Simulations of injection, mixing, and combustion in supersonic flow using a hybrid RANS/LES approach.

University of Minnesota Ph.D. dissertation. September 2011. Major: Aerospace Engineering and Mechanics. Advisor: Graham V. Candler. 1 computer file (PDF); xiii, 122 pages, appendix A.There is a great need for accurate and reliable numerical simulation of injection, mixing, and combustion in supersonic combustion ramjet engines. This study seeks to improve the accuracy and reliability which these flow can be simulated with by investigating the use of recent improvements in turbulence modeling and numerical methods. The present numerical simulations use implicit time integration and low-dissipation flux evaluation schemes in an unstructured grid framework. A hybrid Reynolds-Averaged Navier-Stokes and large-eddy simulation approach is used to model turbulence. The large-scale turbulent structure of the flow is resolved, while the near-wall structure is fully modeled. The effects of numerics, grid resolution, and boundary conditions are investigated. The simulation approach is thoroughly validated against available experimental data at a variety of flow conditions. The simulations focus on the injection of fuel through circular injector ports that are oriented either normal to the supersonic crossflow, or at a low angle with respect to the crossflow. The instantaneous flow structure resolved by the simulations is qualitatively compared to experimental flowfield visualization. Quantitative comparisons are made to mean wall pressure, mean velocity, turbulence quantities, and mean mixing data. The simulations are found to do very well at predicting the mean flowfield as well as fluctuations in velocity and injectant concentration. The simulation approach is then used to simulate the flow within a model supersonic combustor. The focus is on the non-reacting case. The simulation results are found to agree well with experimental measurements of temperature and species concentrations. The flow is examined to improve understanding of the mixing within the model combustor. Preliminary results for a simulation including hydrogen combustion are also presented