Item 1750

OTHER: Aerodynamics - General - Aspect Ratio [AR]

Some thoughts related to aspect ratio.

Reasons for Low Aspect Ratio:

There will be less bending stresses.

Low aspect wings (and I assume rotor blades) create less profile drag.

For helicopters, less power will be required for a given thrust. However it will come with a higher Angle of Attack due to a slower turning rotor.

This slower turning rotor will allow for higher speed flight.

Reasons for High Aspect Ratio:

The narrower chord will result in a lower rotational inertia about the pitch axis and this will mean that the pilot exerts less force to move the cyclic stick.

High aspect wings (and I assume rotor blades) create less induced drag.

The Reynolds Number will be greater and this results in a small advantage.

The tip loss is reduced.

Related Information on This Web Site:

OTHER: Aerodynamics - General - Solidity Ratio

DESIGN: UniCopter ~ Rotor - Disk - Large Chord & Low Tip Speed

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Last Revised: Sunday, August 16, 2009