Prandtl Propeller: Design Process, Verification and Testing, Year 1

Evaluate and improve the Prandtl propeller and fan blade technology/design process, to include the design process and develop new designs. The Prandtl Propeller and fan design project is follow-on research from Al Bower’s work/research. This project will focus on the technology/process that needs to be verified and possibly improved. The designs need to be verified for improvements in reduced torque and noise which will be accomplished using both simulation and testing. The work is to complete propeller/fan design and design process work to be used on current and future aircraft/space missions. Desired deliverables of this work will include a well-defined design process, a tested propeller or fan blade, and associated published papers. The project is based around follow-on work on several in progress propeller and fan designs to document, verify and test propeller configurations. For both applications this work will document designs and the workflow for future propeller designs. The propeller re-design has been started and the PRANDTL Fan is in the process of being tested at JSC. The current aircraft application work is based on the 28 inch Mejzilk propeller. The modeling and analysis of the Mejzilk propeller will generate models, compare results to wind tunnel results, and start a workflow to assess future propeller configurations. The Mejzilk propeller has been modeled, verified and re-designed using Xrotor and other tools. Ideally the Mejzilk propeller re-design will be built and tested. The objective will be to demonstrate improved efficiency (decreased torque/increased flow rates) and a reduction in fan/propeller generated noise. Although there are several ways to quantify and demonstrate aerodynamic improvements, this project will focus on simplifying and understanding the design process and results of tests.

If successful, this would demonstrate improved efficiency (decreased torque/increased flow rates) and a reduction in fan/propeller generated noise.

This is a mature technology (TRL 7+) — the realistic path in is usually NASA's Technology Transfer Program: licensing an existing NASA patent, or a Space Act Agreement to use NASA facilities/expertise directly. NASA also runs a startup licensing program with no upfront fee for companies formed to commercialize a specific NASA technology.

None of these are guaranteed paths for this specific project — TechPort itself doesn't have an "apply" button. Reaching out to the contact(s) above with a specific question is usually the fastest way to find out what's actually open.