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TECHNICAL ~OTES

NATIONAL ADVISORY COMMITTEE FOR AERONAUTICS

No. 705

WIND-TUNNEL INVESTIGATION OF GROUND EFFECT

1
ON WI NGS WITH FLAPS

By Isidore G. Recant
Langley Memo rial Aeronautical Laboratory

Washin~ton
May 19;.(9

8 J {NESS, SCIt. '("

. ~N' L GV D ~
 NATIONAL ADVISORY COMMITTEE FOR AERONAUTICS

TECHNICAL NOTE NO. 705

WIND-TUN) EL INVESTIGATION OF GROUND EFFECT

ON WINGS WITH F~APS

By Isidore G. Recant

SUMMARY

An investigation was conducted in the N .A.C.A. 7- by

lO-foot wind tunnel to determine the effect of ground prox-
i mi ty on the aerodynam ic characteristics of wings equipped
with high-lift devices . A rectan ~ ular and a tapered wing
were tested without flaps, with a split flap, and with a
slotted flap. The gr ~und was represented by a flat plate ,
completely spanning the tunnel and extending a considerable
distance ahead and back of the mo d el. The position of the
plate was varied from one-half to three chord lengths below
the wing.

The results are presented in the form of curves of

absolute coefficients, showing the e f fect of the ground on
each wing arrange ment . The effect of the ground on lift,
drag, and pitching moment is discussed. An appendix g ives
equations for calculating tunnel-wall corrections to be
applied to ground - effect tests conoucted in rectangular
tunnels when a plate is used to represent the ground.

The tests indicated that the ground effect on wings

with flaps is a marked decrease in drag, a decrease in
diving moment, and a substantial reduction in maximum lift.

INTRODUCTION

The phenomenon commonly called IIground effect,lI where-

by the aerodynamic characteristics of plain wings undergo
marked changes in the presence of the ~round. has been sub-
ject to considerable inves tigati o n (references 1 and 2) .
Both theory (referen ce ~) and experiment (references 4, 5,
and 6) indicate that the proximity of the ~round decreases
the drag and increases the slope of the lift curve in the
same manner as an increase in aspect ratio would affect the
2 N .A . C . A . Te chn i cal Note No . 705

same facto r s . In fact , it is cust om ary t o p redict the ef-

f ect o f the g r ound on the basii of an ap~a r e nt in c rease in
aspe ct ratio ( r efe r ences ~ and 5 ) . Although a wing o p e r -
a tin g i n the vi c inity of the g r ound is subjected to an in -
crea se i n li ft ove r the free - a i r val ue at any g iv en angle
o f attack , it d oe s not necessar i ly follow that the maxi-
mum l i ft c oeff icient is i ncreased. Available e vi dence in-
d ic a t e s that , f o r wi ng he i ghts decreasing fr~m infinity
to one - half ch o rd l e ngth , the max i mum l ift is unaffected
(refe r ence s 3 and 5) or sl i gh tly decr ease d ( r efe r ences 4 ,
7 , and 8) .

Much l ess study has b ee n devoted t o the ef f ect of the

g r oun d on airfo i ls equ i pped with lift-increasing dev ic es .
Vi r. ud (refe r en c e 9) found th e cust oma ry incr ease in the
s l o pe of the lift curve and dec r eas e in th e d ra g for wings
with var io us types of flap . The max i mum lift fo r split
and p l a i n trai l ing-ed g e fla p s incr eased as the win g ap -
p r oa ch ed th e g r ound . For th e sl o tted flap , the max i mum
l i ft re ma i ned n ea r ly constant ; whe r ea s, for th e mu lti p le
s l o tted flap , the max i mum l i ft decreased consi de r ab l y as
th e g r ound was approached . For spl it flaps of the Zap
type , Serebr i js ky ( r efe r e nce 1 0 ) found a decrease in th e
max imum l i ft as the g r ound was a pp r oa c hed .

Sin c e almost all present-day a irplane s a re p r ov ided

with fl ap s o f one type o r a n o the r and s ince the flap ef -
fe ct is of particula r import a nce in the im med iat e vicin i ty
of the g round , th e ne ce s s i ty for fu rth e r study of t he p rob-
lem i s obv i o us .

The p re se nt inv e st i ga t i on was made i n the N .A . C.A . 7 -

by 1 0 - foo t wind tunnel t o stud y t he effec t of a s i mulated
g round a r e a on a rectan g ular a nd a tapered wi ng , ea ch
e q uipped succe s sively with full - span spl it and slotted
f la ps . It may be pointed out t hat the tests we r e run at a
comparatively small scal e , and th e metho d of g round s i mu -
la tion i s n o t exactly r ep r esentative of actua l fl ight c o n-
d i ti o ns . Neve rth e l es s , th e re sults a r e bel i eved to be in-
d ic at i ve of the comparat i ve effects o n the v a ri ous dev i ces ,
bu t flight tests are r equ i r ed t o dete rmin e the applicabil -
ity o f the wi nd-tunnel results.
(

N.A.C.A. Technical Note No. 705 3

APPARATUS AND TESTS

Models

The wing models used have the N.A.C.A. 2~012 profile

and are made of laminated mahogany. They have a span of
6 0 inches, a geometric aspect ratio of 6, and an average
chord of 10 inches (fig. 1). They had been used in a pre-
vious investigation (reference 11) and were available for
the present tests.

The tapered wings (fig. 2) have a root chord of 16.67

inches and are tapered 5:1. Th~ maximum ordinates of all
sections on the upper surface are in .a horizontal plane
and the plan form is symmetrical about a line perpendicu-
lar to the root chord at its 50 -percent point.

The split-flap models are shown in figures l(b) and

2(b). The flaps are full span; their chords are 20 per-
cent of the wing chord; and they are l o cated at 80 per-
cent of the wing chord. The flaps were set at 60°, which
is the deflection necessary for maximum lift. On the ta-
pered wing the flap a lso has a taper of 5:1.

The slotted-flap models are . shown in figures l(c) and

2(c). This flap is designated 2-h in re fere nce 1 2 , which
gives the slot shape , the flap prnfile, and the path of
the flap nose for various deflections. The flap chord is
25.56 percent of the wing chord and the deflection is 40°,
which is the angle necessary for maximum lift. On the
tapered wing the flap also has a taper of 5 :1.

Wind Tunnel

The tests were made in the N .A.C.A. 7- by lO-foot

cl ose d-thr oat wind tunnel described in reference 12. The
model was moun ted on the regular 6-component balance (ref-
erence l~) that measures the aerodynamic forces and moments
independently and simultaneously with respect to the wind
axes of the model.

Ground Representation

The most common methods of ground representation are

the flat-plate and the reflection methods. These methods
are compared by Raymond (reference 6) and Cowley and Lock

~---
4 N . A . C . A . Te chnic a l Note No . 705

( r eferen ce 1 4) ; bot h r e ferenc e s show a discrepancy between

the two me th ods . Cow ley and Lo c k i mpute the discrepancy
to a phift in the ang l e of ze r o lift that i s due to the
defle c t i on of the a ir stream by the plate , but Raymond's
tests also show a sh i ft i n z e r o lift with the refl ect i on
me thod .

In the p resent tests the g r 0und was s i mulated by a

flat p l ate . The most obvious objection to the plate i s
the fact that the a ir moves wi th respect t o it, cr eat ing
a bounda ry l aye r ; such a c ond i tion does no t ex i st i n actual
f li gh t . A su rv ey o f the bounda r y laye r o v e r the p l a te, how-
e v e r, sh o wed the max i mum thickness under the trailing edge
of the wing t o be about 1 i nch . Since the mode ls we re al-
ways at least 2 inch es from the plate , it is unli ke ly that
the resul ts we re g r eat ly affected . The p res e nt tests ,
moreo ver, are c ompa ra t ive and , under these circumstan ces,
the p late metho d i s c ons id e r ed v alid .

The plate is ma de o f ~ / 8 -in ch plywood , is 7 feet l o ng

and 10 feet wide , completel y spa nn in g the tunnel width .
Th e leadin g e d ge of the pl ate has a fa ir ed nosepiece 4
inches l o ng and 2 inch es thick . The plate ' was fastened to
a steel f r ame ; vertical ste el r ods passed through the plate
an d th e f r ame at each c o r ne r and were ri g id ly attached t o
the tunn e l floor and r oo f . The pla te was f r ee t o sl i de on
the r o ds i n o rd e ~ t o vary the d i stance f r om . i t to the wing ,
wh ich was mounted o n the tun nel center line . The plate
was held in any desired position by set s cr ews th at clamp e d
it to the v e rtical rods . Two v e rtic a l rods under the p l a te
a t its longitudinal center line kept it f r om sagg i ng . The
model was mo u nted ab ou t fou r chord lengths back of the
lead i ng edge of the p late . F i gure 3 shows the plate and
the metho d of moun ti ng it in the tunnel .

. Tes ts

Dynam ic- p r essu re su r veys at the location of the model

were made fo r each posit i on of the g r ound p lat e . The dy -
nam ic p r essure was ma int a i ned c onstant thr oughout the
tests at 16 . ~7 poun ds pe r square foo t, cor r esponding t o an
a ir speed of 80 mi les pe r hou r at standard pea -l eve l c o n-
d itions. The ave r age test Reynolds Numbe r was 609 , 000
based on a mean wing ch o rd o f 1 0 inches. The effecti v e
Reynolds Numbe r due t o th e turbul en ce o f t he tunnel was
app r ox i ma tely 974 , 000 . A su rvey of the bounda r y layer o ver
the p late at the trailing edge of the wing was made .

)
 N.A.C.A. Te chnical Note No . 705 5

The rectangular and the tapered wings were tested

plain and then successively with full-span split flaps and
full-span slotted flaps. Each arrangement was tested in
the c~ear tunnel and then with the ground plate at one-
half, one, two, and three chord len~ths below the wing .
Distances were measured from the quarte r-ch ord point of the
model to the ground plate. Lift, drag, and pitching mo-
m~nts were measured for an angle-of-attack range from -6
o
to the stall in 2 0 increments .

RESULTS AND DISCUSSION

. .

Coeff icients and .Symbols

T~e results are g iven in absolute nondimensional coef-

ficient form.

CL , lift coefficient (LI q S ) .

CD. drag coefficient (D/qS).

em ( a. c.
).
0
pitching-moment coefficient about aerodynamic
center of plain wing (MCa. c . )o/qcwS)'
where

L is lift.

D, drag.

pitc~ing moment about aerodyna mic center of

p:: c. ln wing .

S, wi ng area .

CW ' mean ~eJ~a tric chord of airfoil with flap fully

I f) ~ ] - a. c .~ ea. .

q, d yn&mic p re ssu re

and is angle o f attack .

Of' flap deflection .

h. distance of quarte r-c ho rd point f r om ground.

6 N .A. C . A . Te ch n ic a l Note No~ 705

Ground Distance

The distance of the w i ng from the g round is exp ressed

as a ratio hlc w ' whe r e h is ' the distance from the
g r ound to the quar t e r - chord po i nt of the wi ng . The ch o ice
of the refer e nce po in t f r om wh ic h to measure the g round
d i stan ce i s somewhat arbitrary and varies with different '
invest i gato rs . The nose of the wing was chos en in r~fer­
ence 9 ; the quarte r - chord po int was used in re fe r ences 6
and 7 ; the half - cho rd uo i nt wa s used in references ~ and
6

8 ; and D~twyle r , whose wo r k is summarized in r eferences 1

and 2, chose the trailin ~ edge . Regard l ess of the po int
selected , the g round distance will evidently vary as the
angl e of attack i s changed unless the wing is r otated about
that po int in changing the angle. For long ~ r ound d istance~,
the choice of reference uo i nt i s not likely to make any ap-
p re ciable d i f ference in ~he res ults . Fo r short ~ r· und d is-
tances , however , different result s may be expected for
each re fe r ence po in t chosen. S i nce the lift caused by the
change i n the angle of attack ac ts at ap~ r oximately the
quarte r-chord po int and the lift that is due to the wing
cu r vatu r e acts at about the half-chord uoint ( r eference
15), the qua rt e r-ch o r d uoint seems conv~nient as a refer -
ence . Wh en th e quarter-chord 90int is used as a reference ,
po i nt, the g round d i stance to the po int of action of the
lift that i s due to the angle of attack w ill not change
and the g r ound distance to the point of action of the l i f t
that i s due to the curvatur e will change only slightly
wi th a ch a ng e i n th e angle of attack . No SUbstantiated
theo ry i nd i cates anyone r efe r ence po int to be prefe r able ,
but it is well t keep i n mind the reference points used
when test r esults a r e compared .

Wind-Tunnel Co rr ections

The tests run with out the ground pla t e in the tunnel
we r e corrected for tunnel effect to aspect ratio 6 i n free
a ir. The no~mal jet-boundary c orrect i ons were applied
( r eference 11) . The tests run with he g r ound plate in
the various pos itions be l ow the wing were not corrected
because th e tunnel-wall i nterfe r ence facto rs calculated
fo r these condit i ons were smal l enough to be disregarded .
The method of calculat i ng the inter fe r ence factors for the
ground-board installation is given i n the appendix.

_____ J
 N . A . C .A. Techni c a l No t e No . 705 7

P r ecis i on

Expe r imenta l erro r s in the results p r esen t ed i n "th is

repo rt are believf,d to be wi th i n, the fo l low i ng l "i mi ts : ""

ex, - ±O . lo

±O . OOl

±0 . 005

±O . OO l
0
CD
min
- - - - - - - ±0 . 0005 (Sf = 0 )

C . - - - - - - ±O . OOI
m(a . c . )0

of - - - - - " -- ±l . Oo

h - - - - - - ±1/16 inch

The ~ r ound plate was paral l el to the tunnel axis within

±O . lo .

No tests were made to dete r mine the effect of " the

flap f i ttings. Because the tests are comparative , the ef -
fect of the fitt i ngs would p r obably not materially change
the results.

Ae r odynamic Effects of the Proximity of the Ground

1if1=~~~Y~_E1QQ~. - The effect of the ~ r ound On the

slope of the lift curve is shnwn i n figurBs 4 to 9 ; Fo r
the pla i n wings (fi~s. 4 and 5) the slope increases as
the ~ r und di "stance decreases . In gene r al , this e(fect is
in a~ r eement with the Wieselsber~er theory (reference 3) .
The i ncrease, especially fo r the shorter ~round distances,
i s nUme r ically greater than predicted by the theory . Th i s
discrepancy may be due to the fact that the theory is base~
only on the effect of the trailing-vortex system and ne~ ­
lects the effect "of streamline cu r vature due to the ground .
(See references 7 and 8 . ) Th i s effect \ ill tend to in-
c rea s e t h e s lop e fur the r . R e f oe r e n, c e '! g i ve s the 0 ret i cal
eQuations that indicate an i n c rease in the angle of zero
l i ft ~s the " ground is a~p r oa c hed ; th i s i ncrease is due to
tbe thickness of the ~ i n~ . The present tests show no suc h
shif t.
8 N . A . C . A. Technical Note No. 705

For the wi ngs wi th the slotted and the split flaps

(figs. 6 to 9) . the lift cu r ves in general appear to be
parallel but disp l aced from each other as the ground dis-
tance decreases . These test-s ', however, were not run below
a lift coeffic i ent of 0 . 6 ; and , if no shift in the angle
of zero l i ft (as i s ind i cated by the plain - wing tests) is
assumed , the s l opes below CL = 0 . 6 would increase with a
d ecrease in ground distance .

~£~g .- The effect of the ground on drag is shown in

figures 4 to 9 . A s indi c ated by theory, the drag for all
the wing arrangements was substantially reduced as the
ground distance decreased. The reduction in drag of the
p lain wings is s omew hat greater than the th eo r.etical esti-
ma te that i s based so l e l y on an a ppa rent increase in the
a s~ e ct rat i o ; whereas" the reduction for the wings with
f laps averages 40 pe r cent greater than Wi eselsberger's
theory indicates . The results of Raymond (reference 6) as
well as those of Cowley and Lock (reference 14) tend to
show that the p l ate method o f gr~und r ep res entat ion giv€s
a greate r decrease i n drag th a n does th e reflection method.
It is doub t ful , howeve r, that the discrepancy between
Wieselsberge r 's theory and the present t es ts is entirely
due to the method of ground representation, as Le Sueur
( reference I) , us i ng th e reflection me thod, reports similar
d iscrepancies wi th th e theory. It i s likely that the dif-
fe rence between the theo r etica l and the experimental re-
sults is due to the fact that the Wieselsberger theory neg-
lects th e effect of flow curvature and the change in the
lon g itudinal velocity ( reference 7) that are due to the
p res en ce of the ground .

M~~i~Q~_lif1 .- The effect of the g round on maximum

lift i s shown ~n figures ~O and 11. For the p lain wings,
CLmax is nearly ~onstant to wi thin two chord lengths from
the ground . As the distance becomes less, the lift drops
slightly . At stil l shorter d istances the lift begin~ to
increase . This incrffas e is probably a manifestation of the
effe ct reported by Datwyle r (see refer e nces 1 and 2 ) where-
by , fo r very small distanc e s , CLmax increases rapidly .
Fo r al l p ractic -3. 1 purposes, ho\ ever, the present tests in-
d icate that the max imum l i ft of p lain wings is little af-
fected by the presence of t he g round .

Fo r the wings wit h flaps, the maximum lift is substan-

t ially decreased a s the d i stance from the ground decreases
(f ig . 1 0) . The dec'rease is greater for the slotted-flap
 N.A.C.A. Technical Note No . 705 9

wings than for the split-flap wings. At hlc w = 0.7, the

CLmax of the rectangular .slotted-flap wingis ' decreased 21
pe rcent, whereas the C1max of the rectangular split-flap
wing is decreased 18.5 percent. For either type o·f flap,
the decrease in lift is greater for the · rectangul~r than
for the tapered wing; the lift of the tapered slotted-flap
wing is reduced 12.5 percent, and that of the tapered split-
flap wing 8.7 percent.

The trailing edges of the wings with flaps were con-

siderably closer to the ground plate than the t railing
edges of the plain wing because of the flap deflections.
It is therefore p~ssible that the wings with the flaps are
more greatly affected by the boundary layer and thislleffec.t
caused the greater loss in the lift. The tests by Datwyler
indicate, however, that the lift increases rather than de-
creases as the trailing edge approaches the plate.

For a constant ~istance from the ground, · the decrease

in 01max might be expected ·t ·o be a functio'n of the 01max
t.hat the wing possesses in f .ree air. (See fig. 11.) .. It is
evident from figure II, however, that the free-air value of
01max is ~ot the only !actor involved; otherwise~ the curve
for the tapered wing would coincide with the one for the
rectangular wing.

The theoretical work reported .in reference 7 probably

does not apply to the maximum lift of a wing nor to a wing
equipped with flaps; nevertheless, it does suggest the na-
tUre of ground effect. For a given height, the ground ef-
fect may be broken down into the following:

1. Flow-curvature 'effect, which in most cases tends

to increase the lift for a given angle of attack
and is very nearly a function of (C1 - ~012).

2. Wing-thickness effect, which tends to deere~se the

lift and is constant for a fixed height.

3. Induced longitudinal-velo·city. effect, which tends

to ' decrease the lift for a given angle and is a
function of 012.

4~ Trailing-vortices ·effect, which tends to increase

the lift for a gi ven angle of attack and is a
·funct ion of 0 1 ,
10 N.A.C.A. Technical Note No . 705

Fo r the plain wings, the trailing-vortices effect is most

likely to be p r edominant; whereas, for the wings with flaps
wi th their considerably higher lift coefficients, the in-
duced longitudinal-velocity effect, varying as the square
of the lift coefficient, probably takes precedence and
causes a loss in lift.

1ifl~dr~g_~~liQ_at_m~~im~m_lifl.- The effect of the

ground on the lift-drag ratio at maximum lift is shown in
figu re 1 2 . The approach of the ground increases the value
of LID sharply for all wings. The increase in the LID
of the wings with flaps caused by the g round, in spite of
the decrease in the lift, indicates how markedly the drag
is decreased . The simila rit y in the shapes of the c urves
of figure 12 indicates that the phenomenon of Ilfloatingil
is to be expected on airplanes equipped with flaps as well
as on those without flaps.

Ei1QQi~g_mQm~nt .- The effect of the g round on the

pit ching moment is shown in figures 4 to 9. For the plain
wings , the change in pitching moment due to the grdund
is not large. For a given angle of attack, the diving mo-
men t increases as the g r ound distance decreases . For the
wings with flaps (especially the rectangular wings), the
effec t of the g round is quite marked. The diving moment
is decreased and the slope of the momen t curves . is in-
creased . If the change in the lift is caused by the ground,
the change in ~he moment is to be expec~ed .

CONCLUSIONS

The tests reported herein showed that :

1. The approach of the ground increased the slope of

the lift curves of the p lain wings but had little effect
on the slope of the curves of the wings with flaps over
the range of ang les of attack tested.

2. The appro ach o f the ground reduced the drag of all

the wings tested ; the magnitude of the reduction varied
with the lift coefficien t.

3. The approach of the g rou nd had small effect on the

pitch ing moments of the plain win gs but decreased the div-
ing moments of the wings equipped with split or slotted
flap s .

_ _J
I
I
N .A.C.A . Te chnic a l No te No . 705 11

4. Th e approach o f the ~ r o und had almost no effect

on th e ma xi mum lift o f the p lain wings b~t r e duced the ma x-
i mu m lift c oeff icient o f th e wi ngs equ ipped wi th spl i t o r
s lotte d flaps.

5. The reducti o n in th e maximum lift co eff icient was

g reater for rectangula r wi ngs ·with flaps than for ta p ered
wing s with f l ap s.

6. The reduction i n the max i mum lift coeffici en t was

g r ea ter for win gs equ i ppe d wit h slotted f la ps than for
win gs equipped with sp lit flaps.

Langley Memo rial Ae r onaut ic a l Laboratory.

National Advisory Committee for Aeronaut ics,
Langley F i eld , Va ., Ma rc h 1 1 , 19~ 9 .

APPENDIX

Tunnel -Wall Corre cti ons f o r Test Installation Use d

When g round-e ffec t tests are made in a wind tunnel ,

the question of tunnel - wal l interference corrections al-
ways ar i ses . Some investigators have used no correct i on ;
othe rs have used the standard form of correction. In an
effort to dete r mi ne the ir magn i tude, the corre cti ons we r e
calculated from the theo r etical equationg g iven in r efe r-
en c es 16 and 17 .

The general prob l em for a wi nd tunnel is the determi-

nation of a stream fun cti on that, when added to the flow
p roduc ed by the airfo il in an unli mi ted stream, satisfies
t he c ond itio ns ex ist ing at the ' boundar i es of t he air stream .
The boundaries may be re p l a c ed by the stream function and
the effect on the airfoi l computed .

In the case of ~ ro und effect , it is desired t o deter-

mi ne a stream function that , when a~ded to the flow pro -
duced by the a irfoil ope r a ti ng nea r an i nfin it e plane , will
satisfy the boundary conditions.

Thus , if the fl oo r o f the tunne l represents the ground

and if the function that r ep r esents the effect of the g r ound
plane is deducted f r om t he str eam function that satisfies
the c ond iti ons for the boundaries of a cl osed r e ct angu l a r
tun ne l, the remainder should g i ve the c o rr ect ion due t o the
tunne l walls .
 12 N . A. C .A . Technical No te No . 705

In the present t es ts, t he win g was mo unt ed in the ce n -

te r of t he tun ne l and the g r ound plane was mo v ed t o vary
the d istance of t he win g fro m the g r ound . Thus , at each
pos ition of t he g r ound p l ane , t he re wa s, i n effe ct, n new
tunne l wit h a new he i g ht -t o - width r a tio and a d iff e r e nt
d i stan ce f r om t he wi ng t o the tu nnel cente r li ne . These
cond iti ons are shown i n fi g ur e l~ "

Now , if a cl o sed rect angula r t unne l wit h a \ing dis -

p laced from the ce nte r is c o nsidere d , an in finite pat t e rn
of i mag es ma:y b e ar ra nge d to sa tisf y the boundary condi-
t i o ns ( r efe r en c e 1 6) . Such a S ~T stem i s shown in fi g ure 14"",

Acc o rding to r eference 16 , th e e qua tion for the in -

te rf e r en c e du e to the system o f v ort ic es symmet ric al about
l i ne A-A i s:

,- s i n h nr.a
- "2 CD S In
. he nrrr)l
-"2-
°1 = - 1
- - - - - I l o.g - -- - - - --
4n r cy 2 ~.!:Q:
+ 2:
1
log ( 1 - - - - - - - -- --
. 2 nrn
(1 )
L 2 \ s I nh - - --
2 .J

whe r e

r = b/h

cy = 2 s/b

and h is height of tunnel.

b, wid th of tunne l.

s, s em i sp an of w i ng .

The equation fo r the i nterferenc e caus ed by the sys-

t em of v o~ tic es s y mme t ric a l about line B- B i s :

L
 N.A. O. A. Technical Note No . 705 13

whe r e d is the distan c e of the w i ng from the c en t e r li ne .

The correct i on fo r the complete tunne l is then 01 + 02

In order to el i minate the effe c t of the g r ound p la ne ,

the effect of the single g r ound i mage 0 1 - 02 is calcu -
lated as follows. (See f i g . 14.)

The vertical velocity v 1 at any po i nt F on the

real wing due to vo r tex 01 of strength r is:

r (x + s)
= 4n
------~- - ---------2

(x + s) + (h - 2 d)

The v e rtic a l velocity V

2 at the po int F due to
vortex 02 of strength r is:

V
= S_ _ __________ _________ _~ s - x
2
4n J (s _ x) 2 + (h _ 2 d) 2

=J_ -------2-----------2
s - x
4n (s - x) + (h - 2 d)

The total vertical velocity at F is

+ V =r x+s +L s-x
2 4n (x+s)2 + (h _ 2d)2 4n (s _ x)2 + (h _ 2d) 2

The downf lo w ove r the entire span i s :

14 N . A.C . A . Technic~l Note No . 705

= 1'_
4TT

J:'..{
= BTT lo g I (x
L
+ S )2 + (h - 2d)jL
2d)"JL
r-
I
S_ {
8TT
10 '
'" l(s - x)a + (h -
= y- [1 ~
g ~_±-§~_±_lQ_=_g~~
2JS
BTT a 2
(s - x) + (h - 2d) -s

=
r lO IS ~~~~_~_i~_:_~lJ~_
BTT (h - 2 d )4'
or
r
D = BTT
1V

where

From the relation

r 28 p V = 12 C1 P va 8

where V is velocity; p, density; and S, area of the

a irfoil, is obtained

C1 V8
r = 4s

Therefo re ,

C1 VS
D = 32TTS
1V
 N.A.C .A. Technical Note No. ' , 705 15

6 a. = ~1 °L
----a-
D °L.8
'if = ----"2"- \jJ
S " bh
0:; °L S
V = 2sV = 64TTS
::::
64TTS bh 0

0:;
b'h
= ---'2 i/I :::: - - '-1- - -
64TTS 16TT0'2r
'"
1 [4s 2 + (h 2d) 2 J2 -
0:; :::: log -----------~-----
16TT;a; (h - 2d)

or

1
:::: -----
2
log
l6TT(j r

The net correction is then

and
°1 +
°2 - 0:; :::: ON

S
6cx. :::: ON C CL x 57 . 3

60 .§ 2
D
::::
ON C °L

where S is the wing area.

0, the tunnel cross-sectional area .

Fi~ure l~ gives the correction fact~rs for the vari-

ous positions of the ground plane. It can be seen that
most of the tunnel interference is due to the ground
plane, especially when the distance from the wing ~o the
ground is short and that, when the ground-plane correction,
0:;, is subtracted from the total tunnel correction (01 +
02), the net correction, eN' is so small as to b~ neg-
ligible.
 16 N . A . C .A. Techn ic al · Note No . 705

REFERENCES

1. Le Sueu r, Mau ric e : Gr ound Effect on the Take-Off and

Land i ng of Ai r planes . T . M. No . 771, N . A . C . A., 1935 .

2. P is toles i, E .: Gr ound Effect - Theo ry and Practice.

T . M. No . 828 , N. A . C .A. , 1 9~7 .

3. Wieselsber~er , C .: Wi ng RAsistance near the Ground .

T . M. No . 77 , N . A .C .A. , 1922.
II
4. Tonn i es , E .: Effect of the Ground on an Airplane Fly-
i n~ Close to It . T . M. No . 674, N . A . C . A ., 1932 .

5. Re id, Ell i ot G.: A Full - Scale Investi~ation of Ground

Effe ct. T . R . No . 265 , N . A . C .A., 1927 .

6. Raymond , Arthur E .: Ground Influence on Aerofoils .

T . N . No . 67, N . A.C.A., 1921.

7. Tan i, It ir o , Taima , Masuo, a.nd Sim idu, Sod.i: The Ef -

fect of Gr ound o n the Aerodynamic Characteristics
of a M0 no p I a neW i n g . Rep 0 r t J o . 15 6" ( v 0 1. X I I I, 2 .),
Ae r o . Res . Inst ., Toky o Im perial Un iv., Sept . 1937 .

8. Tomot i ka , Susumu , Na~am i ya , Takeo, and Takenouti,

Yositada : The Lift on a Flat Plate Placed near a
Pl ane Wall , with Special Reference to the Effect of
the Ground upon the Lift of a Monoplane Aerofoil.
Re po r t No . 97 , ( v o l. VIII, 1.) , Aer o . Res. In s t.,
Tokyo I mpe ri al Un iv. , Aug . 19~3 .

9. Viaud , Lou i s : ~tude en soufflerie des caracteristiques

aerodynamiques de quelques dispos itifs hypersusten -
tateurs p laces au v o isinage du sol . Comptes Rendus :
Tome 206 , No . 25, 20 June 1938, pp . 1 877 - 80 ; and
Tome 207 , No . 1, 4 July 19~8, pp . 37 - 39 .

10 . Se r ebr ij sky , I .: Ground Effect on the Aerodynamical

Cha ract e r ist i cs of an Aeroplane ( in Russ i an) .
Repo rt No . 267 , Central Aero-Hydrodynamical Inst .
(Moscow), 1936 .

11 . Wenzinge r, Carl J ., and Ames, Milton B .: Wind-T unne l

Investi ga tion of Rectang ular and Tapered N . A.C.A .
2~0 1 2 Wings with Plain Ail e rons and Full - Span Split
F l aps . T . N . No . 66 1, N . A . C . A ., 1 938 .
 N .A. C .A. Te chnical No t e No . 705 17

12 . We nzin ge r, Ca rl J ., a nd Ha rris, Tho mas A.: Wind-

Tu nne l Inv e st i ~ation of an N.A.C.A. 230 1 2 Airfoil
w i -t h Vari o us Arr a n gem ents o f Sl o tt e d Fl a ps.
T . R . No. 6 6 4 , N. A . C . A ., 1 939 .

13 . Ha rri s , Th oma s A .: Th e 7 by 1 0 F o ot Wind Tun ne l of

t h e Na ti onal Advi so ry Comm itt ee fo r Ae r o na ut ic s _
T . R . No . 4 1 2 , N . A . C . A ., 1 93 1.

14 . Co wl e y, W. L ., and Loc k , C . N. H.: Cushionin g Eff ect

of Ae r op l anes Cl ose t o t he Gr ou n d. R . & M. No .
75 4 , Briti s h A. R .C., 1 92 1.

15 . Munk , Max M.: Ele men ts o f th e Wing Se cti o n Th eo ry

and o f t he Wi n g Theo r y . T . R . No . 1 9 1, N.A.C.A.,
1 924 .

16. Silv e r s t e i n , Ab e , a n d Wh it e , J ames A .: Wi n d - Tu nne l

Int e r fe r en c e with Pa r t i cu l a r Refe r en c e t o Off -
Cente r Pos i t i o ns of t h e Wi ng and t o th e Do wnwa sh
at t h e Ta il. T . R . No . 547 , N .A. C .A., 1935 .

17. Theod o r se n, Theo d o re : I n t e r fe r en ce o n a n Airf o il o f

F i n i te Span in an Open Re c tang ul a r Wind Tu nne l.
T . R . No . 46 1, N . A . C . A ., 1 933 .
N.A.C A.Technical Note No 705 Figs . l.2.

!
I \
I
8-~
I
I

I
I
I

I I ~1
I--::-b / 2 =30 "=-:J b/2=30"
I
.~-- b 60 '~---------j------..j
z
b=60'
(a) Plain rectangular wing . (a) Plain tapered wing.

( i ,~
: I\ I
I i g s==L~
I 0, i"' U~
----JI ---- ---------------- ~ i
(
---- ----I
I
----------------- 1 '
r::-:--b/2=30" ==J b/2=30"
t<----b=60" ~ b-60"
(b) Rectangular wing with (b) Tapered wing wi.th
0.20cw split flap. 0.2.0c w spli t flap .

IT!--+------
J
J

I -

~
- ~ ~
-=== TI
I
I o ~
....... u
"~t\.l
z-. -==_
i (J co
C
r-i
D ,,
I __ _
______ L
--~-------------
------- ----

b/2-30"~ b/2=30"
I
1<--'- - - b = 60" ----------1----1
(c) Rectangular wing with (c) Tapered wing with
O.2556cw slotted flap. O.2.556cw slotted flap.
Figure 1.- N.A . C.A . 23012 rectan- Figure 2.. - N. A . C. A. 2.3012. tapered
gular wing models. wing mod e 15.
N.A. C.A. Technical Note No. ?O5 J'ig. 3
N .A. C. A. Technical Note No. 705 Figs. 4,5

,
+' 0
c:: ~ ....,
Q)

.....u - .1 "
~
Q)
0
u - .2
+' h/cw h/c w
c: o 0.5
Q) o 0. 5
E - .3 .6. 1. 0 .6. 1. 0
o
E o 2.0 o 2 .0
I
'001.6 <> 3.0 <> 3.0
c + 00 + co
44
..c:
.;:; 1.4
.....
P-. 40
1.2
~ V ~>/\
36
1.0
CL /J ~ CL /, ~~
/ ~ / '~V
32.
.8 /~ ;; V u
~

Vjr 1/ 11 28 ....,-
u
-l
.6
/, ~ /~ . \::

+'
fjJ Val r .~
24 4-4
..IV. .
C
Q) .4 IA ~W 4-<
QJ
r;t (jJ I o
.....u I' 20 u
4-4
4-<

U
Q)
0

+'
4-<

.-l
. 2.

0
J
, ~
/J

)
j'
A'f
~
,
I
16
'00
C'(j

(j t · 12
- .2 // I
fL d.'i/ /; il 08
- .4
W) ~ ';, V k;i II
'I ~~ ~~..--::::i

-.6 ~
""'= o::::iit'
d ~
IP' CD
~ --p ~ ~ CD
04

-4 0 4 8 12 16 -4 0 4 8 12 16 0
Angle of attack , d. , deg. Ang1e of attack, d J deg .
Figure 4. - Rectangular wing". Figure 5. - Tapered wing;
taper ratio, 5: I.
Effect of ground proximity on aerodynamic characteristics of N.A.C.A. 23012
wing.
N.A.C.A . Tech n i c al No te No 705 Figs.G,7

o
I
,, ><<<~ "'. "
o
.....
u
......
~
- 1
-.-
Q)
o ~
u - .2
+'
c +
(\)
E -.3
o
E
I
-.4
tlo
r:
;C 2.0
LV 44
u ~ ~
~ 17 [g '"
0: 1. 8 ~ 40
lb It CL J
1.6
A!I" / 1; A. P
36
CL: ~ ~ ~~
VI
/\ I .,.

1.4 ~ 1/ V v: /
)t:'/;
11 /
32
i ~J / /) V I V u
Cl

.....:j ~ V?
V/ / CD Vj V i/ /; 2.8
u 1.2 +-'-

Vi V /, /-:,y k I
h r; / I~/ r:
.....Q)
~ VI ~ r/ / ~ V CD
V"'"
r:
Q) 1. 0 ./ I I /, (0'
.~
24 .......
~V //) 17
I
... . /~ ~ V ,/ il I
)'
......
.....u Q)
....,
~ .8
td ~ V ,.----
,.----
~
I
I h ~ / ~ V ./~ 20 S
~ ~V ~ ~ ~ /~ V
-)

o V tl.O
u
f7)); 11 ~ v ~ V C\l
~ .6
~~
16 c5
W h/cw h /cw
.4 o 0.5 o 0 .7 12
6. 1. 0 6. 1. 0
I o 2. 0 o 2 .0
.2 o 3.0 o 3.0 08
+ CD + co
o e-~ I
04

-4 - .2
0 4 8 12 16 -4 0 4 8 12. 16 0
Ang l e of att a ck , d , deg. Angle of attack ) d, deg .
Fi gu r e 6 . - Rectan g u1ar wing. Figure 7. - Tape red wing;
taper ratio, 5 : 1.
Effect of ground proximi t y on aerodynamic characteri s tics of N .A .C.A. 23012-
wing with full - span 0.20cw split flap.
N .A . C. A . Techni c al Note No. 705 Figs. 8,9

~
o
u
d
J=
+-' 0
C
Q) -f--

U -.l I
~
Q) f-
o
U - .2 f-- -- - f--- - -
+'
\:
Q) P-= -
V
yO'
~

I
-

E -.3
o
E
H-- 1,..0
~ I
f- f-L - ~
- ._- f -

I --' + +---+1 17 I
'0.0- .4
\:
;: 2.2
I i l? I I
44
~
I
1- J!-j.
H-- f--l
:
U -r
......
I j I I i I 7~
0: 2 . 0 40
!~ ~
b ~ /~~ I
, ,

1.8 H-! +-
---I- + // )..<,.j
CL j
V- -
'P I

I
36

1.6 f---
~JA1/} I J -+
i 32
I I / Jf u
c:::l

l.4 j
CL ) '1' J // W i/ 19 I
28
, ¥
-oJ-

Jf
v:
.I AI /j
V-
I

"
...J \:
~- -
I I· Q)
U
lI'l 1/ ;/;
..; 1.2 I
j y J,rJ j
, 24 . ~
/,'/) . ) I
c '+-<
Q) , I
+-~ ~ _ L -4-
'+-<
QJ

G I. 0 f //vIA Ifl //; +- 20 8

:./ ' Y§ )' I~ )fi/ V V
Q)

8
+'
.8
r
L /y¥
1/J0
)/ ~
I
~ I
i
y/v /v
l.0.~ ./ /1,/
.£
~-.

-+ -
-
16
'0.0
<\l
t;
'--'
--l .6 I~ ~// V h /cw W~ ~v h /cw
0.7 12
,h~ V/C n 0.5
~ ;y-' ~17
0
0
I
.4 ~ VV t:.
o 2.0
1. 0
~ k;; ~ Cn
t:. 1. 0
o 2 .0 08
~ ~ 1
o 3.0 _I-- 0 3. 0 - r - - t - I - -
I + co , I + 00
.2. 04
I I I
I I !
-4
oo 4 8 12 16 - 4 a 4 8 12 l6 0
Angle of atta c k, d., deg . Angle of attack, d., deg.
Figure 8 . - Rectangular wing . figure 9. - Tapered wing;
taper ratio, 5:1 .
Effect of ground proxim it y on aero d y n am i c characteristics of N.A.C.A. 23012
w ing wi th full- span O. 2556cw slotted fl ap.
N.A.C .A. Technical Note No. 705 Fig::; . 10,11

~ 9
I I I

01
I I I
I I I

I
"l"'bo
" c::
I
I I
0 4-<.~
I
I
I Oc.() ~
I to b.o
I
I I "
4-<
~ l-,
p., h
co .~
I I
I I
c.() rO..-; ~
.-<;:J
\ I
~ 'H bo '"d
\ I
I
\ 0. '"d (::
co
.-< +-> (j)
(j)
co Q)
~

\ I
I \\ I '-H +-> u P..
+->Q) co
\ I
I
I
I
I
I
+-> ocr: b
'r-< .--; I
'\
II b.op.,
.--; (/)
I
1\ \ I
c:: U) ~
I
~ \ I I . r< I
I I
~ ~u I

~ \ I uw I
\ I h l()
I +->
. ,...< 0 L!) '+-0(::;
\

\f'\. \ I
I COC\lC\l
.-<
I
I .--;(j) ° (j)

\
, ~ ~ I 0....00 I
I
.c: +->u
(J ......

~~
"Ii 'H (j) 'H
I
I
0 0 <l I ...... 'H
lilo 'H(j)
'0 WO
U
+-> I
co . +->
o C\.l oJ:!:: 0'+-0
.--; .r<

C\.l Q)
l-,
;:::J
tID
. ~

24
+->
'H
./'
.r<
20
r-'
o Rectangular wing p7
E o Tapered wing I
;:J /'
...... c:: 16
~+-'
V
X (j)
co u
E
V
r....
12 V
(::; (j)
p., ./ V'
(j)
Ul 8
/ V
co
(lJ
/ ,/'"
l-,
u 4
V V
OJ
Q 1/ ,/"' /
./
C"'"
o .4 .8 1.2 1.6 2.0 2.4
Free-air maximum lift coefficient, CLmax
Figure 11 . - Effect of free-air maximum lift coefficient on
decrease in maximum lift due to ground effect at
0.7 Cw below wing.
 z
~
(')
y
~
20
.1 I. 1
I I Pl1 t-'j
>< o aln wIng I I I I I I " IC~ c~ <1l

u
.....J
ttl
EllB o 0.20cw sp1i t flap,.6f=600 - I--
D. O. 2556cw slot t ed fl ap, of =40 "-
I

g...... .
~ 16
Rectangular wing ()
0)
...-4 ------Tapered wing ,
2h t-'

~
'-<
14
\" b-,
, .........
r--- I -f- I
~IGiClIG' ~
rI-
<1l
"-
,, G _ ~ c~
'-. I 2h
---i----- _ _ _ ._
~
s 12 -- -- --
I

--J
§
.......
,, - - ~- -- - -- 1--<> 2h o
01
hr X
,
><10 , ---
-S-m+-
-~xS-
---' X - - I
(Ij
s I-- "t:,., ,
, A* 1-_- -c~- - 1- -9-",-A
- --C~-

~
l f
+-' Q I'--- ::::" '-
- -"-- C- C
I I
( h - 2d )
al
0
.......
.....
B
~
~
,
--
r--
r-- r--
r--- ===
r-
- r- -- --
--<
t--

r-
- - - .....
r -<>-
B-*-- --- -C~- -~ _ ~p -C--=--: )- --LB
2h
-------j-- ---
al 6 I
I TG --,
>-..
I-- - -
~ 4
>-..
"0
I - I-- 2h C) TG f CI C~:)
I
-+-'
"-'
....... 2 - ---
y I~ C~J I c~:)
.....J

0 5 1 2 3 4 k -b -->i
Ratio of height of quarter-chord point
to chord, h/cw
I-%j
1-"
Figure 12.- Effect of ground proximity on figure 14 .- Image pattern that satisfies boundary ()'Q
UJ
lift-drag ratios at maximum condition for closed rectangular
lift of N.A.C.A. 23012 wings. tunnel with wing offset from center . I-'
N
I-'
.t.
 ---=------~~------------~~~--------------------------------------------~------------------~------~
~

,.1- - b =1 20'1 ~

II Z
·:x>

Figure 13 .- Effective tunnel

di me nsions and
wall- correction factors for
r
h
h/2

1
42"

1
---,I~
·0
·:x>
·
g,
::s1-'-

l
various positions of ground d o
board. Pl
11 I f-'
~ I S-.- ->r- e = 30. -4 ~ ~~
t- -- -~
----- ~-- --------
--------- ~5z
1 ~
ill
Lh
h
L
~= -.---;- --------- La
4J25
----- --~-----
, ----- CJl
h a

L ,- ___ _ _ 1 5
a
h

---- --- -
L t f,

t'l
(5=
co
II 1
r:a se a (i n . ) h ( in . ) d( i n . ) r=b /h d/b
1 . 65>~
C = bh sic 01 O2 01 +0 2 ~ ~
(1J
co ON sic
<0 +...
b ( sq.i n.)
co ,

1 5
~~ : ~;
47 -- '---
1 8- . 5 0 .1 5 4 0 . 412 ~ J?40 0 .10 6 - 0 . 0 75 O _~ 0 . 301 0 . 298 0 . 0 03 0 . 00032
2 7 49 17 . 5 . 146 . 412 5 , e20 .1 02 -.0 72 . 326 . 2 5 4 . 249 . 005 . 00051
3 10 52 16 2 .31 . 133 . 4 12 6 , 2 50 . 09 6 - . 0 68 . 275 . 2 0 7 .19 9 . 008 . 00077
4 20 62 11 1. 94 . 092 . '±12 7, 450 . 0 86 -. 054 . 192 . 138 .112 . 02 6 . 0022
5 30 72 6 1. 67 . 050 . 4.12 2 , 640 .0 69 -. 042 . 1 55 . 113 . 073 . 0 40 . 0027 ~

I
I i
1-'-
6 42 84 0 1. 43 0 . '±12 10 , 090 . 059 - . 02 8 . 140 ____ 1l2 1 · ~= . OE3 . 0037 I ()Q
- .. __ I . ..

f-'
CN