Propeller performance measurement for low Reynolds number unmanned aerial vehicle applications

Thesis (M.S.)--Wichita State University, College of Engineering, Dept. of Aerospace Engineering."December 2005."The recent increase in the development of UAV’s and MAV’s has created a strong demand for small propeller performance data. Propeller performance is critical to the success of these aircraft and guaranteed performance demands accurate experimental data. These propellers operate at low Reynolds numbers (between 30,000 and 300,000), rendering performance scaling from larger counterparts inaccurate. An Integrated Propulsion Test System has been designed, developed and validated at Wichita State University to accurately and reliably measure performance of small propellers. Performance of a large number of propellers has been charted and a database of performance data has been created. This thesis discusses the salient features of this measurement system and data for a few of the, over 30 propellers, charted