Propeller Design Workshop

Presented by
David J. Gall
Gall Aerospace
www.PropellerDesignWorkshop.com
Theory and design of practical propellers, Part 1. How
Propellers Work

PROPELLER DESIGN
WORKSHOP
How Propellers Work
 Outline: Theory and design of practical
propellers, Part 1.

1.Propeller aerodynamics.
2.Best diameter and pitch.
3.Number of blades.
4.Determining blade angles from hub to tip.
5.Angle of attack.
6.Blade shape and "elliptic" loading explained.
7.Historical notes.
8.NACA wind tunnel research.
9.Introduction to Vortex theory: What all those German
guys said (Prandtl, Munk, Betz, Goldstein, Glauert,
Theodorsen) translated into plain English.
HOW PROPELLERS WORK
How Propellers Work
 1. Propeller Aerodynamics
• How many of you are preparing to
design your own airplane?
• How many of you are prepared to
design your own propeller for that
airplane?
• This forum will attempt to provide an
overview and some details of
propeller design
• One cannot tell a good prop just by
How Propellers Work
looking, but one can avoid the
 1. Propeller Aerodynamics
• Propeller design has three parts:
– Aerodynamic design
• Main aspect of this forum
– Structural design
• Secondary
– Mechanical design
• Details, details!

How Propellers Work

 1. Propeller Aerodynamics
• Why propeller aerodynamics is
important
• Consider a typical light airplane at
climb speed
– 82kts, L/D = 10, 175 sq ft. wing, 2400
lbs., 13.7 psf
– 76in, 8in chord, 4.25 sq ft., 240 lbs.,
56.5 psf
– 60 Thp, even more Bhp
• Now, let’s actually climb
How Propellers Work
 1. Propeller Aerodynamics
• For a fixed-pitch prop, need 200 hp
engine since can’t get full rpm and
power in climb
• 4.25 sq ft. pulling 560 lbs = 132 psf!
• Tip speed: 905 fps = 535 kt

How Propellers Work

 1. Propeller Aerodynamics
• That’s not the environment we’d
normally think of as being within the
operating envelope of a little old
Skyhawk
• Just maybe, the airfoil choice is a
little more involved than “Use a Clark
Y, that’s the way we’ve always done
it”
• At cruise speed a similar analysis
would yield similar results
How Propellers Work
 1. Propeller Aerodynamics
• This is high-speed subsonic
aerodynamics at the tip, but still low-
speed aero at the root
• How can low-speed aerodynamics
possibly support 132 psf loadings? It
can’t!
• Thus, the question of the loading
from root to tip becomes important
• So important that it is the driving
How Propellers Work
factor over all other design factors
 1. Propeller Aerodynamics
• The propeller tips must not be
allowed to go sonic
– That does not mean they must be kept
below Mach 1.0
– That does mean they must be kept
much below Mach 1.0
• Good rules-of-thumb are 950fps for
metal props, 850fps for wood,
somewhere in between for
composites
How Propellers Work based on thickness
 1. Propeller Aerodynamics
• Notice also that the blade chord is
narrow
• That means the Reynolds’ Numbers
are low along the entire blade, even
near the tips due to the effect of
taper
• Low Reynolds’ Numbers (Re) put the
blades’ airfoil design condition near
the bottom of or even below the
lower limit of what has been
How Propellers Work
 1. Propeller Aerodynamics
• For example, a formula one racer at
full race power (4400 rpm) and
speed (250 mph) has a propeller
blade Re on the order of one million
• Typical GA airplanes fare slightly
better, but many homebuilts fare
much worse
• Typical NACA/NASA wind tunnel
airfoil research is at Re’s of three to
nine million
How Propellers Work
 1. Propeller Aerodynamics
• As Tim Kern points out on page 90 of
the January, 2009 Sport Aviation
magazine, “The wrong prop can
waste 20% of your airplane’s
potential.” That could be 128 knots
vs. 160 knots. Think about it. And the
rate of climb…?
• A 5% increase in prop efficiency is
equal to a 5% decrease in airframe
drag
How Propellers Work
 1. Propeller Aerodynamics
• Propeller aerodynamic design is
more like sailplane design than
airplane design
• There are two design points of
interest
– Sailplane: thermalling (minimum sink),
and travelling between thermals
(maximize L/D)
– Propeller: climbing, and cruising
• Of first concern for each is the
How Propellers Work
 1. Propeller Aerodynamics
• A wing operates in a translating
airflow
• A propeller is a wing operating in a
rotating and translating airflow
• This complicates matters
(immensely)
• When an airplane slows down, the
entire wing experiences a uniform
change of airspeed and angle of
How Propellers Work
attack across the entire wingspan
 1. Propeller Aerodynamics
• Because of this complication, we
tend to design propellers for a single
design point
• Then we accept whatever
performance we get at the other
important design point
• So, we need two tools for propeller
design
– A design tool, to optimize for our design
point Work
How Propellers
 1. Propeller Aerodynamics
• The Analysis tool could be a
computer tool or it could be a wind
tunnel, or…
• The most common Analysis tool for
propeller design is the airplane –
carve the prop, mount it, fly it, see
what it’ll do!
• Unfortunately, this introduces
waaaaay too many variables to
isolate subtle propeller design
How Propellers Work
 1. Propeller Aerodynamics
• So, much good design-tool effort is
discounted in the end as just so
much “bloviating”
• “The old ways work, just stick to
‘em”
• Thus, we have rules-of-thumb and
popular wisdom and anecdotal
evidence as our most powerful and
influential design “experts”
How Propellers Work
• Some propeller manufacturers are
 1. Propeller Aerodynamics
• A side note about propeller design
methods: There are four ways to
design anything
– “Wing it,” a.k.a. “W.A.G.” – “wild-astute-
guess”
• Also “S.W.A.G.” – “scientific-wild-astute-
guess”
– Cut-and-try (and try, and try again…)
– Trial-and-error, a.k.a. “Bracketing” or
“zeroing-in”
How Propellers Work
– Guided by Analysis, usually called
 1. Propeller Aerodynamics
• There are three primary Analytical
methods
– Statistical measurement
• Trial and error (tens or hundreds of times)
• Variation of parameters
– Dimensional analysis and Similitude
• Isolation of physical parameters, comparison
with smaller-scale models, discovery of
scaling factors
– First Principles – “Theoretical”
• Newton,
How Propellers Work Bernoulli, Einstein, “high-falutin’
 1. Propeller Aerodynamics
• The “Theoretical” method does not
stand alone; It informs the other
methods.
• Likewise, the other methods feed
back to theory to guide the evolution
of that theory
• Today, there is essentially one theory
of propellers, but many different
approaches to that theory having
various levels of approximation to
How Propellers Work
 1. Propeller Aerodynamics
• Another side note:
– There is NO equivalent to Aspect Ratio
for props
– This is not to say one couldn’t calculate
an aspect ratio for a propeller blade
– Rather, the function of the AR in wing
aerodynamic calculations is not
paralleled anywhere in propeller
calculations
– Thus, the “usual” calculation of induced
How Propellers Work
drag from AR is absent
 1. Propeller Aerodynamics
• This is a result of the Vortex theory
of lift
• See NACA Report No. 116
– Application of Modern Hydrodynamics to
Aeronautics
– L. Prandtl, Gottingen University
– This document should be considered required
reading!
– Add NACA Report No. 824 or “Theory of Wing
Sections” by Abbott and von Doenhoff to your
required
How Propellers reading list, too
Work
 1. Propeller Aerodynamics
• Another side note:
– Everything you read WILL have
typographical erors
– Especialy in the important section, or in
the all-important equaations
– Cross-check and verify from multiple
sources
– Do your own homework
• Does it make sense? (First principles)
• Do the units work out? (Dimensional analysis)
How Propellers Work
• Look for newer works that cite the older ones
 1. Propeller Aerodynamics
• What constitutes the “best prop” for
my airplane?
• Optimization can take many forms
– Lightest weight
– Most damage tolerant
– Lowest cost
– Easiest to build
– Coolest looking  (Most prevalent! )

How Propellers Work

 1. Propeller Aerodynamics
• What constitutes the “best prop” for my
individual, unique airplane (or type)?
• Optimized for some specified flight
condition
• Usually, either “climb” or “cruise”
• In-between sometimes called a “service
prop”
• Racing airplanes optimize for maximum
speed
• Other applications may optimize for
maximum static thrust or low-speed
thrust
How Propellers(STOL)
Work
 1. Propeller Aerodynamics
• This forum focuses on optimizing a
fixed-pitch prop for one specific
airplane (Bob’s RV-6) operating at
one specific design point:
– Altitude = 8000 ft density altitude
– Horsepower = 170 sea-level brake
horsepower
– Speed = 205 mph TAS (he says it’ll do it
– really!)
How–Propellers
WhileWorkstill retaining a good climb rate
 1. Propeller Aerodynamics
• Questions so far?
• How are we doing for time?

How Propellers Work

 1. Propeller Aerodynamics
• A propeller is a wing constrained to
rotate about one of its wing tips
• When we think of a propeller we
typically think of a two-bladed propeller
• A two-bladed propeller is two wings each
constrained to rotate about one of its
wing tips
• And joined at the central wing “tips”
• Thus, a two-bladed propeller has four
wing
How tips
Propellers Work
 1. Propeller Aerodynamics

How Propellers Work

 1. Propeller Aerodynamics

How Propellers Work

 1. Propeller Aerodynamics
• “Theory of Propellers”
• Theodore Theodorsen, PhD.
• McGraw-Hill 1948
• (eBay about $165)
• Save yer sheckels – get NACA
Reports 775-778 and 924 instead.
• Thank you, John Crigler!

How Propellers Work

 1. Propeller Aerodynamics

How Propellers Work

 1. Propeller Aerodynamics
• MIT Open CourseWare (OCW)
• “Hydrofoils and Propellers”
• Prof. J. E. Kerwin, PhD.
• Kerwin_notes.pdf
• Free online

How Propellers Work

 1. Propeller Aerodynamics

How Propellers Work

 1. Propeller Aerodynamics

Propeller operating alone. A substantial cavitating hub vortex is evident.

How Propellers Work

 1. Propeller Aerodynamics

Pre-swirl stator operating alone. A substantial hub vortex is again evident.The

sign of this vortex is opposite from the one shown in the previous figure.

How Propellers Work

 1. Propeller Aerodynamics

Propeller and stator operating together. The hub vortex has been canceled.

How Propellers Work

 1. Propeller Aerodynamics

How Propellers Work

 1. Propeller Aerodynamics
• NASA-CR-145627
– Proceedings of the NASA-Industry-
University General Aviation Drag
Reduction Workshop, 1975
– “Propellers of Minimum Induced Loss,
and Water Tunnel Tests of Such a
Propeller” (p. 273)
– E. E. Larrabee, Massachusetts Institute
of Technology

How Propellers Work

 1. Propeller Aerodynamics

How Propellers Work

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How Propellers Work

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How Propellers Work

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How Propellers Work

 1. Propeller Aerodynamics
• Questions so far?
• How are we doing for time?

How Propellers Work

 1. Propeller Aerodynamics
• NASA Conference Publication 2085
(Part I)
– Science and Technology of Low-Speed
and Motorless Flight, 1979
– “Design of Propellers for Motorsoarers”
by E. Eugene Larrabee (p. 285)
– (This is also where you’ll find the Epper
1230 airfoil that Burt Rutan used on
some airplanes)

How Propellers Work

 1. Propeller Aerodynamics

How Propellers Work

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 1. Propeller Aerodynamics
• Questions so far?
• How are we doing for time?

How Propellers Work

 1. Propeller Aerodynamics
• There are two things above all else
that I want you to learn from this
forum:
• Goldstein’s function does for
propellers what elliptical loading
does for wings - efficiency
– Caveat: Different for each “advance
ratio” and number of blades
• Each blade is a complete wing unto
itself,
How Propellerswith
Work a “tip” vortex from each
 1. Propeller Aerodynamics
• Questions so far?
• How are we doing for time?

How Propellers Work

 2. Best diameter and pitch.

How Propellers Work

 3. Number of blades.

How Propellers Work

 4. Determining blade angles
from hub to tip.

How Propellers Work

 5. Angle of attack.

How Propellers Work

 6. Blade shape and "elliptic“
loading explained.

How Propellers Work

 7. Historical notes.

How Propellers Work

 History
• The development of propeller design
methods has mirrored the
technologies of the day
• 19th c.: Scientific method still in
infancy
– Helmholtz’ Theory of Vorticity
• Foundation of Hydrodynamics and
Aerodynamics
– Froude’s and Rankine’s Actuator Disc
Theory
– Drzwiecki’s Blade Element theory
How Propellers Work
–
 History
• Early 20th c.: Experiment and Analysis
– Scientific method flourishes in experiment
• Eiffel – wind tunnel investigation of wings and
airfoils
• Lesley & Durand – tests of model propellers
• Prandtl et. al – Gottingen tunnel: wings and
airfoils
• Weick et. al – Langley propeller tunnel
– Tests of full-scale propellers
• N.A.C.A. Variable-density tunnel
– Model and full-scale propeller tests
– Investigation of effect of Reynolds’ number on wings
How Propellers&Work
props
 History
• Early 20th c.: Experiment and Analysis
– Analysis flourishes in academia and
research institutes
• Lanchester: Concepts of vortex flow and
“circulation”
• Prandtl: Quantified Lanchester’s description
– Gave us the concepts of downwash and “induced”
drag
• Munk: Applied vortex theory to the optimization
of wings
– gave us the elliptic lift distribution
• Betz: Applied vortex theory to the optimization of
propellers
– described the propeller analog of elliptic lift (thrust)
distribution
• Goldstein:
How Propellers Work Exact solution of Betz’ propeller
distribution
 History
• Early-mid 20th c.: Emphasis on
simplification
– Creation and use of charts (graphs), tables,
and nomograms for rapid calculation
– Minimal reliance on computation
– Prefer statistical estimates over iterative
solutions
– Calculus machines more plentiful than
calculating machines
• Planimeter and Integraph for integration
• Splines
How Propellers Workand French Curves for drawing derivative
curves
 History
• Mid-late 20th c.: Emphasis on
computation
– Increasing use of computers
– Development of discretization into finite
elements
– Direct and iterative solutions of
“unsolvable” math
– Calculating machines more plentiful
than mathematicians
• Mini-computers
How Propellers Work
• Programmable pocket calculators
 History
• Mid-late 20th c.: Jets and CFD
– Finite element and finite volume
methods evolved into Computational
Fluid Dynamics – CFD
– Too bad nobody was interested in
propellers any more! (Or weren’t they?
Ships have em’ too….)
– Then came the 1970s “energy crisis”
– 1980s “un-ducted fans” were all the
rage
– Waaaaaaaaaay loud! Oops! Cancel
How Propellers Work
program
 History
• Mid-late 20th c.: NOT Jets and CFD
– BUT: Quietly, Prof. Eugene E. Larrabee
of MIT was revolutionizing propeller
design for the rest of us
– His design for a VW powered homebuilt
airplane’s propeller registered the
highest efficiency ever recorded in the
MIT water tunnel – 85%
– Propellers designed using Larrabee’s
method have helped to set many
absolute
How Propellers Work world records
 History
• Late 20th c.: Larrabee reigns
“supreme”
– MIT’s “Chrysalis” man-powered airplane
– Gossamer Albatross and Gossamer
Condor
– More than 400 windmills in Altamonte
Pass, CA
– Aerovironment’s “Solar Challenger” et.
seq.
– Rutan’s “Voyager” (propellers by John
How Propellers Work
Roncz)
 Today
• Larrabee computerized Glauert’s
work, but….
• What happened to Theodorsen’s
theory?
• What about CFD? What about super-
computers? What about prop-fans?
• What about this, that, and the other
new theory trumpeting itself as the
next and way better prop design
How Propellers Work
theory?
 Yes!

!!!
(Er, at least I think I can)

How Propellers Work

 Yes!

!!!
(Er, at least I think I can)
NASA CR-145627 p. 273 (1975)
NASA CP-2085 pt-1 p. 285 (1979)
Adkins & Liebeck in Journal of Propulsion & Power
EAA Weick TN-212
NASA TM-80403
NASA CP-2126

How Propellers Work

 8. NACA wind tunnel
research.

How Propellers Work

 9. Introduction to Vortex
theory
• What all those German guys said
(Prandtl, Munk, Betz, Goldstein,
Glauert, Theodorsen) translated into
plain English.

How Propellers Work

 Summary: Theory and design of practical
propellers, Part 1.

1.Propeller aerodynamics.
2.Best diameter and pitch.
3.Number of blades.
4.Determining blade angles from hub to tip.
5.Angle of attack.
6.Blade shape and "elliptic" loading explained.
7.Historical notes.
8.NACA wind tunnel research.
9.Introduction to Vortex theory: What all those German
guys said (Prandtl, Munk, Betz, Goldstein, Glauert,
Theodorsen) translated into plain English.
HOW PROPELLERS WORK
How Propellers Work
Propeller Design 101:
How Propellers Work
Propeller Design Workshop

Gall Aerospace
www.PropellerDesignWorkshop.com