Prof. Dr. Leonardo Manfriani

Personal profile

Position at the ZHAW

Professor of Aircraft Systems and Aerodynamics, Bachelor Course in Aviation

www.zhaw.ch/zav

Expertise and research interests

Aerodynamic design, Wind tunnel testing, Flight mechanics, Performance, Flight Simulation, Flight testing, Aircraft Certification

Educational background

MSc Aerospace Engineering, 1981, Politecnico di Milano (Italy)
Diploma in Applied Fluid Dynamics, 1981, Von Karman Institute (Belgium)

Professional milestones

Aeritalia/Aermacchi/Embraer AM-X program, EADS Eurofighter program: aerodynamic data analysis
Pilatus PC-12 program: preliminary weight and centre of gravity estimation, aerodynamic design of the wing, flaps and horizontal tail, wind tunnel testing, flight testing and certification (flying qualities and performance)
Pilatus PC-7 MkII and PC-9M programs: aerodynamic improvements, flight testing and certification (flying qualities and performance)
Pilatus PC-21 program: aerodynamic design, wind tunnel testing, flight testing and certification (flying qualities and performance)
Development of a flexible and efficient engineering flight simulator
Pilatus PC-12/47 program (max. take off weight increase): technical program management
Pilcatus PC-24 program: Certification Verification Engineer (CVE)

Membership of networks

• Schweizerische Vereinigung für Flugwissenschaften
• Royal Aeronautical Society
• International Council of the Aeronautical Sciences

Projects

• TwingTec IV: TT1000 Wind Energie Drone Entwicklung / Project leader / Project ongoing
• Pilatus Certification Verification Engineer / Project leader / Project ongoing
• Concept and Feasibility Study of a Power Reserve Calculator for General Aviation / Project leader / Project completed
• TwingTec- Airfoil Optimization / Project leader / Project completed
• Structural Integrity for Ageing Airplanes using Damage Toleramce Analysis / Team member / Project completed
• AGILE Wind Tunnel Testing / Project leader / Project completed
• RECREATE / Project leader / Project completed
• Winglet optimization for the Grob G180 SPn business jet / Project leader / Project completed

Publications

• Liu, Xinying; Abà, Anna; Capone, Pierluigi; Manfriani, Leonardo; Fu, Yongling,

  2022.

  Atmospheric disturbance modelling for a piloted flight simulation study of airplane safety envelope over complex terrain.

  Aerospace.

  9(2), pp. 103.

  Available from: https://doi.org/10.3390/aerospace9020103

• Righi, Marcello; Anderegg, David; Manfriani, Leonardo; Ammann, Michael; Oram, Christian; Yildirim, Anil; Martins, Joaquim R.; Coretti, Oier,

  2022.

  Optimisation of symmetrical aerofoils for a vertical axis wind turbine [paper].

  In:

  AIAA AVIATION 2022 Forum.

  AIAA AVIATION Forum, Chicago, USA, 27 June - 1 July 2022.

  American Institute of Aeronautics and Astronautics.

  Available from: https://doi.org/10.2514/6.2022-3384

• Liu, Xinying; Manfriani, Leonardo; Fu, Yongling,

  2021.

  Concept of a new system synthesizing meteorological and orographic influences on the airplane safe energy envelope [paper].

  In:

  32rd Congress of the International Council of the Aeronautical Sciences, Shanghai, China, 6-10 September 2021.

  Winterthur:

  ZHAW Zürcher Hochschule für Angewandte Wissenschaften.

  Available from: https://doi.org/10.21256/zhaw-23246

• Manfriani, Leonardo; Ammann, Michael; Righi, Marcello,

  2012.

  Experimental aerodynamic analysis of a slow running vertical axis wind turbine [paper].

  In:

  Proceedings of the RAeS Applied Aerodynamics Conference 2012.

  RAeS Applied Aerodynamics Conference, Bristol, United Kingdom, 17-19 July 2012.

• Liu, Xinying; Anet, Julien Gérard; Manfriani, Leonardo; Fu, Yongling,

  2021.

  Real-time flight simulation with highly resolved wind fields from a LES model [poster].

  In:

  EGU General Assembly 2021, Online, 19-30 April 2021.

  European Geosciences Union.

  Available from: https://doi.org/10.5194/egusphere-egu21-2622

• Liu, Xinying; Ferrari, Flavio; Manfriani, Leonardo,

  2018.

  Numerical and experimental investigation of cooling concept for an electric propulsion system for aerobatic aircrafts [paper].

  In:

  ICAS 2018 : congress proceedings, belo horizonte, brazil, september 09-14, 2018.

  31st Congress of the International Council of the Aeronautical Sciences, Belo Horizonte, Brazil, 9-14 September 2018.

  Stockholm:

  ICAS.

  Available from: https://doi.org/10.21256/zhaw-3345

• Manfriani, Leonardo; Righi, Marcello,

  2014.

  Aerodynamic design of a boom for air-to-air refuelling [paper].

  In:

  Proceedings of the RAeS Applied Aerodynamics Conference 2014.

  RAeS Applied Aerodynamics Conference, Bristol, United Kingdom, 22-24 July 2014.

• Manfriani, Leonardo,

  2006.

  Design for spin [paper].

  In:

  ICAS Congress 2006.

  ICAS Congress, Hamburg, Deutschland, September 2006.

• Guillaume, Michel; Manfriani, Leonardo,

  2015.

  Low speed wind tunnel at ZHAW.

  In:

  51th Annual SATA (Subsonic Aerodynamic Testing Association) Meeting, Newport News VA, USA, 7-11 June 2015.

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