Aerodynamic characteristics of a two-dimensional supersonic biplane, covering its take-off to cruise conditions

Supersonic biplanes can possibly achieve low-boom and low-drag supersonic flights. In the present study, aerodynamic analysis and design of two-dimensional (2-D) biplanes were investigated with the help of computational fluid dynamics (CFD) tools. By utilizing an inverse-design method, a 2-D biplane configuration with lower wave drag than the single flat-plate airfoil at sufficient lift conditions (C _l > 0.14) was designed at its design Mach number (M _∞ = 1.7). In general, although, supersonic biplanes show superior aerodynamic characteristics at their design Mach numbers, unfortunately, they are characterized by poor performances under their off-design conditions. Flow choking occurs at high subsonic speeds, and continues to Mach numbers greater than the design Mach number in the acceleration stage due to flow hysteresis. Hinged slats and flaps were applied as high-lift devices to avoid the flow choking and concomitant hysteresis problems, and were also used as actual high-lift devices under take-off and landing conditions. As further improvement, morphing and Fowler motion were considered. Finally, a series of 2-D biplane configurations from take-off (and landing) to cruise conditions were studied by applying the slats and flaps, as well as morphing mechanisms, to our inversely designed biplane.      

Aerodynamic experimentation with ducted models as applied to hypersonic air-breathing vehicles

 A methodology of experimentation in high supersonic wind tunnels for studying aerodynamic characteristics of hypersonic flying vehicles powered by air-breathing engines is discussed. Investigations of such total aerodynamic forces as drag, lift and pitching moment at testing the models are implicit when the air flow through the model ducts is accomplished so that to provide the simulation of the external flow around the airplane and flow over the inlets, but the operating engines and, hence, the exhaust jets are not modeled. The methods used for testing such models are based on the measurement of duct stream parameters alongside with the balance measurement of aerodynamic forces acting on the models. In the tests, aerometric tools are used such as narrow metering nozzles (plugs), pitot and static pressure probes, stagnation temperature probes and pressure orifices in walls of the model duct. The aerometric data serve to determine the flow rate and momentum of the stream at the duct exit. The internal non-simulated forces of the model ducts are also determined using the conservation equations for energy, mass flow and momentum, and these forces are eliminated from the aerodynamic test results. The techniques of the said model testing have been well developed as applied to supersonic aircraft, however their application for hypersonic vehicles whose models are tested at high supersonic speeds, Mach number M _∞>4, implies some specific features. In the present paper, the results of experimental and theoretical study of these features are discussed. Some experimental data on aerodynamics of hypersonic aircraft models received in methodological tests are also presented. The tunnel experiments have been carried out in the Mach number range M _∞=2–6. Received: 25 July 1996/ Accepted: 14 December 1998     

Numerical Studies on the Mixing of CH4 and Kerosene Injected into a Supersonic Flow with H2 Pilot Injection

Two-fluid model and divisional computation techniques were used. The multi-species gas fully N-S equations were solved by upwind TVD scheme. Liquid phase equations were solved by NND scheme. The phases-interaction ODE equations were solved by 2nd Runge-Kutta approach. The favorable agreement is obtained between computational results and PLIF experimental results of iodized air injected into a supersonic flow. Then, the numerical studies were carried out on the mixing of CH ₄ and kerosene injected into a supersonic flow with H ₂ pilot injection. The results indicate that the penetration of kerosene approaches maximum when it is injected from the second injector. But the kerosene is less diffused compared with the gas fuels. The free droplet region appears in the flow field. The mixing mechanism of CH ₄ with H ₂ pilot injection is different from that of kerosene. In the staged duct, H ₂ can be entrained into both recirculation zones produced by the step and injectors. But CH ₄ can only be carried into the recirculation between the injectors. Therefore, initiations of H ₂ and CH ₄ can occur in those regions. The staged duct is better in enhancing mixing and initiation with H ₂ pilot flame.     

Shock capturing viscosities for the general fluid mechanics algorithm

The performance of different shock capturing viscosities has been examined using our general fluid mechanics algorithm. Four different schemes have been tested, both for viscous and inviscid compressible flow problems. Results show that the methods based on the second gradient of pressure give better performance in all situations. For instance, the method constructed from the nodal pressure values and consistent and lumped mass matrices is an excellent choice for inviscid problems. The method based on L₂ projection is better than any other method in viscous flow computations. The residual based anisotropic method gives excellent performance in the supersonic range and gives better results in the hypersonic regime if a small amount of residual smoothing is used. © 1998 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

Computation of high speed turbulent boundary-layer flows using the k–ϵ turbulence model

The applicability of a finite element-differential method to the computation of steady two-dimensional low-speed, transonic and supersonic turbulent boundary-layer flows is investigated. The turbulence model chosen for the Reynolds shear stress and turbulent heat flux is the K-? two-equation model. Calculations are extended up to the wall and the exact values of the dependent variables at the wall are used as boundary conditions. A number of transformations are carried out and the assumed solutions at a longitudinal station are represented by complete cubic spline functions. In essence, the method converts the governing partial differential equations into a system of ordinary differential equations by a weighted residuals method and invokes an ordinary differential equation solver for the numerical integration of the reduced initial-value problem. The results of the computations reveal that the method is highly accurate and efficient. Furthermore, the accuracy and applicability of the k-? turbulence model are examined by comparing results of the computations with experimental data. The agreement is very good.     

Ritz method for oscillatory flow in ducts

Oscillatory viscous flow is solved by a Ritz integration method. The method is robust and efficient. The elliptic duct and the isosceles triangular duct are studied in detail. We find that the unsteady flow is dependent on a non‐dimensional frequency s and the aspect ratio b. In general, for s=O(1) or lower, the flow may be considered quasi‐steady, and the velocity is in phase with the applied pressure gradient. For large frequency, s=O(100), the maximum velocity occurs near the larger curvature ends and corners. Copyright © 2010 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

Transonic Shocks in Compressible Flow Passing a Duct for Three-Dimensional Euler Systems

In this paper we study the transonic shock in steady compressible flow passing a duct. The flow is a given supersonic one at the entrance of the duct and becomes subsonic across a shock front, which passes through a given point on the wall of the duct. The flow is governed by the three-dimensional steady full Euler system, which is purely hyperbolic ahead of the shock and is of elliptic–hyperbolic composed type behind the shock. The upstream flow is a uniform supersonic one with the addition of a three-dimensional perturbation, while the pressure of the downstream flow at the exit of the duct is assigned apart from a constant difference. The problem of determining the transonic shock and the flow behind the shock is reduced to a free-boundary value problem. In order to solve the free-boundary problem of the elliptic–hyperbolic system one crucial point is to decompose the whole system to a canonical form, in which the elliptic part and the hyperbolic part are separated at the level of the principal part. Due to the complexity of the characteristic varieties for the three-dimensional Euler system the calculus of symbols is employed to complete the decomposition. The new ingredient of our analysis also contains the process of determining the shock front governed by a pair of partial differential equations, which are coupled with the three-dimensional Euler system. The paper is partially supported by National Natural Science Foundation of China 10531020, the National Basic Research Program of China 2006CB805902, and the Doctorial Foundation of National Educational Ministry 20050246001.     

Computation of Internal and External Compressible Flows Using EDICT

Results are presented for finite element computations involving high speed, viscous compressible internal and external flows. The stabilized finite-element formulations for the Navier-Stokes equations in the conservation law form are solved using the conservation variables. To improve the accuracy of the base method, especially in the regions of flow that are associated with shocks, boundary-layers and their interactions, the Enhanced-Discretization Interface-Capturing Technique (EDICT) is utilized. An error indicator is employed to identify the regions in the computational domain that need enhanced discretization for increased accuracy. The method is implemented on a shared-memory parallel computer and is used to study complex flows, that involve shock-wave/boundary-layer interactions, in supersonic diffusers and wind-tunnels. The start-up problem in supersonic wind-tunnels, caused by a narrow second throat in the diffuser section, is simulated. This computation brings out some of the very interesting features of the unsteady dynamics of the start-up shock.     

Turbulence Modelling of Unsteady Turbulent Flows Using the Stress Strain Lag Model

This paper reports the application of a recently developed turbulence modelling scheme known as the C _as model. This model was specifically developed to capture the effects of stress-strain misalignment observed in turbulent flows with mean unsteadiness. Earlier work has reported the approach applied within a linear k-ε modelling framework, and some initial testing of it within the k-ω SST model of Menter (AIAA J 32:1598–1605, 1994). The resulting k-ε-C _as and SST-C _as models have been shown to result in some of the advantages of a full Reynolds Stress transport Model (RSM), whilst retaining the computational efficiency and stability benefits of a eddy viscosity model (EVM). Here, the development of the the high-Reynolds-number version of the C _as model is outlined, with some example applications to steady and unsteady homogeneous shear flows. The SST-C _as form of the model is then applied to further, more challenging cases of 2-D flow around a NACA0012 aerofoil beyond stall and the 3-D flow around a circular cylinder in a square duct, both being flows which exhibit large, unsteady, separated flow regions. The predictions returned by a range of other common turbulence modelling schemes are included for comparison and the SST-C _as scheme is shown to return generally good results, comparable in some respects to those obtainable from far more complex schemes, for only moderate computing resource requirements.     

An implicit upwind parabolized Navier-Stokes code for chemically nonequilibrium flows

The previously developed single-sweep parabolized Navier-Stokes (SSPNS) space marching code for ideal gas flows has been extended to compute chemically nonequilibrium flows. In the code, the strongly coupled set of gas dynamics, species conservation, and turbulence equations is integrated with the implicit lower-upper symmetric Gauss-Seidel (LU-SGS) method in the streamwise direction in a space marching manner. The AUSMPW+ scheme is used to calculate the inviscid fluxes in the crossflow direction, while the conventional central scheme for the viscous fluxes. The k-g two-equation turbulence model is used. The revised SSPNS code is validated by computing the Burrows-Kurkov non-premixed H2/air supersonic combustion flows, premixed H2/air hypersonic combustion flows in a three-dimensional duct with a 15° compression ramp, as well as the hypersonic laminar chemically nonequilibrium air flows around two 10° half-angle cones. The results of these calculations are in good agreement with those of experiments, NASA UPS or Prabhu's PNS codes. It can be concluded that the SSPNS code is highly efficient for steady supersonic/ hypersonic chemically reaction flows when there is no large streamwise separation.     

Existence of supersonic zones in three-dimensional separation flows

Up till now the region of three-dimensional separation flows which occur with supersonic flow past obstacles has received insufficient study. Supersonic flow with a Mach number of 2.5 past a cylinder mounted on a plate was studied in [1]. A local zone with supersonic velocities was found in the reverse subsonic flow region ahead of the cylinder. Its presence is explained by the three-dimensional nature of the flow. Similar supersonic zones are not observed in the case of supersonic flow over plane and axisymmetric steps.The present paper presents the results of experimental studies whose objective was refinement of the flow pattern ahead of a cylinder on a plate and the study of the local supersonic zones.The experiments were performed in a supersonic wind tunnel with a freestream Mach number M₁=3.11. The 24-mm-diameter cylinder with pressure taps along the generating line was mounted perpendicular to the surface of a sharpened plate. The distance from the plate leading edge to the cylinder axis wasl ₀=140 mm. The plate was pressure tapped along the flow symmetry axis. The Reynolds number was Rl ₀=u₀ l ₀/v ₁, Rl ₀=1.87.10⁷, where u₁ andv ₁ are the freestream velocity and the kinematic viscosity, respectively. The pressures were measured using a Pilot probe with internal and external diameters of 0.15 and 0.9 mm, respectively.The probe was displaced in the flow symmetry plane at a distance of 1.6 mm from the plate surface and at a distance of 1.1 mm along the leading generator of the cylinder. The flow on the surface of the plate and cylinder was studied with the aid of a visualization composition and the flow past the model was photographed with a schlieren instrument. Typical patterns of the visualization composition distribution and the pressure distribution curves over the plate surface, and also photographs of the flow past the model, are shown in [1].     

Stability of a laminar rivulet liquid flow in a cylindrical duct in the approximation of one-dimensional waves

The problem of the stability of a viscous laminar liquid flow with a liquid free surface in an inclined duct is theoretically considered. Since the dependence of the flow rate on the free-surface height is not monotonic (the highest flow rate in a cylindrical duct is observed at H_*=1.7R), primary attention is given to the region H>H_*. It is proved that there is aw region of instability: for an arbitrarity low Reynolds number, there is a free-surface level above which the flow becomes unstable against one-dimensional disturbances. When the height of the liquid layer is close to the vertical dimension of the duct, the one-dimensional disturbances propagate mainly upstream (for moderate Reynolds numbers). Hence it follows that there is not steady regime of liquid flow from a fully filled duct with an open end. Kutateladze Institute of Thermal Physics, Siberian Division, Russian Academy of Sciences, Novosibirsk 630090. Translated from Prikladnaya Mekhanika i Tekhnicheskaya Fizika, Vol. 40, No. 3, pp. 90–96, May–June, 1999.     

超音速混合层稳定性分析及增强混合的研究

利用流动稳定性提高超音速混合层的混合效率,对于提高超音速流的高效混合是一个有效途径。研究结果表明,有展向曲率的三维混合层中,三维扰动的增长率很大,且法向的掺混能力也较强,可以有效地增强混合。对于高马赫数来流的超音速混合层,这一特性依然存在,这将有利于提高高超音速混合层的混合能力。     

Comparative studies on the effect of duct height on heat transfer and flow behavior between co-angular and co-rotating type finned surface

This paper presents the comparative studies on the effect of duct height on heat transfer and flow behavior between co-angular and co-rotating type finned surface in duct. Experiments were performed to investigate the effect of duct height on heat transfer enhancement of a surface affixed with arrays (7 × 7) of short rectangular plate fins of a co-angular and a co-rotating type pattern in the duct. An infrared imaging system with the camera of TVS 8000 was used to measure the temperature distributions to calculate the local heat transfer coefficients of the representative fin regions. Pressure drop and heat transfer experiments were performed for both types of fin pattern varying the duct to fin height ratio (H _d/H _f) of 2.0–5.0. The friction factor calculated from the pressure drop shows that friction factor decreases with increasing the duct to fin height ratio (H _d/H _f) regardless of fin pattern and this is expected because the larger friction occurs for smaller duct to fin height ratios. Detailed heat transfer distribution gives a clear picture of heat transfer characteristics of the overall surface as well as the influence of the duct height. In addition, different flow behavior and flow structure developed by both patterns were visualized by the smoke flow visualization technique.     

Transonic Shock Problem for the Euler System in a Nozzle

In this paper, we study the well-posedness problem on transonic shocks for steady ideal compressible flows through a two-dimensional slowly varying nozzle with an appropriately given pressure at the exit of the nozzle. This is motivated by the following transonic phenomena in a de Laval nozzle. Given an appropriately large receiver pressure P _r , if the upstream flow remains supersonic behind the throat of the nozzle, then at a certain place in the diverging part of the nozzle, a shock front intervenes and the flow is compressed and slowed down to subsonic speed, and the position and the strength of the shock front are automatically adjusted so that the end pressure at exit becomes P _r , as clearly stated by Courant and Friedrichs [Supersonic flow and shock waves, Interscience Publishers, New York, 1948 (see section 143 and 147)]. The transonic shock front is a free boundary dividing two regions of C ^2,α flow in the nozzle. The full Euler system is hyperbolic upstream where the flow is supersonic, and coupled hyperbolic-elliptic in the downstream region Ω₊ of the nozzle where the flow is subsonic. Based on Bernoulli’s law, we can reformulate the problem by decomposing the 3 × 3 Euler system into a weakly coupled second order elliptic equation for the density ρ with mixed boundary conditions, a 2 × 2 first order system on u ₂ with a value given at a point, and an algebraic equation on (ρ, u ₁, u ₂) along a streamline. In terms of this reformulation, we can show the uniqueness of such a transonic shock solution if it exists and the shock front goes through a fixed point. Furthermore, we prove that there is no such transonic shock solution for a class of nozzles with some large pressure given at the exit. This research was supported in part by the Zheng Ge Ru Foundation when Yin Huicheng was visiting The Institute of Mathematical Sciences, The Chinese University of Hong Kong. Xin is supported in part by Hong Kong RGC Earmarked Research Grants CUHK-4028/04P, CUHK-4040/06P, and Central Allocation Grant CA05-06.SC01. Yin is supported in part by NNSF of China and Doctoral Program of NEM of China.     

PIV measurements of flow past a confined cylinder

This study investigates the flow past a confined circular cylinder built into a narrow rectangular duct with a Reynolds number range of 1,500 ≤ Re _d ≤ 6,150, by employing the particle image velocimetry technique. In order to better explain the 3-D flow behaviour in the juncture regions of the lower and upper plates and the cylinder, respectively, as well as the dynamics of the horseshoe vortex system, both time-averaged and instantaneous flow data are presented for regions upstream and downstream of the cylinder. The size, intensity and interaction of the vortex systems vary substantially with the Reynolds number. Although the narrow rectangular duct with a single built-in cylinder is a geometrically symmetrical arrrangement, instantaneous flow data have revealed that the flow structures in both the lower and upper plate–cylinder junction regions are not symmetrical with respect to the centreline of the flow passage. The vortical flow structures obtained in side-view planes become dominant sometimes in the lower juncture region and sometimes in the upper juncture region in unsteady mode.     

The Use of Porous Fins for Heat Transfer Augmentation in Parallel-Plate Channels

In this study, a steady, fully developed laminar forced convection heat augmentation via porous fins in isothermal parallel-plate duct is numerically investigated. High-thermal conductivity porous fins are attached to the inner walls of two parallel-plate channels to enhance the heat transfer characteristics of the flow under consideration. The Darcy–Brinkman–Forchheimer model is used to model the flow inside the porous fins. This study reports the effect of several operating parameters on the flow hydrodynamics and thermal characteristics. This study demonstrates, mainly, the effects of porous fin thickness, Darcy number, thermal conductivity ratio, Reynolds number, and microscopic inertial coefficient on the thermal performance of the present flow. It is found that the highest Nusselt number is achieved at fully filled porous duct which requires the highest pumping pressure. The results show that using porous fins requires less pumping pressure with comparable high heat augmentation weight against fully filled porous duct. It is found that higher Nusselt numbers are achieved by increasing the microscopic inertial coefficient (A), the Reynolds number (Re), and the thermal conductivity of the porous substrate k ₂. The results show that heat transfer can be enhanced (1) with the use of high thermal conductivity fins, (2) by decreasing the Darcy number, and (3) by increasing microscopic inertial coefficient.     

Contouring the nozzles producing a uniform supersonic flow or a thrust maximum in the presence of a curvilinear sonic line

Within the framework of the ideal, i.e., inviscid and non-heat conducting, gas model we consider the problem of designing the supersonic section of a two-dimensional or axisymmetric nozzle realizing a uniform supersonic flow limitingly similar with a sonic flow when the choked flow involves a curvilinear sonic line. Emphasis is placed on nozzles with abruptly or steeply converging subsonic sections and a strongly curved sonic line formed by the C ⁻-characteristics of the expansion fan with the focus at the lower bend point of the vertical section of the subsonic contour. In the two-dimensional case, the least possible greater-than-unity Mach number M _em at the nozzle exit corresponds to the flow in which the first intersection of the C ⁺-characteristics originated at the closing C ⁻-characteristic of the expansion fan falls on the unknown contour of its supersonic part. For a uniform flow with M _e < M _em the intersection of C ⁺-characteristics beneath the unknown contour make impossible its construction. A part of the contour realizing a uniform flow with M _em > 1 ensures a limitingly rapid flow acceleration and forms the initial region of the supersonic generator of a maximum-thrust nozzle. For this reason, in the case of a curvilinear sonic line the supersonic generators of these nozzles have two, rather than one, bends, which, however, is interesting only for the theory. At least, in the calculated examples the thrusts of the nozzles with one and two bends differ only by a hundredth or even thousandth fractions of per cent.     

Solution of magnetohydrodynamic flow in a rectangular duct by Chebyshev collocation method

In this study, matrix representation of the Chebyshev collocation method for partial differential equation has been represented and applied to solve magnetohydrodynamic (MHD) flow equations in a rectangular duct in the presence of transverse external oblique magnetic field. Numerical solution of velocity and induced magnetic field is obtained for steady‐state, fully developed, incompressible flow for a conducting fluid inside the duct. The Chebyshev collocation method is used with a reasonable number of collocations points, which gives accurate numerical solutions of the MHD flow problem. The results for velocity and induced magnetic field are visualized in terms of graphics for values of Hartmann number H≤1000. Copyright © 2010 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

Existence and Stability of Multidimensional Transonic Flows through an Infinite Nozzle of Arbitrary Cross-Sections

We establish the existence and stability of multidimensional steady transonic flows with transonic shocks through an infinite nozzle of arbitrary cross-sections, including a slowly varying de Laval nozzle. The transonic flow is governed by the inviscid potential flow equation with supersonic upstream flow at the entrance, uniform subsonic downstream flow at the exit at infinity, and the slip boundary condition on the nozzle boundary. Our results indicate that, if the supersonic upstream flow at the entrance is sufficiently close to a uniform flow, there exists a solution that consists of a C ^1,α subsonic flow in the unbounded downstream region, converging to a uniform velocity state at infinity, and a C ^1,α multidimensional transonic shock separating the subsonic flow from the supersonic upstream flow; the uniform velocity state at the exit at infinity in the downstream direction is uniquely determined by the supersonic upstream flow; and the shock is orthogonal to the nozzle boundary at every point of their intersection. In order to construct such a transonic flow, we reformulate the multidimensional transonic nozzle problem into a free boundary problem for the subsonic phase, in which the equation is elliptic and the free boundary is a transonic shock. The free boundary conditions are determined by the Rankine–Hugoniot conditions along the shock. We further develop a nonlinear iteration approach and employ its advantages to deal with such a free boundary problem in the unbounded domain. We also prove that the transonic flow with a transonic shock is unique and stable with respect to the nozzle boundary and the smooth supersonic upstream flow at the entrance.