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GATE SOLVED PAPER

Aerospace Engineering
2009

Copyright © By NODIA & COMPANY

Information contained in this book has been obtained by authors, from sources believes to be reliable. However,
neither Nodia nor its authors guarantee the accuracy or completeness of any information herein, and Nodia nor its
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 GATE SOLVED PAPER - AE
2009

Q.1 - Q.20 Carry one mark each.

Q. 1 For a flow through a Prandtl-Meyer expansion wave
(A) Mach number stays constant (B) Entropy stays constant
(C) Temperature stays constant (D) Density stays constant

Q. 2 For two-dimensional irrotational and incompressible flows

(A) Both potential and stream functions satisfy the Laplace equation
(B) Potential function must satisfy the Laplace equation but the stream function

i n
need not

need not
o.
(C) Stream function must satisfy the Laplace equation but the potential function

. c
(D) Neither the stream function nor the potential function need to satisfy the

a
Laplace equation

Q. 3

d i
A trailing edge plain flap deflected downward increases the lift coefficient of an

o
airfoil by

.n
(A) Increasing the effective camber of the airfoil
(B) Delaying the separation of the flow from the airfoil surface

w
(C) Increasing the local airspeed near the trailing edge

w
(D) Controlling the growth of the boundary layer thickness along the airfoil

w
surface

Thin airfoil theory predicts that the lift slope is dci = 2p for

©
Q. 4
da
(A) Symmetric airfoils only (B) Cambered airfoils only
(C) Any airfoil shape (D) Joukowski airfoils only

d2 y
Q. 5 The ordinary differential equation + ky = 0 where k is real and positive
dx2
(A) is non-linear
(B) has a characteristic equation with one real and one complex root
(C) has a characteristic equation with two real roots
(D) has a complementary function that is simple harmonic

Q. 6 A non-trivial solution to the (n # n) system of equations [A] {x} = {0}, where {0}
is the null vector
(A) can never be found
(B) may be found only if [A] is not singular
(C) may be found only if [A] is an orthogonal matrix
(D) may be found only if [A] has at least one elgenvalue equal to zero
GATE SOLVED PAPER - AE 2009

Q. 7 For a plane strain problem, the stresses satisfy the condition

(A) t xz = t yz = s z = 0
(B) t xz = t yz = 0 , s z = v (s x + s y)
(C) t xz = t yz = 0 , s z = vt xy
(D) t xz = t yz = 0 , s z = v (s x + s y) + (1 - v) t xy

Q. 8 The propulsive efficiency of a turbo-jet engine moving at velocity U3 and having

exhaust velocity Ue with respect to the engine is given by
(A) 2 (B) 1 - U3
U3 /Ue + 1 Ue

(C) 22U3 Ue2 (D) 2U3

Ue + U 3 Ue + U3
Q. 9 An aircraft is flying at M = 2 where the ambient temperature around the aircraft
is 250 K. If the specific heat ratio for air g = 1.4 , the stagnation temperature on

in
the surface of the aircraft is
(A) 200 K (B) 450 K
.
co
(C) 350 K (D) 1450 K

Q. 10

a .
The division of feed air to an aircraft gas-turbine combustor into primary and

i
secondary streams serves which of the following purposes?

d
P. a flammable mixture can be formed

o
Q. cooling of combustor liner and flame tube can be accomplished

n
.
R. specific fuel consumption can be reduced

w
(A) P and R (B) Q and R
(C) P and Q (D) P, Q and R

w
w
Q. 11 Classify the following propellants as: cryogenic (C), semi-cryogenic (SC),
compressed gas (CG) and earth storable (ES)

©
N2O4-UDMH (nitrogen tetra oxide and unsymmetrical di-methyl hydrazine)
LOX-RP1 (liquid oxygen and kerosene)
LOX-LH2 (liquid oxygen and liquid hydrogen)
N2 (nitrogen gas)
(A) N2O4-UDMH (ES), LOX-RP1 (C), LOX-LH2 (C), N2 (C)
(B) N2O4-UDMH (SC), LOX-RP1 (SC), LOX-LH2 (C), N2 (C)
(C) N2O4-UDMH (ES), LOX-RP1 (SC), LOX-LH2 (C), N2 (CG)
(D) N2O4-UDMH (ES), LOX-RP1 (C), LOX-LH2 (C), N2 (CG)

Q. 12 A conventional altimeter is a
(A) Pressure transducer (B) Temperature transducer
(C) Density transducer (D) Velocity transducer

Q. 13 The relation between an airplane’s true airspeed VTAS and equivalent airspeed
VEAS in terms of the density ratio ^s = rr h, where r 0 is the air density at sea-level
0

and r is the air density at the altitude at which the airplane is flying, is given by
the formula:
(A) VEAS = s (B) VEAS = s2
VTAS VTAS

(C) VEAS = s (D) VEAS = 1

VTAS VTAS s
GATE SOLVED PAPER - AE 2009

Q. 14 An unswept fixed-winged aircraft has a large roll stability if the wing is placed
(A) low on the fuselage and has negative dihedral angle
(B) low on the fuselage and has positive dihedral angle
(C) high on the fuselage and has negative dihedral angle
(D) high on the fuselage and has positive dihedral angle

Q. 15 Thrust available from a turbojet engine

(A) increases as altitude increases
(B) increases up to the tropopause and then decreases
(C) remains constant at all altitudes
(D) decreases as altitude increases

Q. 16 If CmCG is the pitching moment coefficient about the center of gravity of an aircraft,
dCm
and a is the angle of attack, then CG
is
da
(A) a stability derivative which represents stiffness in pitch

in
(B) a stability derivative which represents damping in pitch

.
(C) a control derivative in pitch

co
(D) positive for an aircraft that is stable in pitch

.
The life of a geo-stationary communications satellite is limited by
Q. 17

i a
(A) the working life of the on-board electronic circuitry

d
(B) the time it takes for its orbit to decay due to atmospheric drag

o
(C) the quantity of on-board fuel available for station-keeping

.n
(D) the number of meteorite impacts that the satellite structure can withstand
before breaking up

w
For a critically damped single degree of freedom spring-mass-damper system with

w
Q. 18

a damping constant c of 4 Ns/m and spring constant k of 16 N/m, the system

w
mass m is
(A) 0.5 kg

©
(B) 0.25 kg
(C) 2 kg
(D) 4 kg

Q. 19 In a thin walled rectangular tube subjected to equal and opposite forces P as

shown in the figure, the shear stress along leg AB is

(A) zero
(B) constant non-zero
(C) varies linearly
(D) varies parabolically
GATE SOLVED PAPER - AE 2009

Q. 20 For the thin walled beam cross section as shown in the figure, the shear centre
lies at

(A) Mid point of AB , i.e. at point E

(B) Mid point of BD , i.e. at point F
(C) Junction point B
(D) at a point G lying within the area ABC

. in
co
Q.21 - Q.60 Carry two marks each.

.
Q. 21 Let M 0 be the total mass of a single stage rocket, MP be the total mass of

a
propellant, ML be the mass of payload carried by the rocket and MS be the mass

i
of inert structural components. If Isp is the specific impulse of the propulsion

d
system (in seconds) and g is the acceleration due to gravity, then the maximum

o
velocity that can be attained by the rocket vehicle in the absence of gravity and

. n
atmospheric drug is given by
M0 M0
(A) gIsp ln b M l (B) gIsp ln b M + M - 1l

w
P L S

w
M0 M0
(C) gIsp ln b M l (D) gIsp ln b M - M l

w
S 0 P

Q. 22 An ideal axial compressor is driven by an ideal turbine across which the total

©
temperature ratio is 0.667. If the total temperature at turbine inlet is T0 = 1500 K
and specific heat of gas c p = 1 kJ/kg/K, the power drawn by the compressor per
unit mass flow rate of air is approximately
(A) 300 kW/kg/s (B) 1000 kW/kg/s
(C) 600 kW/kg/s (D) 500 kW/kg/s

Q. 23 The performance of a solid rocket motor is improved by replacing the old propellant
with a new one. The new propellant gives a combustion temperature 40% higher
than the previous propellant without appreciable change in molecular weight of
combustion products and other operating parameters. By approximately what
percentage is the specific impulse of the new motor higher than the old one?
(A) 18% (B) 96%
(C) 42% (D) 112%

Q. 24 A solid rocket motor has an end burning grain of cross-sectional area ACS = 0.4 m2
. The density of propellant is r p = 1500 kg/m3 and has linear regression rate
ro = 5 mm/s. If the specific impulse of the propulsion system is Isp = 200 seconds,
the thrust produced by the motor is approximately
(A) 3 kN (B) 6 kN
(C) 1.5 kN (D) 12 kN
GATE SOLVED PAPER - AE 2009

Q. 25 An ideal ramjet is flying at an altitude of 10 km with a velocity of 1 km/s. The

ambient pressure is 0.25 bar and temperature is 225 K. The exhaust gases from
the engine are optimally expanded and leave the nozzle at 900 K. If the specific
heat ratio (g ) remains constant, the specific thrust developed by the engine is
approximately
(A) 1000 N-s/kg
(B) 2000 N-s/kg
(C) 500 N-s/kg
(D) 4000 N-s/kg

Q. 26 A combat aircraft engine is equipped with an afterburner followed by a variable

area convergent nozzle (operating with the nozzle choked). The exhaust gas
temperature is 750 K when afterburner is off and 3000 K when it is on. When the
afterburner is turned on, (assuming the total pressure remains the same, the mass
of fuel added in the afterburner is negligible i.e., the mass flow rate remains the
same, and the specific heat ratio (g ) remains constant) approximately by what

in
factor must the nozzle area be changed?

.
(A) 0.5 (B) 4

co
(C) 1 (D) 2

.
Q. 27 An airplane flying at 100 m/s is pitching at the rate of 0.2 deg/s. Due to this

a
pitching, the horizontal tail surface located 4 metres behind the centre-of-mass of

(A) 0.01 deg

d i
the airplane will experience a change in angle of attack, which as

(B) 0.008 deg

o
.n
(C) 0.04 deg

w
(D) 0.004 deg

w
Q. 28 The contribution of the horizontal tail to the pitching moment coefficient about

w
the center of gravity (CmCG ) of an aircraft is given by Cmtail = 0.2 - 0.0215 a , where
a is the angle of attack of the aircraft. The contribution of the tail to the aircraft

©
longitudinal stability
(A) is stabilizing
(B) is destabilizing
(C) is nil
(D) cannot be determined from the given information

Q. 29 The linearized dynamics of an aircraft (which has no large rotating components)

in straight and level flight is governed by the equations
dxv = >(A) (B)H xv
dt (C) (D)
where xv = [u w q q v p r f]T , [ ]T represents the transpose of a matrix, [A],
[B], [C] and [D] are 4 # 4 matrices and [0] is the 4 # 4 null matrix. Which of the
following is true?
(A) [A] ! [0]; [B] ! [0]; [C] = [0]; [D] ! [0]
(B) [A] = [0]; [B] ! [0]; [C] ! [0]; [D] = [0]
(C) [A] ! [0]; [B] = [0]; [C] = [0]; [D] ! [0]
(D) [A] ! [0]; [B] = [0]; [C] ! [0]; [D] = [0]
GATE SOLVED PAPER - AE 2009

Ru V
S W
Q. 30 The velocity vector of an aircraft along its body-fixed axis is given by Vv = Sv W.
SSwWW
T X
If V is the magnitude of Vv , a is the angle of attack and b is the angle of sideslip,
which of the following set of relations is correct?
(A) u = V sin b cos a ; v = V sin b ; w = V cos b sin a
(B) u = V cos b cos a ; v = V cos b ; w = V cos b sin a
(C) u = V cos b cos a ; v = V sin b ; w = V sin b sin a
(D) u = V cos b cos a ; v = V sin b ; w = V cos b sin a

Q. 31 An aircraft of mass 2500 kg in straight and level flight at a constant speed of 100
m/s has available excess power of 1.0 # 106 W. The steady rate of climb it can
attain at that speed is

in
(A) 100 m/s (B) 60 m/s

.
(C) 40 m/s (D) 20 m/s

co
Q. 32 The acceleration due to gravity on the surface of Mars is 0.385 times that on

.
earth, and the diameter of Mars is 0.532 times that of earth. The ratio of the

a
i
escape velocity from the surface of Mars to the escape velocity from the surface

d
of earth is approximately

o
(A) 0.453 (B) 0.205

n
(C) 0.851 (D) 0.724

.
w
Q. 33 Which of the following statements are true for flow across a stationary normal
shock?

w
P. Stagnation temperature stays constant.

w
Q. Stagnation pressure decreases.
R. Entropy increases.
S.
T.© Stagnation pressure increases
Stagnation temperature increases
(A) P, Q, R (B) Q, R, S
(C) R, S, T (D) S, T, P

Q. 34 A model airfoil in a wind tunnel that is operating at 50 m/s develops a minimum

pressure coefficient of - 6.29 at some point on its upper surface. The local airspeed
at that point is
(A) 50 m/s (B) 125 m/s
(C) 135 m/s (D) 150 m/s

Q. 35 A symmetrical airfoil section produces a lift coefficient of 0.53 at an angle of

attack of 5 degrees measured from its chord line. An untwisted wing of elliptical
planform and aspect ratio 6 is made of this airfoil. At an angle of attack of 5
degrees relative to its chordal plane, this wing would produce a lift coefficient of
(A) 0.53
(B) 0.48
(C) 0.40
(D) 0.36
GATE SOLVED PAPER - AE 2009

Q. 36 Consider an ideal flow of density r through a variable area duct as shown in the
figure below:

Let the cross-sectional areas at sections (1) and (2) be A1 and A2 respectively.
The velocity measured at section (1) using a Pitot static probe is V1 . Then the
static pressure drop p2 - p1 is
A 12 A 12
(A) - 1 r c1 - 2 m V 12 (B) 1 r c1 - 2 m V 12
2 A2 2 A2
A 12 A 12
(C) 1 r c1 + 2 m V 12 (D) - 1 r c1 + 2 m V 12

in
2 A2 2 A2

.
Q. 37 Two vortices of the same strength and sign are placed a distance d apart as

co
shown below. Assume that the vortices are free to move and the fluid is ideal.

a .
d i
o
.n
Which of the following statements is true?
(A) Vortices 1 and 2 spiral in wards with an initial angular speed G 2 to finally
2pd

w
merge and form one vortex of twice the strength
(B) Vortices 1 and 2 spiral inwards with an initial angular speed G 2 to finally
w
merge and form one vortex of twice the strength
pd

w
(C) Vortices 1 and 2 perpetually revolve about the midpoint P with radius of

©
revolution d and angular speed G 2
2 2pd
(D) Vortices 1 and 2 perpetually revolve about the midpoint P with radius of
revolution d and angular speed G 2
2 pd
Q. 38 The laminar boundary over a large flat plate held parallel to the flow is 7.2 mm
thick at a point 0.33 m downstream of the leading edge. If the free stream speed
is increased by 50%, then the new boundary layer thickness at this location will
be approximately
(A) 10.8 mm (B) 8.8 mm
(C) 5.9 mm (D) 4.8 mm

Q. 39 Consider a simply supported beam of length 2L with an overhang of length L,

loaded by an end moment M , as shown below.

The bending moment distribution for this beam is

GATE SOLVED PAPER - AE 2009

Q. 40 For the spring-mass system shown below, the natural frequencies are

in
k (m1 + m2) k (m1 + m2)
(A) 0 and (B) 0 and

.
m1 m 2 2m1 m2

co
(C) 0 and k (D) 0 and k
(m1 + m2) 2 (m1 + m2)
Q. 41

a .
The buckling load for a simply supported column of rectangular cross section of

i
dimensions 1 # 1.5 cm and length 0.5 m made of steel (E = 210 # 109 N/m2) is

d
approximately

o
(A) 10 kN (B) 4 kN

n
(C) 23 kN (D) 46 kN

.
w
Q. 42 A wing root cross section is idealized using lumped areas (booms) as shown below,

w
w
©
The wing root bending moment in steady level flight is My = 10 N-m. If the
airplane flies at a load factor n = 3.5 , the maximum bending stress at the root is
(A) 1 # 106 N/m2 (B) 3.5 # 106 N/m2
(C) 7 # 106 N/m2 (D) 0.286 # 106 N/m2

Q. 43 A uniform rigid bar of mass m = 1 kg and length L = 1 m is pivoted at A. It is

supported by a spring of stiffness k = 1 N/m and a viscous damper of damping
constant C = 1 N-s/m, with a = 13 m as shown below. The moment of inertia of
2
the rigid bar is, IA = mL
3
GATE SOLVED PAPER - AE 2009

The system is
(A) overdamped
(B) underdamped with natural frequency, w n = 1 rad/s
(C) critically damped
(D) underdamped with natural frequency w n = 2 rad/s

Q. 44 A 2-celled tube with wall thickness 0.5 mm is subjected to a torque of 10 N-m.

The resulting shear flows in the two cells are q1 and q2 as shown below.

in
The torque balance equation (Bredt-Batho formula) for this section leads to

.
(A) q1 - q2 = 2000 N/m (B) q1 + 2q2 = 2000 N/m

co
(C) q1 + q2 = 2000 N/m (D) 2q1 + q2 = 2000 N/m

.
p dx
The value of the integral # evaluated using the trapezoidal rule

a
Q. 45
1 + x + sin x

i
0
with two equal intervals is approximately
(A) 1.27
(C) 1.41
o d (B) 1.81
(D) 0.71

.n
R V
S2 1 1W
Q. 46

w
The product of the eigenvalues of the matrix S1 3 1W is
SS W

w
1 1 4W
T X

w
(A) 20 (B) 24
(C) 9 (D) 17

Q. 47
©
In the interval 1 # x # 2 , the function f (x) = e px + sin px is
(A) maximum at x = 1 (B) maximum at x = 2
(C) maximum at x = 1.5 (D) monotonically decreasing
(s + 1)
Q. 48 The inverse Laplace transform of F (s) = is
(s + 4) (s - 3)

(A) 3 e 4t + 4 e-3t (B) 3 e-4t + 4 e3t

7 7 7 7

(C) 5 e-4t + 6 e3t (D) 5 e 4t + 6 e-3t

7 7 7 7

1 2 3
Q. 49 The linear system of equations Ax = b , where A = > H and b = * 4 has
2 4 3
(A) no solution (B) infinitely many solutions
1 0.5
(C) a unique solution x = * 4 (D) a unique solution x = * 4
1 0.5
GATE SOLVED PAPER - AE 2009

Q. 50 The correct iterative scheme for finding the square root of a positive real number
R using the Newton Raphson method is
(A) xn + 1 = R (B) xn + 1 = 1 c xn + R m
2 xn
(C) xn + 1 = 1 _ xn + xn - 1 i (D) xn + 1 = 1 ^ R + xn h
2 2

Common Data Questions

Common Data For Questions. 51 and 52:

The roots of the characteristic equation for the longitudinal dynamics of a certain aircraft
are:

in
l 1 =- 0.02 + 0.2i ; l 2 =- 0.02 - 0.2i ; l 3 =- 2.5 + 2.6i ; l 4 =- 2.5 - 2.6i , where i = - 1 .

.
Q. 51 The pair of eigenvalues that represent the phugoid mode is

co
(A) l 1 and l 3 (B) l 2 and l 4

.
(C) l 3 and l 4 (D) l 1 and l 2

i a
Q. 52 The short period damped frequency is

od
(A) 2.6 rad/s (B) 0.2 rad/s
(C) 2.5 rad/s (D) 0.02 rad/s

.n
w
Common Data For Questions. 53 and 54:
v = (y3 + z3) it + (x3 + z3) tj + (x3 + y3) kt defined over the unit

w
Consider the vector field A
2 2 2
sphere x + y + z = 1.
Q. 53
w v normal
The surface integral (taken over the unit sphere) of the component of A

©
to the surface is
(A) p (B) 1
(C) 0 (D) 4p

Q. 54 v normal to the spherical surface at the

The magnitude of the component of A
point _ 3 , 3 , 3 i is
1 1 1

(A) 1 (B) 2
3 3
(C) 3 (D) 4
3 3

Common Data For Questions. 55 and 56:

The partial differential equation for the torsional vibration of a shaft of length L, torsional
2 2
rigidity GJ , and mass polar moment of inertia per unit length I , is I 2 q2 = GJ 2 q2 , where
2t 2x
q is the twist.
Q. 55 If the shaft is fixed at both ends, the boundary conditions are:
(A) 2q = 0 and 2q =0 (B) q (0) = 0 and q (L) = 0
2x x = 0 2x x = L

(C) 2q = 0 and q (L) = 0 (D) q (0) = 0 and 2q =0

2x x=0 2x x=L
GATE SOLVED PAPER - AE 2009

Q. 56 If the n th mode shape of torsional vibration of the above shaft is sin a npx k then
L
the n th natural frequency of vibration, i.e., w n , is given by
^2n + 1h p GJ
(A) w n = np GJ (B) w n =
L I 2L I
^2n + 1h p GJ
(C) w n = np GJ (D) w n =
2L I L I

Linked Answer Questions

Statement For Linked Answer Q.57 and 58:

Air enters the combustor of a gas-turbine engine at a total temperature T0 of 500 K. The
air stream is split into two parts: primary and secondary streams. The primary stream
reacts with fuel supplied at a fuel-air ratio of 0.05. The resulting combustion products are
then mixed with the secondary air stream to obtain gas with total temperature of 1550 K
at the turbine inlet. The fuel has a heating value of 42 MJ/kg. The specific heats of air

in
and combustion products are taken as c p = 1 kJ/kg/K.

.
co
Q. 57 If the sensible enthalpy of fuel is neglected, the temperature of combustion
products from the reaction of primary air stream with fuel is approximately
(A) 2100 K

a .(B) 3200 K

i
(C) 2600 K (D) 1800 K

Q. 58

o d
The approximate ratio of mass flow rates of the primary air stream to the
secondary air stream required to achieve the turbine inlet total temperature of

.n
1550 K is

w
(A) 2:1 (B) 1:2
(C) 1:1.5 (D) 1:1

w
w
Statement For Linked Answer Q.59 and 60:

©
A piston compresses 1 kg of air inside a cylinder as shown

The rate at which the piston does work on the air is 3000 W. At the same time, heat is
being lost through the walls of the cylinder at a rate of 847.5 W.
Q. 59 After 10 seconds, the change in specific internal energy of the air is
(A) 21525 J/kg (B) - 21525 J/kg
(C) 30000 J/kg (D) - 8475 J/kg

Q. 60 Given that the specific heats of air at constant pressure and volume are c p = 1004.5
J/kg-K and cv = 717.5 J/kg-K respectively, the corresponding change in the
temperature of the air is
(A) 21.4 K (B) - 21.4 K
(C) 30 K (D) - 30 K
END OF THE QUESTION PAPER