation of transport aircraft wings with distributed, hydrogen, and electric propulsions
    (Cambridge University Press (CUP), 2024) Taflan, Murat; Smith, Howard; Loughlan, Joseph
    Current literature offers limited mass estimation methodologies and their application in the conceptual or preliminary design stages of moderate to high aspect ratio wings with electric, hydrogen or distributed propulsions. This study presents the development and application of a quasi-analytical wing mass estimation method to address this limitation. The proposed method is distinguished from the existing mass estimation methods by its expanded realistic load cases, sensitivity to several design parameters, improved accuracy with short computational time and capabilities for future applications. To achieve these features, new geometric models are introduced; 483 load cases including symmetric manoeuvre, rolling, and combined cases are covered following airworthiness requirements; the structural elements are idealised and sized with strength and buckling criteria; existing methods are evaluated and integrated cautiously for secondary structures and non-optimum masses. A computation time of 0.1s is accomplished for one load case. The developed method achieved the highest accuracy with an average error of -2.2% and a standard error of 1.8% for wing mass estimates compared with six existing methods, benchmarked against thirteen wings of different aircraft categories. The effects of engine numbers with dual- to 16-engine setups and the dry wing concepts on the wing mass are investigated. The optimised number of engines and their locations decreased the wing mass of the high aspect ratio wing significantly. In contrast, the dry wing design increased the wing masses of all baseline aircraft. The future applications and improvements of the presented method in novel configurations and multidisciplinary designed optimisation studies are explained.