Interaction of Chemistry, Turbulence, and Shock Waves in Hypervelocity Flow

Abstract

Significant progress was made in the third year of an interdisciplinary experimental, numerical and theoretical program to extend the state of knowledge and understanding of the effects of chemical reactions in hypervelocity flows. The program addressed the key problems in aerothermochemistry that arise from.the interaction between the three strongly nonlinear effects: Compressibility; vorticity; and chemistry. Important new results included: • New data on transition in hypervelocity carbon dioxide flows • New method of free-piston shock tunnel operation for lower enthalpy • Accurate new method for computation of self-similar flows • New experimental data on flap-induced separation at high enthalpy • Insight into mechanisms active in reacting shear layers from comparison of experiment and computation • Extensive new data from Rayleigh scattering diagnostics of supersonic shear layer • Comparison of new experiments and computation of hypervelocity double-wedge flow yielded important differences • Further first-principles computations of electron collision cross-sections of CO, N_2 and NO • Good agreement between EFMO computation and experiment of flow over a cone at high incidence • Extension of LITA diagnostics to high temperature.