COMPUTATIONAL INVESTIGATION OF FLUIDIC COUNTER FLOW THRUST VECTORING APPLIED TO SMALL ENGINE EXHAUST JET

A computational investigation of fluidic counterflow thrust vectoring on a circular-shape nozzle, integrated with a Coanda surface has been conducted. Three-dimensional numerical simulations were run using the computational fluid dynamics code with two-equation standard k-ε turbulence model. In the counterflow concept, thrust vectoring is achieved by applying a vacuum to a slot adjacent to a primary jet that is shrouded by a suction collar. Counterflow thrust vectoring is an innovative technique that uses no movable components to redirect a thrust producing jet. This geometry relies on a curved surface (named collar), and a secondary section that was divided into four identical sections for the purpose of multidirectional vectoring and cooling. The purpose of the present study is to investigate the thrust deflection angle for different primary flow and gap sizes between collar and nozzle with the use of different vacuum pressure. For validation, computational results were compared to experimental and computational data obtained at Cranfield University with co-flow method for this geometry. In general, computational results were in good agreement with experimental performance data, indicating that efficient thrust vectoring can be obtained with low secondary flow requirements compared to co-flow method.

کلیدواژه ها:

Thrust Vectoring ، Counter-Flow ، Fluidic ، Coanda surface ، Computational Fluid Dynamics