LOW DENSITY FLOW EFFECTS FOR HYPERVELOCITY VEHICLES

THE HYPERSONIC VEHICLES FLYING AT HIGH ALTITUDES OPERATE IN A FLOW REGIME WHERE THE NONCONTINUUM EFFECTS NEAR THE SURFACE AND FINITE SHOCK THICKNESS DUE TO LOW-DENSITY MAKE THE CONVENTIONAL CONTIMUUM TECHNIQUES GROSSLY INADEQUATE. CHEMICAL NONEQUILIBRIUM IS ALSO IMPORTANT UNDER THE LOW-DENSITY FLOW CONDITIONS. UNTIL RECENTLY NOT MUCH WORK HAS BEEN DONE TO EVALUATE DEFICIENCIES OF THE EXISTING CONTINUUM TECHNIQUES TO ANALYSE THE LOW-DENSITY FLOWS AND FIND MEANS TO REMOVE THEM. RECENTLY COMPLETED DETAILED WORK BY THE PRINCIPLE INVESTIGATOR SUGGESTS THE WAYS AND MEANS TO EVOLVE AN EFFICIENT AND PRACTICAL CONTINUUM COMPUTATIONAL TECHNIQUE. THIS TECHNIQUE WOULD BE CAPABLE OF HANDLING CHEMICAL NONEQUILIBRIUM, FINITE SURFACE CATALYCITY, AND HIGHLY TEMPERATURE-DEPENDENT TRANSPORT AND THERMODYNAMIC PROPERTIES FOR DISSOCIATED AIR UNDER THE LOW-DENSITY FLIGHT CONDITIONS.