NOVEL-APPROACH FOR CALCULATING EQUILIBRIUM RADIATING FLOWS

A two-dimensional/axisymmetric Navier-Stokes now solver capable of han dling hypersonic equilibrium radiating flows over aerobrake geometries of current interest is developed. Traditional computations of equilib rium flows use iterative schemes to enforce equilibrium at each time s tep. The present approach employs rate equations in lieu of expensive iterative procedures, with the result that equilibrium is achieved at convergence. Cases are presented, assuming both 5- and Ii-species air models, highlighting important aspects of the method development. Resu lts are shown for a proposed 15.2-m-diam lunar transfer vehicle with a velocity of 9797 m/s at 72 km altitude. The results are compared with those generated by the LAURA code.