DESIGN OF HYPERSONIC VEHICLE

EAS51802-DESIGN PROJECT-2

SANJU MEDIPALLY(22102084) Dr.G.BALAJI

Associate Professor
THARABI(22102097) Department of Aerospace Engineering
HITS
 ABSTRACT

Hypersonic refers to speed more than five times the speed of sound. Considering the obvious advantages of high speed of the hypersonic aerial
vehicles (aircrafts, missiles), extensive research is being carried out worldwide for its development. This paper gives an insight into the challenges
faced in developing a hypersonic vehicle like shockwave generation, high temperature effects, materials, etc. The review takes into account the
aerodynamic structure, aerothermodynamic heating, structural materials, propulsion system requirements, induced drag, zero-lift body drag and
zero-lift fin drag and other parameters calculated theoretically and experimentally by various researchers. Detailed analysis has been undertaken for
the work underway globally. Many countries are working on their own individual hypersonic projects, USA on their X-51 Waverider, Russia on
Avangard and Zircon, China on DF-ZF39 and India on Shourya and Avatar. Being a viable means of high-speed mobility leading to favorable air
situation and air superiority for any country, development of a hypersonic aerial vehicle has led to an increased investment and interest by all
parties including super powers.
The resurgence in hypersonic technology has highlighted the need to accurately and efficiently simulate these complex systems using high-fidelity
computer simulations. Given the extreme costs of flight testing and the limited capabilities of ground-based wind tunnels, computer simulation is a
key-enabling technology to stay ahead in the design and analysis of hypersonic vehicles. From the prediction of the aerothermodynamic
environment to the design of the cooling and thermal protection systems, from the analysis of airframe structural integrity to the lifing of sensors
and the prediction of communication degradation and blackout, modern computer simulations provide the necessary advantage to stay ahead in the
design of hypersonic vehicles.This paper gives a detailed study of analysis of hypersonic nose cone of hypersonic vehicles with different radius
using catia and ANSYS software.
 OBJECTIVE

Designing a hypersonic vehicle serves several objectives:

• Speed: Achieving velocities greater than five times the speed of sound, enabling rapid transportation or military capabilities.
• Efficiency: Developing propulsion systems and aerodynamic designs to minimize energy consumption and increase operational
range.
• Maneuverability: Ensuring the vehicle can maneuver effectively at high speeds, crucial for military applications and space
exploration.
• Payload Delivery: Facilitating the delivery of payloads, including satellites or weapons, to specific locations with precision and
speed.
• Exploration: Enabling exploration of the upper atmosphere and near space, providing valuable scientific data and potential for
future space travel.
• Safety: Designing robust systems to ensure the safety of passengers or payloads during high-speed flight, including thermal
protection and structural integrity.
• Military Capabilities: Enhancing military capabilities through rapid response and reconnaissance, including potential for
hypersonic weapons delivery.
Overall, the objectives aim to harness the unique capabilities of hypersonic flight for both civilian and military purposes, advancing
transportation, exploration, and defense capabilities.
 INTRODUCTION

Hypersonic vehicles are aerospace vehicles that travel at speeds greater than five times the speed of sound, which is around Mach 5 or 6174
kilometers per hour (approximately 3836 miles per hour) at sea level. These vehicles have attracted significant interest due to their potential
applications in military, space exploration, and commercial transportation. There are several types of hypersonic vehicles, each designed for
specific purposes and operating environments:
Hypersonic Cruise Missiles: Hypersonic cruise missiles are maneuverable weapons that can travel at hypersonic speeds, typically Mach 5 or
faster. They are designed to deliver payloads such as conventional or nuclear warheads with precision over long distances. These missiles can
evade traditional defense systems due to their high speed and maneuverability, making them difficult to intercept.
Hypersonic Glide Vehicles (HGVs): HGVs are designed to be launched atop ballistic missiles or other boosters, reaching the edge of space
before detaching and gliding back to Earth at hypersonic speeds. Unlike ballistic missiles, which follow a predictable trajectory, HGVs can
maneuver during re-entry, making them more difficult to track and intercept. They are being developed by various countries for both military
and strategic purposes.
Scramjet-Powered Vehicles: Scramjet (supersonic combustion ramjet) engines are designed to operate at hypersonic speeds, using the
vehicle’s forward motion to compress incoming air before mixing it with fuel for combustion. Scramjets have been proposed for use in various
hypersonic vehicles, including missiles, aircraft, and spaceplanes. These vehicles typically rely on rocket boosters or other propulsion systems
to reach hypersonic speeds before engaging the scramjet engine.
Single-Stage-to-Orbit (SSTO) Vehicles: SSTO vehicles are spaceplanes or rockets capable of reaching orbit in a single stage, without the need
for multiple stages or boosters. Hypersonic SSTO vehicles would travel at speeds greater than Mach 5 during atmospheric flight, transitioning
to rocket propulsion for the final push to orbit. They offer the potential for more cost-effective access to space compared to traditional multi-
stage rockets.
Hypersonic Aircraft: Hypersonic aircraft are designed for sustained hypersonic flight within the Earth’s atmosphere, potentially revolutionizing
long-distance travel. These vehicles would fly at altitudes above traditional commercial airliners, traveling at speeds of Mach 5 or faster.
Hypersonic passenger aircraft could significantly reduce travel times for intercontinental flights, although challenges such as heat management,
propulsion, and structural integrity must be overcome.
Reusable Hypersonic Platforms: Reusable hypersonic vehicles, such as spaceplanes or reusable boosters, are designed to withstand the extreme
conditions of hypersonic flight multiple times. These platforms could enable more frequent access to space, reducing the cost of satellite
deployment, space tourism, and scientific research missions. Developing reusable hypersonic vehicles requires advances in materials science,
propulsion systems, and aerodynamics to ensure durability and safety.

Australia’s Space vehicle

X-43A
 CASE STUDY
• Re entry investigation:
As an example of high-speed aerodynamics simulation (Shang, 2019) 15 , the non equilibrium thermodynamic and chemical reaction within
the enveloping bow shock must be examined. The temperature of the compressed air within the hypersonic shock layer routinely exceeds ten
thousand degree Kelvin, where the nonequilibrium thermodynamics and chemical kinetics phenomena dominated. Among all reentry
investigations, the Stardust reentry probe exemplifies the shape of reentry vehicle and enters the earth atmosphere with the highest speed than
all other man-made objects. A common feature for all reentry vehicles has a blunt forebody to reduce the maximum stagnation point heat
transfer rate. The forebody of Stardust consists of a 60-degree one-half angle spherical cone with a nose radius of 0.229 m. The afterbody is a
truncated 30-degree cone with a base radius of 0.406m. The corner radius at the juncture of the forebody and afterbody is merely 0.02 m. The
flow field structures by velocity traces over the Stardust probe are depicted in Figure 3.1 the probe reenters at an angle of attack of eight
degrees and after 54 s elapsed from a designated reentry altitude. At this point in time,the probe is still traveling at the speeds of 11.37 km/s.
The flow topology is shared by all the re-entry vehicles; they all have a strong bow enveloping shockwave to contain a relatively thin shock
later following by a rapid expansions between forebody and the afterbody, then emerging into the wake region. In the base region, the flow is
separated from the vehicle downstream at corner region of the base to form recirculating flow with the lowest heat transfer rate. All these
dominant flow topologies have been clearly captured and displayed by the computational simulations.

Velocity traces of stardust probe at re-entry speed of 11.37km/s

Flow around the nose:

From a stability analysis point of view, it is known that the increase of the bluntness of the nose (till a certain limit) has a stabilizing
effect on the boundary layer [2-3]. Indeed, in hypersonic flow, increasing nose bluntness pushes back the point where second-mode
disturbances become active. Here, the cone has a quasi-sharp nose (Rn = 0.1mm) so such a small nose radii will have a limited
consequence on the boundary layer stability knowing also the entropy swallowing distance is very limited. Nevertheless, for the
accuracy of the stability analysis study, it was decided to give special attention to the nose region in the computations. For this perfect-
gas flow, the Mach number distribution around the stagnation point is presented in Figure 3.3 for two extreme Reynolds numbers
considered here Re/m = 2.79x106 and Re/m = 11.15x106. From a quantitative point of view, the shock stand-off distance ∆ can be
compared to the Billig’s empirical formula for sphere-cone shapes:
 LITERATURE SURVEY

Hypersonic aerodynamic interference investigation for a two-stage-to-orbitmodel:

To investigate the aerodynamic interference challenges for hypersonic vehicles, a new type of conceptual TSTOmodel is considered, which
consists of a trapezoid wing as the booster and a hemisphere-cone-cylinder wing as the orbiter. Based on the three-dimensional hybrid
LES/RANS numerical simulation method, the mechanism ofhigh surface heat flux and the effect of stage separation between booster and
aircraft in hypersonic flight arestudied in detail. The results show that the oblique shock generated by the booster impinges on the bow shock
ina three-dimensional region around the orbiter nose. Obviously, this interaction brings about a steep temperaturegradient and high peak values
of pressure and heat flux. When the bow shock under the orbiter is incident to theupper surface of the booster, it will trigger a
shock-wave/boundary-layer interaction, which gives rise to the peak pressure and heat flux. When the reflected bow shock impacts the lower
surface of the orbiter, it will initiate another interaction. When the two stages separate from each other, the increase in the normal distance
between two stages results in a decrease in pressure and heat flux. When the vertical distance is large enough, the reflected bow shock impinges
on the rear of the orbiter without producing an interaction. At that moment, the pressure and heat flux maintain low values.
Reusable launch vehicles (RLV) have received significant research attention in the past years [1–3], because of its several advantages in
reducing flight operation costs, increasing safety or maintainability and realizing reusability. The launch vehicle of the two-stage orbit (TSTO)
system is usually used as a reliable means of delivery [4,5], since this launch vehicle configuration has the advantage of carrying less weight to
orbit by discarding booster stages [6]. The TSTO vehicle is composed of an orbital vehicle and a booster stage. When the TSTO vehicle works
at high altitude, the booster body generates a kind of oblique shock wave, and the orbiter produces a bow shock wave. Therefore, there will be a
strong shock-wave/boundary-layer interaction (SWBLI) between the orbital vehicle and a booster stage [7]. Obviously, this interaction brings
about a steep temperature gradient and high peak values of pressure and heat flux [8–10]. Knight and Mortazavi [11] made a review of
hypersonic shock wave transitional boundary layer interactions. Wang et al. [12] carried out an investigation on the momentum transfer
mechanism between solid andgas phases in the shock-wave/boundary-layer interaction, and they obtained three-dimensional reconstruction of
incident oblique shock and quantitative results of the flow field successfully with the background-oriented schlieren technique. Keiichi and
Tetsuya [13] studied the aerodynamic interference between a delta wing and a hemispherecylinder, and found that the heat flux increment is
dominated by thedistance between the bow shock and the hemisphere-cylinder. Hirotoshi [14] investigated the low-speed aerodynamic
characteristics and stage separation performance of a TSTO, and suggested that the aerospike method is superior for reduction of both
aerodynamic heating and aerodynamic drag.
• Design And Structural Analysis Of Missile Nose Cone
•
A new nose cone concept that promises a gain in performance over existing conventional nose cones is discussed in this paper the term nose
cone is used to refer to the forward most section of a rocket, guided missile or aircraft. The cone is shaped to offer minimum aerodynamic
resistance. Nose cones are also designed for travel in and under water and in high-speed land vehicles Given the problem of the aerodynamic
design of the nose cone section of any vehicle or body meant to travel through a compressible fluid medium (such as a rocket or aircraft missile
or bullet), an important problem is the determination of the nose cone geometrical shape for optimum performance. This project evaluates
missile nose cone is analysis using the materials are Titanium Ti-6Al-4V most commonly used alloy. Titanium Ti-6Al-6V-2SN Titanium grade
1 the remainder titanium. These are significantly stronger than commercially pure titanium. While having the same stiffness and thermal
properties a structural-loaded, a pressure sudden impact loads and a foam nose-cone concept Results from analysis of the nose cone are used in
structural analysis performed with ANSYS. A naval model is designed for the concepts of blunt nose cone and analyzed with the commercial
software CATIA. The nose concept conforms to the requirements for structural integrity, weight, functionality.
Current warfare techniques include many technical advances. In the news, one often hears of “smart” bombs, satellite communications, GPS
(Global Positioning System), radar, and guided missiles. A guided missile is an unmanned explosive-carrying vehicle that moves above the
earth’s surface in a flight path controlled by an external or internal source. There are many kinds of guided missiles, but all have the same
ultimate function: destroy enemy “targets”, i.e., personnel, tanks, vehicles, airplanes, ships, and weapons, including attacking missiles. In
modern usage, a missile is a self-propelled precision-guided munition system, as opposed to an unguided self-propelled munition, referred to as
a rocket (although these too can also be guided). Missiles have four system components: targeting and/or missile guidance, flight system,
engine, and warhead.Future fighter aircrafts will have supersonic cruise and high angle of attack and capability to maneuver in the flying path.
New missiles must be developed, which are more maneuverable and have less static margin than those are in use. A missile with less
aerodynamic resistance could be used. The nose control, as the name suggests, is realized by angular deflection of a section of or whole of
missile’s nose in the flow field off the missile’s centerline to create a pressure difference between the windward and leeward sides of the nose.
The design of the nose cone section of missile to travel through a compressible fluid medium and important problem is the determination of
nose cone geometrical shape and material used to it for optimum performance. Such tasks requires the definition of solid of revolution shape
that experiences minimal resistance to rapid motion trough such a fluid medium, which consists of elastic particles.
• Conceptual Design of Deployment Structure ofMorphing Nose Cone:
For a reusable space vehicle or a missile, the shape of the nose cone has a significant effect on the drag of the vehicle. In this paper, the
concept of morphing nose cone is proposed to reduce the drag when the reentry vehicle flies back into the atmosphere.The conceptual
design of the structure of morphing nose cone is conducted. Mechanical design and optimization approach are developed by employing
genetic algorithm to find the optimal geometric parameters of the morphing structure. An example is analyzed by using the proposed
method. The results show that optimal solution supplies the minimum position error. The concept of morphing nose cone will provide a
novel way for the drag reduction of reentry vehicle. The proposed method could be practically used for the design and optimization of
the deployable structure of morphing nose cone.
For a reusable space vehicle or a missile, the nose cone is ejected in the upper parts of the atmosphere. The shape of the nose cone has a
significant effect on the drag of the vehicle Moreover, the temperature of the nose cone caused byaerodynamic heating is about 2000 to
3000 centigrade for reentry vehicles [2] and tactical missiles [3, 4]. Therefore, among a number of design requirements, the reduction
of both drag and aerodynamic heating is the major challenge in the design of these supersonic and hypersonic vehicles [5]. So the shape
optimization plays an important role in the design of nose cone.Numerous studies on the design and optimization of the shape of nose
cone have been carried out. Ledu and Pollak[6] gave an extensive series of flight tests of a blunt-nosed flare-stabilized re-entry nose
cone and deduced drag and stability coefficients. Ericsson et al. [7, 8] discussed combined effects of nose bluntness and cone angle on
dynamic stability of the nose cone and provided some useful suggestions on missile design. Deepak et al. [1] described a unique
process of shape optimization for drag reduction for the nose cone of hypersonic flight experiments. Lin et al. [9] provided an
investigation to determine the optimum nose shape and frustum configuration in an effort to improve reentry vehicle performance. The
literature mentioned perviously provided valuable reference for the studies to reduce the drag and aerodynamic heating. After that,
there have been a variety of papers devoted to reducing both the drag and the aeroheating by modifying the flow field ahead of the
vehicle’s nose [5]. Of these techniques, using spikes is the simplest and the most reliable technique. and Paull [10] numerically
investigated the drag and the heat-transfer reduction of a forward-facing spike with varying length and shape in comparison to the
unspiked nose cone. Ahmed and Qin [11] compared the spike an with the unspiked nose cone and researched a mechanism to explain
the drag reduction and the cause of flow instability based on the shape of an effective body.Marley and Riggins [12] investigated
methods for increasing the stability of forward mass injection and presented drag reduction technologies including annular (ring) and
swirled injection both with and without upstream energy deposition.
 MISSION DESIGN REQUIREMENTS AND VEHICLE CONFIGURATIONS

In modern vehicles, aeroshells are designed using solid or sandwich constructions with honeycomb, lattice, corrugated, or foam cored to
minimize weight while maintaining rigidity and enable advanced passive cooling strategies Robust carbon and ceramic composites remain
materials of choice for modern leading-edge structures , and enable peak temperature reduction through passive cooling by employing
favorable composite weave patterns, or thermally conductive materials to more effectively transport heat to the colder regions of the aeroshell
main body. Such designs are commonly referred to as “hot structures” as compared to the insulated “cold structure” design adopted by the
Space Shuttle Orbiter and many other types of re-entry vehicles or bodies that use thick outer surface thermal insulation.
Hypersonic vehicles can have various configurations, but they typically fall into two main categories: air-breathing and non-air-breathing.
Air breathing:
Scramjet: Uses the engine’s forward motion to compress incoming air before combustion, suitable for high Mach numbers.
Ramjet: Similar to a scramjet but with slower airflow, often used in combination with other propulsion systems.
Dual-mode: Combines rocket propulsion for initial boost and transition to air-breathing mode at higher altitudes and speeds.
Non-air-breathing:
Rocket: Utilizes stored propellant for both fuel and oxidizer, suitable for high-altitude and space missions.
Hybrid: Combines air-breathing and rocket propulsion systems for improved efficiency and flexibility across various flight regimes.
Each configuration has its advantages and limitations depending on factors like mission requirements, operational environment, and
technological maturity.
 MATERIALS FOR DESIGN OF HYPERSONIC MISSIONS

Material requirements for hypersonic flight are sensitively coupled to the vehicle design and flight envelope, which impose two-principle
environmental challenges: (1) thermal loads that are dependent on both geometry and location on the vehicle; (2) strongly oxidizing conditions
that drive changes in both material properties (oxidation) and geometry (ablation). As a result, aerostructure, wing leading edges, acreage
thermal protection systems, and propulsion systems necessitate vastly different materials to accommodate these diverse thermo-
chemomechanical loads. Depending on the flight conditions (Mach and altitude), flight time at a given Mach number and altitude (known as
time on condition), and location on the vehicle, qualified materials may not exist for the desired application.
Materials selection is typically applied after structural component outer mold lines have been designed and desired trajectories have been
determined. Initial material screening can be carried out using thermo-mechanical simulations. For a given set of material properties, conditions
(heat flux and stagnation temperature) are applied across a component to calculate the resulting thermal profile, which is then used as boundary
conditions to calculate thermal stresses. This screening is useful in determining whether the peak temperature exceeds a material’s melting
point and/or the thermal stress exceeds the material’s flow stress at the given temperature.
• Metallic materials for hypersonics
• Carbon composites for hypersonics
• Ultra-high temperature and refractory ceramics for hypersonics
• Ceramics-matrix Composites
 CFD TOOL

Computational Fluid Dynamics (CFD) stands as a pivotal tool in modern engineering, revolutionizing the analysis and design of fluid systems.
It harnesses numerical methods and algorithms to simulate the behavior of fluids, aiding in the comprehension of complex fluid flow
phenomena that are challenging to study experimentally. By discretizing the governing equations of fluid motion into computational grids,
CFD allows engineers to predict and visualize fluid behavior under various conditions. Hypersonic analysis is a specialized domain within CFD
that delves into flows characterized by velocities surpassing five times the speed of sound (Mach 5). These extreme velocities are encountered
in aerospace applications such as space exploration, missile design, and high-speed aircraft. Hypersonic flows present unique challenges due to
phenomena like shock waves, boundary layer interactions, and thermal effects, necessitating advanced modeling techniques and high-
performance computing resources. In hypersonic analysis, understanding aerodynamic heating becomes paramount, as air friction at such
velocities can cause temperatures to soar to thousands of degrees Celsius. Engineers rely on CFD to simulate the thermal effects and design
efficient thermal protection systems to safeguard vehicles from overheating during re-entry or sustained flight at hypersonic speeds.
Moreover, hypersonic flows exhibit non-equilibrium chemical reactions, where dissociation and ionization of molecules significantly affect
flow properties. CFD models must incorporate sophisticated chemistry models to accurately capture these phenomena, ensuring precise
predictions of aerodynamic forces and heat transfer. In essence, CFD empowers engineers to explore the intricate dynamics of hypersonic
flows, facilitating the design of robust and efficient aerospace systems capable of withstanding the extreme conditions encountered at
hypersonic velocities.
 DESIGN OF HYPERSONIC VEHICLE

Generic hypersonic transport configuration tested by NASA [from Anderson, 2000]

 RESULTS AND DISCUSSION

• In hypersonic vehicles we designed the nose cone with different radius in catia and the results are:

Cone 1
Radius:60mm
• Cone 2
Radius:70mm
• Cone 3
Radius:80mm
The hypersonic flow analysis , mesh and contour lines of CONE 1 :

Boundary conditions for the hypersonic analysis:

Gauge pressure: 0.047 pa

Mach number: 8

Hypersonic flow analysis Mesh

 Temperature contour
Pressure contour

Velocity contour with mach number

Velocity contour
The hypersonic flow analysis , mesh and contour lines of CONE 2:

Cone view before meshing Mesh

 Pressure contour of cone 2 Pressure contour with a plane of cone 2

Temperature contour of cone 2 Temperature contour with a plane of cone 2

 Velocity contour with res to mach
number of cone 2
Velocity contour of cone 2

Density contour of cone 2 Turbulence contour of cone 2

The hypersonic flow analysis, mesh , contour lines and simulations for CONE 3:
 CONCLUSION
In conclusion, this research represents a significant stride in the realm of hypersonic vehicle design and analysis, with a targeted focus on the
intricate examination of space shuttle nose cones. By employing rigorous methodologies and innovative techniques, we've delved deep into the
complexities of aerodynamics, thermal dynamics, and structural integrity essential for advancing hypersonic technology. Through the lens of
analyzing space shuttle nose cones, we've unearthed invaluable insights that not only address existing challenges but also lay a robust
foundation for future research endeavors. The findings of this study serve as a cornerstone for the ongoing evolution of hypersonic vehicles,
offering solutions that enhance safety, efficiency, and overall performance. As we navigate towards a future of heightened space exploration and
transportation, the contributions of this research propel us closer to realizing the full potential of hypersonic technology in revolutionizing how
we traverse the cosmos.
REFERENCES
THANK YOU

SANJU MEDIPALLY (22102084)

THARABI SUTHAHARAN(22102097)