Computational Fluid Dynamics in Aerospace and Defense

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Authors : Shreyash Gurav, Parth Gurjar, Sumedh Habde, Adarsh Halake, Harsh Rikame



Points covered in this blog :


  1. What is Computational Fluid Dynamics(CFD) ?

  2. Applications of CFD

  3. CFD in army

  4. CFD in navy

  5. CFD in airforce

  6. Challenges of CFD in Aerospace and Defense sector

  7. Future of CFD in Aerospace and Defense sector

  8. Conclusion

  9. References



What is Computational Fluid Dynamics(CFD) ?


Computational Fluid Dynamics is a computational technique used to analyze problems involving fluid flow. Basically CFD involves the prediction of fluid flow, mass transfer and heat transfer by solving mathematical equations governing these processes. In general, we can consider CFD as a computational method which has something to do with fluid dynamics. Significant development of computer technology in the past few decades has helped in the advancement of CFD. Before CFD, experimental methods(like wind tunnels) were used to simulate and analyze the fluid flow. CFD has many advantages over other methods as it has the ability to simulate the actual conditions without the need of large infrastructure. Also it is cheap and time saving compared to experimental methods. Considering its various advantages, CFD is used in various fields which have been discussed in this blog.



Applications of CFD

CFD is used in various industries like 


  • Aerospace : Aerodynamic design of vehicle, propellers

Source : nasa.gov



  • Electronics : Design and analysis of cooling system

Source : Etteplan


  • Turbomachinery : Design and analysis of pumps, fans, blowers


  • Automobile : Analysis of engines


  • Bio-medical : Blood flow analysis, nasal airflow


  • Sports : sports equipment design

Source : insightreplay.com


In this blog, we will see the application of CFD in the aerospace and defense sector w.r.t. various defense wings (i.e. army, navy and airforce) 



CFD in army


As we have seen that CFD has applications in many industries ranging from sports to aerospace, one such application of CFD is missile development. Nowadays CFD is increasingly being applied during the development process of missiles. Missiles play an important role in strategic defense. They can be used to detect and defeat an incoming missile. Considering its importance, many researchers are using computational techniques to improve the efficiency of missiles. There is an increasing demand for higher speed, higher maneuverability hence the reliance on computational techniques is increased. Also if properly applied CFD can be an alternative to experimental techniques as well. Also CFD helps to solve complex flow and heat transfer problems. Using CFD also reduces the cost of development thereby reducing the cost of missiles. 


Source : Army Research Laboratory


There are many processes involved when a missile goes from initial concept to fully operational system. Characterizing the airframe aerodynamic loads and aerothermal environment is an important aspect in designing a missile. Stability and control is determined from the aerodynamic information. 



CFD in Navy


Computational Fluid Dynamics has emerged as a cutting-edge simulation tool to maximize efficiency in design and operation in Naval Architecture. Many defense research laboratories are applying CFD during the design and development of submarines. Again, if we compare CFD to physical testing, results achieved by CFD are of comparable accuracy at lower costs. This numerical simulation technique also provides a detailed insight into flow properties and allows for the precise analysis of hydrodynamic characteristics. 


Source : MARIN_news


Although the use of CFD is increasing in every domain of engineering, its acceptance in naval engineering, hydrodynamics etc. appears to be lagging behind as compared to other industries where CFD is used. This is due to higher computational requirements as they contain relatively complex surfaces.




CFD in Airforce


At high altitudes it is necessary that the jet is designed properly considering the required conditions, so CFD has a great importance in the Air Force. CFD is used to find the point values of pressure and velocity and to know about the lift, drag and flow separation values around the jet plane.  


Source : Skill Lync 


Jet engines are the example of turbomachinery (machines that transfers energy from rotor to a fluid) and the CFD is extensively used in the turbomachinery for design and optimization. And the most important use of CFD is prediction of missile separation trajectory, considering all the reactive forces and the consequences on the jet, the missile needs to be fired properly on to the target.

 

Source : ISCFDC



Challenges of CFD in Aerospace and Defense


So we went through looking at what CFD means, its importance and applications in various industries. Also, we saw its applications in the army, navy and airforce in detail. But even with its usefulness, there are some challenges that we need to overcome. What are the industry requirements ? Assured accuracy, reduction in computational and human costs and faster results. So these are few areas where we need to focus in order to rely on CFD. 



Future of CFD in Aerospace and Defense


There has been a tremendous increase in computing power during the last two decades and this trend seems to continue for next decade as well thanks to the pace at which research is being carried out by various professionals worldwide. This directly helps in getting results faster and too with more accuracy. 



Conclusion


CFD is a powerful engineering tool which can offer solutions to various problems with great level of detail. With better computing power, better computer hardware and advancement in numerical algorithms it has become possible to simulate the flow around aerospace vehicles having complex geometry. CFD is emerging as an important and promising tool in the design and analysis activities and contributing to faster, accurate and less expensive design processes. Although CFD is in its development phase, we can see various applications of CFD, whether it be automobile or biomedical. Overall CFD is helping us reach our goals with low cost and reduction in development time.



References

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