Airfoils, Lift and Bernoullis

Principle

Flight and Space 2011 Project Lead The Way, Inc.

 History
Ancient Discoveries
Chinese and kites
Early flight explorers Lilienthal and Cayley in
the 1800s
Camber
A measure of the curvature of the airfoil
Airfoil
a part with a flat or curved surface, such as a
wing or rudder, specifically designed to keep
an aircraft in the air.
Airfoil
 Airfoil

Trailing Edge Leading Edge

Angle
of Attack
 Bernoullis Principle
The pressure of a fluid decreases as
the speed of the fluid increases
The principle was first discovered in the
1700s.
When a fluid moves quickly, its pressure
decreases.
Since air is considered a fluid, this
principle can be applied to the design of a
wing.
 Lift
Bernoullis Principle
When a fluid
moves fast, its
pressure
decreases.
Since air is
considered a fluid,
this principle can
be applied to the
design of a wing.
 Bernoullis Principle
Bernoulli proved
that as fluids
move faster,
their pressure
decreases.
This principle
explains why a
plane rises.
 Factors that Affect Lift

The Object: Shape and Size

The Motion: Velocity and Angle of Attack

The Air: Mass, Viscosity, Compressibility

 Factors that Affect Lift
The Object Wing geometry
Airfoil shape
Wing size
Aspect ratio: Mathematical relationship
between the wing span (overall length) to the
wing area
 Factors that Affect Lift
Motion Move the object
Velocity (speed)
Angle of attack (how the object is tipped
toward the wind)
 Factors that Affect Lift
Air Mass
Viscosity
Stickiness
Compressibility
Springiness
Density Altitude
Density of air molecules at a given altitude
 Airfoil Shapes and Lift
Wing or Airfoil?
Airfoil is a shape
designed to generate
as much lift as
possible while
incurring as little drag
as possible.
The wing is attached
to a plane and must
take into consideration
drag and the lift
created.
 Angles and Airfoils
Angle of Incidence
The tilt of the wing with respect to its
attachment to the body of the airplane
(fuselage)
 Angles and Airfoils
Angle of Attack
The tilt of the airfoil with respect to the airflow
 Angles and Airfoils
Tilt with
respect to Airflow must remain
airflow
smooth
Small angle of
attack; air flows
smooth on the
surface
 Angles and Airfoils
Angle of attack
becomes too steep
Airflow is disrupted
and the airplane
loses lift or stalls
Critical Angle of
Attack is the point
where it stalls
 Angles and Airfoils
Causes of stall
Flying at too steep an angle
Real-life flying situations
Sudden gust of wind decreases the planes
forward speed, decreasing the airflow over the
wing
Flying too slow (indicated airspeed)
Wing icing
Changes the shape of the airfoil
 Amount of Lift
Amount of lift produced by an airfoil
depends on may factors
Angle of attack
Lift devices used (flaps, etc.)
Density of the air
Area of the wing
Shape of the wing
Speed at which the wing is traveling
Now follow along as we prove
Bernoullis Principle is True!
Image Resources
Aerospaceweb.org. (2009). Ask-Us Parts of an airplane. Retrieved
June 26, 2009, from
http://www.aerospaceweb.org/question/design/q0101.shtml

Microsoft, Inc. (2008). Clip art. Retrieved June 26, 2009, from
http://office.microsoft.com/en-us/clipart/default.aspx

National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA). (n.d.). Virtual

skies: Aeronautics tutorial. Retrieved June 24, 2009, from
http://virtualskies.arc.nasa.gov/aeronautics/tutorial/intro.html

National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA). (n.d.).

FoilSimU beta version 1.5a. Retrieved June 19, 2009, from
http://www.lerc.nasa.gov/WWW/K-12/aerosim/applet/vj402.html