Aeronautical and Astronautical Research Laboratory

Aerodynamic Design

A number of general-aviation airfoils have been designed or evaluated under the General Aviation Airfoil Design and Analysis Service, sponsored by the NASA Langley Research Center. We have had significant involvement in the development and evaluation of airfoils for the Bellanca Skyrocket, GA(W)-2-low-speed airfoil. Some of these evaluations involved flight tests, for example, with Beech Aircraft Company. The Piaggio Avanti business turbo-prop uses a natural laminar flow airfoil designed here at Ohio State.

Boeing, Lockheed, and Northrop have all used our AARL facilities to document transonic performance of specialized airfoils.

Lear Corporation tested high-lift systems in these facilities; the Beech Starship turbo-prop and high-lift flapped airfoils were evaluated here as well.

A large, vertical-axis wind turbine at Sandia National Laboratories used an Ohio-State designed airfoil that provided an automatic stall control of the rotor, as well as high aerodynamic efficiency.

In addition, we are one of most experienced facilities in existance when it comes to testing scale models of jet engine installation facilities. We help solve both airflow and acoustics issues that arise from putting engines in a box.