Experimental and numerical investigation of a wing structure undergoing large deflections: the Pazy wing case

This paper showcases the creation of a high-fidelity Finite Element Model (FEM) for the Pazy Wing, a benchmark model introduced by Daniella Raveh of Technion for the Third Aeroelastic Prediction Workshop, aimed at analyzing non-linear aeroelastic behaviour of highly flexible wings. The FEM has been meticulously refined through experimental data in model updating procedure, leveraging Frequency Response Functions (FRFs) from experimental data to ensure a good correlation at the peaks of resonance. Experimental Modal Analysis (EMA) was performed using the impact testing method, allowing for FEM updates under linear conditions. To validate the precision of the FEM in non-linear scenarios, an additional hammer test campaign was conducted to determine modal parameters across various deformed configurations. The comparison between the experimental and numerical results has been done by means of modal shapes and natural frequencies, using these last ones as reference to control the model discrepancies. The obtained Finite Element model shows not just high accuracy in the prediction of the modal parameters but also a high robustness obtaining accurate results in different configurations and different experimental analysis.