FLUID MECHANICS

STUDY ON COMPUTATIONAL FLUID DYNAMICS(CFD) AND ITS APPLICATIONS

ON AEROSPACE FIELD.
Abhijith Ratheesh Kalloor
Department of Aerospace, Alliance University
SEPTEMBER 2024

Abstract
Computa onal fluid dynamics (CFD) is a branch of fluid mechanics that
uses numerical analysis and data structures to analyse and solve problems that involve fluid
flows. Computers are used to perform the calcula ons required to simulate the free-stream
flow of the fluid, and the interac on of the fluid (liquids and gases) with surfaces defined
by boundary condi ons. Associa ve proper es like velocity, viscosity, density and
temperature can also be calculated based on defined opera ng condi on.

CFD Simula ons have advantage over tradi onal methods. It can save me and money
compared to real me tes ng. It allows for virtual prototyping, which enables engineers to
test and op mize design before building physical models. CFD simula ons provide a visual
representa on of flow pa erns, allowing engineers to understand complex flow systems in a
way that is not possible with physical experiments.

Computa onal Fluid Dynamics (CFD) plays a significant role in the aerospace industry by
providing a simula on-based approach for analysing and designing aircra components,
such as wings, fuselages, and engines. CFD simula ons services can be used to predict fluid
flow behaviour, heat transfer, and aerodynamics, which are crucial for ensuring aircra
performance, safety, and efficiency. This allows engineers to test and op mize designs
without the need for expensive physical prototypes and wind tunnel experiments.

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KEY PRINCIPLES OF CFD:
CFD is based on the Navier-Stokes equa ons and Euler equa ons, which describe
the mo on of viscous fluids. The equa ons can be modified to include addi onal terms for
things like heat transfer, chemical reac ons, or phase change.

Three-dimensional unsteady form of the Navier-Stokes Equa ons

These equa ons describe how the velocity, pressure, temperature, and density of a
moving fluid are related. The Navier-Stokes equa ons consists of a me-dependent
con nuity equa on for conserva on of mass, three me-dependent conserva on of
momentum equa ons and a me-dependent conserva on of energy equa on. There are
four independent variables in the problem, the x, y, and z spa al coordinates of some
domain, and the me t. There are six dependent variables; the pressure p, density r, and
temperature T (which is contained in the energy equa on through the total energy Et) and
three components of the velocity vector; the u component is in the x direc on,
the v component is in the y direc on, and the w component is in the z direc on, All of the
dependent variables are func ons of all four independent variables.

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Euler equa ons

Euler equa ons describes how the velocity, density and pressure are related. . The equa ons
are a set of coupled differen al equa ons and they can be solved for a given flow problem
by using methods from calculus. Though the equa ons appear to be very complex, they are
actually simplifica ons of the more general Navier-Stokes equa ons of fluid dynamics. The
Euler equa ons neglect the effects of the viscosity of the fluid which are included in the
Navier-Stokes equa ons. A solu on of the Euler equa ons is therefore only an
approxima on to a real fluids problem. For some problems, like the li of a thin aerofoil at
low angle of a ack, a solu on of the Euler equa ons provides a good model of reality. For
other problems, like the growth of the boundary layer on a flat plate, the Euler equa ons do
not properly model the problem.
Generalized solu ons of these equa ons are difficult to obtain. No ce that all of the
dependent variables appear in each equa on. To solve a flow problem, you have to solve all
three equa ons simultaneously; that is why we call this a coupled system of equa ons.
There is actually another equa on that is required to solve this system, since we only show
three equa ons for four unknowns. An equa on of state relates the pressure and the
density of a gas. In the past, engineers made further approxima ons and simplifica ons to
the equa on set un l they had a group of equa ons that they could solve. Recently, high
speed computers have been used to solve approxima ons to the equa ons using a variety of
techniques like finite difference, finite volume, finite element, and spectral methods. This
area of study is called Computa onal Fluid Dynamics or CFD.

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METHODOLOGY:
1] The FELISA system:
FELISA is a computa onal fluid dynamics (CFD) package and volume mesh generator
with a finite element method (FEM) Euler based flow solver. The FELISA code consists of two
solvers, the Taylor- Galerkin and the Runge-Ku a-Galerkin schemes, both of which are
spa ally discre zed by the usual Galerkin weighted residual finite-element methods but with
different explicit me-marching schemes to steady state.

2] Wing-Body Models:
AGARD AR-303 was created to provide researchers with experimental wind tunnel
test results to be used for CFD verifica on. AGARD-AR-303 is an Advisory Report from the
Advisory Group for Aerospace Research and Development (AGARD) that contains a selec on
of experimental test cases for valida ng Computa onal Fluid Dynamics (CFD) codes.

CFD ANALYSIS PROCESS:

1] PRE-PROCESSING:
Pre-processing is the first step in CFD simula on - which can help to define
the parameters of the simula on in a perfect way. Problem analysis, geometry and meshing
are the important steps in pre-processing.
2] SOLVER/PROCESSING:
Once the problem physics has been iden fied, fluid material proper es, flow
physics model, and boundary condi ons are set to solve using a computer.
3] POST-PROCESSING:
Post-processing is the process of extrac ng meaningful results from the
solu on data that is generated a er solving any CFD problem. Post-processing can be
categorized into two major segments: qualita ve or visualiza on based; and quan ta ve, or
profile/trend based.

NOTE: ** The computed flow proper es are then compared to results from analy c,
computa onal, or experimental studies to establish the validity of the computed results.
** The sensi vity of the computed results should be examined to understand the
possible differences in the accuracy of results and / or performance of the computa on
with respect to such things as: dimensionality, flow condi ons, ini al condi ons,
marching strategy algorithm, grid topology and density, turbulence model, chemistry
model, flux model, ar ficial viscosity, boundary condi ons, computer system.

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POPULAR CFD SOFTWARES:
Ansys: Ansys computa onal fluid dynamics (CFD) products are highly regarded for
their superior compu ng power and accurate results. They are used by engineers to make
be er, faster decisions and reduce development me and efforts while improving product
performance and safety.
SimScale: SimScale is a GPU-based solver that uses the la ce Boltzmann method
(LBM) to tackle transient simula ons. It is accessible via the cloud and offers a range of
features such as steady and transient simula ons, mul ple turbulence models, and
convec ve and conjugate heat transfer.
Ansys Fluent: Ansys Fluent is a powerful fluid simula on so ware that contains the
best-in-class physics models and can accurately and efficiently solve large, complex models.
It is known for its advanced physics modelling capabili es and industry-leading accuracy.
Autodesk CFD: Autodesk CFD so ware creates computa onal fluid dynamics
simula ons that engineers and analysts use to intelligently predict how liquids and gases will
perform. It offers a user-friendly interface, customiza on op ons, and the ability to enable
scrip ng and automa on with APIs.
Simulia: Simulia is a computa onal fluid dynamics simula on so ware that offers
steady-state and transient internal and external flow around and through structures. It is
part of the Dassault System por olio and offers a range of features such as fluid-structure
interac on and mul -physics modeling.

APPLICATIONS:
COMBAT AIRCRAFT DEVELOPMENT PROGRAMME : Right from the ini al design and
development phases of light combat aircra (LCA), the applica ons of CFD has been at the
forefront of numerous ac vi es of aerodynamic design, including: configura on design and
modifica ons, es ma on of aerodynamic loads, es ma on of stability deriva ves, air intake
flow analysis, air data correc ons for flow measurement sensors, store trajectory analysis,
aerodynamic improvement analyses, to name a few. The vast spectra of applica ons were
possible due to the development of indigenous Euler and Navier-Stokes codes based on
mul -block structured and unstructured hybrid grids. The CFD applica ons during
preliminary design phase (PDP) relied on codes based on linear and full poten al theories,
where the purpose of analysis was to study various configura on op ons in order to freeze
the candidate configura on with the op mal aerodynamic performance. The development
phase, a er the design freeze, made extensive use of CFD codes of higher fidelity Euler and
Navier-Stokes codes.
CFD IN LAUNCH VEHICLE DESIGN: The launch vehicle community has derived immense
benefit from CFD for the design and analysis of various launch vehicles. CFD is applied in
VSSC mainly for external flows related to aerodynamics and internal flows related to
propulsion.

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CFD IN MISSILE DESIGN: DRDL has developed indigenous grid generators and industry
standard 3-D Euler and Navier-stokes solver for the predic on of complex aerodynamic
flows. Systema c valida ons were carried out through comparisons against reliable
experimental results before applying these in the design exercises. Propulsion systems of
various ongoing and future missile projects have been designed and analysed using
commercial so ware.

CONCLUSIONS: Advancements in numerical algorithms, computer hardware, and geometric

preprocessing have enabled CFD to simulate the flow field around aerospace vehicles with
all its geometrical complexi es. This technology is not only explaining the complex flow
physics, but also providing important design inputs for various aerospace vehicle including
fighter and transport aircra , launch vehicles and missiles.

REFERENCES:
1. M. Jahed djomehri, NASA technical paper
2. AGARD-AR-303 VOL1
3. AGARD-AR-303 VOL 2
4. NPARC Alliance valida on website
5. Computa onal fluid dynamics by John D.Anderson, vol 1
6. Defence Science Journal, Vol. 60, No. 6
7. CFD Applica on in defence sector of India, K.P Singh, J.S Mathur

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