Theoretical and Numerical Studies on the Performance of Shock Vector Control

Abstract The transverse injection into a supersonic flow is a significant application that appeared in numerous aerodynamic applications, such as drag reduction and fluidic thrust vectoring control. Nowadays, fluidic thrust vector control is gradually replacing mechanical thrust vector control to redirect various air vehicles. Shock vector control is very popular in fluidic thrust vector control field due to lots of advantages, such as simple structure, more integrated control effect, and quick vectoring response. In present works, numerical simulations and theoretical analyses were conducted to investigate the shock vectoring performance in a three-dimensional rectangular nozzle. To validate the reliability and accuracy of the present numerical methodology, static pressure distributions along upper and lower nozzle surfaces in the symmetry plane were compared with experimental data published by NASA. It was evident that present numerical results present great approximations with experimental data. Control variables of the slot injector were studied, which not only include slot length and slot width but also contain uniform mass flow ratio and injection pressure ratio. Performance variations were illustrated clearly, such as static pressure distributions along upper and lower nozzle surfaces, deflection angle, resultant thrust coefficient, and thrust efficiency. Useful conclusions were obtained for further investigations on shock vector control.