Conceptual design method for the wing weight estimation of strut-braced wing aircraft

Kurzfassung

This paper presents a method for the wing weight estimation of strut-braced wing aircraft in conceptual design. The method is simple to implement and captures important effects for the design of high aspect ratio braced wings. Conventional aluminum design or composites can be considered. Aeroelastic divergence, aileron reversal and elastic effects on the wing lift distribution are accounted for with simple strip theory and beam stiffness matrices. The stiffness matrices are extended to include the strut reaction. A direct method is used for the strut and wing internal loads calculation. Comparison with Nastran results shows good accuracy in the prediction of aeroelastic effects and strut reaction. Design studies show potential to reduce the wing mass between 11% and 14% or increase the aspect ratio from 10 to 12 in comparison to a conventional wing.