JUN 51926 Siig." 4, ,, NATIONAL ABVISORY COMMITTEE ¢ a FOR AERONAUTICS, eet : 2 41996 TEOHN ICA [NOTES MAILEQ\rIowAL ADVISORY COMMITTEE FOR AERONAUTIOS cacti oa No. 238 } PROPELLER DESIGN MINING THE STRENGTH OF PROPELLERS - IV A SIMPLE METHOD FOR DE By Fred E. Weick Langley Memorial Aeronautical Laboratory FILE GOPY To be returned to fore is the filos OF the Langley Memorial Aeronautical Laboratory Washington i June, 1926TAA 1176 0142! TATIOKAL ADVISORY SOMMITTEE FOR AERONAUTICS. TECHNICAL EQTE di. 23e. PROPELLER DESIGN. ? ETHOD FOR DETERLIW: STRENGTH OF PROPELLERS - IV. By Fred E. Weick. Summary The object of this report, the last of a series of four on propeller design, is to describe a simple method for determin- ing whether the strength of @ propeller of a standard fom is sufficient for safe operation. An approximate method of stress analysis is also given. : Introduction After a propeller mas been designed to ucet certain aero dynamic requirements it is often desired to mow whether it has sufficient etrengtn foreafe operation. The accurate stress analysis of a propeller is"a. complex and laborious process, and the approximate methods used in routine design work are neces~ sarily inaccurate. In this report a simple relation is given for determining whether any propeller of standard Navy form is sufficiently stzong for its particular opereting requirenents. The method used can be adapted to any family of propellers of one general formTechnical Note No. 238 2 Approximate Stress Analysis Three main types of forces act on propeller blades: 1. Centrifugal Zorces, 2. Aerodynamic forces, 3. Gyroscopic forces. The actual stresses are of & very complicated nature, but in routine design work on standard propellers only the two most important need be considered: 1. Uniform tensile stress cue to centrifugal forces. 2. Maximum tensile stress caused by bonding due to ‘the lift of the airfoil. . The stresses due to centrifugal force will be considercd first. The centrifugal force acting on any given particle in the'propeller is represented by the equation 0.F. = + wr, where ia the weight of the particle, g is the accelera— tion due to gravity, » is the angular velocity in radians per second, and r the distance of the particle from the center of rotation. If N equals the revolutions per mimte, the an- gular velocity w becomes yo wz any, form of C.F. ¥ 3 wa ay and the equation takes the The propeller is divided into stations usually spaced ei- ther 6 in. or 15 per‘ cent R (tip radius) apart along the radius. Considering sec ng 1 in. in radial length at each station, the weight W, of each section becomes W= Aw, where A isM.A.G.a+ Technical Note No. 238 3 the cross sectional area of the section in square inches and w is the density of the materiel in pounds per oubic inch. The centrifugal force of 2 section is given by G(G.-F.) _ az : = (20a war = ar EAE and the total centrifugal force at any station will be R 2 fo ard (22 ar. a 5 a\ 60/7 In practice this integration is performed graphically. The cen- trifugel force S(0-F-) is calouleted for each section and plotted against the radius of the station, and a curve is dram through the points (Fig. 1). Thon the total contrifugal force - at cach station will be represented by the area under the curve from the tip radius of the propeller to the radius of the sta~ tion. The tensile stress in each section is obteincd by éivid— ing the total centrizugal force for tho station by tho area of the sootion, of 54 = 22. The above computations for ell of the stations of a prepel- ler ere conveniently arranged in Table I. The stations, blade widths “b, and the upper and lower cambers hy and h,, aro obtained from the propeller layout or design. The areas of tho various sections are then computed by means of the formula a 0.74 bh, where bh is the total maximum camber of tho section. This is an approximate formula which is correct wit)W.A.0.A. Technical Noto No..238 4 precticcl limits for the R.A.F. 6 (modificd) airfoil section used in propeller vork. The following is 8 calculation of the tensile stress duc to 0-F. for the 3-foot station of the propeller given in Table I. 5 Nu = 1750 ro o= 36in. = 5 ft. b = 7-65 in. bys +87 hy = 0 1 A = .W4db = «74 x 7.65 (.57 + 0) = 5.83 sq-in. 8. Ar = 3.43 x 36 = $116.4 ins 2 a A(G-F) ype (2UNY _ 2103 (2m_x 1750¥ & “a are (Bw) = ar x 3308 (20 1s . = 108 Ar = 108 x 116.4 = 12,580 Ib. per in. zedius. 4. Sy = SF = 29,390 (sianimetered) = 4140 1b-/sq. in. 3:23 In bending, the propeller acts as a cantilever beam. The load on the beam is taken ae the lift of the airfoil only, no other aerodynamic forces being considered. The load, then, is proportional to p 0, 4¥*, vrhere p is the density of the air in mass units (which may be taken 6s .00237), 0, is the abso-N.A+OsA+ Technical Note No. 238 5 lute lift cocffictent of the airfoil. A is the airfoil arca, and V 4s the velocity relative to the air. The blade is divided into 1-foot units. The lift per foot of redius is given by b= £018 Coa)” : Where b is the blade width in fect, and Vz is the velocity of the blade section with respect to the air in fect per sccond, or (Vp)? = (vt)? + amy - V! is the velocity of the plane in feet per second plus an érpirical inflow factor, or v'=V(1+458), where 8S is the slip. The lift per unit radius &, 4s calowleted for each sta~ tion and plotted against tae mdius of the station in the sane nanner es for centrifugal force. This gives a load curve for ‘he propeller as shown in Fig. 2. The shear et any point is given equstion Fy=/" Lar, which ig the area under the load r curve and is found grophically. The values of Fg at each sta~ by tion are thon plotted in like manner, giving @ shear curve (Fig. 3)- Tho bonding conont at any point is M=/" sar, which ts the area undor tho shear curve. Tho maximum tensile stress Sy at cach station is then calculated by metns of the relation Sy = Mt, whore I ie tho lovet momont of inertia of the section and yy is the dietance from the neutral axis to the outermost fiber on the working face. The neutral axis for the least mosent of iner- tia runs through the c.g. of the section and is assumed parallel to the dord of the airfoil. This ie not strictly true but loads to very slight errors. The positions of the c-g-'s of eingle and double cembered R-A.F.6 (modified) airfoils are shown in Fig. 6.Technical Tote Ko. 238 6 The least moaent of inertia I is given approximately by I= -0472 > b® for a single cambered section, and T= .0a72 » (ify + ,) + -112 by by (hy + by) for a double cembered section. . The calowlations of S éue to bending are shown for 211 of the stations of the propeller in the second part of Teble I. For the 3-foot station the caloulations in deteil are as fol- lows: a +416 h= -416 X .57 = .237 in. # " 10472 bb = .0472 X 7.65 x .57% = .067 in-* a. 5 3. 2 = -96% = .2e3 in? Ye -B8? = 550? = 302,500. vi = 152.5 (1+ $8) = 158-5 x 1,064 = 162.4 ft/sec. m = 26,370 + 302,500 = 328,900. 8. a. +510 (from design-data). a = PGK 2 (Up! _ 078 x 2510 x 1637 x 10. Lper ft : _ x 328,900 = 126-5 Ib. ll. Ste Me = 2550 {gon gxanb) = 8300 1b-/sq-in.W.A.QeA. Technical Node No. 253 7 The total stress for the section is the sum of the centrif- uugal stress and bending strees, or, Total S, = 84 (cent) +S, (vend) = 4180 + 8300 = 12,440 1o./ sq-in. When the fact that the blades distort to some extert in practice is added to the original complex nature of the stresses, it will readily be seen that no great degree of accurecy can be expected from this amiysis. It dces, however, give comparative figures. If @ propellus which is know to have sufficient strength for safe cpecatioa is amlyzed for stresses, and the calculated stresses of similar propoliezs do not exceed the maximum calculated value of stress for the proven propeller, ‘they may also be considered safe for trial fligots. Since the stresses in geometrically: simi ae propellers operating at the sano V/nD vary ina certain definite mamer, i.e, as the square of the tip speed, it is only necessary to keep below & prodetomincd tip speed to keep the stresses below a certain value. Whon the AR and OR axe varied, however, different values of the tip specd are required to produce the samo etrcss. An Equation for Detormining Relative Strength. It was known from exporience that @ 10-foot oak propeller of low pitch having en AR of 6 enda ORof 1, could be safely operated on FREE @GOPY RP.M. of 1750 at maximua borizontal as To Singerttidostresses are lowor for pro- he fils of. peters of higher pitohyiliastRebmanage® Tomtning constant, LaboratoryWeA.G.A, Technical Note No. 238 8 the above case was taken as a conservative standard by which to judge the strength of other propellers. The stress vee cal- culated for the case of the 10-foot propeller of AR= 6 and OR = 1 by means of the system given in this report. Assuming that the propeller turnod 1750 R.P.M. at the maximum horizontal speci of the airplane, the highest stress found was 3268 1b./ sq-in. To find a relation between OR, AR, and tip speed (which may be taken as a constant times ND) for a constant value of stress, calculations were made for several standard propellers having different values of AR and OR. The value of ND wes then found at which the stress of 3268 1b./sq-in. was obtained in each case. The resulte wore plotted as shown in Figs. 4 and 5. Oonsidering the curves as straight lines the following very simple equation oan be derived: OR = .0002 ND + .3 AR- 4.3. Thig is called the "Constant Stress Forma" for if the OR is of the correct value to just equal the right-hand side of the equation, the maximum stress will be constant for ell standard Navy oak propellers. If the CR is larger than nec- essary, the stresses will be lower; but if the CR is smaller than that indicated as necessary by the forma, the stresses will be higher than the safe standard. It sometimes happens that with a particular combinationW.A.0.A. Technical Note No- 238 9 of engine, airplane, and propeller; vibrations occur which may cause the propeller to fail even though calculations indicate that the strength is sufficient. This can usually be foretold in a wooden propeller by excessive flutter. Conclusions Owing to the fact that even the most complete and pains- taking propeller stress analyses are inaccurate because of dis- tortion and non-unifomity of material in wooden propellers, a simple relation such ae the one described in this note is con- sidered a satisfactory strength check for propellers of siniler form. Its simplicity and ease of application make it a usoful tool in the hands of a propeller designer.W.A.G-4+ Tochnical Note No. 238 10 Table b. Stress Caloulations for 10 ft. Duralumin Propeller. E.PeH. = 10 RPM. = 1750 S= .128 Centrifugel. a(G-F.) 2 yz = ar x 2103 X_17 50%. a az ard x( ar x 2208 x @ 30 108 Ar. Radius, in. se] so] 24] 168 12 Radius, ft. 3.0] 2.5] 2.0] 1.5} 1.0 b, inches 7.65| 8.02] 8.02 | 7.78 | 6.75 upper 7 35]. . [ we | 19 +19 aye 23 |. “5 87 63] -e ah ig Area, eqein. +587 |1.35] 2-23] 3.23] 4.04] 4.99 | 6.27 | 9.89 ‘Ar, in® 30-8 |64.8| 93.6]116.4]121.2 119.7 } 113-0 | 118.6 a (QE) 3305 | 7000/10110 |12580| 13100 |1280 | 12200 | 12800 2 OF. Ibe 840 | 3460| 7640 |13380}19650|26000 | 32300 | 38800 84-98 1p./aq-ine 1482 |2560| 3425| 4140] 4860] s2aio | 5150 | 3020Neds. Tectnical Note No. 238 oa Table t (Cont.) Stress Calculations for 10 ft. Duralumin Propeller. WePsH. = 104 2PM. = 1750 8S = .228 Beading Vi = 1.064 x 1.467 x V = 168.4 ft./sec. ve -096| .146| .187| .237| .263|) .350] .470| .960 ! 1 I 00198} .0106; .oze8} .0670| .1190] .225] .455 ) 2.101 Tye +020] .075| .154) .283} .420| .643| 9.68 | 2.19 | | ie | BNrt/ecc] eas! 733} 642/550) 458} 367 =| 183 i | eS 680600 | 537300 | 412200] 302500 | 209800 1154700 |75620 | 83490 (w2P 207000 | 563700 | 488600 |328908 [236200 |161100 |92020 | 59890 i , ft. +278} .436] .558) .637| .668} .668] .648 | «504 Oy abs. +450} .470] 490) -510] +870] -€30} -760) .840 i L, lb./tt. 104.7] 136.9] 142-2) 126-5|.106.5} 80.4] 53.7 | 35.4 Shear, Ib. | 31.0| 92.6] 161.6) 224.0] 281.4| 330.6/365.6 | 5@0.0 { uy in-Ib. 96| 4g0| 1270) 2350/ 3820! 6690| 7760 | 1c080 hy: Sy—yt ! a }4900] 6580! 7600] 8300} 9100, 9850] 8020 } 4800 Ib. /eq-in. i L - Total Stress Sz (cent.) asa] 2560) 3425] 4140] 4860] s21o| siso | 3920 S_ (bend.)| 4800] 6530) 7600] 9300) 9100] g88s0| soz0 | +600 8, (total) | 6282} 9140) 11025] 12440] 13960] 14060 }13170 | 8520N.A.0.4. Technical Note No.238 Fig.1 14000 : ~ Hum dus fto i read of eros! onal] (ered where blade fairs into Hub. 12000 [ 10000 | | 8000 Centrifugal force, 1b-per in.rad. 6000 4000 2000 ° t 2 3 4 5 . Radius in ft.W.A.0.A. Technical Note.No.238 Fig.2 140 120 ~ \ 100 80 t 60 Load in Ib.per ft.rad. 40 20) / : ° 1 2 3 4 5 Redius in ft, Fig.8 Load ourve;area = shear;1 sq.in.= 20 1b.N.A.€.A. Technical Note No.238 Fig.3 “TIN. 350 300 t 250 200 Shear in 1b. 150 100 50 eh 2 Radius in ft. Fig.3 Shear curve;area = OXI 600’ in.1b. 3 bending moment;1 sq.in.=N.A.C.Ay Tecinical Note No.238 Fige.4a5. 19000 4 -j a 18000 | —— — ww |. > 17000 —-— i. ——- = | i 8 3 1.0 1.2 1.2 1.3 14 OR = Camber ratio Fig.4 Variation of OR with ND for constant etre: 20000 18090 ND 16000 14000 5 AR = Aspect ratio Fig.5 Variation of AR with ND for constant stress. CR = 1W.A.0.A. Tedhnical Note No.238 Fig.6 oe 1.0 | = | et i Station, .95[.1 [oa T. rdinete 750]. 79f 28]. Navy stendard blede section. R.A.F.No.6 modified, flet face. ple wal = —.446b ——_—> Single camber. o-g-total section —¢.g.upper cies ) eh, : — Seng-tove: ip _- Double camker Area of upper section “ lower <81GhyX. T4b'ay~.416hy x. 74D, ~ Tabaye. TASB, +416(hy- by) Fig.6 c.g.and area of sections.