On Reflection of Shock Waves from Boundary Layers

Abstract

Measurements of the reflection characteristics of shock waves from a flat surface with a laminar and turbulent boundary layer are presented. The investigations were carried out at Mach numbers from about 1.3 to 1.5 and a Reynolds number of 0.9 x 10(exp 6). The difference in the shock-wave interaction with laminar and turbulent boundary layers, first found in transonic flow, is confirmed and investigated in detail for supersonic flow. The relative upstream influence of a shock wave impinging on a given boundary layer has been measured for both laminar and turbulent layers. The upstream influence of a shock wave in the laminar layer is found to be of the order of 50 boundry-layer thicknesses as compared with about 5 in the turbulent case. Separation almost always occurs in the laminar boundary layer. The separation is restricted to a region of finite extent upstream of the shock wave. In the turbulent case no separation was found. A model of the flow near the point of impingement of the shock wave on the boundary layer is given for both cases. The difference between impulse-type and step-type shock waves is discussed and their interaction with the boundary layer is compared. Some general considerations on the experimental production of shock waves from wedges and cones are presented, as well as a discussion of boundary layer in supersonic flow. A few examples of reflection of shock waves from supersonic shear layers are also presented.

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Document Details

Document Type
Technical Report
Publication Date
Apr 01, 1951
Accession Number
ADA382023

Entities

People

  • A. Roshko
  • H. W. Liepmann
  • S. Dhawan

Organizations

  • California Institute of Technology

Tags

Communities of Interest

  • Advanced Electronics
  • Air Platforms
  • Materials and Manufacturing Processes

DTIC Thesaurus Topics

  • Boundary Layer
  • Boundary Layer Flow
  • Flow Fields
  • Fluid Dynamics
  • Laminar Boundary Layer
  • Mach Number
  • Measurement
  • Measuring Instruments
  • Pressure Distribution
  • Pressure Gradients
  • Pressure Measurement
  • Reynolds Number
  • Shock Waves
  • Static Pressure
  • Turbulent Boundary Layer
  • Turbulent Flow
  • Turbulent Mixing

Fields of Study

  • Physics

Readers

  • Combustion Dynamics and Shock Wave Physics.
  • Fluid Mechanics and Fluid Dynamics.

Technology Areas

  • Hypersonics
  • Hypersonics - Hypersonic Boundary Layers
  • Hypersonics - Hypersonic Flow