A refined 1D FE model for the application to aeroelasticity of composite wings

The extension of a hierarchical one-dimensional structural model to aeroelasticity is the subject of the present paper. The aerodynamic model is based on the Vortex Lattice Method, VLM, whereas the refined 1D model is based on the Carrera Unified Formulation, CUF. Airfoil in-plane deformation and warping are introduced by enriching the displacement field over the cross-section of the wing. Linear to fourth-order expansions are adopted and classical beam theories (Euler-Bernoulli and Timoshenko) are obtained as particular cases. The VLM aerodynamic theory is coupled with the structural finite element model via an appropriate adaptation of the Infinite Plate Spline method. The aeroelastic tailoring is investigated for several wing configurations (by varying aspect ratio, airfoil geometry and sweep angle) and an excellent agreement with MD NASTRAN solution is provided for structural and aeroelastic cases. The effectiveness of higher-order models for an accurate evaluation of aeroelastic response of isotropic and composite wings is shown.