Numerical Analysis of Solid Propellant Rocket Motor Internal Flows

Abdollah Arabshahi, Robert S. Webster, W. Roger Briley, and David L. Whitfield
The University of Tennessee at Chattanooga, Chattanooga, Tennessee, 37403

The subject of this study involves the internal flow fields of geometries that are representative of solid rocket motors (SRM). The long range goal of the study is to provide a computational analysis tool to be used in support and development of SRM modeling and simulation by the U.S. Air Force Research Laboratory (AFRL). The need to establish a predictive capability for the detailed three-dimensional turbulent flow within solid rocket motors presents an opportunity to apply a multiblock compressible Navier-Stokes flow solver that has evolved over many years. The solver utilizes a state-of-the-art iterative implicit upwind numerical scheme to solve the time-dependent Reynolds-Averaged Navier- Stokes equations in a generalized time-dependent curvilinear coordinate system. The multiblock grid capability allows arbitrary connectivity of grid blocks. Simulations of two well-documented experimental cold-flow cases were conducted during the course of this work. These cases serve as baselines for comparison to demonstrate the capability of the flow solver to simulate SRM flows. The flow solver gives very promising results in the flow regimes ranging from subsonic through supersonic as would be experienced within a solid rocket motor system.