SUPERSONIC COMBUSTOR ENHANCEMENT STUDY

THE SUPERCOMPUTER HAS MADE POSSIBLE THE USE OF COMPUTATIONAL FLUID DYNAMICS FOR OPTIMIZING THE AERODYNAMICS OF PROPULSION SYSTEM COMPONENTS. THIS ABILITY WILL INCREASE EVEN MORE IN THE NEXT FEW YEARS WHEN NEW SUPERCOMPUTERS BECOME OPERATIONAL, PERMITTING COMPLETE PROPULSION SYSTEMS TO BE ANALYZED. OPTIMUM AERODYNAMIC CONFIGURATIONS REQUIRE ANALYSIS OF COMPLEX INTERNAL GEOMETRICS, ESPECIALLY IN THE TRANSONIC AND MODERATELY SUPERSONIC REGIMES WHERE MAXIMUM DRAG OCCURS. INCLUDED IN THESE TECHNIQUES SHOULD BE THE CAPABILITY TO ANALYZE WALL INJECTION AND COMBUSTION. THE USE OF COMPUTATIONAL FLUID DYNAMICS OFFERS THE POTENTIAL OF SUPPLEMENTING AND IN SOME CASES REPLACING EXPENSIVE AND TIME CONSUMING WIND TUNNEL ORIENTED DEVELOPMENT PROGRAMS. THE PROPOSED EFFORT WILL APPLY COMPUTATIONAL FLUID DYNAMICS AND A SOLID STATE HEAT PIPE CONCEPT TO INVESTIGATE COMBUSTOR EFFICIENCY. THE ANALYSIS WILL INCLUDE AXIAL WALL INJECTION, STUT INJECTION, AND CHEMICAL REACTIONS. THE TECHNIQUE PROPOSED IS CAPABLE OF MULTITASKING AND MULTIGRIDS. THE DEVELOPMENT OF THIS CAPABILITY WOULD REDUCE COMBUSTOR DEVELOPMENT COSTS, REDUCE DEVELOPMENT TIME AND PERMIT EXTREMELY DETAILED AERODYNAMIC CONFIGURATION OPTIMIZATION.