
Explore how wings generate lift and drag through airflow, boundary layers, and angle of attack, including attachment and stall. Learn how propellers use rotating wings to produce thrust.
Explore actuator disk theory to compute propeller power and thrust using mass flow rate, upstream and downstream velocities, pressure differences, and stagnation pressure concepts.
Analyze the Jabiru propeller using blade element theory in a MATLAB model, calculating lift and drag coefficients with Xfoil, Reynolds number, and propeller performance at cruise conditions.
Extract propeller aerodynamic data from an Excel file in MATLAB using xlsread, reading lift and drag coefficients and angle of attack from two sheets.
Design and simulate propeller aerodynamics in MATLAB by applying blade element theory, looping over velocities and blade sections, and computing angle of attack, lift and drag coefficients via interpolation.
One of the only comprehensive, detailed and approachable online courses taking you through the physics behind wings and propellers to then teach you how to use Actuator Disk theory or Blade Element Theory in MATLAB to model, design and simulate the performance of propellers accurately in real life conditions.
Today, propellers and wings are central to ensuring the functioning of some of the most important and impressive machines created by mankind. From personal drones, to airplanes, how does "apparently" such simple engineering devices create forces literally out of thin air, and how can you harness the wonderful Physics behind them?
This course gives you the opportunity to learn and do the following:
- Understand Aerodynamics and Pressure.
- Understand the Physics behind Wings and Propellers.
- Understand Actuator Disk Theory from its fundamentals and use it to estimate Propellers' Power, Thrust and Efficiency.
- Understand Blade Element Theory from its fundamentals.
- Implement Blade Element Theory in MATLAB and use it to fully design and/or simulate propellers in real flight conditions.
I will thoroughly detail and walk you through each of these concepts and techniques and explain down to their fundamental principles, all concepts and subject-specific vocabulary. This course is the ideal beginner, intermediate or advanced learning platform for the mathematics and physics behind wings and propellers as well as the use of MATLAB in engineering design and simulation. Whatever your background, whether you are a student, an engineer, a sci-fi addict, an amateur roboticist, a drone builder, a computer scientist or a business or sports person, you will master the physics behind propellers and learn how to use the power of MATLAB to design and simulate your own propellers for any project you might have, whether pure curiosity or a full-sized aircraft!
If you have questions at any point of your progress along the course, do not hesitate to contact me, it will be my pleasure to answer you within 24 hours!
If this sounds like it might interest you, for your personal growth, career or academic endeavours, I strongly encourage you to join! You won't regret it!