Experimental Analysis of Waverider Lift-to-Drag Ratio Measurements in Rarefied and Supersonic Regime

Abstract

This work, performed in the MARHY rarefied hypersonic facility, experimentally explores the effects of rarefaction on a classical waverider geometry. This hypersonic vehicle is designed to develop a shock attached along the leading edge length to improve flight efficiency. The concept was first proposed by Nonweiler in 1959. Since then, many studies have been conducted, mainly on numerical aspects. Few works have included the influence of the viscous effect, we can cite those of Bowcutt who showed how viscous effects impact the optimal shapes due to the skin friction drag. However, the trajectories of these types of vehicles anticipate flights with high Mach numbers and at high altitudes where rarefaction effects can strongly impact the lift-to-drag ratio predictions. This work focuses on the behavior of the L/D ratio at different supersonic operating conditions. The viscous effects were analyzed with 4 operating flow conditions: Mach 2 and 8 Pa static pressure and Mach 4 with 2, 8 and 71 Pa static pressures. For this purpose, the aerodynamic coefficients were measured for several angles of incidence. with a homemade sting balance. The experimental results were compared to Monte Carlo numerical simulations performed with the DS3V code.

Investigation of shock/shock interferences on the aerodynamics of a fragment in the wake of debris in a rarefied regime/at high altitude

“…The aerodynamic balance used in this investigation was designed and experimented by Noubel & Lago (2021). It was developed especially for low-density flow conditions, such as those in the MARHy wind tunnel, where the force values are estimated to be between 1 mN and 1 N. The balance is a sting type and comprises two modules to measure drag and lift forces.…”

“…The balance is positioned horizontally to avoid gravity effects, as explained by Noubel & Lago (2021). Thus lift forces are measured in the y-direction, so the second sphere will be displaced in the y-direction and not in the z-direction as for the other experiments.…”