Impact of trailing edge shape on the wake and propulsive performance of pitching panels

The effects of changing the trailing edge shape on the wake and propulsive performance of a pitching rigid panel are examined experimentally. The panel aspect ratio is AR=1, and the trailing edges are symmetric chevron shapes with convex and concave orientations of varying degree. Concave trailing edges delay the natural vortex bending and compression of the wake, and the mean streamwise velocity field contains a single jet. Conversely, convex trailing edges promote wake compression and produce a quadfurcated wake with four jets. As the trailing edge shape changes from the most concave to the most convex, the thrust and efficiency increase significantly.