A DG-VLM framework for computational static aeroelastic analysis of composite wings

A computational framework for static aeroelastic analysis of composite laminated plates is proposed, whose novelty is the conjoined use of a structural discontinuous Galerkin (DG) formulation and an aerodynamic vortex lattice method (VLM), suitably coupled for the monolithic solution of the aeroelastic problem. The structural method is built on variable-order generalized kinematics, which allows the seamless adoption of either beam or plate modeling strategies, with on-demand order of polynomial approximation over the transverse and in-plane dimensions of the structural elements. The underlying DG formulation also simplifies the coupling between the structural and aerodynamic grids, thus providing a versatile tool for the aeroelastic analysis of either low or high aspect-ratio composite wings. Several numerical tests have been performed to assess the convergence features of the proposed framework as well as its accuracy with respect to available computational and experimental benchmark data. The obtained results confirm its robustness and highlight its potential for aeroelastic assessments in early aircraft conceptual design.