An Experimental Comparison between Wing Root and Wingtip Corrugation Patterns of Dragonfly Wing at Ultra-low Reynolds Number and High Angles of Attack

This study presents the empirical comparison between the wing root and wingtip corrugation patterns of dragonfly wing in the newly-built wind-tunnel at the IAUN. The main objective of the research is to investigate the effect of wingtip and wing root corrugations on aerodynamic forces and the flow physics around the cross-sections at Re=10000 and the angle of attack of 0° to 30°. For this aim, two cross-sections are extracted from wing root (first cross-section) and wingtip (second cross-section). The first cross-section has corrugations with higher density than the second cross-section. The comparison of lift coefficients obtained from pressure distribution and force measurement indicates an acceptable agreement between the results. Also, Particle Image Velocity (PIV) technique is used to measure the velocity field. The results show that all corrugation patterns do not have positive effects on the aerodynamic forces. The second cross-section can generate considerable aerodynamic forces compared to the first cross-section. At α=25°, the lift coefficient generated by the second cross-section is 90% and 25% higher than that of the first cross-section and the flat plate, respectively. Based on results, corrugations in the wing root's vicinity have a crucial role in the solidity of insect wings; however, corrugations in the wing tip's vicinity play a vital role in generating adequate aerodynamic forces. The comparison conducted in the current research reveals the second cross-section is an appropriate replacement for the flat plate in MAVs due to generating more essential forces for flight.