Response of a nozzle to an entropy disturbance example of thermodynamically unsteady aerodynamics

Abstract

The larger number of problems that qualify as unsteady aerodynamics relate to non-uniform motion of surfaces -- such as pitching of airfoils -- or the correspondingly non-uniform motion of a fluid about a surface -- such as a gust passing over an airfoil. Experiment and analysis concerning these problems aims to determine the non-steady forces or surface stresses on the object. These may be thought of as "kinematically" non-steady problems. Another class of problems presents itself when the undisturbed gas stream temperature (or density) is non-steady although the velocity and pressure are steady; such non-uniformities are associated with entropy variations from point to point of the stream. In a locally adiabatic flow these entropy variations are transported with the stream, and when a fixed boundary -- such as an airfoil -- is encountered, the flow field undergoes a non-steady change because the density variations alter the pressure field -- or the stresses at the boundaries. This happens in spite of the fact that the undisturbed free -stream velocity field and the surface boundaries of the flow are independent of time. A gas turbine blade, for example, will experience a time-dependent load simply because of temperature fluctuations in the combustion products flowing over it, although the angle of attack is independent of time. We shall call these "thermodynamically" unsteady flows in contrast with the more familiar kinematically unsteady flows.