Hypersonic Flow Investigation of Aerospikes for Delta-type Lifting Body Configurations

抄録

The increased drag and convective heating associated with flow at hypersonic speeds have a significant impact on the design of vehicles. To alienate this problem, a thorough literature review proclaims the research on using aerospikes and aerodisks as passive control devices. However, these studies have been conducted only on simple axisymmetric geometries and not on representative lifting body shapes. As a preliminary design study, the efforts were focused on analysis of using forward-facing aerospikes and its effectiveness with varying angle of attack (-10° to +10°) and spike-nose configuration, on key aerothermodynamic parameters of drag and heat reduction for prospective application to lifting body configuration, forming a delta shape with non-axisymmetric forward stagnation surface. Flow visualization was carried out using the schlieren technique. Measurements made at freestream Mach number 7 with six-component force balance system revealed a 100% increase in the Lift/Drag Ratio and no significant change in pitching moment coefficient compared to No-spike case, with aerospikes proving worthy at high angles of attack; thereby indicating their practical feasibility for eventual future applications to spacecrafts.