Three dimensional flow simulations with the finite element technique over a multi-stage rocket

Abstract

Aerodynamic flow simulations over the first Brazilian satellite launch vehicle, VLS, during its first-stage flight are presented. The three dimensional compressible flow is modeled by the Euler equations and a Taylor-Galerkin finite element method with artificial dissipation is used to obtain the numerical solution. Transonic and supersonic results for zero angle-of-attack are presented and compared to available experimental results. The influence of mesh refinement and artificial dissipation coeffcient on the transonic flow results are discussed. The results obtained for the supersonic simulations present good agreement with experimental data. The transonic simulation results capture the correct trends but they also indicate that this flight condition requires more refined meshes.