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Vortex generator
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A vortex generator (VG) is an aerodynamic device, consisting of a small vane usually attached to a lifting
surface (or airfoil, such as an aircraft wing)[1] or a rotor blade of a wind turbine.[2] VGs may also be attached
to some part of an aerodynamic vehicle such as an aircraft fuselage or a car. When the airfoil or the body is
in motion relative to the air, the VG creates a vortex,[1][3] which, by removing some part of the slow-moving
boundary layer in contact with the airfoil surface, delays local flow separation and aerodynamic stalling,
thereby improving the effectiveness of wings and control surfaces, such as flaps, elevators, ailerons, and
rudders.[3]

Contents

Method of operation

Aftermarket installation

Increase in maximum takeoff weight

Maximum landing weight

Aircraft noise reduction

See also

References
Aftermarket Micro Dynamics vortex generators
External links mounted on the wing of a Cessna 182K

Method of operation

Vortex generators are most often used to delay flow separation. To

accomplish this they are often placed on the external surfaces of
vehicles[4] and wind turbine blades. On both aircraft and wind
turbine blades they are usually installed quite close to the leading
edge of the aerofoil in order to maintain steady airflow over the
control surfaces at the trailing edge.[3] VGs are typically rectangular Sketch describing how vortex
or triangular, about as tall as the local boundary layer, and run in generators improve flow characteristics
on a wind turbine
spanwise lines usually near the thickest part of the wing.[1] They can
be seen on the wings and vertical tails of many airliners.

Vortex generators are positioned obliquely so that they have an

angle of attack with respect to the local airflow[1] in order to create a
tip vortex which draws energetic, rapidly moving outside air into the
slow-moving boundary layer in contact with the surface. A turbulent
boundary layer is less likely to separate than a laminar one, and is
therefore desirable to ensure effectiveness of trailing-edge control
surfaces. Vortex generators are used to trigger this transition. Other
1967 Model Cessna 182K in flight
devices such as vortilons, leading-edge extensions, and leading- showing after-market vortex generators
edge cuffs,[5] also delay flow separation at high angles of attack by on the wing leading edge
re-energizing the boundary layer.[1][3]

Examples of aircraft which use VGs include the ST Aerospace A-4SU

Super Skyhawk and Symphony SA-160. For swept-wing transonic
designs, VGs alleviate potential shock-stall problems (e.g., Harrier,
Blackburn Buccaneer, Gloster Javelin).

Aftermarket installation
TA-4SU Super Skyhawk showing the row
of vortex generators on the drooped
Many aircraft carry vane vortex generators from time of
leading edge slats.
manufacture, but there are also aftermarket suppliers who sell VG
kits to improve the STOL performance of some light aircraft.[6]
Aftermarket suppliers claim (i) that VGs lower stall speed and reduce
take-off and landing speeds, and (ii) that VGs increase the
effectiveness of ailerons, elevators and rudders, thereby improving
controllability and safety at low speeds.[7] For home-built and
experimental kitplanes, VGs are cheap, cost-effective and can be
installed quickly; but for certified aircraft installations, certification
costs can be high, making the modification a relatively expensive
process.[6][8] The Symphony SA-160 was designed
with two unusual vortex generators on
Owners fit aftermarket VGs primarily to gain benefits at low speeds, its wing to ensure aileron effectiveness
through the stall
but a downside is that such VGs may reduce cruise speed slightly. In
tests performed on a Cessna 182 and a Piper PA-28-235 Cherokee, independent reviewers have
documented a loss of cruise speed of 1.5 to 2.0 kn (2.8 to 3.7 km/h). However, these losses are relatively
minor, since an aircraft wing at high speed has a small angle of attack, thereby reducing VG drag to a
minimum.[8][9][10]

Owners have reported that on the ground, it can be harder to clear snow and ice from wing surfaces with
VGs than from a smooth wing, but VGs are not generally prone to inflight icing as they reside within the
boundary layer of airflow. VGs may also have sharp edges which can tear the fabric of airframe covers and
may thus require special covers to be made.[8][9][10]

For twin-engined aircraft, manufacturers claim that VGs reduce single-engine control speed (Vmca),
increase zero fuel and gross weight, improve the effectiveness of ailerons and rudder, provide a smoother
ride in turbulence and make the aircraft a more stable instrument platform.[6]

Increase in maximum takeoff weight

Some VG kits available for light twin-engine airplanes may allow an increase in maximum takeoff weight.[6]
The maximum takeoff weight of a twin-engine airplane is determined by structural requirements and single-
engine climb performance requirements (which are lower for a lower stall speed). For many light twin-
engine airplanes, the single-engine climb performance requirements determine a lower maximum weight
rather than the structural requirements. Consequently, anything that can be done to improve the single-
engine-inoperative climb performance will bring about an increase in maximum takeoff weight.[8]

In the US from 1945[11] until 1991,[12] the one-engine-inoperative climb requirement for multi-engine
airplanes with a maximum takeoff weight of 6,000 lb (2,700 kg) or less was as follows:

All multi-engine airplanes having a stalling speed greater than 70 miles per hour shall
have a steady rate of climb of at least in feet per minute at an altitude of 5,000
feet with the critical engine inoperative and the remaining engines operating at not more than
maximum continuous power, the inoperative propeller in the minimum drag position,
landing gear retracted, wing flaps in the most favorable position …

where is the stalling speed in the landing configuration in miles per hour.

Installation of vortex generators can usually bring about a slight reduction in stalling speed of an airplane[4]
and therefore reduce the required one-engine-inoperative climb performance. The reduced requirement for
climb performance allows an increase in maximum takeoff weight, at least up to the maximum weight
allowed by structural requirements.[8] An increase in maximum weight allowed by structural requirements
can usually be achieved by specifying a maximum zero fuel weight or, if a maximum zero fuel weight is
already specified as one of the airplane's limitations, by specifying a new higher maximum zero fuel
weight.[8] For these reasons, vortex generator kits for many light twin-engine airplanes are accompanied by
a reduction in maximum zero fuel weight and an increase in maximum takeoff weight.[8]

The one-engine-inoperative rate-of-climb requirement does not apply to single-engine airplanes, so gains
in the maximum takeoff weight (based on stall speed or structural considerations) are less significant
compared to those for 1945–1991 twins.

After 1991, the airworthiness certification requirements in the USA specify the one-engine-inoperative climb
requirement as a gradient independent of stalling speed, so there is less opportunity for vortex generators
to increase the maximum takeoff weight of multi-engine airplanes whose certification basis is FAR 23 at
amendment 23-42 or later.[12]

Maximum landing weight

Because the landing weights of most light aircraft are determined by structural considerations and not by
stall speed, most VG kits increase only the takeoff weight and not the landing weight. Any increase in
landing weight would require either structural modifications or re-testing the aircraft at the higher landing
weight to demonstrate that the certification requirements are still met.[8] However, after a lengthy flight,
sufficient fuel may have been used, thereby bringing the aircraft back below the permitted maximum
landing weight.

Aircraft noise reduction

Vortex generators have been used on the wing underside of Airbus A320 family aircraft to reduce noise
generated by airflow over circular pressure equalisation vents for the fuel tanks. Lufthansa claims a noise
reduction of up to 2 dB can thus be achieved.[13]

See also

Turbulator

Boundary layer suction

Boundary layer control

Circulation control wing

References

1. ^ a b c d e Peppler, I.L.: From The Ground Up, page 7. ^ "Land Shorter! Benefits" . Landshorter.com.
23. Aviation Publishers Co. Limited, Ottawa Ontario, Retrieved October 9, 2012.
Twenty Seventh Revised Edition, 1996. ISBN 0-
8. ^ a b c d e f g h Busch, Mike (November 1997). "Vortex
9690054-9-0
Generators: Band-Aids or Magic?" . Retrieved
2. ^ Wind Turbine Vortex Generators , UpWind March 15, 2008.
Solutions.
9. ^ a b Psutka, Kevin, Micro-vortex generators, COPA
3. ^ a b c d Micro AeroDynamics (2003). "How Micro Flight, August 2003
VGs Work" . Retrieved March 15, 2008.
10. ^ a b Kirkby, Bob, Vortex Generators for the
4. ^ a b Clancy, L.J. Aerodynamics, Section 5.31 Cherokee 235, COPA Flight, July 2004

5. ^ A drooped leading edge presents a "vortex- 11. ^ USA Civil Air Regulations, Part 3, §3.85a
producing discontinuity", in "Spin Resistance
12. ^ a b USA Federal Aviation Regulations, Part 23,
Development for Small Airplanes", SAE paper 2000-
§23.67, amendment 23-42, February 4, 1991
01-1691
13. ^ More than 200 Lufthansa A320 aircraft to become
6. ^ a b c d Micro AeroDynamics (2003). "Micro Vortex
quieter. Archived 2014-05-04 at the Wayback
Generators for Single and Twin Engine Aircraft" .
Machine Retrieved 2014-05-04
Retrieved March 15, 2008.

Kermode, A.C. (1972), Mechanics of Flight, Chapter 11, page 350 - 8th edition, Pitman Publishing, London ISBN 0-
273-31623-0

Clancy, L.J. (1975), Aerodynamics, Pitman Publishing, London ISBN 0-273-01120-0

External links

Vortex Generators: 50 Years of Performance Benefits , a history Wikimedia Commons has

of VGs media related to Vortex
generators.

Last edited on 11 October 2023, at 15:51

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