Numerical and Analytical Study of Curvature Effects in Laminar Shock Wave/Boundary Layer Interactions

Abstract

Shock wave/boundary-layer interactions (SBLIs) are one of the most complex flow phenomena because of the different types of physics involved (i.e., viscous versus inviscid) and their side effects such as boundary layer separation and extreme localized heating. Control surfaces based on compliant mechanisms are becoming a reality and introduce an additional variable into the already complex SBLI, namely surface curvature. The purpose of the present work is to systematically study the effects of surface curvature on laminar, ramp-induced SBLIs. This is accomplished using numerical and theoretical approaches in the form of numerical solutions to the compressible Navier–Stokes equations and triple-deck theory, respectively. Results include a unique comparison between triple-deck theory and numerical solutions to the Navier–Stokes equations, a new scaling relationship involving Reynolds number, Mach number and radius of curvature, and unsteady three- dimensional results for a select case, which was undertaken to investigate the onset of unsteadiness in the nominally steady, two-dimensional SBLI.