How accurate is ADS CFD? Checked against NASA reference solutions and wind-tunnel data
We compared the fully turbulent CFD mode of Aero Design Studio with three NASA reference codes and with seven airfoils measured in wind tunnels. Here is where it agrees, where it does not, and why. The full technical note, ADS-TN-01, is attached.
A CFD result is easy to produce and hard to trust. Before you rely on the numbers from our CFD tool, two questions need an answer. Does the tool solve its equations correctly? And how close do those equations come to what a wind tunnel measures?
This post is the short version of our answer. The long version is the technical note ADS-TN-01, attached at the end, with every table, every figure and every source. We wrote down what agrees and what does not, because a number is only useful when you know how far to trust it.