Geometrically consistent static aeroelastic simulation using isogeometric analysis

In conventional aeroelastic analysis and optimisation methods for wing design, different geometries are used for the different steps in the process. Generally, a parametrised model is used to describe the shape of the geometry for the optimisation process. Subsequently, this model is converted into a structural and aerodynamic model for analysis purposes. These steps increase the computational effort and introduce geometrical errors. In this work, a geometrically consistent static aeroelastic analysis framework is presented. By using isogeometric analysis, the exact geometry is used in both the structural and aerodynamic models, preventing any additional computational effort for meshing and geometry retrieval steps and avoiding the introduction of geometrical errors due to the discretisation of the geometry. The separate components of the framework are described and verified, and the complete framework is demonstrated through the analysis of the realistic wing model.