Detached Eddy Simulation of Base Flows under Subsonic Free Stream Conditions

Abstract

The present work focuses on the numerical simulation of a base flow around a generic rocket model for subsonic flow conditions. In a preliminary study the flow for two reduced geometries are investigated to obtain an optimized discretization of the flow field for a detached eddy simulation (DES). First, an inflow plane with prescribed values from a Reynolds averaged Navier-Stokes (RANS) solution is used which avoids the unsteady simulation of the model support and most of the model body. Second, the problem size is halved by exploiting the symmetry of the geometry. In both calculations an indicator is tested, which quantifies the local grid quality with respect to the turbulent kinetic energy resolved by the DES. According to this indicator the grid resolution in the first case is very good and in the second case sufficient in the regions of interest. Although the physical interpretation is limited due to the approximations made, the results indicate a strong connection between the base flow and the wake of the support.