Parallel finite element computation of missile aerodynamics

A flow simulation tool, developed by the authors at the Army HPC Research Center, for compressible flows governed by the Navier-Stokes equations is used to study missile aerodynamics at supersonic speeds, high angles of attack and for large Reynolds numbers. The goal of this study is the evaluation of this Navier-Stokes computational technique for the prediction of separated flow fields around high-length-to-diameter (L/D) bodies. In particular, this paper addresses two issues: (i) turbulence modelling with a finite element computational technique and (ii) efficient performance of the computational technique on two different multiprocessor mainframes, the Thinking Machines CM-5 and CRAY T3D. The paper first provides a discussion of the Navier-Stokes computational technique and the algorithm issues for achieving efficient performance on the CM-5 and T3D. Next, comparisons are shown between the computation and experiment for supersonic ramp flow to evaluate the suitability of the turbulence model. Following that, results of the computations for missile flow fields are shown for laminar and turbulent viscous effects.