Experimental and numerical research of a supersonic planar thrust vectoring nozzle via mechanical tabs

Abstract

Wind tunnel cold flow tests were conducted, using the convergentdivergent two-dimensional nozzle, with a tab as the obstacle at the nozzle exit area. This geometry is applied in thrust vector control systems for missiles. During the variation of some of the most influential geometry parameters in the flow domain, the nozzle surface pressure distribution is measured, and the Schlieren photos are recorded. Using those experimental results, CFD modeling is conducted, and four turbulence models are compared. After comparison, the advantage is given to transitional k-ω turbulent models, regarding results concurrence and computational cost. These results can be used as a guideline for further three-dimensional CFD researches of real thrust vector control geometries, and also for a better understanding of flow processes in those applications. © Faculty of Mechanical Engineering, Belgrade.