Automatic Transition Prediction for Three-Dimensional Configurations with Focus on Industrial Application

Abstract

A computational method to predict transition lines for general three dimensional configurations is presented. The method consists of a coupled program system including a 3D Navier-Stokes solver, a transition prediction module, a boundary-layer code and a stability code. Focus is placed on the industrialization of the approach. For this, the transition prediction module has been adapted to be used for parallel computation to account for high computational demands for three dimensional configurations. Different calculation methods for the laminar boundary layer that are available in the transiton prediction module are presented. The method is validated against experimental data of the flow around an inclined prolate spheroid. Application examples are shown for different three-dimensional aircraft configurations and topics arising from these tests concerning the industrialization of the method are discussed.