MAE 1202: Aerospace Practicum

May 2, 2008

Name: _______________________
Final Exam

Exam is worth 118 points.

Read each question carefully and show all your work.
Part 1 Multiple Choice (2 points each): Select all answer choices that apply
1. In pure bending, the bending stress is inversely proportional to the (modulus of
elasticity / the bending strain / the area moment of inertia / bulk modulus).
2. The range of a propeller-powered airplane is proportional to ( / 1/2 / 3/2 / -1/2 /
is independent of ambient density).
3. If the aspect ratio of a wing is doubled and the efficiency factor is increased, the
induced drag is (increased by a factor of 2 / increased by more than a factor of 2 /
decreased by a factor of 2 / decreased by more than a factor of 2 / does not change).
4. An NACA 2412 airfoil has a maximum thickness of (2% / 4% / 12% / 20% / 24% /
40% / 41 % / depends on the actual type of 2412 airfoil).
5. The location of minimum pressure on an airfoil occurs at a location (of maximum
velocity / of maximum thickness / of minimum velocity / of minimum thickness /
upstream of the location of maximum thickness / downstream of the location of
maximum thickness).
6. In an adiabatic flow, the temperature (must remain constant everywhere / may vary
from point to point / may vary along a streamline / must remain constant on a
streamline).
7. The critical Mach number, MCR, of an airfoil (increases as the thickness decreases /
increases as the thickness increases / is independent of the thickness / depends on the
aspect ratio / depends on the Oswald efficiency factor / is less than the drag
divergence Mach number / is greater than the drag divergence Mach number).
8. The lift coefficient for an infinite wing is (higher / lower / the same as) the lift
coefficient for a finite wing of the same cross-section.
9. The zero lift angle of attack, L=0, for a cambered infinite wing is (greater / the same
as / less than / dependent on Reynolds number relative to) the zero lift angle of attack
for a cambered elliptical wing.
10. The grade that I deserve for this class is (A / B / C / D / F).

Part 2 Short Answer Questions (4 points each): Answer these questions using as few
words as possible or using equations whenever you feel appropriate. For quantitative
questions, show as much work as possible and define any symbols that you use.
1. How and why does an airfoil generate lift?

2. What is the advantage of plotting stress () versus strain () instead of say, load
versus elongation or compression?

3. Why do the small engines used in your rocket project have a nozzle with a diverging
section?

4. A jet airplane is being flown at maximum lift to drag ratio, (L/D) max. Briefly discuss
why the airplane might be flown in this configuration. Should the configuration be
changed to fly for maximum endurance?

5. A thin wing with an elliptical planform has a lift slope of 6. What is the aspect ratio of
the wing?

6. How can we account for compressibility effects in high-speed, subsonic flows, say for
the coefficient of pressure and lift coefficient?

7. How and why is the stall speed of a Boeing 747 altered through the deployment of the
flaps on landing? Why retract the flaps during flight?

Question 1 (10 points): Pictured below are two state-of-the-art military aircraft. Using
what you have learned in this class, examine only the wings of these two airplanes and
explain as much as you can about their design and how their design most likely
impacts the functionality of the aircraft.

Figure 1: A-10

Figure 2: F-22

Some sample questions that will get you started toward giving a complete answer to this
question:
1. Estimate the AR of these airplanes.
2. What is the impact of the AR and what does it tell you about the aircraft?
3. Why is one of the wings swept, but not the other? What are the advantages and
disadvantages of swept wings?
4. Which has thicker airfoils?
5. Which has a higher critical Mach number?
6. Which has a lower stall speed?

Question 2 (10 Points): A high-speed, subsonic Boeing 777 airliner is flying at an

altitude of 12 km. A Pitot tube on the vertical tail measures a pressure of 2.96x10 4 N/m2.
At what Mach number is the airplane flying?

A different airplane is flying at an altitude of 10 km with a velocity of 596 m/s. The

outside air temperature is 220 K. Briefly comment on how this question is different than
Question number 2 and discuss how you would determine what is the pressure measured
by a Pitot tube mounted on the nose of the airplane (you dont have to solve).

Question 3 (10 Points): An airplane weighing 5000 lb is flying at standard seal level
with a velocity of 200 MPH. At this velocity, the L/D ratio is a maximum. The wing area
and aspect ratio are 200 ft2 and 8.5, respectively. The Oswald efficiency factor is 0.93.
Calculate the total drag on the airplane.

Question 4 (10 Points): Consider the stress-strain diagram for the material shown below.

Based on the data, estimate the following quantities

1. The modulus of elasticity, E
2. The tensile yield strength, ty
3. The ultimate tensile strength, tu
Mark the graph to indicate how these quantities are determined and be sure to include
appropriate units for all answers.

Question 5 (10 points): Consider a supersonic missile flying at Mach 2.5 at an altitude of
10 km. Assume the angle of the shock wave from the nose is approximated by the Mach
angle (i.e., a very weak shock). How far behind the nose of the vehicle will the shock
wave impinge upon the ground? (You may ignore the fact that the speed of sound, hence
the Mach angle, changes with altitude).

Question 6 (10 points): A supersonic nozzle has a pressure ratio of p exit/ptotal=0.2.

Calculate the ratio of exit area to throat area.

Question 7 (10 points): Consider an airfoil at a given angle of attack. At low speeds, the
minimum pressure coefficient on the top surface of the airfoil is -0.90. Determine the
critical Mach number of the airfoil.
To make this question easier, some values for the following equation are tabulated in the
table below.
C p ,cr

M
Cp,cr

0.4
-3.66

0.5
-2.13

M 2

2 1 M 2

0.6
-1.29

0.7
-0.779

10

0.8
-0.435

0.9
-0.188

1.0
0

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