Viscous drag reduction using riblets on a swept wing

The use of 3M riblets on reducing viscous drag on a swept wing with a general aviation wing airfoil section at low speeds has been assessed. The surface-pressure distributions, total drag, mean velocity, turbulence intensity and Reynold shear-stress profiles were measured at a chord Reynolds number of 0.75 X 10 raised to the 6th power, at an incidence range of 0 to 6 deg. Results indicate maximum and total viscous drag reductions of 6 and 8%, respectively, at zero incidence. These results are comparable to those obtained on two-dimensional flat plates and airfoils.