Calculation of the Aerodynamic Characteristics of Tapered Wings With Partial-Span Flaps (open access)

Calculation of the Aerodynamic Characteristics of Tapered Wings With Partial-Span Flaps

"Factors derived from wing theory are presented. By means of these factors, the angle of zero lift, the lift-curve slope, the pitching moment, the aerodynamic-center position, and the induced drag of tapered wings with partial-span flaps may be calculated. The factors are given for wings of aspect ratios 6 and 10 , of taper ratios from 0.25 to 1.00, and with flaps of various length. An example is presented of the method of application of the factors. Fair agreement with experimental results is shown for two wings of different taper ratio having plain flaps of various spacing" (p. 1).
Date: January 23, 1939
Creator: Pearson, Henry A. & Anderson, Raymond F.
System: The UNT Digital Library
Downwash and Wake Behind Plain and Flapped Airfoils (open access)

Downwash and Wake Behind Plain and Flapped Airfoils

"Extensive experimental measurements have been made of the downwash angles and the wake characteristics behind airfoils with and without flaps and the data have been analyzed and correlated with the theory. A detailed study was made of the errors involved in applying lifting-line theory, such as the effects of a finite wing chord, the rolling-up of the trailing vortex sheet, and the wake. The downwash angles, as computed from the theoretical span load distribution by means of the Biot-Savart equation, were found to be in satisfactory agreement with the experimental results" (p. 179).
Date: June 23, 1938
Creator: Silverstein, Abe; Katzoff, S. & Bullivant, W. Kenneth
System: The UNT Digital Library
Improved airplane windshields to provide vision in stormy weather (open access)

Improved airplane windshields to provide vision in stormy weather

This report presents the results of wind tunnel tests to determine possible improvements in the design of airplane windshields, particularly with respect to the pilot's vision from the cabin in stormy weather.
Date: May 23, 1934
Creator: Clay, William C.
System: The UNT Digital Library
Wind-tunnel research comparing lateral control devices particularly at high angles of attack 13: auxiliary airfoils used as external ailerons (open access)

Wind-tunnel research comparing lateral control devices particularly at high angles of attack 13: auxiliary airfoils used as external ailerons

This is the thirteenth report on a series of systematic tests comparing lateral control devices with particular reference to their effectiveness at high angles of attack. The present wind tunnel tests were made to determine the most feasible locations for lateral control surfaces mounted externally to a rectangular Clark y wing.
Date: July 23, 1934
Creator: Weick, Fred E. & Noyes, Richard W.
System: The UNT Digital Library
Wind-Tunnel Tests of a Clark Y Wing With a Narrow Auxiliary Airfoil in Different Positions (open access)

Wind-Tunnel Tests of a Clark Y Wing With a Narrow Auxiliary Airfoil in Different Positions

"Aerodynamic force tests were made on a combination of a Clark Y wing and a narrow auxiliary airfoil to find the best location of the auxiliary airfoil with respect to the main wing. The auxiliary was a highly cambered airfoil of medium thickness having a chord 14.5 per cent that of the main wing. It was tested in 141 different positions ahead of, above, and behind the nose portion of the main wing, the range of the test points being extended until the best aerodynamic conditions were covered" (p. 537).
Date: February 23, 1932
Creator: Weick, Fred E. & Bamber, Millard J.
System: The UNT Digital Library
Negative Thrust and Torque Characteristics of an Adjustable-Pitch Metal Propeller (open access)

Negative Thrust and Torque Characteristics of an Adjustable-Pitch Metal Propeller

This report presents the results of a series of negative thrust and torque measurements made with a 4 foot diameter model of a conventional aluminum-alloy propeller. The tests were made in the 20-foot propeller-research tunnel of the National Advisory Committee for Aeronautics. The results show that the negative thrust is considerably affected by the shape and size of the body behind the propeller, that the maximum negative thrust increases with decrease in blade-angle setting, and that the drag of a locked propeller may be greatly reduced by feathering it into the wind.
Date: May 23, 1933
Creator: Hartman, Edwin P.
System: The UNT Digital Library
The Weathering of Aluminum Alloy Sheet Materials Used in Aircraft (open access)

The Weathering of Aluminum Alloy Sheet Materials Used in Aircraft

This report presents the results of an investigation of the corrosion of aluminum alloy sheet materials used in aircraft. It has for its purpose to study the causes of corrosion embrittlement in duralumin-type alloys and the development of methods for its elimination. The report contains results, obtained in an extensive series of weather-exposure tests, which reveal the extent to which the resistance of the materials to corrosion was affected by variable factors in their heat treatment and by the application of various surface protective coatings.
Date: March 23, 1934
Creator: Mutchler, Willard
System: The UNT Digital Library
The NACA variable-density wind tunnel (open access)

The NACA variable-density wind tunnel

This report describes the redesigned variable-density wind tunnel of the National Advisory Committee for Aeronautics; it supersedes a previous report that described the original tunnel. The operation of the balance and the method of testing are explained and the method of correcting and presenting airfoil data is described. A summary of the formulas for predicting the characteristics of finite wings from the airfoil section data as they are usually presented is also given.
Date: November 23, 1933
Creator: Jacobs, Eastman N. & Abbott, Ira H.
System: The UNT Digital Library
Maneuverability investigation of the F6C-3 airplane with special flight instruments (open access)

Maneuverability investigation of the F6C-3 airplane with special flight instruments

"This investigation was made for the purpose of obtaining information on the maneuverability of the F6C-3 airplane. It is the first of a series of similar investigations to be conducted on a number of military airplanes for the purpose of comparing the abilities of these airplanes to maneuver, and also to establish a fund of quantitative data which may be used in formulating standards of comparison for rating the maneuverability of any airplane. A large part of this initial investigation was necessarily devoted to the development and trial of methods suitable for use in subsequent investigations of this nature" (p. 117).
Date: May 23, 1930
Creator: Dearborn, C. H. & Kirschbaum, H. W.
System: The UNT Digital Library
A New Principle of Sound Frequency Analysis (open access)

A New Principle of Sound Frequency Analysis

"In connection with the study of aircraft and propeller noises, the National Advisory Committee for Aeronautics has developed an instrument for sound-frequency analysis which differs fundamentally from previous types, and which, owing to its simplicity of principle, construction, and operation, has proved to be of value in this investigation. The method is based on the well-known fact that the Ohmic loss in an electrical resistance is equal to the sum of the losses of the harmonic components of a complex wave, except for the case in which any two components approach or attain vectorial identity, in which case the Ohmic loss is increased by a definite amount" (p. 605).
Date: March 23, 1931
Creator: Theodorsen, Theodore
System: The UNT Digital Library
The Pack Method for Compressive Tests of Thin Specimens of Materials Used in Thin-Wall Structures (open access)

The Pack Method for Compressive Tests of Thin Specimens of Materials Used in Thin-Wall Structures

"The strength of modern lightweight thin-wall structures is generally limited by the strength of the compression members. An adequate design of these members requires a knowledge of the compressive stress-strain graph of the thin-wall material. The "pack" method was developed at the National Bureau of Standards with the support of the National Advisory Committee for Aeronautics to make possible a determination of compressive stress-strain graphs for such material" (p. 133).
Date: August 23, 1938
Creator: Aitchison, C. S. & Tuckerman, L. B.
System: The UNT Digital Library