Design and Computational Analysis of an Axisymmetric Contoured Supersonic Propulsion Nozzle

Abstract

The design of supersonic axisymmetric nozzles to a required exit Mach number necessitates applying the Method of Characteristics (MoC) that reduces the partial differential equations system of hyperbolic form governing such internal flow-fields to two ordinary differential equations known as the characteristic and the compatibility equations. These relationships are then transformed into finite difference equations and solved using an appropriate predictor-corrector algorithm.The present study applies the MoC to the design of a contoured nozzle that accelerates the combustion gases to supersonic velocities. The selected configuration has a throat constituted of two circular arcs with the one downstream attached to a 2nd-order polynomial profile at the attachment point. The solution, in terms of the static pressure along the centerline and the wall is obtained. It was found that the flow expands gradually without any instability or possibility of shock waves. A gradual expansion represented by a decrease in pressure is noticed immediately downstream of the throat, the flow tending to expand gradually from the throat to the exit. Along the wall, the expansion is important immediately downstream of the throat while it tends to stabilize downstream to reach the ambient pressure at the outlet. In terms of performance, the thrust coefficient developed shows the great expansion process within the divergent supersonic section. The configuration is also found to develop a great specific thrust.