Investigation of Shock Wave Interactions involving Stationary and Moving Wedges

TL;DR

This study uses advanced numerical methods to analyze shock wave interactions with stationary and moving wedges, revealing the dominance of viscous effects on vorticity and detailing the flow dynamics and wave configurations under various shock conditions.

Contribution

It introduces a combined numerical approach to study shock-wedge interactions, highlighting viscous effects and the transition of wave reflection types in moving wedge scenarios.

Findings

Viscous effects dominate vorticity production.

Wedge acceleration changes shock reflection from SMR to DMR.

Shock Mach number and corner angle influence TP trajectory and drag.

Abstract

The present study investigates the shock wave interactions involving stationary and moving wedges using a sharp interface immersed boundary method combined with a fifth order weighted essentially non oscillatory (WENO) scheme. Inspired by Schardins problem, which involves moving shock interaction with a finite triangular wedge, we study influences of incident shock Mach number and corner angle on the resulting flow physics in both stationary and moving conditions. The present study involves three incident shock Mach numbers (1.3, 1.9, 2.5) and three corner angles (60deg, 90deg, 120deg), while its impact on the vorticity production is investigated using vorticity transport equation, circulation, and rate of circulation production. Further, the results yield that the generation of the vorticity due to the viscous effects are quite dominant compared to baroclinic or compressibility effects. The moving cases presented involve shock driven wedge problem. The fluid and wedge structure dynamics are coupled using the Newtonian equation. These shock driven wedge cases show that wedge acceleration due to the shock results in a change in reflected wave configuration from Single Mach Reflection (SMR) to Double Mach Reflection (DMR). The intermediary state between them, the Transition Mach Reflection (TMR), is also observed in the process. The effect of shock Mach number and corner angle on Triple Point (TP) trajectory, as well as on the drag coefficient, is analyzed in this study.