Aerodynamic design of a supersonic three-dimensional inlet

Abstract

The results of designing and numerical gas-dynamic modeling a supersonic three-dimensional inlet of a new type are considered. A ramp of external compression of this inlet is the V-shaped body forming an initial plane oblique shock wave and a subsequent isentropic compression wave. The inlet incorporates an entrance section of internal compression, where also a plane oblique shock wave and a subsequent isentropic compression wave are formed by a cowl. The designed three-dimensional inlet has small inclination angles of compression surfaces, which ensures its low wave drag. According to the estimates of inlet efficiency in terms of the compression ratio and the total pressure recovery factor, it is close to the optimal two-dimensional shocked inlet of external compression considered by Oswatisch as well as Petrov and Ukhov. The flow in the inlet was computed with the use of the Euler and Navier — Stokes codes provided by the commercial package “FLUENT”. The flow in the inlet throat in the design regime computed under the inviscid flow approximation is uniform. The most substantial effect of the flow viscosity in this regime manifests itself in the interaction of the shock wave from the cowl with the boundary layer on the V-shaped compression body in the inlet internal duct. According to computed data, the boundary layer separation does not occur in this case; however, due to viscosity effects, reflected shock waves are formed here which results in significant deviations of flow structure as compared to the computed inviscid flow.