In this dissertation, a parallel three-dimensional aeroelastic simulation is applied
to current and next generation fighter aircraft wings. The computational model is a
nonlinear fluid and structural mesh coupled using the Direct Eulerian-Langrangian
method. This method attaches unique local coordinates to each node and connects
the fluid mesh to the structure in such a way that a transformation preserved to the
global coordinates. This allows the fluid and structure to be updated in the same
time step and maintains spatial accuracy at their interface. The structural mesh
is modeled using modified nonlinear von Karman finite elements and is discretized
using the Galerkin finite element method. The fluid mesh also used the Galerkin
finite element method to discretize the unsteady Euler equations.
Computational results over a large range of Mach numbers and densities are presented for two candidate fighter wing models for transonic wing tunnel testing. The
FX-35 is a trapezoidal wing based on the F-35A, and the F-Wing is a truncated delta wing similar to the F-16. Both wings exhibit a variety of flutter behaviors including
strong bending-torsion flutter, limit-cycle oscillations, and essentially single
degree-of-freedom responses.