Generalized reference enthalpy formulations and simulation of viscous effects in hypersonic flow

Abstract.

A generalized reference enthalpy formulation for the skin friction, heat transfer and radiation-equilibrium temperature distributions over aerodynamic surfaces in attached hypersonic / hyperenthalpic flow is proposed. The formulation, which has been extensively employed in various forms by numerous investigators in the perfect gas regime, has also been recently demonstrated to provide adequate estimates of the heat transfer distribution in thermochemically active high enthalpy flow conditions when coupled to thermochemically active Euler solutions. It is now used to reveal the relevant similitude parameters for viscous effects in hypersonic flow, and the importance of the temperature distribution across the boundary layer and of the temperature-viscosity relation. It is shown that, although reproduction of the flight total flow enthalpy as well as surface temperature is the obvious solution for full viscous simulation in (perfect gas) hypersonic flow, the hot surface testing requirement and, in a number of practical applications, also the hot flow requirement may be relaxed with reasonably small error that can be of the same order as the measurement accuracy in present-day hypersonic testing. This similitude error, however, may increase significantly in cases exhibiting strong viscous/inviscid interaction or when the laminar-turbulent transition process becomes important. In this respect, alternative full simulation solutions, which are less demanding in terms of reproduction of the high levels of flight freestream and surface temperature or even Reynolds number, are discussed.