Abstract
Preliminary design of a ground plate, a device installed close to the aircraft model for wind tunnel test to simulate the ground effect, was performed by a numerical simulation. A two-dimensional numerical study was performed initially to decide the optimal leading edge and flap configurations. Then, three-dimensional studies were conducted to decide the optimal flap deflection angle for pressure distribution reduction since the plate and the plate supporting system generate static pressure difference between the upper and lower flow regions. Three-dimensional simulation additionally studied the effect of the clearance between the plate and the wind tunnel side wall. For the efficiency of computation, half model was simulated and a symmetric boundary condition was applied on the center plane. Based on the preliminary design, a ground plate was designed, manufactured and tested at the Korea Aerospace Research Institute(KARI) wind tunnel. The measured pressure differences versus flap deflection angle agreed well with the predicted results.
