Anil Jairam uses new technology to increase lift of laminar wings
Even as a child, Anil Jairam had aerospace engineering in his sights. He was always fascinated by flight and enjoyed playing with toy airplanes. Now, he’s focusing his attention on advancing the design of aircraft wings.
Jairam attended Bartlett High School, Academy of Science, Engineering and Technology. His next stop was Iowa State, where he earned his bachelor’s degree and is currently working on a master’s in aerospace engineering.
As an undergrad, Jairam began research at the Wind Simulation and Testing Lab, working with graduate students focusing on improving the lift of laminar airfoils. His curiosity, coupled with a little encouragement from his boss, led him to apply for graduate school.
Jairam is still working in the Howe Hall lab, further pursuing his research done as an undergraduate student. Commercial aircraft use flaps and slats to increase lift during takeoff. These large mechanical control surfaces create gaps across the wing, producing a significant amount of drag at cruise condition, or the point in flight when the plane is not climbing, descending or turning.
Jairam’s research would eliminate mechanical flats and slats, leading to more fuel-efficient flights and ultimately lower overall operating costs.
He says Iowa State has always felt like home. Jairam has enjoyed meeting diverse groups of people and appreciates that Iowa State is, “a mix of many backgrounds.”
He also appreciates the professors in the College of Engineering and the opportunity to use different technologies. “We get to do a lot of neat experiments with the wind tunnels and simulators. My favorite is the tornado simulator because you can literally sit in a tornado of packing peanuts or dry-ice fog.”
After receiving his master’s, Jairam plans to apply his research in the defense industry hoping that it will help improve the performance of military aircraft. “Military airplanes were always the coolest because of their agility and sleek design.”