Compressible Flows

Potential Flow equation

Linear Potential Flow equation
in
Finally we get
And in terms of velocity perturbation potential
PRESSURE COEFFICIENT, C
P

Use non-dimensional description instead of plotting actual values of
pressure
Pressure distribution in aerodynamic literature often given as C
p

So why do we care?
Distribution of C
p
leads to value of c
l
Easy to get pressure data in wind tunnel
Shows effect of M

on c
l
2
2
1

V
p p
q
p p
C
p

Binomial expansion and

neglecting 2
nd
order and higher
order terms in the expansion
Another way to say this is
Transformed coordinate system
Such that
Also defining
Now
where
Prandtl-Glauret rule
Improved Compressibility relations
Laitone Rule
Karman-Tsien Rule
For M

< 0.3, ~ const

C
p
= C
p,0
= 0.5 = const
COMPRESSIBILITY CORRECTION:
EFFECT OF M

ON C
P
2
0 ,
2
1

V
p p
q
p p
C
p

Flight Mach Number, M

C
p

a
t

a

p
o
i
n
t

o
n

a
n

a
i
r
f
o
i
l

o
f

f
i
x
e
d

s
h
a
p
e

a
n
d

f
i
x
e
d

a
n
g
l
e

o
f

a
t
t
a
c
k

2 2
0 ,
1
5 . 0
1


=

=
M M
C
C
p
p
For M

< 0.3, ~ const

C
p
= C
p,0
= 0.5 = const
Effect of compressibility
(M

> 0.3) is to increase

absolute magnitude of C
p
as
M

increases
Called: Prandtl-Glauert Rule
Prandtl-Glauert rule applies for 0.3 < M

< 0.7
COMPRESSIBILITY CORRECTION:
EFFECT OF M

ON C
P
M

CRITICAL MACH NUMBER, M
CR

As air expands around top surface near leading edge, velocity and M will increase
Local M > M


Flow over airfoil may have
sonic regions even though
freestream M

< 1
INCREASED DRAG!
CRITICAL FLOW AND SHOCK WAVES
M
CR
0 . 1 < <
Divergence Drag CR
M M
Sharp increase in c
d
is combined effect of shock waves and flow separation
Freestream Mach number at which c
d
begins to increase rapidly called Drag-
Divergence Mach number
CRITICAL FLOW AND SHOCK WAVES
bubble of supersonic flow
CRITICAL FLOW AND SHOCK WAVES
M
CR
EXAMPLE: IMPACT ON AIRFOIL / WING DRAG
w d p d f d d
wave pressure friction
c c c c
D D D D
, , ,
+ + =
+ + =
Only at transonic and
supersonic speeds
D
wave
= 0 for subsonic speeds
below M
drag-divergence
Profile Drag
Profile Drag coefficient
relatively constant
with M

at subsonic
speeds

AIRFOIL THICKNESS SUMMARY
Which creates most lift?
Thicker airfoil
Which has higher critical Mach number?
Thinner airfoil
Which is better?
Application dependent!
Note: thickness is relative
to chord in all cases
Ex. NACA 0012 12 %
CAN WE PREDICT M
CR
?
( ) 1
2
2
0
0
2
,
2
1
1
2
1
1
1
2

|
|
|
|
.
|

\
|

+
= =
|
|
.
|

\
|
=

A
A
A
A
A p
M
M
p
p
p
p
p
p
p
p
M
C
A
Pressure coefficient defined in terms of
Mach number (instead of velocity)


In an isentropic flow total pressure, p
0
, is
constant
May be related to freestream pressure,
p

, and static pressure at A, p

A

CAN WE PREDICT M
CR
?
( )
( )
(
(
(
(
(

|
|
|
|
.
|

\
|

+
=
(
(
(
(
(

|
|
|
|
.
|

\
|

+
=

1
2
1
1
2
1
1
2
1
2
1
1
2
1
1
2
1
2
2
,
1
2
2
2
,

CR
CR
CR P
A
A p
M
M
C
M
M
M
C


Combined result
Relates local value of C
P
to local Mach
number
Can think of this as compressible flow
version of Bernoullis equation



Set M
A
= 1 (onset of supersonic flow)
Relates C
P,CR
to M
CR
HOW DO WE USE THIS?
1. Plot curve of C
P,CR
vs. M

2. Obtain incompressible value of C
P
at minimum pressure point on given
airfoil
3. Use any compressibility correction (such as P-G) and plot C
P
vs. M

Intersection of these two curves represents point corresponding to sonic
flow at minimum pressure location on airfoil
Value of M

at this intersection is M
CR

2
0 ,
1

=
M
C
C
p
p
1
3
2
( )
(
(
(
(
(

|
|
|
|
.
|

\
|

+
=

1
2
1
1
2
1
1
2
1
2
2
,

CR
CR
CR P
M
M
C
IMPLICATIONS: AIRFOIL THICKNESS
Thick airfoils have a lower critical Mach number than thin airfoils
Desirable to have MCR as high as possible
Implication for design high speed wings usually design with thin airfoils
Supercritical airfoil is somewhat thicker
Note: thickness is relative
to chord in all cases
Ex. NACA 0012 12 %
THICKNESS-TO-CHORD RATIO TRENDS
A-10
Root: NACA 6716
TIP: NACA 6713
F-15
Root: NACA 64A(.055)5.9
TIP: NACA 64A203
Flight Mach Number, M

T
h
i
c
k
n
e
s
s

t
o

c
h
o
r
d

r
a
t
i
o
,

%

ROOT TO TIP AIRFOIL THICKNESS TRENDS
http://www.nasg.com/afdb/list-airfoil-e.phtml
Root Mid-Span Tip
Boeing 737
SWEPT WINGS
All modern high-speed aircraft have swept wings: WHY?
WHY WING SWEEP?
V

V

Wing sees component of flow normal to leading edge
WHY WING SWEEP?
V

Wing sees component of flow normal to leading edge
V

V
,n
V
,n
< V
O

O

SWEPT WINGS: SUBSONIC FLIGHT
Recall M
CR
If M

> M
CR
large
increase in drag

Wing sees
component of
flow normal to
leading edge
Can increase M

By sweeping
wings of subsonic
aircraft, drag
divergence is
delayed to higher
Mach numbers

SWEPT WINGS: SUBSONIC FLIGHT
Alternate Explanation:
Airfoil has same thickness but
longer effective chord
Effective airfoil section is thinner
Making airfoil thinner increases
critical Mach number
Sweeping wing usually reduces
lift for subsonic flight
SWEPT WINGS: SUPERSONIC FLIGHT
|
|
.
|

\
|
=

M
1
sin
1

If leading edge of swept wing is outside Mach cone, component of Mach

number normal to leading edge is supersonic Large Wave Drag
If leading edge of swept wing is inside Mach cone, component of Mach number
normal to leading edge is subsonic Reduced Wave Drag
For supersonic flight, swept wings reduce wave drag
WING SWEEP COMPARISON
F-100D
English Lightning
SWEPT WINGS: SUPERSONIC FLIGHT
u ~ 26
(M=1.2) ~ 56
(M=2.2) ~ 27
u
SU-27
M

< 1
M

> 1
WING SWEEP DISADVANTAGE
Wing sweep beneficial in that it increases drag-divergences Mach number
Increasing wing sweep reduces the lift coefficient
At M ~ 0.6, severely
reduced L/D

Benefit of this design is
at M > 1, to sweep
wings inside Mach
cone

TRANSONIC AREA RULE
Drag created related to change in
cross-sectional area of vehicle from
nose to tail
Shape itself is not as critical in creation
of drag, but rate of change in shape
Wave drag related to 2
nd
derivative of
volume distribution of vehicle
EXAMPLE: YF-102A vs. F-102A
EXAMPLE: YF-102A vs. F-102A
CURRENT EXAMPLES
No longer as relevant today
more powerful engines

F-5 Fighter


Partial upper deck on 747 tapers
off cross-sectional area of
fuselage, smoothing transition in
total cross-sectional area as wing
starts adding in
Not as effective as true waisting
but does yield some benefit.
Full double-decker does not glean
this wave drag benefit (no
different than any single-deck
airliner with a truly constant cross-
section through entire cabin area)
EXAMPLE OF SUPERSONIC AIRFOILS
http://odin.prohosting.com/~evgenik1/wing.htm
SUPERSONIC AIRFOIL MODELS
Supersonic airfoil modeled as
a flat plate
Combination of oblique
shock waves and expansion
fans acting at leading and
trailing edges
R=(p
3
-p
2
)c
L=(p
3
-p
2
)c(coso)
D=(p
3
-p
2
)c(sino)


Supersonic airfoil modeled as
double diamond
Combination of oblique
shock waves and expansion
fans acting at leading and
trailing edge, and at turning
corner
D=(p
2
-p
3
)t
APPROXIMATE RELATIONS FOR LIFT AND DRAG COEFFICIENTS
1
4
1
4
2
2
,
2

M
c
M
c
w d
l
o
o