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High-fidelity simulations assess fan-intake interaction under varying angle of attack, highlighting implications for engine performance.
Recent advancements in the design of aircraft engine intakes have heightened concerns regarding the impact of inlet distortion on engine performance and safety. The EU NIFTI project conducted high-fidelity measurements in late 2023 on a high-speed, high-bypass ratio, low-pressure ratio fan rig integrated with an intake, which provided high quality data for the investigation of fan-intake interaction under angle of attack (AoA) and crosswind conditions. In this study, unsteady Reynolds-averaged Navier-Stokes (URANS) simulations were performed to assess the effects of AoA on the aerodynamics of the NIFTI engine model. The AoA was varied from 0◦to 35◦under conditions matching the experimental setup. The CFD predictions exhibited good agreement with experimental measurements, particularly for pressure profiles on the intake casing walls at low and moderate AoA levels. The results highlight the dominant influence of the large downstream pylon on the fan operation, irrespective of AoA. Moreover, Fourier analysis of the measured intake wall pressure signals revealed integer Engine Order (EO) tones, likely caused by fan blade stagger variations; this phenomenon was successfully reproduced by URANS simulations with a randomly mis-stagger pattern. The computational simulations provided a detailed explanation of the experimental data and offer insights into the complex interaction between upstream distortion caused by AoA and downstream distortion induced by the pylon. This study underscores the importance of high-fidelity numerical simulations for capturing intricate flow physics in modern aero-engine designs.
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Zhao et al. (2025) studied this question.
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