Important points from different papers

Design of Waverider Based Re-Entry Vehicles

The effects of leading edge blunting on waverider based vehicles are investigated for
re-entry configurations. The inherent aerodynamic advantages offered by infinitely sharp
leading edge waverider configurations for increasing down-range and cross-range due to
high lift-to-drag ratio are well known. For these benefits to be exploited for re-entry or
aerogravity assist maneuvers a minimum lift-to-drag ratio of about 3.5 is needed. Previous work on the effects of leading edge blunting on aerodynamic and aerothermodynamic
performance are investigated and extrapolated to waverider configurations, with comparison to the Shuttle orbiter and RAM C-II entry trajectories.
The motivation of this paper is to exploit some of the inherent design advantages of waverider
based vehicles with leading edge designs capable of surviving re-entry. Some of the possible
trade-offs involved with re-entry vehicle configuration design are shown in Table 1. The
columns for both capsule and lifting- body configurations are considered to be somewhat well
known and mature technologies, but still difficult design problems. The inherent benefits of
waverider configurations are well known, as indicated by the first four categories (lift-to-drag
ratio, landing footprint, possible abort scenarios, and aeroassist/aerogravity assist
maneuvers). The remaining categories indicate the true design difficulties that must be
overcome for the waverider advantages to be leveraged for re-entry configurations; there-in
lies the motivation of this study.
The configurations are developed from simple powerlaw equations of the form y = Ax n for both the shock
shape at the base of the vehicle, as well as for the planform
curvature y = Bz m . From these two profiles and the
generating conical flowfield, a waverider vehicle with a
sharp leading edge can be generated.
The original aerodynamic study of the AEDC waverider model 22 showed a modest drop in
the peak lift-to-drag ratio from 4.61 to 3.7 with the addition of the blunt leading edges. For a
configuration with a /r = 156, only 20% drop in lift-to-drag ratio is quite surprising and
further strengthens the argument for a viable waverider configuration with realistically blunt
leading edges. However, since the tests were only interested in aerodynamic data, surface
temperatures and heat fluxes were not taken. With the ongoing research into advanced
materials with much smaller leading edge radii, this waverider configuration should
perform quite well once the analysis is complete. The unanswered questions for a waverider
based re-entry configuration are: is the integrated heat load manageable and are the volume,
volumetric efficiency, and stability sufficient for an actual mission?
At the same time the equilibrium wall temperature drops from about 3200 K to
about 1800 K. Although the off-design aerodynamic analysis has not been completed, the
visual results do
indicate that a viable design point somewhere between the /r of 2000 and 20 could be found
with a good
compromise between aerodynamic and aerothermodynamic concerns.

Description of Waverider surface (Mazhul)

We will consider waverider configurations based on the flows behind plane shocks; for
describing the shape of the leading edge as viewed in plan and the transverse contour of the
undersurface power-law functions of the form z k = Ax n and z b = B(x tan y b ) n ,
respectively, are used. Satisfying the necessary condition of waverider design, namely, that the
leading edge must lie in the shock plane, we determine the relation between the coefficients of
the equations as B = A/(tan tan ) n . Here, A and B are constant coefficients, n is an
exponent, is the oblique shock inclination angle, is the flow deflection angle across
the shock in the baseline flow (compression wedge angle), and x, y, z is a Cartesian system of
coordinates with the origin at the body nose. A general view of the configuration and the
notation adopted are presented in Fig. 1.
Assuming the upper surface to be aligned with the freestream velocity vector and starting
from the condition = const for all z = const sections along the span, for the transverse
contour of the lower and upper surfaces we have
y b = x tan + (tan tan )
z
A
1/n
,
y t = tan
z
A
1/n
(2.1)
where 0 < x L, 0 z z k , 0 < n < , 0 < A < , L is the body length, and z k is the
transverse coordinate
of the leading edge.
Thus, in accordance with Eq. (2.1), five independent parameters, namely, A, n, , (or the
design Mach
number M d ), and L must be given in order to describe the surface of the waverider under
consideration.
We note two particular cases with variation of the exponent n. First, at n = 1 we have a
waverider with
rectilinear swept leading edges and a rectilinear transverse surface contour, that is, the wellknown V-wing
[7]. Secondly, as n decreases, the leading edges and the transverse contour become
progressively less
convex, so that in the limit, as n 0, we obtain a rectilinear unswept leading edge and a
waverider in the
form of a wedge with lateral spacers. On the n > 1 range both the leading edge in plan and the
transverse
contour are concave; for large values of n narrow configurations, which are apparently of
no practical
interest, are realized. For describing the configuration, the value of the coefficient A must also
be given;
as noted above, it can vary within the limits 0 < A < . This value can be chosen by
preassigning certain
integral geometric parameters (volume, area in plan, aspect ratio, etc.) or certain local
characteristics of

the leading edge and the transverse contour (sweep angle of the leading edge or angles of
inclination of the
transverse contour in any section x = const). In what follows, the values of the coefficient A are
determined
from the given aspect ratio of the configuration in the form A = /[2(n + 1)L n 1 ], where =
l 2 /S pl is the
aspect ratio, l is the span, and S pl is the area in plan.
Aerogas dynamics of waveriders (Mazhul)
It is considered the waveriders derived on the basis of the flow behind planar shocks for
whose surface analytical description the power-law functions are used. Then, a form of the
leading edges in a plan view, of the lower and upper surfaces contours in any cross-section
may be set as follows:
z pl = A x n ,
y l = x tg ( tg tg ) ( z / A ) 1 / n ,
y u = tg ( z / A ) 1 / n
accordingly. Here is a constant coefficient, n is an exponent, is an oblique shock
inclination
angle, is a flow deflection angle behind the shock in the basic flow (a wedge compression
angle), x,y,z is the Cartesian coordinate system which begins in the body nose. Here 0 < x L,
0 z z pl , 0 < n < , and 0 < < , L is the body length. General view of configuration
and
nomenclature are presented in Fig. 1.
To describe the waveriders surfaces of such type five independent parameters should be
set: , n, , (or the design ch number d ), L. Let us mark two special points by change
of
the exponent n. Thus, at n = 1 we have the waveriders with linear leading edges and linear
spanwise surface contours, i.e. the known Nonweiler`s caret wing. With decreasing of n the
leading edges and spanwise contour become less convex, and in the limit at n 0, we obtain
the linear non-swept leading edge and the waverider in the form of wedge with side cheeks. In
the region of n > 1 a convex form of the leading edge as well as the spanwise contour is
observed, and by large values of n narrow configurations are realized, which are not of
SOME GENERAL FEATURES OF WAVERIDERS
DERIVED FROM POWER-LAW SHOCKS
Most studies have been
for waveriders derived from conical flow fields, for which
the analysis is relatively easy. Also, cone-derived
waveriders have some desirable features, such as
utilization of the slightly-concave compression-surface
flow for air-breathing propulsion. Still, waveriders that
have compression surfaces with convex longitudinal
curvature may have their own desirable features, such as
thicker shock layers and larger lift-to-drag ratios. Such
features can be demonstrated by waveriders derived from
power-law shocks, as done by Ref. 3.

HYF'ERSONIC WAVERIDERS GENERATED

FROM POWER-LAW SHOCKS
The role of waveriders applied to practical hypersonic aircratl configurations has received
considerable interest during the past decade. The various factors involved, and their
interactions, have been discussed by Eggers et al! ) ' Although a number of
different approaches to waverider design have appeared,
most of them have been devoted to cone-derived
waveriders. Conical flows are relatively easy to analye,
and they have a number of attractive featnres, such as
uniformity of the flow field and the utilization of the slight
compression flow for the entrance into &-breathing
propulsion units. On the other hand, for very large Mach
numbers, the conical shocks lie very close to the bodies,
and the shock layers may be too thin for the practical
utilization of inlets. Moreover, viscous-interaction effects may be pronounced for the thin
shock layers. For these
reasons, and possibly others, bodies and shocks with
longitudinal curvature may be of interest because of their
thicker shock layers, in spite of the nonuniform flow
fields involved. In addition, it may be that the wave drags
are lower and the lift-to-drag ratios are greater. Bodies
with longitudinal curvature allow for greater volumes
with better distribution than the more pointed conical
bodies with the same base areas.