Influence of Boundary Layer Transition on the Aerodynamics of a Sliced Cone with Ramp at Mach 6

Results are presented for a computational study to investigate the effects of boundary layer transition on the flow field characteristics and integrated aerodynamics of a sharp cone with a slice and ramp at Mach 6. The flow is simulated using Metacomp Technologies CFD++ software with inflow conditions specified to match prior experiments at Purdue University. The two-equation SST turbulence model is utilized for RANS simulations of turbulent flow conditions. Total pitching moment is assessed for the geometry when either a fully turbulent, fully laminar, or numerically tripped boundary layer is imposed. The total pitching moment produced in tripped simulations is observed to be larger in magnitude than that of either the fully laminar or fully turbulent boundary layer simulations, exceeding the latter by no more than 3%. Correspondingly, the maximum surface pressure and peak heating on the ramp is observed to be greatest for tripped cases. Notably, it is observed that these effects are sensitive to the trip location. The closer to the ramp that transition is forced, the greater the resulting pitching moment and intensity of the peak heating and surface pressure on the ramp.