Flight Mechanics of a Supersonic Projectile: A Parametric Investigation


Rafay A., MAQSOOD A.

21st International Bhurban Conference on Applied Sciences and Technology, IBCAST 2024, Murree, Pakistan, 20 - 23 August 2024, pp.184-192, (Full Text) identifier

  • Publication Type: Conference Paper / Full Text
  • Doi Number: 10.1109/ibcast61650.2024.10876962
  • City: Murree
  • Country: Pakistan
  • Page Numbers: pp.184-192
  • Keywords: CFD, DATCOM, pitch damping, pitch rate, stability coefficients
  • Middle East Technical University Northern Cyprus Campus Affiliated: Yes

Abstract

The stability coefficients and derivatives are used to determine a vehicle's motion and are considered critical for the design of flight vehicles. In this research, the dynamic pitch derivatives of an axisymmetric projectile prototype are examined using Computational Fluid Dynamics (CFD). For this purpose, a methodology is established by validating two test cases and then applied to a newly designed prototype. The dynamic damping derivatives are calculated using the forced oscillation approach. The pitch damping coefficients are simulated for angles of attack from 0° to 20°. A decent agreement is observed between the CFD and experimental data. The test cases are also analyzed through DATCOM for comparative analysis. A conceptual projectile geometry is designed and evaluated at a Mach number of 1.5. A parametric analysis is also conducted for the variation of Mach number and reduced pitch rate on pitch damping coefficients for the conceptual geometry. This study establishes the use of CFD to determine fast and consistent estimates for the aerodynamic stability parameters.