Critical flutter speed determination of a flat-plate aluminum wing using coupled field simulation capabilities of ANSYS
Pankaj GUPTA
Abstract: Flutter is a phenomenon caused by the combined effects of aerodynamic, elastic, and inertial forces, which can be damaging and potentially explosive. Flutter requires careful and prudent flight testing. The critical flutter speed of a flat-plate aluminum wing is established in relation to the flutter issue. Studying flutter necessitates the use of computationally intensive high-fidelity simulation models. The MFX code coupling feature in ANSYS allows for the integration of the ANSYS CFX CFD solver with the ANSYS structural solver. A coupled transient analysis is established in ANSYS Workbench to determine the critical flutter speed. The wing structure is first disturbed by a sudden pressure load for a brief period. The perturbation-induced free vibrations are altered by the airflow surrounding the wing. The reaction might be stable (converging oscillations), neutral (sustained oscillations), or unstable (diverging oscillations) based on the inlet velocity of the airflow. Limit Cycle Oscillations, a fascinating non-linear phenomenon, are also observed.
Keywords
Flutter, Aeroelasticity, FSI, ANSYS, Coupled-Field Simulation
Published online 8/15/2026, 8 pages
Copyright © 2026 by the author(s)
Published under license by Materials Research Forum LLC., Millersville PA, USA
Citation: Pankaj GUPTA, Critical flutter speed determination of a flat-plate aluminum wing using coupled field simulation capabilities of ANSYS, Materials Research Proceedings, Vol. 71, pp 141-148, 2026
DOI: https://doi.org/10.21741/97816449042312-19
The article was published as article 19 of the book AI-Driven Innovations in Mechanical, Manufacturing, and Energy Engineering
Content from this work may be used under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution 3.0 license. Any further distribution of this work must maintain attribution to the author(s) and the title of the work, journal citation and DOI.
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