Turbulence compressibility corrections
The basic objective of this research was to identify, develop and recommend turbulence models which could be incorporated into CFD codes used in the design of the National AeroSpace Plane vehicles. To accomplish this goal, a combined effort consisting of experimental and theoretical phases was undertaken. The experimental phase consisted of a literature survey to collect and assess a database of well documented experimental flows, with emphasis on high speed or hypersonic flows, which could be used to validate turbulence models. Since it was anticipated that this database would be incomplete and would need supplementing, additional experiments in the NASA Ames 3.5-Foot Hypersonic Wind Tunnel (HWT) were also undertaken. The theoretical phase consisted of identifying promising turbulence models through applications to simple flows, and then investigating more promising models in applications to complex flows. The complex flows were selected from the database developed in the first phase of the study. For these flows it was anticipated that model performance would not be entirely satisfactory, so that model improvements or corrections would be required. The primary goals of the investigation were essentially achieved. A large database of flows was collected and assessed, a number of additional hypersonic experiments were conducted in the Ames HWT, and two turbulence models (kappa-epsilon and kappa-omega models with corrections) were determined which gave superior performance for most of the flows studied and are now recommended for NASP applications.