Supersonic Natural-Laminar-Flow Wing-Design Concept

at High-Reynolds-Number Conditions

Yoshine Ueda
Tokyo Business Service Co. Ltd., Tokyo 160-0023, Japan
Kenji Yoshida
Japan Aerospace Exploration Agency, Tokyo 181-0015, Japan
Kisa Matsushima
University of Toyama, Toyama 930-8555, Japan
and
Hiroaki Ishikawa
Sankosoft Co. Ltd., Tokyo 169-0075, Japan

This paper describes an effective method to create a new ideal pressure distribution for designing a
three-dimensional natural-laminar-flow wing at high-Reynolds-number conditions to reduce friction drag of a
large-size supersonic transport with 300 passengers. This ideal pressure distribution consists of a useful functional
form with parameters that are adjusted to be widely applicable to general wing planforms. Furthermore, this
research proposes an improvement to the design flow of a conventional computational-fluid-dynamics-based
inverse design method developed previously by the Japan Aerospace Exploration Agency for a natural-laminar-
flow wing design. An idealized pressure distribution and its validity to achieve approximately 35% laminar flow
region of the wing surface on a cranked arrow type planform are presented at the condition of Mach 2.0 and high
Reynolds number of approximately 126 million based on mean aerodynamic chord. A representative cross-
sectional shape of the designed wing is introduced as an example, and it is shown that a distinguishing feature is
characterized by a smaller curvature near the attachment line. A further ideal pressure distribution for an Ogee-
type planform with swept angle varied continuously in spanwise direction is then created as a test case for more
complicated planforms.

Nomenclature
x; y,
X; Y = dimensional local chordwise and

An = coefficients of a new ideal Cp distribution spanwise coordinates of wing
for natural-laminar-flow wing design at = boundary-layer thickness
high-Reynolds-number conditions , = nondimensional chordwise and spanwise
CL = lift coefficient coordinates of wing
Cp = pressure coefficient
Cp;attachment = pressure coefficient at attachment line I. Introduction
Cp0 = pressure coefficient at leading edge
c
fn
=
=
dimensional local chord length
base functions of a new ideal Cp distribution
F RICTION drag reduction is one of the most challenging subjects
in the aerodynamic design of aircraft at supersonic speed as well
as subsonic speed. Usually, the pressure drag of a supersonic aircraft
for natural-laminar-flow wing design at is optimized with a slender body and a thin low-aspect-ratio wing,
high-Reynolds-number conditions especially from the viewpoint of wave drag reduction. However, for
M = flight Mach number the realization of a next-generation supersonic transport aircraft
MAC = mean aerodynamic chord (SST), it is well known that there are both economical and environ-
N = integrated amplification rate of instability wave mental issues that the first-generation SST such as the Concorde has
computed by boundary-layer stability equation experienced. The Japan Aerospace Exploration Agency (JAXA) has
ReMAC = Reynolds number based on mean researched and developed several key technologies to overcome
aerodynamic chord these issues since 1997 including some design concepts to reduce
airframe drag, sonic boom, acoustic noise at takeoff and landing, and
structural weight, which are directly linked to both of the previous
issues. In particular, to advance low drag design, it is necessary to
reduce the friction drag of supersonic aircraft, which is not usually
considered. For highly swept wings, however, it is difficult to
maintain the laminar boundary-layer state over the wide wing region
because of the generation of crossflow instabilities near the leading
edge.
In the late 1990s, a challenging concept to reduce friction drag at
supersonic speed was created in the United States [1]. The concept
*Researcher, Aircraft Systems Research Group, Institute of Aeronautical consisted of an accelerated chordwise pressure gradient over a wide
Technology; yueda@chofu.jaxa.jp. upper surface region of a slightly swept wing with a supersonic

Project Manager, D-SEND Project Team, Institute of Aeronautical
Technology; yoshida.kenji@jaxa.jp. leading edge to suppress the TollmienSchlichting instability (TSI).

Professor, Mechanical Engineering and Sciences; kisam@eng.u-toyama The concept also included a sharpened leading edge to reduce wave
.ac.jp. drag and was referred to as the natural-laminar-flow (NLF) wing-

Researcher, Aircraft Systems Research Group, Institute of Aeronautical design concept because of the passive boundary-layer control. The
Technology; hiroaki@chofu.jaxa.jp. effectiveness of this concept was verified in flight tests at supersonic

This document is provided by JAXA.

 UEDA ET AL.
deg
deg
deg
deg
Fig. 1 Experimental validation of JAXAs NLF wing-design concept [2,4,5].
speed using a scaled wing model mounted on an F-15 fighter. The
concept has already been patented and is to be adopted for the
SuperSonic Business Jet project planned by Aerion Corporation.
During the same period an alternative NLF wing-design concept
for a highly swept wing with a subsonic leading edge was
independently developed in Japan [2]. The subsonic leading edge
usually has a rounded shape to reduce lift-dependent drag by
applying a warped wing-design concept and to improve aerodynamic
performance by maintaining attached flow due to its drooped leading
edge at low speed. This concept consists of an ideal chordwise and
spanwise pressure distribution for NLF condition on the upper
surface of the highly swept wing. It was derived to suppress the
crossflow instability (CFI) at the front part of the wing and the TSI aft
portion, by using a recent transition prediction technique. In this
derivation, the three-dimensional laminar boundary layer was
first computed, and then the relationship between the stability
characteristics and pressure distributions were analyzed in detail
using a three-dimensional compressible stability equation. Finally, an
ideal pressure distribution was found for suppression of CFI. The
shape of an ideal pressure distribution is characterized by a rapid
acceleration region in less than 2% chord length near the leading edge
and almost flat (namely, no pressure gradient) or very gradual
acceleration in the remaining area. CFI near the leading edge is
suppressed in the former shape of the pressure distribution, while the
evolution of the TSI is suppressed in the latter shape.
Following these developments a computational-fluid-dynamics-
based inverse design method was used to design the main wing
realizing this ideal pressure coefficient Cp distribution [2]. First,
the flowfield around an initial configuration was analyzed by
computational fluid dynamics (CFD), and the difference between the
CFD-based Cp and the ideal Cp distributions on the wing were
calculated. To reduce the difference in results, the wing section shape
was modified by applying a relationship between the variation of Cp
distribution and the gradient of the wing section shape, which were
based on the supersonic lifting surface theory [3]. Such a modified
shape is usually made by adding the correction quantity to the
original shape and performing moderate smoothing of the modified
wing contour as a three-dimensional surface. Furthermore, the
flowfield around the modified shape was solved again by CFD; the
CFD-based Cp and the ideal target Cp distributions were then
Data available online at http://aerioncorp.com [retrieved 4 January 2013].
compared. The procedure was continued until the difference between
them reached a convergence tolerance.
The present NLF wing-design concept derived by JAXA was
validated in the flight test of a scaled supersonic experimental vehicle
called NEXST-1 in 2005 (see the right part in Fig. 1 [2,4]). This
configuration was designed by applying representative pressure-drag
reduction concepts as well as the friction-drag reduction concept of
the NLF wing design. Before the flight test, a wind-tunnel test was
carried out by JAXA using a 23.3% scaled model. The effectiveness
of the concept was then qualitatively confirmed by comparing wind-
tunnel test results with the transition measurements at an off-design
condition (see the left part in Fig. 1 [5]). A qualitative comparison is
made because the natural transition process is strongly affected by the
inherent freestream turbulence of a wind tunnel and the precise
transition location is difficult to determine.
The NEXST-1 concept was 11.5 m in total length, representing an
11% scale model of a large-size SST with 300 passengers and was
manufactured through structural design and manufacturing processes
similar to a full-scale aircraft development process. The surface was
polished to achieve a high-quality surface smoothness. The resulting
smoothness was equivalent to the same level as the wind-tunnel test
model; the average roughness height was less than approximately
1 m. In the flight test, it was observed that the transition was delayed
to approximately 40% chordwise location from the leading edge at a
design point (M  2, an altitude of 18 km, design lift coefficient
CL  0.1). This result showed that the supersonic NLF wing-design
concept, which was considerably different from the Aerion concept
in the United States mentioned previously, was well validated (see the
right part in Fig. 1 [4]). However, the effect of the NLF wing-design
concept was significantly reduced at approximately 2.4 times the
Reynolds number than the design point, namely M  2, an altitude of
12.7 km, CL  0.1. Although the mean roughness height was less
than approximately 1 m, its influence on transition was of concern
because the boundary layer becomes thin at a Reynolds number 2.4
times higher than the design point. However, because laminar flow
was detected by the transition measurement sensors located near the
leading edge, we concluded that the roughness had little influence
on transition. This result appears to show the basic influence of
Reynolds number effect on the instability of the boundary layer. As a
result, this concept was not effective at the high Reynolds numbers
for a full-scale aircraft, and the necessity of further improvement was
recognized [4].
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 UEDA ET AL.
This paper describes the subsequent research results on the
improvements cited previously. One of the principal results is to
propose an ideal Cp distribution, which is very effective for an NLF
wing design at high-Reynolds-number conditions. According to the
NLF wing-design concept developed in the NEXST-1 project, it is
necessary to develop a narrower and steeper acceleration region near
the leading edge to reduce the amplification rate of crossflow
instability (CFI) at a Reynolds number higher than the NEXST-1
design point. However, because it has a limitation related to finite
leading-edge radius, a new concept is proposed, which puts a slight
sharp deceleration just after that steep acceleration region. In
addition, a functional form expressing an ideal Cp distribution is
created [6] to make it easier to apply to a variety of different
planforms. Then, a systematic method to determine each coefficient
of the functional form is proposed [6] by considering the relationship
between each coefficient and transition characteristics.
The background and outline for deriving the present ideal Cp
distribution suitable for an NLF wing design at high Reynolds
number are described in Sec. II. Transition analysis results on its
effectiveness for a representative cranked arrow type planform are
also explained in Sec. II. An improved method for the current NLF
wing design is introduced in Sec. III. The cross-sectional shape of the
NLF wing designed at high Reynolds number for a large-size SST
with 300 passengers is then introduced and compared with a
conventional shape like the Concorde. Finally, as an example
of applying the current NLF wing-design concept to a more
representative planform with a swept angle changing continuously in
the spanwise direction, for example an Ogee planform of the
Concorde, an ideal Cp distribution is presented, which shows the
NLF wing effect at a high Reynolds number.
II. Ideal Pressure Distribution for Natural Laminar
Flow Wing at High Reynolds Number
A. Analysis for Ideal Cp Distribution
In general, because a pressure gradient in the spanwise direction
exists in the acceleration region from the attachment line near the
leading edge in three-dimensional swept wings, external streamlines
at the boundary-layer edge are curved toward the wing tip. Moreover,
the flow within the boundary layer is more strongly curved because
its speed is slower than that at the external streamline position.
As a result, the velocity component develops in the direction
perpendicular to the external streamline; this component is called
crossflow. Because the component becomes zero at a wall and
external streamlines, there is an inflection point in its velocity profile.
It is well known that this condition induces inviscid instability and is
unavoidable in swept wings. Hence, it is of primary importance to
make the crossflow small near the leading edge.
The simplest approach is to avoid pressure gradients along the
spanwise direction. However, it is generally difficult to realize such a
condition because three-dimensional swept wings have upwash due
to trailing vortices near wing tips, and as a result, Cp values increase
toward the tip region. Although the crossflow cannot be eliminated,
another approach to control the crossflow, namely to suppress the
growth of the disturbance due to crossflow instability (CFI), is required.
One possible solution is that the acceleration region near the
leading edge, which strongly contributes to the growth of the
disturbance due to CFI, is made as short as possible in the chordwise
direction. According to this concept, JAXA has already created an
ideal chordwise pressure distribution for the design of the NEXST-1
vehicle [2]. This pressure distribution consists of a narrow
acceleration region near the leading edge and an almost flat or slightly
gradual acceleration region toward the trailing edge. The former is
effective to suppress the CFI, and the latter is derived to suppress
the TollmienSchlichting instability (TSI). The main wing of a
conventional supersonic aircraft usually has a subsonic leading
edge from the viewpoint of wave drag reduction; that is, the leading
edge of the main wing is placed inside the Mach cone. On the other
hand, the trailing edge is often placed outside the Mach cone, namely
the supersonic trailing edge, because of the structural design
considerations. The latter shape of the ideal Cp distribution is based
on such supersonic trailing edge, which experiences no pressure
recovery at the trailing edge.
Thus, it is expected that such an ideal chordwise pressure
distribution becomes the so-called step function shape. However, the
pressure distribution cannot be a step function because the leading-
edge radius is finite in nature. It is necessary to make the Cp
distribution a narrow acceleration region (i.e., linearly accelerated
velocity region to a specific chordwise length). During the flight test,
it was confirmed that such a steep acceleration can be achieved by
comparing with measured Cp data at the design point.
As mentioned previously, analysis of NEXST-1 flight test data
made it clear that the transition due to CFI could not be suppressed at
Reynolds number higher than the design point. The primary cause of
such a situation was attributed to the magnitude of the crossflow
velocity component, which did not change significantly when the
Reynolds number increased. However, the instability (amplification
rate) of the boundary layer was shown to increase as a solution of the
stability equation [7,8]. Therefore, to understand the Reynolds
number effect on transition phenomenon, it is necessary to analyze
the stability characteristics of three-dimensional laminar boundary
layers in detail.
Current authors aim for the establishment of the NLF wing-design
method to contribute to the friction-drag reduction of the supersonic
aircraft; the transition prediction is placed in the core of this method.
In general, it is difficult to predict a transition point theoretically and
quantitatively because the transition is generated by a complicated
physical mechanism based on the instability wave in the laminar
boundary layer growing linearly (amplification) and then non-
linearly. However, the current eN method, which is based on a linear
stability theory [8] with the locally parallel approximation of the
boundary layer, is considered to be a very useful engineering
approach. It can estimate the behavior of the transition point by
introducing the threshold value (N factor) of transition criteria based
on several comparisons between the experimental data and computed
N factors. Because this method treats three-dimensional boundary
layers, it is possible to consider TSI and CFI at the same time.
Consequently, it is the current authors opinion that this method
is advantageous because it describes the fundamental transition
phenomenon of the three-dimensional boundary layers [7]. In
particular, the validity of the eN method, which is used at this time, is
confirmed by comparison and analysis with the measurement data of
the NEXST-1 flight test [810]. As a result, the current authors
believe that the eN method was effective for understanding the
fundamental correlation of the pressure distribution and transition
point of the three-dimensional wing.
The eN method integrates a disturbance amplification factor based
on the linear stability theory of the three-dimensional compressible
laminar boundary layer in the external streamline direction and
estimates the N factor. In the case of three-dimensional disturbances,
however, models or assumptions [8,10] are required because there are
unknowns in the stability theory. Two models referred to as envelope
strategy [7] and fixed- strategy [7] were used in the present study.
The envelope strategy assumes that only the propagation direction
giving the maximum amplification rate for each frequency at each
chordwise location is chosen, and the transition location is estimated
using the envelope curve of the N factors, which are obtained by
integrating each amplification rate in the chordwise direction.
According to the test results in the low-turbulence supersonic wind
tunnel by NASA, N  14 was proposed as one of the transition
judgment criteria in the flight test condition [11]. Moreover, from the
analysis of the NEXST-1 flight test result, N  12.5 was found to
correspond closely to the measured transition location (Fig. 1 [2,4]).
The advantage of the fixed- strategy is that two different states of
the chordwise growth of the amplification rates by CFI and TSI can be
separated. However, the increase of the time for analysis cannot be
avoided. Therefore, it is recognized that the fixed- strategy is an
effective model for clarifying the transition nature than prediction of
transition location.
Figures 2a and 2b show the N factors computed with both envelope
and fixed- strategy at 30% semispanwise station (ys  0.3) and
three representative flight test conditions [9,10]; only the traveling
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 UEDA ET AL.

16 16 16
14 14 14

12 12 12

10 10 10

8 8 8

6 6 6

4 4 4

2 2 2

0 0 0
0 0.1 0.2 0.3 0.4 0.5 0 0.1 0.2 0.3 0.4 0 0.1 0.2 0.3

a) Envelope strategy at y/s = 0.3

12

10

0
0 0.1 0.2 0.3

b) Fixed- strategy at y/s = 0.3

Fig. 2 Stability analysis on NEXST-1 Cp distribution based on the computed traveling crossflow modes for three typical flight test conditions [9,10].

crossflow modes were computed in these cases. In general, the N a threshold at a certain Reynolds number, the transition rapidly shifts
factor computed by the fixed- strategy becomes smaller than that of to a CFI-type condition. Therefore, it seems that the transition
the envelope strategy. In the case of the envelope strategy, the higher location moves sharply up to the region near the leading edge (pattern
N factor is attributed to the maximum amplification factors, which II). The transition location then moves by a small amount nearer to the
are chosen at each location and subsequent integration of those aft of the leading edge (pattern III). The design point ( No:4) in the
factors. In contrast, the fixed- strategy can split TSI and CFI by NEXST-1 was shown to be lower than the Reynolds number
computing only frequencies and wave numbers of disturbances that producing pattern II, although the higher Reynolds number condition
contribute the most to CFI and TSI. These conditions are the design (Re No:5) was larger. Therefore, the essence of NLF wing design at
point (indicated with No:4), an off-design point ( No:2), and high-Reynolds-number conditions is to develop a Reynolds number
a higher-Reynolds-number condition (Re No:5), which is that produces an optimum pattern II [9,10]. As mentioned next, the
approximately 2.4 times the design point. In the comparison of current authors investigated and developed a new Cp distribution for
these N factors computed with the envelope strategy as shown in such an NLF wing design.
Fig. 2a, it was found that the N factor clearly decreased at the design
point ( No:4) compared to the off-design point. Then, from the B. Derivation and Characteristics of New Ideal Cp Distribution
comparison of measured transition location data (indicated with
XT exp) and the N factors computed with the fixed- strategy, it First, one of the most effective ways to suppress CFI growth is to
was considered that the nature of transition measured at the off- narrow the acceleration region near the leading edge as much as
design point ( No:2) and the higher Reynolds number condition
(Re No:5) were CFI as compared with TSI at the design point. It
means that the ideal pressure distribution for the NEXST-1 design
was not always effective. To improve such a situation, the crossflow
region should be shortened because the instability due to CFI
becomes much stronger as Reynolds number increases. However,
from the viewpoint of designing a real wing with finite leading-edge
radius, it is understood that an extremely shortened acceleration
region is not possible.
From the analysis of transition characteristics of the NEXST-1
flight test data, it is thought that Reynolds number behavior on the
transition location of a swept wing with NLF condition, which is
dominated by TSI or CFI, can be schematically summarized as shown
in Fig. 3 [9,10]. When Reynolds number is low, the amplification of
the N factor due to CFI near the leading edge is fully suppressed, and
the N factor is dominated by TSI. Consequently, the transition
location slowly moves forward at the aft part of the wing, as
illustrated in the right figure (pattern I). However, the N factor due to Fig. 3 Reynolds number influence on transition movement for a highly
CFI grows as Reynolds number increases. When the N factor exceeds swept NLF wing [10].

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 UEDA ET AL.

a) Chordwise pressure distributions

b) Crossflow velocity profiles at y/s=0.3

Fig. 4 Boundary-layer computations on the NEXST-1 flight test conditions [9,10].

possible. Second, the knowledge obtained in a comparison of words, the acceleration region near the leading edge must have as
transition characteristics of the NEXST-1 flight test results at the short a distance as possible, and then a steep deceleration region
angle of attack on the design point and the off-design point is effective with a relatively longer distance should be made after the steep accel-
for developing a further approach. Figures 4a and 4b are comparisons eration region. After that, a much longer and gradual acceleration
of chordwise Cp distributions and crossflow profiles at ys  0.3 at region is necessary until the trailing edge of the wing. Furthermore, a
two conditions, namely the design point ( No:4) and the off-design useful functional form described in the following equation was
point ( No:2) of the NEXST-1 flight test [9,10]. From the viewpoint examined, which was able to express the aforementioned tendency
of computing the laminar boundary layer on a three-dimensional based on a Cp distribution shape for various kinds of planforms
curved surface and external streamlines near the leading edge (Fig. 5 [6]). The final ideal Cp distribution is outlined next; Fig. 6 [6]
precisely, a laminar boundary-layer method was adopted based on the illustrates its outline schematically:
general curvilinear coordinate system described in [12]. From the
figure, it is observed that the crossflow faces the same direction from
X
4
x X XLE
Y
the leading edge at approximately 40% chordwise location at the off- Cp
;   An
fn
;  where  ;
design point because of the large acceleration region at the front part n0
c
y c
Y
of the wing shown in Fig. 4a. In contrast, the direction of the
y Y
crossflow at the design point reverses immediately near the leading 
edge. From the stability results shown in Fig. 2b, it is found that, even s s
if the crossflow velocity (absolute value) is large near the leading
edge, its absolute value consequently decreases by reversing its where
direction. In this case, the amplification of the N factor due to CFI
can be suppressed at the design point. Therefore, to suppress the f0
;  1
amplification of the disturbance due to CFI, it is suggested that the
crossflow velocity component must be decreased immediately as the f1
;  expB1
 1
flow goes downstream. To achieve this more effectively, it is
f2
;  expB2
 1
advantageous to change the direction of the crossflow velocity
component to the opposite side rapidly. f3
;  expB3
P1  1
As a consequence, it was concluded that CFI could be reduced by
changing the direction of the crossflow near the leading edge. In other f4
;  P2 (1)

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 UEDA ET AL.
Fig. 5 Examples of configurations applicable to present ideal Cp distribution concept [6].
The definition of each coefficient in Eq. (1) are as follows. A0 is a
Cp level at the leading edge; A1 is a suction peak level near the leading
edge; A2 is to lower a Cp level by deceleration just after the steep
acceleration near the leading edge; A3 is a Cp level at a representative
chordwise location (e.g., xc  0.05) of the neighborhood of the
leading edge; A4 is a gradient of Cp from that chordwise location to
the trailing edge; B1 is a steep acceleration gradient at the leading
edge; B2 is a deceleration gradient (an adverse pressure gradient) after
the steep acceleration; B3 is a reacceleration gradient after the
deceleration by B2 ; and P1 is a parameter to adjust a starting point of
the reacceleration by B3. As the value of P1 becomes small, the
reacceleration point moves toward the leading edge. In contrast, as
the value of P1 becomes large, the reacceleration point moves toward
the trailing edge. P2 is a parameter to determine a gradient of Cp after
reaccelerated by B3. Cp becomes linear with small P2 and curvilinear
with large P2 . Subsequently, it is necessary for these coefficients to be
varied in the spanwise direction. A useful approach to establish these
values is described next.
Transition analysis is necessary after setting the previous
coefficients as parameters. Cp distribution parameters are then
chosen in order that the transition location is the most delayed at
each spanwise station. At this stage, it is necessary to analyze the
three-dimensional laminar boundary layer with high precision. In
particular, three-dimensional wing shape near the leading edge is
important and sensitive for transition characteristics. Because a wing
configuration is undetermined at the first stage of a CFD-based
inverse design process, it is often useful to use an initial configuration
in the design process as mentioned later. At the end of the process,
Fig. 6 Functional expression of new ideal Cp distribution for NLF wing
design at high-Reynolds-number condition [6].
however, transition analysis must be executed again with the final
designed configuration, and it is necessary to confirm the transition
location desired before the design process. A basic approach for the
spanwise variation of each coefficient is summarized next.
1. A0
Because this is a Cp value at the leading edge (not attachment line)
from the definition in Eq. (1), it is the most effective to use the Cp
value computed with a CFD solver on an initial configuration.
However, the current authors also confirmed that a combination of the
following isentropic relation and an empirical factor is approximately
effective because it was understood that the value of A0
 Cp0  does
not influence transition characteristics greatly:
1
Cp;attachment  f1  0.2M2
1 sin2 LE g3.5 1
0.7M2
Cp0 Cp at xc0  0.86 Cp;attachment :assumption (2)
Here, LE is the swept-back angle of the leading edge, and the first
equation is an isentropic relation on the attachment-line Cp value
(indicated by Cp;attachment ). A factor of 0.86 of the second equation is a
so-called empirical factor that the current authors obtained from
experience.
2. A1
In a three-dimensional swept wing, the absolute value of Cp level
averaged over the midchordwise region generally increases (namely,
decreases as pressure) toward the wing tip monotonically. It is also
necessary to maintain such spanwise tendency of the Cp level even at
the NLF wing design from the viewpoint of maintaining its spanwise
loading. Therefore, an averaged chordwise Cp level value (A1 ) is
proposed by the following equation:
Z
1 0.8
A1
  Cp;average
 Cp;upper
;  d (3)
0.6 0.2
3. A3
As mentioned previously, A3 is a Cp level at a representative
chordwise location near the leading edge. A value of 5% at the
chordwise location is usually chosen; it is then effective to use the Cp
value computed with CFD on the initial configuration.
4. A2 , A4 , B1 , B2 , and B3
These coefficients should be treated as free parameters because
they are characterized as an ideal Cp distribution. In other words,
these parameters must be determined by each transition analysis at
each spanwise station.
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 UEDA ET AL.

Table 1 Coefficients of the functional expression on the NEXST-1 NLF wing design
ys A0 A1 A2 A3 A4 B1 B2 B3 P1 P2
0.2 0.181 0.22 0.021 0 0.011 500 100 0 1 1
0.3 0.164 0.22 0.015 0 0.007 500 50 0 1 1
0.4 0.1488 0.22 0.0075 0 0.011 400 80 0 1 1
0.5 0.196 0.26 0.032 0 0.01 700 110 0 1 1
0.6 0.2596 0.26 0.1 0 0.012 900 210 0 1 1
0.7 0.2794 0.301 0.085 0 0.011 1300 200 0 1 1
0.8 0.2873 0.35 0.05 0 0.0085 900 140 0 1 1
0.9 0.283 0.35 0.05 0 0.009 900 140 0 1 1

5. P1 and P2
As for these coefficients, the current authors found from
experience that it was useful to adopt P1  2.0, P2  1.0 as initial
default values. Of course, in a process of constituting various Cp
distributions based on the parameters of A2 , A4 , B1 , B2 , B3 through
the transition analysis referred to previously, the default values might
be modified.
6. Further Issues in Determining Each Coefficient
In determining each coefficient according to the basic approach
referred to previously, the smoothness of both chordwise and
spanwise ideal Cp distribution (namely Cp contour) is very important
because irregularities of the Cp contour have the possibility of
producing irregularities of the wing surface designed with a CFD-
based inverse method. Therefore, it is important to select
combination of each coefficient, which was able to delay the transition
location estimated using an eN method with envelope strategy, was
then examined. Next, for several spanwise stations slightly away from
the representative stations on both sides, a separate transition analysis
based on those coefficients at each station was performed. The most
desirable combination of coefficients was then determined by making
fine adjustments to the transition location delay.
After repeating this step, the authors finally found a new ideal Cp
distribution with an effective functional expression that could express
the transition performance accurately. The values of each coefficient
are summarized in Table 2, and the new ideal Cp distribution is
illustrated in Fig. 8 [6]. The values of A0 , A3 , and A4 are constants in
the inner and outer wing regions, but A1 only shows a tendency to
vary in the curvilinear spanwise direction. This can be expressed
approximately using the following equation:

2.04 1.83  0.4952  0.0695  0.2085; 0 < 0.5
A1
  (4)
0.91164 2.40143  2.25382 0.8274  0.4427; 0.5 < 1.0

representative spanwise stations for transition analysis coarsely at
first. For example, the NEXST-1 NLF wing is a cranked arrow-type
planform where the swept angle of the leading edge changes
discontinuously at ys  0.5 (having a kink in the leading edge). In
that case, the Cp distribution according to the aforementioned
approach has changed discontinuously at the kink station, because
the Cp;attachment changes discontinuously at the station. Therefore,
ys  0.3 and 0.7 were initially chosen as two representative
spanwise stations of inner and outer wing regions before a more
suitable combination of each coefficient were investigated. The
appropriate spanwise stations in the right and left sides of the two
representative stations were then added to investigate the spanwise
tendency of each coefficient in each area. Finally, the spanwise
distribution of each coefficient was interpolated with the least square
approximation technique. A validated example for the NEXST-1
wing is described later.
The results of boundary-layer and transition analysis on the new
ideal Cp distribution are presented in Figs. 9 and 10. Ideally,
the boundary-layer and transition characteristics for the latest
configuration designed with a CFD-based inverse method should be
analyzed to evaluate the true transition characteristics on the new
ideal Cp distribution. As a first step in setting the target Cp
distribution for the NLF wing design, the authors decided to use the
NEXST-1 wing configuration as an approximation. This approach
was chosen because the main purpose of this study was to evaluate the
effectiveness of the ideal Cp distribution expressed with the present
functional form.

C. Examination of the Validity of the New Ideal Cp Distribution

As a first step, the authors examined the reproducibility of the
target Cp distribution for the NEXST-1 NLF wing design in its
current functional form. According to the previous method for
determining each coefficient, the most suitable combination of
each coefficient was determined and summarized in Table 1. The
functional form using these coefficients was shown to reproduce the
target pressure distribution accurately, as shown in Fig. 7, particularly
at the steep acceleration near the leading.
An attempt was then made to create an ideal Cp distribution for the
NEXST-1 wing planform (see the planform shown in Fig. 5) at high
Reynolds number (ReMAC 126 million where MAC 25 m)
corresponding to a large-size SST assumed. According to the basic
method to determine each coefficient, ys  0.3 and 0.7 were first Fig. 7 Comparison of the current functional expression and the target
chosen as two representative spanwise stations. An effective Cp distribution of the NEXST-1 NLF wing.

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 UEDA ET AL.

Table 2 Optimum combination of coefficients for new ideal Cp distribution

ys A0 A1 A2 A3 A4 B1 B2 B3 P1 P2
0.15 0.167394 0.225 0.015 0.02 0.005 90000 1500 20 2 1
0.20 0.167394 0.231 0.015 0.02 0.005 90000 1500 20 2 1
0.30 0.167394 0.2415 0.015 0.02 0.005 90000 1500 20 2 1
0.40 0.167394 0.2515 0.015 0.02 0.005 90000 1500 20 2 1
0.50 0.167394 0.267 0.015 0.02 0.005 90000 1500 20 2 1
0.51 0.250316 0.35 0.015 0.01 0 90000 500 10 2 1
0.60 0.250316 0.366 0.015 0.01 0 90000 500 5 2 1
0.70 0.250316 0.3686 0.015 0.01 0 90000 500 5 2 1
0.80 0.250316 0.376 0.015 0.01 0 90000 500 5 2 1
0.90 0.250316 0.3777 0.015 0.01 0 90000 500 10 2 1

Figure 9 shows the crossflow velocity profiles computed at
ys  0.3. The new ideal Cp distribution shows that the crossflow
velocity changes near the leading edge immediately in the positive
side (outer wing direction) from the negative side (inner wing
direction). Further, the absolute value of crossflow velocity is
constrained to small values up to xc0.3, with a slightly larger
crossflow velocity afterward. This result is attributed to the fact that
the gradual acceleration gradient to the trailing edge following the
immediate deceleration region near the leading edge is stronger than
the target Cp distribution for the NEXST-1 NLF wing design.
Figures 10a and 10b show the N factors at ys  0.3 computed
with envelope and fixed- strategies, respectively; only the traveling
crossflow modes were computed in these cases. NASA [11] first
proposed an N factor of N  14 computed with the envelope
strategy, corresponding to a transition in flight environment; an
approximate N factor of N  12.5 was found in comparison with the
NEXST-1 transition measurement data [2,4]. In the case of both
N  14 and 12.5, it is assumed that the predicted transition is
dominated by CFI based on the fixed- strategy result. The authors
expected the transition might develop into TSI at high Reynolds
number (ReMAC 126 million at MAC 25 m) by using the
new ideal Cp distribution as illustrated in Fig. 3, although this
Cp distribution made CFI dominant. A large transition delay
(approximately 33% chordwise location based on N  14) was
estimated in comparison with the authors previous result
(approximately 2% location), described in [13].
As expected, the transition behavior due to CFI is strongly
dependent on the transition criterion of N  14. It is not clear,
however, whether N  14 is valid in such a high-Reynolds-number
condition. The threshold of transition N factor may be lower than 14
because the transition is easily induced by the much stronger
influence of the surface roughness condition at a high-Reynolds-
number condition than at a low-Reynolds-number condition.
Alternatively, it is possible that the viscous instability (i.e., TSI) is
suppressed at a higher-Reynolds-number condition. If the influence
of surface roughness condition is suppressed sufficiently in this
situation, then the transition may be delayed. This means that the
transition N values may be larger than 14. For example, if the N value
is assumed to be 16, then CFI is suppressed, and TSI becomes
dominant as seen in Fig. 10b. The new ideal Cp distribution is shown
to be highly effective at suppressing CFI (Fig. 10).
The transition location predicted across the entire upper surface,
based on the new ideal Cp distribution, is summarized in Fig. 11 [6].
The transition criterion is used for both N  14 and 12.5. In the case
of N  14, the transition is predicted to be located at approximately
35% chordwise location at ys  0.3 and 70% chordwise location at
ys  0.7. As for the laminar flow rate, approximately 45% of the
upper surface area is estimated to be laminar flow. Consequently, it is
shown that the present functional form, combined with the most
suitable coefficients described in Table 2, make a significant
improvement at high Reynolds number, corresponding to a full-scale
SST, in comparison with previous conventional NLF wing-design
concepts (e.g., NEXST-1).
III. Natural Laminar Flow Wing-Design Procedure
A. Refinement of CFD-Based Inverse Design Procedure
A CFD-based inverse design method is also used for the design of
an NLF wing at high-Reynolds-number conditions, due to its
similarity to the NEXST-1 airplane. Initially, the new ideal Cp
distribution shape, which consists of the functional form defined in
Eq. (1), is applied to the upper surface of the wing; this is necessary to
specify the target Cp distribution for the NLF wing design. A Cp
distribution is then adopted for the lower surface, similar to the
NEXST-1 design. This is derived by considering an optimum load
distribution (namely, Cp  Cp;lower Cp;upper ) based on a warped
wing design to reduce lift-dependent drag. Because the target Cp
distribution for the NLF wing design at high-Reynolds-number
conditions always has a very steep acceleration near the leading edge
followed by a steep deceleration as previously shown, it seems to be
difficult to design the NLF wing with a finite leading-edge radius to
realize a new target Cp distribution completely using a conventional

Fig. 8 New ideal Cp distribution for the NLF wing design at high-Reynolds-number condition [6].

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 UEDA ET AL.

Crossflow velocity profiles on target Cp @y/s =0.3

1.0
0.9 x/c=0.001
x/c=0.01
0.8
x/c=0.05
0.7 x/c=0.1
x/c=0.15
0.6 x/c=0.2
x/c=0.25
y/

0.5
x/c=0.3
0.4 x/c=0.4

0.3

0.2

0.1
0.0
0.01 0.005 0 0.005 0.01
V/Ue Fig. 11 Transition analysis on the new ideal Cp distribution at high-
Fig. 9 Crossflow velocity profiles computed on the new ideal Cp Reynolds-number condition [6].
distribution at high-Reynolds-number condition.

advancing the design cycle up to several steps from an initial

configuration. The design cycle should then be continued until the
desired transition characteristics are obtained.
In this design process, each configuration at each design cycle is
used for the computation of the boundary layer. Therefore, it is the
authors belief that such an improvement to the inverse design
procedure can supplement the validity for adopting the ideal Cp
distribution based on the present functional form as a target Cp
distribution for the NLF wing design. Furthermore, a parameter
adjustment routine to create the ideal Cp distribution is incorporated
in the uppermost stream of the overall design flow of the inverse
design procedure. The proposed design flow is summarized in the
upper portion of Fig. 12 [6].

B. Example of the Proposed CFD-Based Inverse Design Procedure

Fig. 10 Transition analysis on the new ideal Cp distribution at high-
Reynolds-number condition based on the computed traveling crossflow
modes.
CFD-based inverse design method. Therefore, at such a high-
Reynolds-number condition, the present target Cp distribution
should not be recognized as the goal to be converged at the iterative
process of the inverse design technique. It is more realistic to consider
it as a guideline for advancing the iterative process. This means that a
transition analysis should be carried out at every iterative step after
At present, JAXA has not yet designed a complete three-
dimensional NLF wing using the new CFD-based inverse design
procedure and the new ideal Cp distribution described previously.
The procedure based on a linear theory (i.e., lifting surface theory)
and used in the NEXST-1 NLF wing design is not sufficiently
accurate when modifying the curvature near the leading edge because
of the steep acceleration and immediate steep deceleration regions.
An improvement to this situation is currently under investigation by
JAXA. However, JAXA has derived airfoil shapes at several
spanwise stations for the previous target Cp distribution, which is
almost flat toward the trailing edge after a slight sharp deceleration
region near the leading edge, at high Reynolds number. This target Cp
distribution was created with the functional form of Eq. (1). The
combination of each coefficient is summarized in Table 3, and the
previous target Cp distribution at ys  0.3 is shown in Fig. 13.
JAXA has already determined that the transition analysis results on
this Cp distribution predict an approximate laminar flow value of
30% on the upper surface area using a transition criterion of N  14
at the same high-Reynolds-number condition (ReMAC 126 million
at MAC 25 m) and based on the condition in Fig. 11 (which
approximately showed the 35% laminar flow region mentioned
previously). The most delayed transition position was then predicted
at the spanwise station of ys  0.4, and its chordwise location was
estimated to be approximately 40% of chord length.
A representative airfoil cross-sectional shape at ys  0.4 for the
designed NLF wing is denoted in Fig. 14a with a thick solid line;
NEXST-1 and Concorde-like configurations are included in this
figure for comparison. The NEXST-1 airfoil shape, which was
designed at approximately 1/10th of the present Reynolds number,
achieved laminar flow in approximately 40% of the flow region
during the flight test [4]. The Concorde-like configuration presented
in Fig. 14a was originally designed by JAXA based on a well-known
technical document [14] and public information (see Fig. 5).
Although no NLF wing-design concept was applied on the latter
airfoil shape, a warped wing concept with both conical camber and
chordwise thickness distribution (NACA 64A003) was applied. The

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 UEDA ET AL.

Fig. 13 Previous target Cp distribution for the NLF wing design at high-
Reynolds-number condition.

0.03

0.02

0.01
z/c

0.00

-0.01
Fig. 12 New CFD-based inverse design method for the NLF wing design
at high-Reynolds-number conditions [6].
-0.02
0.0 0.1 0.2 0.3 0.4 0.5 0.6 0.7 0.8 0.9
x/c
curvature distributions near the leading edge are highlighted in a) Typical airfoil of the designed NLF wing
Fig. 14b for each airfoil.
The airfoil of the Concorde-like configuration is shown to have a
very large curvature at the attachment line (sc  0.0), but this
curvature decreases sharply in both upstream and downstream 3000
directions. In the case of the NEXST-1 NLF airfoil, the curvature at
the attachment line is slightly lower; the steep decrease of the 3500
curvature in the upstream and downstream directions is almost equal
to that of the Concorde-like configuration. The airfoil of the three-
Curvature (1/r)

2000
dimensional NLF wing designed at high Reynolds number is shown
to have a much lower curvature at the attachment line than that of the 1500
NEXST-1; in this case, the curvature decreases to less than one-third
of the Concorde-like configuration. This value is maintained along 1000
the chordwise length for more than approximately 0.1% chord length
in the upstream and downstream directions from the attachment line. 500
It then decreases sharply aftward to less than 1/10th of the value at the
attachment line. The sudden decrease from the constant curvature 0
-0.004 -0.003 -0.002 -0.001 0.0 0.001 0.002 0.003 0.004 0.005 0.006
region of approximately 0.1% chord length produces a sharp
acceleration near the leading edge characterized by the Cp
distribution derived at high Reynolds number. It is well-known that b) Curvature distributions near the leading edge of the designed
Cp distributions have a strong correlation with the second derivative NLF wing
of the configuration and that such curvature distributions influence Fig. 14 NLF wing results designed with the inverse design method at
the character of the NLF wing design. high-Reynolds-number condition.
In the case of a leading edge with a small curvature (i.e., large
radius), the risk of attachment line contamination is a concern; this
risk was investigated by using Polls criterion [15]. In general, although the velocity distribution near the attachment line on the
cross-sectional plane normal to the leading edge is necessary to
estimate so-called Polls index R , it is not easy to predict the velocity
Table 3 Previous target Cp distribution for the NLF wing design distribution accurately. The current approach uses a cylindrical
approximation according to the method described in [16]. The result
ys A0 A1 A2 A3 A4 B1 B2 B3 P1 P2
shown in Fig. 14 was found at Mach 2.0 and a flight altitude of 18 km.
0.3 0.164 0.247 0.016 0 0.001 2000 25 0 1 1 Because the NEXST-1 wing had a swept angle of 66 deg and a
0.5 0.196 0.305 0.016 0 0.001 2000 24 0 1 1
0.7 0.2794 0.4 0.016 0 0.001 2000 23 0 1 1
cylinder with an approximate radius of 2.2 mm, R 131 was
0.9 0.283 0.413 0.016 0 0.001 2000 23 0 1 1 assumed. In this case, no attachment line contamination was
identified because Polls criterion value was less than 245. The flight

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 UEDA ET AL.

y/s=0.3 y/s=0.5
-0.1 -0.1

Cp
0.0 0.0

Cp
Target Cp
0.1 Target Cp 0.1
Initial
InitialCp
Cp
Initial
Initial Cp Cp
0.2 0.2
0.0 0.02 0.04 0.06 0.08 0.0 0.02 0.04 0.06 0.08
x/c x/c

y/s=0.7 y/s=0.9
-0.1 -0.1
Cp

Cp
0.0 0.0
Target Cp
0.1 Target Cp 0.1 Initial CpCp
Initial
Initial
InitialCp
Cp

0.2 0.2
0.0 0.02 0.04 0.06 0.08 0.0 0.02 0.04 0.06 0.08
x/c x/c
Fig. 15 Comparison of an ideal and initial chordwise Cp distributions based on the Ogee planform.

test confirmed these results as no transition occurred near the
attachment line [2]. It should be noted that the radius of the NLF wing
designed at high Reynolds number increases to approximately 3
times that of the NEXST-1, as shown in Fig. 14b. Because Polls
index is proportional to the root of the radius based on a cylindrical
approximation, R 230 was easily estimated for the NLF wing.
This implies that there is no attachment line contamination because
the value is less than Polls criterion value. However, because this
value is close to the criterion, it is recognized that techniques are
needed to suppress it. For example, a small spanwise bump with a
curvature constraint used during the inverse design process is
necessary to realize the NLF wing effect at high Reynolds number.
The convergence of the Cp distribution in this inverse design
process was found to be insufficient. It is generally recognized that
the CFD-based inverse design method based on the lifting surface
theory for geometry modification needs further improvement. The
design cycle for the configuration illustrated in Fig. 12 was then
stopped because the new ideal Cp distribution based on the present
functional form was created. The improvement of the inverse design
procedure was considered as mentioned previously. JAXA has
recently worked on designing a new three-dimensional NLF wing
using the new ideal Cp distribution and design flow.
C. Further Study for an Ideal Cp Distribution in Practical Applica-
tion
In a further study, the ideal Cp distribution mentioned previously
was derived for a cranked-arrow-type planform with two different
swept angles. However, to apply an ideal Cp distribution shape with a

Table 4 Coefficients for an ideal Cp distribution based on the Ogee planform

ys A0 A1 A2 A3 A4 B1 B2 B3 P1 P2
0.15 0.05160 0.115 0.010 0.025 0.025 90000 1000 20 2 1
0.20 0.05474 0.125 0.012 0.020 0.023 90000 1100 19 2 1
0.30 0.10607 0.185 0.015 0.016 0.020 90000 1500 19 2 1
0.40 0.15347 0.245 0.015 0.015 0.015 90000 2500 18 2 1
0.50 0.23991 0.340 0.015 0.010 0.006 90000 3000 17 2 1
0.60 0.38999 0.495 0.015 0 0.004 90000 3300 0 2 1
0.70 0.44564 0.555 0.016 0 0 90000 3800 0 2 1
0.80 0.41360 0.520 0.017 0 0 90000 4200 0 2 1
0.90 0.302151 0.400 0.018 0 0 90000 4600 0 2 1
0.99 0.06444 0.130 0.019 0 0 90000 5000 0 2 1

Fig. 16 Spanwise distributions for each coefficient based on an ideal Cp distribution and Ogee planform.

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 UEDA ET AL.
Fig. 17 Estimated transition location on an ideal Cp distribution for
NLF wing design based on the Ogee planform.
functional form in NLF wing design for future aircraft, it is desirable
to develop a more general wing planform with nonuniform swept
angle similar to the Ogee planform of Concorde. JAXA has already
investigated such an extension. A summary of the results based on a
Concorde-like configuration at the same Reynolds number condition
as the flight of the real Concorde is presented next.
The cross-sectional shape of the wing of the Concorde-like
configuration was designed by using a warped wing concept with
conical camber type at the design condition of lift coefficient CL 
0.1 at M  2. According to the design flow of Fig. 12, first, each
chordwise Cp distribution at each spanwise station of the Concorde-
like configuration was computed with CFD as summarized in
Fig. 15; initial Cp corresponds to the results. The most suitable
combination of each coefficient in the functional form of Eq. (1) was
then investigated. Because the swept angle of the leading edge
changes continuously, it is assumed that each coefficient also varies
in the spanwise direction continuously. Therefore, after the ideal Cp
distribution shape was investigated at each representative spanwise
station, a least-square polynomial approximation was applied to
smoothly connect each coefficient in the spanwise direction. The
degrees of polynomial for each parameter were used as follows:
A0  6, A1  6, A2  7, A3  6 (up to ys  0.6), A4  4,
B2  4, and B3  5 (up to ys  0.6). The spanwise variations of
each coefficient are shown in Table 4 and Fig. 16. This ideal Cp
distribution shape was then created as shown by target Cp
in Fig. 15.
The transition characteristics are summarized in Fig. 17. If N  14
is assumed as a transition criterion, it is predicted that 25% of the
upper surface of the wing as the area ratio is approximately laminar at
the Reynolds number condition (MAC-based Reynolds number of
172.8 million) of the flight environment (M  2, an altitude of
15 km), which is the same as the Concorde. Recently, JAXA has
planned and advanced NLF wing designs for both the former cranked
arrow planform and the present Ogee planform. In these cases, the
aforementioned ideal Cp distribution shapes were used as a guideline
to achieve the present CFD-based inverse design method.
IV. Conclusions
In this study, an early supersonic NLF wing-design concept,
demonstrated by the flight test of the NEXST-1 experimental vehicle
conducted by JAXA in 2005, was extended for high-Reynolds-
number conditions, and a new ideal pressure distribution was
created. Because the ideal pressure distribution consisted of a useful
functional form with several coefficients as parameters, an effective
approach to find and adjust them has also been proposed. This
pressure distribution is applicable to any wing planform such as a
cranked arrow or Ogee-type at the Reynolds number conditions
of a large-size SST (300 passengers) as well as Concorde (100
passengers). In this article, two different ideal pressure distributions
were established based on two representative wing planforms. The
planforms influence on delay transition was confirmed by transition
analysis based on the current eN method. In general, a CFD-based
inverse design method is very effective in achieving an NLF wing
with an ideal pressure distribution at a high-Reynolds-number
condition. The present research improves upon an earlier design
flow applied in the development of the NEXST-1 vehicle. A cross-
sectional shape (airfoil) of the NLF wing on a cranked arrow
planform has been established. This planform, introduced as a design
example, was achieved using a CFD-based inverse design method at a
Reynolds number 10 times higher than that of the NEXST-1 flight test
condition. The results provide further understanding of the NLF
airfoil behavior at high Reynolds number.
Acknowledgments
Although the main part of this study is based on the patent
applications for Japan, the United States, France, the United
Kingdom, and Russia, it is very effective and helpful for the authors to
refer to the principal results obtained in the JAXAONERA joint
research activity from 2009 to 2012 to deepen aerodynamic
consideration for present NLF wing-design subject, in particular,
discussion of Reynolds number effect. The authors would like to
express special thanks to Daniel Arnal and Olivier Vermeersch of
ONERAThe French Aerospace Lab for performing this joint
research activity.
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This document is provided by JAXA.