Aerodynamic Performance of the Inboard Elevon on a Blended-Wing-Body Aircraft

The objectives of this research are to examine the effects of trailing edge modifications of the inboard elevon of a blended-wing-body (BWB) aircraft, the goal being to try and reduce the hinge moment of the inboard elevon through selective aerodynamic design. A computational model was built for 60⁰ and 70⁰ beveled trailing edge modifications, as well as no modification. The inboard elevon was deflected positive 5⁰ and negative 5⁰. The numerical solutions were obtained using an implicit solver and inviscid model. The results of this research showed that, through the use of a beveled trailing edge on the inboard elevon, a maximum of 112% reduction in the hinge moment could be achieved for the negative deflection case and a maximum of 88% reduction in the hinge moment for the positive deflection case. The results showed that there was a significant improvement in the hinge moments, with less that a 2% average change in the overall aerodynamic performance of the BWB for the inviscid models.