A direct boundary integral equations method to subsonic flow with circulation past thin airfoils in ground effect (Q1913233)

A direct method for solving the problem of subsonic flow past a lifting or non-lifting airfoil taking into account the ground effects is presented. The problem is formulated in terms of velocity and it does not make use of the potential or the stream function. The nonlinear boundary condition is used. In this way, the solution is exact in the incompressible case for any shape of the airfoil (not necessarily thin). For the compressible case, we use linear equations of motion and the solution will be valid for thin airfoils. A set of Green functions that satisfy the boundary condition on the ground are deduced, and an integral equation for the airfoil only is constructed. We solve the integral equation by means of a collocation method.