ISBN 9783843956970

978-3-8439-5697-0, Reihe Ingenieurwissenschaften

Robin Wickersheim
Noise Mechanisms and Installation Effects of Distributed Propulsion Systems: A Simulative and Experimental Work

203 Seiten, Dissertation Universität Stuttgart (2025), Softcover, A5

Zusammenfassung / Abstract

Within the framework of sustainable aviation, distributed electric propulsion (DEP) systems have become a central topic of current research. In these concepts, numerous propellers are arranged along the wingspan instead of relying on two main engines. This thesis investigates the noise generation mechanisms of two DEP concepts through a combination of high-fidelity simulations and flight tests.

In the first part, the tonal noise sources of a wind tunnel configuration were analyzed using a numerical framework. This framework enabled the separation between noise generated by the propeller itself, the induced propeller-propeller interactions and noise emitted by the wing as a result of propeller-wing interactions. Furthermore, a detailed analysis was conducted to further decompose the propeller-wing interaction noise into its hydrodynamic and scattered components. The results showed that propeller-generated noise caused by potential field effects with the wing constitutes the dominant contribution to the overall noise, while wing-emitted noise also played a significant role in several directions. Finally, the numerical results were successfully validated with experimental data obtained from wind tunnel tests.

In the second part, the numerical investigations were applied to a modified version of the e-Genius-Mod flight demonstrator equipped with DEP. This enabled the demonstration of evidence for the composition of the overall noise from the contributing source mechanisms as already found previously. Furthermore, a reasonable agreement between simulated and measured tonal noise was achieved when compared with acoustic flight test data.

The presented results contribute to a deeper understanding of the complex aerodynamic and acoustic interactions between DEP and a wing that might support early design adaptations to improve the acoustic acceptability.