Research in this area investigates the near wake of Prandtl-D3 and D3C wing concepts to understand whether bell-shaped loading can fundamentally alter the familiar structure of trailing-vortex formation. Using force measurements, streamwise and cross-stream particle image velocimetry, and comparisons with aerodynamic simulations, the work studies how these wings shed momentum and vorticity near the tip and farther inboard. A consistent picture emerges in which the wake near the design condition is not organized around the conventional, concentrated wingtip vortex, but around a more distributed and inboard-shifted vorticity structure.
Infographic
Research infographic
NotebookLM-generated infographic and video assets for this research subcategory. Click any image to open the full-size file, or play videos directly on the page.
The Wing That Lost Its VortexValidating the Prandtl D3C Wake
Contributors
Students who contributed to this work
Students connected to the publications and projects represented on this page.
Cain, Charles B., Jessica C. DeMoor, and Sidaard Gunasekaran. "Cross-Stream PIV Characterization of the Prandtl-D3C Wake." In AIAA SCITECH 2026 Forum, p. 2328. 2026. https://doi.org/10.2514/6.2026-2328
Experimental Investigation of Prandtl-D3 Near Wake Signature
Pabon, Julian A., Grace Schreyer, Sidaard Gunasekaran, Michael Mongin, Aaron Altman, and Patrick Hammer. "Experimental Investigation of Prandtl-D3 Near Wake Signature." In AIAA SCITECH 2025 Forum, p. 2758. 2025. https://doi.org/10.2514/6.2025-2758
