The Need for CFD Modeling of Water Braking Phenomena at the Holloman High Speed Test Track
Abstract
The Holloman High Speed Test Track (HHSTT) operated by the Air Force Test Center (AFTC) 846th Test Squadron, is the world’s premier rocket sled test track and has the longest facility of its type in the world, making it one of the most unique test facilities in the DoD capable of replicating operational flight profiles, providing accurate and reliable data to the USAF, Army, Navy and other government agencies for Test and Evaluation (TandE) of critical weapon system and aerospace technology at fraction of the cost to flight testing. Operational flight speeds (can reach >8 Mach) is achieved via rail mounted rocket propelled sleds where the test object is attached to a forebody sled driven by one or more pusher sleds to accelerate the object. The sleds need to be recovered on the rail via a combination of aerodynamic drag followed by entry into water braking mechanism, a poorly understood phenomenon due to complex nonlinear multiphase flow dynamics interaction. Accurate prediction of the test profile can result in radical changes to designs of specific sleds and provide greater confidence of braking mechanism and recovery of the critical AF infrastructures. In collaboration with the squadron and supported by rigorous verification and validation, we propose to develop a better predictive capability of the water braking phenomena with high fidelity Computational Fluid Dynamics (CFD) investigation capable of resolving flow separation, boundary layer, sled and rail-concrete interactions, test vehicles and articles for the test. We will examine the impact important parameters to understand the forces on the sled imparted by the water braking medium and develop an understanding of the areas on the sled where water braking does not have an impact, facilitating efficient sled designs that are not over engineered. The study will extensively exploit the High Performance Computing (HPC) systems, available to us through DoD HPCMP.
Document Details
- Document Type
- DoD Grant Award
- Publication Date
- Jan 14, 2022
- Source ID
- FA95501910304
Entities
People
- Vinod Kumar
Organizations
- Air Force Office of Scientific Research
- United States Air Force
- University of Texas at El Paso