Flutter analysis of a tapered viscoelastic wing subjected to a follower thrust force

The flutter instability of a wing considering many parameters is investigated. The effects of the structural damping, wing taper ratio, engine thrust, and engine mass and location on the flutter characteristics of the wing are studied. The material of the wing is modeled as a viscoelastic material where Kelvin-Voigt model is used to represent the viscoelastic behavior of the material. The unsteady Theodorsen theory is used to model the aerodynamic forces (i.e. lift and pitching moment). The governing equations of motion are developed using the extended Hamilton’s principle and solved via Galerkin’s method along with the classical flutter investigation approach. The developed model is validated against the well-known Goland wing and HALE wing. The flutter determinant method is employed to carry out non-dimensional parametric study on the Goland wing. The study revealed that a tapered wing would be more dynamically stable than a uniform wing. It is also observed that the viscoelastic damping provides wider stability region for the wing. This work shows that the engine thrust and mass have significant effects on the dynamic stability of the wing.