During flutter, the airfoil oscillates with a large amplitude, which generates vortices at the wake. In vortex induced vibration (VIV) the oscillations of the airfoil are caused by the shedding of vortices. Both flutter and VIV have airfoil oscillations and vortex shedding. How are they different other than the cause and effect relation? And also how to distinguish which one is the cause and which one is the effect for a case where we don't know beforehand whether it is flutter or VIV?
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1$\begingroup$ You mean beyond the inverted cause and effect you lined out in your question? $\endgroup$– AEhere supports MonicaCommented Apr 17, 2019 at 6:46
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1$\begingroup$ @ AEhere Yes. Is there any other reason than the cause and effect relation? And also how to distinguish which one is the cause and which one is the effect? $\endgroup$– UpidCommented Apr 17, 2019 at 7:15
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1$\begingroup$ Maybe add that bit about distinguishing cause and effect into the question then :) I hope somebody more versed in flutter can help, but from what I recall the answer is along the lines of vortex shedding being what stabilizes the flutter limit cycle oscillations (without the shed vortex the amplitude would diverge). Good question! $\endgroup$– AEhere supports MonicaCommented Apr 17, 2019 at 7:25
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$\begingroup$ @AEhere Thanks for the suggestion. I have updated the question. $\endgroup$– UpidCommented Apr 17, 2019 at 7:32
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1$\begingroup$ I would say that VIV is induced vibrations caused by shed vortices, usually in a control surface,whose energy is totally absorbed and damped by the stiffness of the primary wing or tail structure to which it's connected. It becomes flutter when the stiffness of the root structure is low so that the vibrating surface is able to displace it in torsion, so that it stores and returns energy, AND the harmonics of the two components align so that they magnify each other. One is just vibrations,"buzz" in other words, and the other induces oscillations in the entire structure that make it come apart. $\endgroup$– John KCommented Apr 17, 2019 at 13:40
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1 Answer
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Flutter and vortex induced vibrations (VIV) are both dynamic instabilities arising from the interaction of unsteady aerodynamic, inertial and elastic forces. They both extract energy from the air stream to persist.
Instead of perceiving the interaction as aerodynamic forces causing structural motion or structural motion generating aerodynamic forces, it is more meaningful (and realistic) to describe it as a coupling, e.g., typically described as coupled differential equations, and observing the differences in how the aerodynamic forces are generated and its components.
For VIV, the wake instability that generates the alternating shed vortices (von Karman vortex street) in turn generates an oscillatory lift coupled with the structural oscillation. So, the wake instability and unsteady effects of flow separation dominate the oscillatory aerodynamic forces.
Flutter does not have to describe a dynamic instability associated with a fluctuating wake, e.g., panel flutter is the dynamic interaction and instability arising out of the out-of-plane motion of an aircraft panel in relation to surface fluctuating pressures. However, stall flutter does arise from flow separation and its resulting unsteady wake.
Wing flutter is the dynamical instability arising from the unsteady aerodynamic forces (including the shape of unsteady wake) coupled with the structural dynamics, however wing flutter does not require massive oscillatory flow separation as with VIV. For attached flows (unstalled), wing flutter could exhibit flutter (at a high enough freestream velocity, i.e., flutter speed) due to the resultant phase difference between the generated aerodynamic forces and structural oscillation creating a positive feedback. The time-varying shape of the wake still plays a role for wing flutter, e.g., the role of the Theodorsen function for unsteady aerodynamic lift generated by structural motion.
