Boundary-layer separation on conical bodies

Some characteristics of the variation in the linear dimensions of the flow separation zones on conical bodies with expanding conical skirts and of variation of the pressure within these zones as a function of variation of the Mach number, Reynolds number, and intensity of the disturbance that causes the boundary layer separation are examined. Experiments were conducted in laminar, transitional, and turbulent flows in flow separation regions. The interaction of viscous and nearly inviscid flows is quite common. This phenomenon occurs in flow past a concave corner, when a compression shock impinges on a boundary layer, and in many other cases. The characteristics of this phenomenon in flow about two-dimensional bodies have been investigated experimentally in [1, 2] and other studies. Attempts have been made to analyze the interaction of compression shocks with the boundary layer theoretically. In “free” separated flows, when the points of separation and reattachment of the boundary layer are not fixed (for example, on a flat plate with a long wedge attached to it), theoretical studies are usually made within the framework of the boundary layer theory with use of the approximate integral methods [3, 4]. In this article we examine some results from studies of free separated flows on conical bodies with conical skirts in laminar, transitional, and turbulent flows (Fig. 1).     

Hysteresis phenomenon in supersonic flow past a system of cylinders

The interaction between the bow shocks ahead of a system of bodies in a supersonic flow is numerically investigated. Flow past cylinders with parallel axes lying in the plane perpendicular to the flow direction is calculated. Three different shock interaction patterns are obtained in modeling flow past an infinite periodic lattice, namely, the regular and Mach-type regimes and a regime with flow choking. In the case of two bodies a collective bow shock is formed. Transition between the flow patterns with variation in the freestream Mach number and the spacing between the cylinders is studied. Regular-to-Mach-configuration transition and vice versa occurs at particular angles of inclination of the bow shock at the interaction point determined by the criterion of a maximum flow deflection angle and the von Neumann criterion, respectively.     

Numerical investigation of off-design regimes of flow past waveriders on the basis of axisymmetric conical flows

Off-design flow past waveriders is studied on the M_∞ = 4 to 12 freestream Mach number range. Configurations based on the flows behind axisymmetric conical shocks are considered. The waverider geometry is determined by preassigning the transverse contour of the undersurfaces in the base section using power-law functions. The results are obtained by finite-volume solution of the Euler equations using higher-order Runge-Kutta TVD schemes.     

Submerged shocks in conical gas flows in the presence of a mach shock-wave configuration

The results of a numerical study of a new type of singularities in the Mach shock-wave structure realized in supersonic nonsymmetric conical flows over V-wings with a bow shock attached to the leading edges are presented. Within the framework of the ideal gas model we study the changes in the shock system on transition, with increase in the sweep angle, from the region of nonsymmetric Mach interaction of the shocks attached to the leading edges of the wing to the region of special flow patterns, where on the windward cantilever surface a rarefaction flow is realized rather than a flow with an internal shock. It is shown, in particular, that in the region with special wing flow patterns a Mach system of shocks with a submerged shock proceeding from the branch point above the windward cantilever may exist.     

An experiment on imploding conical shock waves

Over the past decade and a half there have been a number of numerical studies of the reflection of oblique axisymmetric shock waves from the axis of symmetry. Many of these have shown a complex Mach reflection pattern together with a strong toroidal vortex which significantly distorts the Mach disk. This geometry has never been captured experimentally. This note describes a special rig for the generation of strong imploding conical shocks, and presents photographs of the predicted reflection pattern. Received 4 October 2001 / Accepted 13 November 2001     

Prediction of asymmetric vortical flows around slender bodies using Navier-Stokes equations

Steady and unsteady asymmetric vortical flows around slender bodies at high angles of attack are solved using the unsteady, compressible, this-layer Navier-Stokes equations. An implicit, upwind-biased, flux-difference splitting, finite-volume scheme is used for the numerical computations. For supersonic flows past point cones, the locally conical flow assumption has been used for efficient computational studies of this phenomenon. Asymmetric flows past a 5° semiapex-angle circular cone at different angles of attack, free-stream Mach numbers, and Reynolds numbers has been studied in responses to different sources of disturbances. The effects of grid fineness and computational domain size have also been investigated. Next, the responses of three-dimensional supersonic asymmetric flow around a 5° circular cone at different angles of attack and Reynolds numbers to short-duration sideslip disturbances are presented. The results show that flow asymmetry becomes stronger as the Reynolds number and angles of attack are increased. The asymmetric solutions show spatial vortex shedding which is qualitatively similar to the temporal vortex shedding of the unsteady locally conical flow. A cylindrical afterbody is also added to the same cone to study the effect of a cylindrical part on the flow asymmetry. One of the cases of flow over a cone-cylinder configuration is validated fairly well by experimental data.     

Off-design regimes of flow past waveriders based on isentropic compression flows

Supersonic off-design flow past waveriders on the M = 3 to 10 freestream Mach number range is numerically investigated. Configurations based on the flows behind plane shocks followed by isentropic flow compression are considered. The flow regimes are analyzed at the Mach numbers both smaller and greater than the design value M _d . The results are obtained by finite-volume solution of the Euler equations using higher-order Runge-Kutta TVD schemes.     

The hypersonic Mach number independence principle in the case of viscous flow

The hypersonic Mach number independence principle of Oswatitsch is important for hypersonic vehicle design. It explains why, above a certain flight Mach number (M _∞ ≈ 4−6, depending on the body shape), some aerodynamic properties become independent of the flight Mach number. For ground test facilities this means that it is sufficient for the Mach number in the test section to be high enough, that Mach number independence exists. However, the principle was derived for calorically perfect gas and inviscid flow only. In this paper a theoretical study for blunt bodies in the case of viscous flow is presented. We provide numerical results which give insight into how attached viscous flow behaves at high Mach numbers. The flow past an axisymmetric configuration is analysed by applying a coupled Euler/second-order boundary-layer method. Wall boundaries are treated by assuming an adiabatic or radiation-adiabatic wall for laminar flow. Calorically perfect or equilibrium air is accounted for. Lift, drag, and moment coefficients, and lift-to-drag ratios are given for several combinations of flight Mach number and altitude, i.e. Reynolds number. For blunt bodies considered here, which are pressure dominated, Mach number independence occurs for the adiabatic wall, but not for the radiation-adiabatic wall assumption.     

Conservation of the resultant force vector in the plane of the angle of attack for slender star-shaped bodies in supersonic flows

At high supersonic flight speeds bodies with a star-shaped transverse and power-law longitudinal contour are optimal from the standpoint of wave drag [1–3]. In most of the subsequent experimental [4–6] and theoretical [6–9] studies only conical star-shaped bodies have been considered. For these bodies in certain flow regimes ascent of the Ferri point has been noted [10]. In [11] the boundary-value problem for elongated star-shaped bodies with a power-law longitudinal contour was solved for the case of supersonic flow. The present paper deals with the flow past these bodies at an angle of attack. It is found that for arbitrary star-shaped bodies with any longitudinal (in particular, conical) profile the aerodynamic forces can be reduced to a wave drag and a lift force, the lateral force on these bodies being equal to zero for any position of the transverse contour.Translated from Izvestiya Akademii Nauk SSSR, Mekhanika Zhidkosti i Gaza, No. 6, pp. 135–141, November–December, 1989.     

Transonic separation flow of water past a circular cone

The problem of subsonic, transonic, and supersonic separation flow of water past a circular cone of finite length is solved. The water is assumed to be an ideal compressible fluid. A steady flow picture is obtained in a process of stabilization with respect to the time by means of a two-dimensional finite-difference scheme [1]. The dependence of the drag coefficient on the Mach number of the oncoming flow, the distribution of the pressure over the conical surface, and the shape of the free surface formed behind the cone are investigated.     

Study of the damping characteristics of sectional flight vehicles of different length

The dependence of the damping characteristics of axisymmetric tri-sectional flight vehicles executing plane oscillations about the zero angle of attack on their geometric parameters is investigated on the supersonic range of uniform oncoming air flow Mach numbers. Systematic data are obtained using the least laborious approach, namely, by calculating the steady-state inviscid flow past equivalent bodies determined from the principle of the local similarity of force interaction. Ranges of the vehicle design parameters on which the dependence of the damping moment coefficient in pitch on the length of the conical or cylindrical-conical stabilizer of the vehicle is nonmonotonic are found. Typical viscosity effects on the characteristics under study are estimated using a method based on the assumptions of the linear theory for finite-thickness bodies. It is established that the damping coefficient increases monotonically with decreasing Reynolds number; moreover, even transition to oscillation antidumping regimes is possible when the sign of the damping coefficient changes.Translated from Izvestiya Rossiiskoi Academii Nauk, Mekhanika Zhidkosti i Gaza, No. 6, 2004, pp. 153–162. Original Russian Text Copyright © 2004 by Antonets and Shmanenkov.     

Structure of supersonic inviscid nonsymmetric conical flow around a V-wing

The shock wave structure of flow around a V-wing and its properties determining the conical flow topology are numerically investigated within the framework of the inviscid gas model on a wide range of the angles of attack and yaw when in the disturbed supersonic flow either nonsymmetric Mach interaction between the shocks attached to the leading edges of the wing or a shockless flow in the compressed layer on the windward cantilever is realized. The subranges of the angles of attack and yaw with the disturbed flow properties characteristic of the wing of the given geometry are determined. It is found that at high angles of attack, when the branching point of the bow shock beneath the leeward cantilever generates an intense contact discontinuity, the structure of the conical flow in the shock layer on the windward cantilever involves a singularity of a new type which can be characterized as a “vortical” Ferri singularity. It is located above the point of convergence of the streamlines proceeding from the leading edges of the wing, at the vertex of the corresponding contact discontinuity. Flow patterns with the point of convergence of the streamlines proceeding from the leading edges located in the elliptical flow region, which is placed at a local maximum of the pressure distribution over the surface are also found. The range of the angles of attack and yaw on which this new property of supersonic conical flows is realized in the presence of a branched shock system is determined.     

Hypersonic flow past conical V-shaped wings

Hypersonic flow past delta wings with a V-shaped cross-section has been investigated both theoretically and experimentally. Much attention is given to the examination and classification of possible conical flow patterns in the vicinity of the windward surface using the thin shock layer method. Solutions for shocks both attached to and detached from the leading edges them are obtained. It is shown that qualitatively new flow patterns can appear in the flow past V-shaped wings as compared with the case of a planar wing.Moscow. Translated from Izvestiya Rossiiskoi Akademii Nauk, Mekhanika Zhidkosti i Gaza, No. 5, pp. 170–178, September–October, 1996.     

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.     

Numerical investigation of drag and heat reduction in hypersonic spiked blunt bodies

In this investigation, the effects of spike as retractable drag and aerodynamic heating reduction into the reentry Earth’s atmosphere for hemispherical body flying at hypersonic flow have been numerically studied. This numerical solution has been carried out for different length, shapes and nose configuration of spike. Additional modifications to the tip of the spike are investigated in order to obtain different bow shocks, including no spike, conical, flat and hemispherical aerodisk mounted. Unsteady compressible 3-D Navier–Stokes equations are solved with k ? ω (SST) turbulence model for a flow over a forward facing spike attached to a heat shield for a free stream Mach number of 6. The obtained numerical results are compared with the experimental ones, and the results shows acceptable verification. This analysis shows that the aerodisk is more effective than aerospike. The designs produced 60 and 15 % reduction in drag and wall temperature responses, respectively.     

Supersonic flow past a system of two swept wedges mounted on a preliminary compression surface

The results of a numerical modeling of flow past a configuration consisting of two wedges with swept leading edges, so mounted on a preliminary compression surface that the beveled wedge surfaces deflect the wedge-compressed flows counter to each other, are presented. The calculations are performed on the basis of the averaged Navier-Stokes equations, together with the SST k-ω turbulence model, at the freestream Mach number M = 6. For the configuration geometry chosen the flow pattern is characterized by an irregular interaction between the wedge-induced shocks in the plane of symmetry. These shocks also induce three-dimensional, quasi-conical separations of a turbulent boundary layer on the preliminary compression wedge. In the separation zones the flows are directed toward the plane of symmetry of the configuration and interact with one another with the formation of a typical central “bulged” separation flow zone.     

On the center of pressure of a body

It is shown that under conditions of local interaction of a flow with the surface of a body the position of the center of pressure does not depend on the angle of attack or the form of the model of the flow past the body for a large class of configurations including conical, cylindrical, spherical, and flat elements. The problem of finding the shape of conical bodies with unchanged position of the center of pressure in a supersonic flow without slip was formulated by Ostapenko [1], who also found the shape of some such bodies.Translated from Izvestiya Akademii Nauk SSSR, Mekhanika Zhidkosti i Gaza, No. 5, pp. 129–133, September–October, 1982.     

Lifting bodies using the flow behind axisymmetric conical shock waves

One of the methods of designing aircraft with supersonic flight speeds involves solving an inverse problem by means of the well-known flow schemes and the substitution of rigid surfaces for the flow surfaces. Lifting bodies using the flows behind axisymmetric shock waves belong to these configurations. All lifting bodies using the flow behind a conical shock wave can be divided into two types [1]. Bodies whose leading edge passes through the apex of the conical shock wave pertain to the first type and those whose leading edge lies below the apex of the conical shock wave, to the second. For small apex angles of the basic cone at hypersonic flow velocities an approximate solution of the variation problem was obtained, which showed that the lift-drag ratio of lifting bodies of the second type is higher than that of the first [2]. The present paper gives a numerical solution of the problem for flow past lifting bodies of the second type using the flow behind axisymmetric conical shock waves with half-angles of the basic cone _S=9.5 and 18° The upper surfaces of the bodies are formed by intersecting planes parallel to the velocity vector of the oncoming flow.Translated from Izvestiya Akademii Nauk SSSR, Mekhanika Zhidkosti i Gaza, No. 2, pp. 135–138, March–April, 1986.     

Imploding conical shock waves

The behaviour of conical shock waves imploding axisymmetrically was first studied numerically by Hornung (J Fluid Mech 409:1–12, 2000) and this prompted a limited experimental investigation into these complex flow patterns by Skews et al. (Shock Waves 11:323–326, 2002). Modification of the simulation boundary conditions, resulting in the loss of self-similarity, was necessary to image the flow experimentally. The current tests examine the temporal evolution of these flows utilising a converging conical gap of fixed width fed by a shock wave impinging at its entrance, supported by CFD simulations. The effects of gap thickness, angle and incident shock strength were investigated. The wave initially diffracts around the outer lip of the gap shedding a vortex which, for strong incident shock cases, can contain embedded shocks. The converging shock at exit reflects on the axis of symmetry with the reflected wave propagating outwards resulting in a triple point developing on the incident wave together with the associated shear layer. This axisymmetric shear layer rolls up into a mushroom-shaped toroidal vortex ring and forward-facing jet. For strong shocks, this deforms the Mach disk to the extent of forming a second triple point with the primary shock exhibiting a double bulge. Separate features resembling the Richtmeyer–Meshkov and Kelvin–Helmholtz instabilities were noted in some tests. Aside from the incident wave curvature, the reflection patterns demonstrated correspond well with the V- and DV-types identified by Hornung although type S was not clearly seen, possibly due to the occlusion of the reflection region by the outer diffraction vortex at these early times. Some additional computational work explicitly exploring the limits of the parameter space for such systems has demonstrated the existence of a possible further reflection type, called vN-type, which is similar to the von Neumann reflection for plane waves. It is recommended that the parameter space be more thoroughly explored experimentally.     

Cover Image

A simple, robust, and accurate HLLC-type Riemann solver for the compressible Euler equations at various Mach numbers is built. To cure shock instability of the HLLC solver at strong shocks, a pressure-control technique, which plays a role in limiting the propagation of erroneous pressure perturbation, is proposed. With an all Mach correction method for the compressible Euler system, the proposed method is further extended to compute flow problems at low Mach numbers. The proposed all Mach HLLC-type scheme has been implemented and used to compute a variety of flow problems ranging from hypersonic compressible to low Mach incompressible flow regimes. Various numerical results demonstrate that the obtained all Mach HLLC-type scheme is both accurate and stable for all speed ranges.