The Panel Method for Wing Aeroelasticity

This chapter presents the panel methodPanel method used for the solution of incompressible potential flows around lifting bodies and examines its application in aeroelastic modelling. After a reminder of the fundamental aspects of potential flow theory, the boundary integral formulation approach for the solution of non-circulatory potential flows and the boundary element method (BEM)Boundary Element Method (BEM) for numerical application are presented. Subsequently, the concept of potential wakePotential wake is introduced and the boundary integral formulation and corresponding BEM solution are extended to deal with lifting wings in order to determine the aerodynamic matrixAerodynamic matrix and the aeroelastic operator accordingly, based on a fully three-dimensional aerodynamic solution.