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synopsis of the project performed during my university studies

EFFECT OF TABS ON A SUPERSONIC JET FLOW

Introduction

Supersonic jets have various uses in modern day industries. This includes high speed flow in
the aviation industry; the printing process in new inkjet printers; and the new drug delivery
systems in the medical field. A supersonic jet is characterized as a flow which has a Mach
number greater than 1; that is, the velocity of the flow will have to be greater than or equal to
the speed of sound in that medium at that temperature.

Supersonic aircrafts were first introduced in the twentieth century and were mainly used for
research and military purposes. These aircrafts are specially signified by the sonic boom, which
refers to the point where the jet moves faster than the speed of sound resulting in the formation
of a cloud of dust suddenly appearing around the jet followed by a long trail behind the aircraft.
Supersonic aircrafts have different engines and heating characteristics as compared to a
subsonic aircraft. This has caused the jets to be considered a separate domain of study
altogether.

Shocks are characteristic of any supersonic jet. This is because pressure variations are created
when the jet shifts from a subsonic flow to a supersonic flow. Considering the flow of a fluid
through a converging diverging nozzle, the flow can have a maximum velocity of the speed of
sound at the throat of the nozzle. As the jet passes through the diverging section the jet is
expected to lose the gained velocity because the area of cross section increases, yet as it flows
through the divergent section the velocity continues to increase. This is because the fluid
continues to expand and as the whole process is taking place at isentropic conditions, it
accelerates continuously.

Supersonic Jet Control

A major problem that supersonic aircrafts face is that, as they cross the sound barrier, the engine
experiences a large working load because of the sudden increase in the drag force pulling the
aircraft behind. Stealth operations of the military face greater challenges as these aircrafts can
be easily detected using infrared sensors because of the extensive heat dissipated by the extra


work done by the engine to overcome the sound barrier. Another issue that these aircrafts face
is with the acoustics of the machine. The sound levels of the aircraft exceed the safety norms
as it hits the sonic boom. The trail of the aircraft also needs to be reduced to perform stealth
operations.

Supersonic jet control refers to the procedure of controlling certain ill effects of the jet without
affecting the speed of the jet. It is classified into two categories: Active jet control and Passive
jet control.

Active jet control

Active jet control refers to the process of using a mechanism that uses a different source of
energy (micro-jets, pulse-jets and other actuators) as compared to the energy used for the actual
jet. These methods require a secondary energy source and thus influence the flow of the
primary jet. The working of these methods involve placing these actuators at strategic locations
to deflect or deviate the primary flow as desired. These designs have to be simulated or
experimentally worked on as a trial and error process. The main advantage of active jet control
devices as compared to the passive control devices is that they can operate at a much broader
spectrum. The significance of using these is that their frequency and amplitude can be tailored
for a particular flow situation reducing the dependence on the actuation location. These
actuators have a better efficiency because of its separation mitigation at high angles of attack
and virtual aero-shaping at low angles of attack. Active jet controls have a major disadvantage
in the amount of total energy used for the process, which is much larger compared to the passive
jet controls.

Passive jet controls

Passive jet controls refer to the process of using the existing energy of the primary jet to make
changes in the flow field. This can be done either by creating additional solid structures at the
mouth of the nozzle; or by changing the shape of the nozzle exit. The working principle of
these jets is to create a boundary layer separation at a position at which the separation is
delayed. These geometrical modifications on the surface of the exit cause the necessary
boundary layer disruption, leading to a controlled supersonic jet flow. The geometrical
modifications made on the exit surface results in minimizing the total energy spent and
reduction in the efficiency of the jet. Passive jet control methods are preferred when there are
structural constraints in the design of the aircraft.

Passive jet controls are preferred from an energy saving point of view but they provide a lower
efficiency as compared to the active jet controls. Solid tabs are the widely used form of the
passive jet control method that are placed in the path of the fluid flow creating an obstruction
leading to formation of vortices and promoting the mixing efficiency. Solid tabs were first used
in the late 20th century to control the exhaust from the nozzle in rocket systems.

Effect of Solid Tabs

As the fluid flows through the nozzle, regardless of the pressure gradient, it tends to mix with
the ambient air and loses its velocity. In the presence of a solid tab interrupting the flow,
vortices are generated at the solid boundary. These vortices interact with the fluid and increase
the rate at which the decay occurs. This vortex formation is due to the following reasons:
1. The pressure hill that is generated by the tab which occurs as a result of the curling of
the fluid around the tab to move into the low pressure region.
2. The vortex filaments that shed from the sides of the tab, reorient downstream by the
mean shear mixing layer.

Depending on the orientation of the tab, the latter may create a vortex with the same vorticity
as the dominant pair to cancel each other. The formation of the twin vortex is a rare
phenomenon in passive jet control as it is highly unlikely to generate a secondary vortex with
the same magnitude as the primary vortex.

The tabs can therefore create enough vorticity to reduce the velocity of the jet and enhance the
mixing efficiency.