Experimental investigation of side force control on cone-cylinder slender bodies with flexible micro balloon actuators

Side forces on slender bodies of revolution at medium to high angles of attack (AOA > 30°) has been known from a large number of investigations. Asymmetric vortex pairs over a slender body are believed to be the principle cause of the side forces. Under some flight conditions, this side force may be as large as the normal force acting on the slender body. In this paper, experimental results are presented for side force control on a cone-cylinder slender body by using microfabricated balloon actuators. The micro balloon actuators are made of polydimethylsiloxane (PDMS) elastomer by using micro molding techniques. They can be packaged on curve surfaces of a cone-cylinder slender body. As actuator is actuated, the micro balloon actuator inflates about 1.2 mm vertically, which is about 2.4% of the cylinder diameter D (=50 mm) of the cone-cylinder slender body. Micro balloon actuators are actuated at different roll angles of a cone-cylinder slender body. Aerodynamic force measurement results indicate the effects of micro balloon actuators vary at different actuation locations on the cone-cylinder slender body. The side forces can be significantly reduced if the actuators are actuated in the weak vortex side (the side corresponding to the asymmetric vortex which is far from the surface) and actuation angles are located at about 50–60° (the actuation angle here is measured from stagnation line of the incidence plane toward weak vortex side direction). Significant changes are noticed from the surface pressure, as well as leeside vortex flow field, measurement. Micro balloon actuators change nose shapes of the slender body which decide adverse-pressure-gradient values and directly influence the origin of the separation lines and characteristics of the separated vortices over the leeside surface.     

Numerical analysis of heat transfer on the surface of a delta wing in a hypersonic air flow at large angles of attack

The heat transfer on a delta wing with blunt edges and various catalytic surface properties in a hypersonic air flow at 40 ° and 60 ° angles of attack has been investigated by a numerical flow model for a viscous reacting gas in the shock layer near the windward side of blunt elongated bodies.Translated from Izvestiya Akademii Nauk SSSR, Mekhanika Zhidkosti i Gaza, No. 5, pp. 196–199, September–October, 1984.     

Numerical computation of turbulent flow through a square-sectioned 90° bend

Finite-volume, semi-elliptic computations are reported of the three-dimensional flow around a 90° square-sectioned bend for which detailed laser-Doppler measurements have been reported by Taylor et al.¹ While the standard k- eddy-viscosity model has been used in the main flow region, in place of the usual “wall functiond”, the mixing-length hypothesis has been employed to resolve the flow in the layer immediately adjacent to the wall. The scheme is successful in predicting the details of the primary and secondary flow fields both within the bend and downstream thereof.     

Sail aerodynamics: Understanding pressure distributions on upwind sails

The pressure distributions on upwind sails is discussed and related to the flow field around the headsail and the mast/mainsail. Pressures measured on several horizontal sections of model-scale and full-scale sails are used to provide examples. On the leeward side of the sails, leading edge separation and turbulent reattachment occurs, sometimes followed by trailing edge separation. On the windward side, leading edge separation occurs on the mast/mainsail and, at low angles of attack, it can also occur on the headsail. Differences were found between the leading edge bubbles on the two sails. Pressure trends for different angles of attack are presented, and these can be explained in terms of standard aerodynamic theory, particularly in terms of short and long leading edge separation bubble types. It was found that the pressure distributions measured on mainsails at full- and model-scale showed good agreement on both the windward and leeward sides.     

Supersonic flow past circular cones at large angles of attack

Flow past sharp-nosed circular cones is investigated for a broad range of freestream Mach numbers M>1 and cone half-angles _c at angles of attack from zero to the value at which conical flow breaks down. Several new results are obtained with regard to the position of the Ferri point, the shape of the local supersonic zones and internal shock wave, and the nonmonotonicity of the windward shock slope as a function of the angle of attack. The existence of flow regimes in which the radial velocity on the windward side is directed toward the apex of the cone is demonstrated. The investigation is carried out numerically with relaxation of the solution in a fictitious time coordinate.Translated from Izvestiya Akademii Nauk SSSR, Mekhanika Zhidkosti i Gaza, No, 6, pp. 79–84, November–December, 1973.     

TURBULENT ELLIPTIC WAKES

This paper describes results of an experimental study on turbulent wake of an elliptic disk set normal to the main flow, whose major diameter is 2·0 or 3·0 minor diameters, Reynolds number being 2·0×10⁴on the basis of the minor diameter D. Two periodic components of velocity fluctuations were found in the wake. One is centred around the minor plane, being due to the alternate shedding of rolled-up, hairpin-like vortices. The other is centred around the major plane, which is likely to be due to a meandering motion of the wake. The axis switching, which is a cross-over of half-widths in the major and minor planes plotted against the streamwise distance, occurred at approximately 4·0 D downstream of the disk. The mechanism of the axis switching is different from that in elliptic jets, and it is proposed that it is due to a difference in the growth rate of the fundamental Fourier modes in the minor and major planes. The structure of the wake is studied by flow visualization and a survey of the time-mean velocity, turbulence intensities and Reynolds shear stresses. Wavelet analysis of the velocity fluctuations disclosed a low-frequency unsteadiness in the wake. This unsteadiness has different representative frequencies in the major and minor planes, being approximately one-fifth of the frequency of the corresponding periodic component in both planes.     

Measurements of mean and fluctuating wall shear stress beneath spanwise-invariant separation bubbles

 Pulsed-wire measurements of wall shear stress have been made beneath two separation bubbles. In one a cross flow was generated by means of a (25°) swept separation line. Fluctuating stresses in orthogonal “streamwise” and cross-flow directions are very nearly equal and independent of at least moderate cross flow velocity. These fluctuations are largely determined by large-scale motions in the outer flow, whereas the mean shear stresses are not. The pdf of the “streamwise” fluctuations is unchanged by the cross flow. When a cross flow is present the pdf of the cross-flow stresses is similar to the “streamwise” pdf. Dependence on Reynolds number is the same in both flows. Received: 10 April 1998/Accepted: 17 July 1998     

Manipulation of the reverse-flow region downstream of a fence by spanwise vortices

The experimental investigation of a turbulent separated flow over a fence is presented. By introducing a periodic disturbance upstream of the separation region in front of the fence, the time averaged length of the separation region downstream of the fence was reduced by as much as 40%. Two types of flow manipulation were applied: an oscillating cross-flow with zero net mass-flux through a spanwise slot in the floor of the test section and a spanwise oriented, oscillating spoiler. The cross-flow was generated by a loudspeaker system connected to a chamber underneath the spanwise slot. Both types of flow manipulation generate spanwise vortices at the fence that convect into the region downstream of the fence where they enhance the mixing in the shear layer and reduce the time mean length of the reverse-flow region downstream of the fence. Velocity profiles phase averaged with respect to the forcing frequency and phase triggered flow visualisations show that the spanwise vortices cause the long reverse-flow region of the unmanipulated flow to break up into separate smaller regions. While the time mean length of the reverse-flow region is reduced in the manipulated case, the length of the region where instantaneous reverse-flow occurs is not changed. The data presented include wall pulsed-wire measurements of the wall shear-stress and its turbulent fluctuations, and LDA measurements of the streamwise and the wall-normal velocity components and turbulent stresses.     

Response of the streaks, the active and passive eddies in an unsteady channel flow

Spanwise space–time correlations of the wall shear stress and the longitudinal velocity fluctuations in the low buffer layer of an unsteady channel flow are reported. The imposed amplitude is 20% of the centerline velocity and the imposed frequency covers a large range going from the quasi-steady limit to the bursting frequency of the corresponding steady flow. The unsteady spanwise correlation coefficient is investigated both through its own modulation characteristics (amplitude and phase shifts) and those of the resulting streak spacing. A good correspondence is found between the modulation of the streak spacing and that of the ejection period. The data is further analyzed by temporal filtering of the wall shear stress and streamwise velocity fluctuations. It is shown that the large outer-layer structures play a “passive” role in the unsteady response of the near wall turbulence. The inner wall eddies, in return, are amply responsible for the unsteady reaction of both the turbulent wall shear stress and the streamwise velocity intensities in the buffer layer.     

Drag measurements on long thin cylinders at small angles and high Reynolds numbers

Measurements of the drag caused by turbulent boundary layer mean wall shear stress on cylinders at small angles of attack and high length Reynolds numbers (8×10⁶<Re_L<6×10⁷) are presented. The use of a full-scale, high-speed towing tank enabled the development of turbulent boundary layers on cylinders made of stainless steel, aluminum, titanium, and polyvinyl chloride. The diameter of all cylinders in this experiment was 12.7 mm; two cylinder lengths, 3.05 m and 6.10 m, were used, corresponding to aspect ratio values L/a=480 and 960, respectively. Materials of various densities were towed at critical angles, resulting in linear cylinder geometry for tow speeds ranging from 2.6 m/s to 20.7 m/s and angles between 0° and 12°. Towing angles were measured with digital photography, and streamwise drag was measured with a strut-mounted load cell at the tow point. The measured tangential drag was very sensitive to small increases in angle at all tow speeds. A momentum thickness length scale is proposed to scale the tangential drag coefficient. The effects of the cross-flow resulting from the small angles of tow have a significant effect on the tangential drag coefficient values. A scaling for the orthogonal force on the cylinders was determined and provides a correction to published normal drag coefficient values for pure cross-flow. The presence of the axial turbulent boundary layer has a significant effect on these orthogonal forces.     

Hypersonic flow past a wing at large angles of attack with detached shock wave

The thin shock layer method [1–3] has been used to solve the problem of hypersonic flow past the windward surface of a delta wing at large angles of attack, when the shock wave is detached from the leading edge (but attached to the apex of the wing) and the velocity of the gas in the shock layer is of the same order as the speed of sound. A classification of the regimes of flow past a delta wing at large angles of attack has been made. A general solution has been obtained for the problem of three-dimensional hypersonic flow past the wing allowing for nonequilibrium physicochemical processes of thermal radiation of the gas at high temperatures.Translated from Izvestiya Akademii Nauk SSSR, Mekhanika Zhidkosti i Gaza, No. 3, pp. 149–157, May–June, 1985.     

Multisensor Hot Wire Vorticity Probe Measurements of the Formation Field of Two Corotating Vortices

Experimental evidence is reported, regarding the formation of a pair of co-rotating tip vortices by a split wing configuration, consisting of two half wings at equal and opposite angles of attack. Simultaneous measurements of the three-dimensional vector fields of velocity and vorticity were conducted on a cross plane at a downstream distance corresponding to 0.3 cord lengths (near wake), using an in-house constructed 12-sensor hot wire anemometry vorticity probe. The probe consists of three closely separated orthogonal 4-wire velocity sensor arrays, measuring simultaneously the three-dimensional velocity vector at three closely spaced locations on a cross plane of the flow filed. This configuration makes possible the estimation of spatial velocity derivatives by means of a forward difference scheme of first order accuracy. Velocity measurements obtained with an X-wire are also presented for comparison. In this near wake location, the flow field is dictated by the pressure distribution established by the flow around the wings, mobilizing large masses of air and leading to the roll up of fluid sheets. Fluid streams penetrating between the wings collide, creating on the cross plane flow a stagnation point and an “impermeable” line joining the two vortex centres. Along this line fluid is directed towards the two vortices, expanding their cores and increasing their separation distance. This feeding process generates a dipole of opposite sign streamwise mean vorticity within each vortex. The rotational flow within the vortices obligates an adverse streamwise pressure gradient leading to a significant streamwise velocity deficit characterizing the vortices. The turbulent flow field is the result of temporal changes in the intensity of the vortex formation and changes in the position of the cores (wandering).     

Evolution of Vortex Structures on the Leeward Side of a Delta Wing

Results of an experimental study of a supersonic flow around the leeward side of a delta wing are presented. The experiments are performed on three delta wings with leading–edge sweep angles = 68°, 73°, and 78° for Mach numbers M =2—4 and angles of attack = 0—22°. Data on the structure and position of internal shock waves are obtained; the size and location of primary and secondary vortices are found. New regimes of the flow around a delta wing are identified. The chart of flow regimes around delta wings is refined and extended.     

Separated flow over a strongly cambered conical wing at small angles of attack

The interference of supersonic flows on the concave surface of conical wings was experimentally investigated in [1] for various values of the camber and angles of attack. In order to establish the detailed structure of the interference flow the laminar flow past a wing model in the form of half the surface of a circular cone with vertex angle 2_k = 34° was numerically modeled within the framework of the quasiconical approximation for the three-dimensional Navier-Stokes equations [2]. Under this assumption, confirmed by analysis of the experimental data [1], it was found that the displacement of the external inviscid flow as a result of intense flow separation beyond the leading edges leads to flow patterns similar to those realized on V wing's with a break in the transverse contour [3]. At nonzero angles of attack weak secondary separation was detected beneath the flattened regions of primary separation located in the shaded parts of the concave surface.Translated from Izvestiya Akademii Nauk SSSR, Mekhanika Zhidkosti i Gaza, No. 4, pp. 130–136, July–August, 1989.     

The flow structure near the windward side of V-shaped wings with an attached shock wave on the leading edges

The results of a numerical calculation of a symmetric flow of supersonic gas with the Mach number M=3 past the windward side of V-shaped wings with an opening angle =40° and apex angles =30, 45, and 90° are given. The possibility of the ascent of one or two Ferri points from the break point of the transverse contour of the wing is discovered and explained. It is shown that conical flow near wings of finite length need not exist in flow regimes corresponding to angles of attack at which a Ferri point ascends, while at angles of attack smaller and larger than a certain interval, conical flow will exist. The investigation is conducted by means of a numerical method of stabilization with an artificial viscosity. The longitudinal coordinate, relative to which the steady system of equations is hyperbolic, played the part of the time variable, usual for methods of stabilization. The numerical method constructed using the scheme of [1] is described in [2] and was successfully applied to the calculation of different regimes of supersonic flow past conical wings with supersonic leading edges [2–6]. In. the present investigation the calculation algorithm of [2] is modified and makes it possible to realize motion with respect to the parameter a, this being particularly important for the stabilization of the solution in the calculation of flow regimes for which regions with a total velocity Mach number close to unity arise in the flow.Translated from Izvestiya Akademii Nauk SSSR, Mekhanika Zhidkosti i Gaza, No. 1, pp. 122–131, January–February, 1986.     

Computational and experimental investigation of flow over a transient pitching hydrofoil

The present study is developed within the framework of marine structure design operating in transient regimes. It deals with an experimental and numerical investigation of the time–space distribution of the wall-pressure field on a NACA66 hydrofoil undergoing a transient up-and-down pitching motion from 0° to 15° at four pitching velocities and a Reynolds number Re = 0.75 × 10⁶. The experimental investigation is performed using an array of wall-pressure transducers located on the suction side and by means of time–frequency analysis and Empirical Modal Decomposition method. The numerical study is conducted for the same flow conditions. It is based on a 2D RANS code including mesh reconstruction and an ALE formulation in order to take into account the foil rotation and the tunnel walls. Due to the moderate Reynolds number, a laminar to turbulent transition model was also activated. For the operating flow conditions of the study, experimental and numerical flow analysis revealed that the flow experiences complex boundary layer events as leading-edge laminar separation bubble, laminar to turbulent transition, trailing-edge separation and flow detachment at stall. Although the flow is relatively complex, the calculated wall pressure shows a quite good agreement with the experiment provided that the mesh resolution and the temporal discretization are carefully selected depending on the pitching velocity. It is particularly shown that the general trend of the wall pressure (low frequency) is rather well predicted for the four pitching velocities with for instance a net inflection of the wall pressure when transition occurs. The inflection zone is reduced as the pitching velocity increases and tends to disappear for the highest pitching velocity. Conversely, high frequency wall-pressure fluctuations observed experimentally are not captured by the RANS model. Based on the good agreement with experiment, the model is then used to investigate the effects of the pitching velocity on boundary layer events and on hydrodynamic loadings. It is shown that increasing the pitching velocity tends to delay the laminar-to-turbulence transition and even to suppress it for the highest pitching velocity during the pitch-up motion. It induces also an increase of the stall angle (compared to quasi-static one) and an increase of the hysteresis effect during pitch-down motion resulting to a significant increase of the hydrodynamic loading.     

Entropy effects in hypersonic flow over blunt delta wings

The problem of hypersonic flow over blunt delta wings is considered. It is shown that in the case of large wing lengths x -100, where x is the longitudinal coordinate measured in blunt nose radii, extremal flow regimes characterized by an essentially nonuniform distribution of the gas dynamic parameters (density, entropy, Mach number) may be realized in the shock layer near the windward surface of the wing. The location of the zones of flow convergence or divergence on the surface of a delta wing with sweep angle x=75° is established. For the same wing the ranges of Mach numbers M and angles of attack leading to extremal flow regimes are indicated.Translated from Izvestiya Akademii Nauk SSSR, Mekhanika Zhidkosti i Gaza, No. 2, 178–181, March–April, 1991.     

The near-wall layer beneath a moderately converging three-dimensional turbulent separated and reattaching flow

Pulsed-wire mean velocity and surface shear stress measurements have been made in a three-dimensional separation bubble in which there is a mild lateral convergence, bounded by side regions of spanwise invariance. Even though the convergence is mild the bubble parameters change considerably with lateral position. Velocity measurements near the surface were made with a special through-wall pulsed-wire probe. The cross-flow layer is substantially thicker than the reverse-flow layer even in the invariant region. Cross-flow and reverse-flow velocity profiles are each remarkably close in shape, though probably not exactly self similar. Surface shear stresses in the cross- and reverse-flow directions conform to local scalings and Reynolds-number dependences based on thickness and `external' velocity. These scalings also apply (quantitatively) downstream of and, it appears, through attachment. The surface shear stress in the cross-flow direction is higher than the streamwise stress, consistent with a distinctly fuller mean velocity profile. There is a striking comparability with three-dimensional boundary layers once the flow directions are transposed, the cross flow taking the part of the primary flow, and the reverse flow the secondary flow.     

Unsteady separated and reattaching turbulent flow over a two-dimensional square rib

The spatio-temporal characteristics of the separated and reattaching turbulent flow over a two-dimensional square rib were studied experimentally. Synchronized measurements of wall-pressure fluctuations and velocity fluctuations were made using a microphone array and a split-fiber film, respectively. Profiles of time-averaged streamwise velocity and wall-pressure fluctuations showed that the shear layer separated from the leading edge of the rib sweeps past the rib and directly reattaches on the bottom wall (x/H=9.75) downstream of the rib. A thin region of reverse flow was formed above the rib. The shedding large-scale vortical structures (fH/U₀=0.03) and the flapping separation bubble (fH/U₀=0.0075) could be discerned in the wall-pressure spectra. A multi-resolution analysis based on the maximum overlap discrete wavelet transform (MODWT) was performed to extract the intermittent events associated with the shedding large-scale vortical structures and the flapping separation bubble. The convective dynamics of the large-scale vortical structures were analyzed in terms of the autocorrelation of the continuous wavelet-transformed wall pressure, cross-correlation of the wall-pressure fluctuations, and the cross-correlation between the wall pressure at the time-averaged reattachment point and the streamwise velocity field. The convection speeds of the large-scale vortical structures before and after the reattachment point were U_c=0.35U₀ and 0.45U₀, respectively. The flapping motion of the separation bubble was analyzed in terms of the conditionally averaged reverse-flow intermittency near the wall region. The instantaneous reattachment point in response to the flapping motion was obtained; these findings established that the reattachment zone was a 1.2H-long region centered at x/H=9.75. The reverse-flow intermittency in one period of the flapping motion demonstrated that the thin reverse flow above the rib is influenced by the flapping motion of the separation bubble behind the rib.     

Supersonic leeside flow topology on delta wings revisited

The leeside vortex structures on delta wings with sharp leading edges were studied for supersonic flow at the Institute of Theoretical and Applied Mechanics of the Russian Academy of Sciences in Novosibirsk. The experiments were carried out with three wings with sweep angles of χ=68°, 73°, and 78° and parabolic profiles in the 0.6 × 0.6 m² test section of the blow-down wind tunnel T-313 of the institute. The test conditions were varied from Mach numbers M=2 to 4, unit Reynolds numbers from Re _l=26 × 10⁶ to 56 × 10⁶ m⁻¹, and angles of attack from α=0° to 22°. The results of the investigations revealed that for certain flow conditions shocks are formed above, below, and between the primary vortices. The experimental data were accurate enough to detect the onset of secondary and tertiary separation as well as other boundaries. The various flow regimes discussed in the literature were extended in several cases. The major findings are reported. Received: 6 September 1999/Accepted: 24 January 2000