Mocpluh

MOCpluh
Revision 1.0
Users Manual
Leonardo Biagioni
May 1997
CENTROSPAZIO
LB/97/2-PLU
MOCpluh - Homoentropic Method of Characteristics for Nozzle Plumes
CENTROSPAZIO 1997
This document is the property of CENTROSPAZIO - Consorzio Pisa Ricerche. Unauthorised
reproduction or distribution is not allowed.
2
The present manual and the code herein described were developed by Leonardo Biagioni
and are property of Leonardo Biagioni and CENTROSPAZIO - Consorzio Pisa Ricerche.
MATLAB is registered trademark of The Mathworks, Inc. The subroutine ames2.m is
property of Kevin J. Melcher and NASA Lewis Research Center.
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Summary
1. Abstract 4
2. Introduction 4
3. Mathematical Approach 5
3.1 MOC Formulation 5
3.2 Flow Around Nozzle Lip 5
3.3 Treatment of the Plume Boundary 6
4. Description of the Numerical Procedure 7
4.1 Calculation of Corner Flow 7
4.2 Simplifying Notations 7
4.3 Calculation of Interior Point from Two Non Central Points 7
4.4 Calculation of Interior Point from One Central and One Non Central Point 8
4.5 Calculation of Boundary Point 8
4.6 Calculation of Central Point 8
4.7 Computing Procedure 9
5. Using the Program 10
5.1 Input Data 10
5.2 Output Data 11
5.3 Sample Results 12
6. Bibliography 13
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1. Abstract
A homoentropic axisymmetric method of characteristics (MOC) code was developed to
predict the plume flow-field of under-expanded supersonic jets of a perfect gas. The code was
implemented as a MATLAB m-files toolbox. Conversion to C language is possible with
minor changes using MATLAB Compiler. The supported version is MATLAB 4.2c or
newer.
2. Introduction
For a gas jet the flow conditions at the nozzle exit are determined by the nozzle geometry
and can be considered as initial conditions which are already known and from which the
calculation of the jet can be started. The necessary boundary conditions are provided by the
assumption of axisymmetry and the fact that the boundary is under pressure equilibrium with
the surrounding medium. The only gas properties needed in the calculation are the gas
constant R and the ratio of specific heats, . In the usual temperature range of most supersonic
jets, they can be both assumed to be constant (or equal to an appropriate frozen value for
reacting non equilibrium flows).
The MOC can be readily applied to calculate the jet flow field until a shock is
encountered. The shock is to be handled by using a separate set of equations. In the present
release of the MOCpluh code, such a shock-fitting technique is NOT implemented.
Therefore the results obtained are valid only in the flow domain not influenced by the
eventual shock. The presence of a shock wave in the flow field can be easily detected
observing the coalescing characteristic lines. A shock detecting routine was implemented in
order to help the user in interpreting the results. Furthermore the coalescing lines are
collapsed in a finite discontinuity which is located at the shock position. It must be pointed
out that such a discontinuity is NOT treated as a shock-wave and therefore has no physical
meaning.
It should be pointed out that the MOC has its limitations.
First, MOC does not consider the mixing between the jet and its surrounding medium. For
jets exhausting in vacuum this should not be a problem.
Second, MOC is based on a continuum formulation and therefore fails in the rarefaction
limit. A question arises: which is the continuum limited Mach number? Of course this limiting
number is function of the stagnation pressure of the flow. Anyway for usual pressures it can
be assumed to be 100. This value has been chosen in MOCpluh code.
Third, but usually less important in supersonic jets, MOC does not consider viscous
effects. Anyway, as a first approximation, these effects can be accounted for in prescribing
the data line at nozzle exit.
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3. Mathematical Approach
3.1 MOC Formulation
The supersonic flow equation, being of the hyperbolic type, has two families of real
characteristics. Characteristics of the first family (left running) form an angle ( + ) with the
positive x axis, where and are the local velocity angle and Mach angle respectively.
Characteristics of the second family (right running), on the other hand, form an angle ( - )
with the positive x axis. The characteristics have the property that the variations of flow
properties along these lines are described by differential equations of the first order. These
equations are given below in finite difference form
1
.
First family + A M B X C S eq. 1
Second family + A M b X C S eq. 2
The various coefficients are defined as:
A
M
M M

+
|
.
`
,
2
2
1
1
1
2
eq. 3
( )
B
M r

1
1 1
2
cot
eq. 4
( )
b
M r
+
1
1 1
2
cot
eq. 5
( )
C
M
M
2
2
1
1
eq. 6
The notation S is used for dimensionless entropy change, and is defined by:
[ ]
[ ]
S
entropy change J kg K
C J kg K
p

1 1
1 1
eq. 7
When r=0, it can be shown that eq.1 takes the following form:
( )
+
1
2
A M C S eq. 8
3.2 Flow Around Nozzle Lip
The gas expands around the nozzle edge when leaving an under-expanded nozzle. For a
sharp edge, the expansion at the edge follows Prandtl-Meyer solution exactly. The general
differential form of the Prandtl-Meyer equation is shown below
2
:
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d
M
M
dM
M

+

2
2
1
1
1
2
eq. 9
Integration of this equation leads to the following (except for an integration constant):
( )
+
+
1
1
1
1
1 1
2 2
arctg arctg M M eq. 10
Away from the edge the flow is governed by the above written flow equations. For
simplicity a sharp nozzle lip is assumed for the present simulation. It should be pointed out
that radial entropy gradients in the lip region (caused by boundary layer development in the
nozzle) cannot be handled by the present release of the code.
3.3 Treatment of the Plume Boundary
When a jet issues into still atmosphere, it may be assumed that the pressure on the jet
boundary is constant and equals the atmospheric pressure. This pressure, by isoentropic
relationship, is sufficient to determine the local boundary Mach number of the jet flow. The
following equation is used
1
:
( )
M
P
P
t
3
3
1
1
2
2
1
1
|
.
`
,

]
]
]
]
'
'
/
eq. 11
Knowledge of the Mach number, by the characteristic equations, will give a
corresponding flow direction. This direction can be taken as the direction of the flow at the
next boundary point. Thus the above procedure can be repeated calculating the successive
characteristic lines.
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4. Description of the Numerical Procedure
The numerical computation method followed is briefly described here. Only essential
features are described, sufficient to help the user to identify the capabilities and limitations of
the code.
4.1 Calculation of Corner Flow
The expansion of the flow at the nozzle lip to the given boundary Mach number M
b
can be
considered as consisting in many small steps. During each step the stream line turns through a
small angle and gains an increase in Mach number according to the Prandtl-Meyer flow (eq.9
and 10). Thus the points
1
, 2, ...,
n
(geometrically coincident and giving a virtual
characteristic line) are obtained as new data points. The point
0
=
0
is given. From each
i
a
characteristic can be started.
The number of steps in which the angle is divided can be arbitrarily set. A value of 15 has
been chosen in the present code. Anyway, this value can be easily modified by the user.
4.2 Simplifying Notations
In order to simplify the formulae to come up in the later sections, some new notations are
introduced here.
( )
tan eq. 12
( )
+ cot eq. 13
( )

M
2
1
1
2
eq. 14
tan eq. 15
In the following sections difference equations are given which are essentially based on
eq.1, eq.2 and eq.8.
4.3 Calculation of Interior Point from Two Non Central Points
The unknown point 3 can be obtained from the two known points 2 and 1 by the following
formulae (point 1 on left-running characteristic, 2 on right running one)
1
:
( )
X
X r r X
3
1 1 2 1 2
2 1
1

eq. 16
( )
r r X X
3 2 3 2
+ eq. 17
S S
S S
X X
X X
M
M
3 1
2 1
3 2
3 1
1
1
2
2
2
1
2
1
1
1
+

+

+
+
eq. 18
( ) ( ) ( ) ( )
( )
M
A M A M B X X b X X C S S
A A
C S S
A A
3
1 2 1 1 2 2 1 3 1 2 3 2 1 3 1
1 2
2 3 2
1 2
+ + + +
+

+

eq. 19
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( ) ( ) ( )

3 1 1 3 1 1 3 1 1 3 1
+ + A M M B X X C S S eq. 20
4.4 Calculation of Interior Point from One Central and One Non Central Point
The unknown point 3 can be obtained from the two known points 1 and 2 by the following
formulae, point 1 being on the axis
1
:
X
r X X
3
2 1 1 2 2
2 1

eq. 21
( )
r X X
3 3 1
eq. 22
( ) ( ) ( ) ( )
M
A M A M b X X C S S C S S
A A
3
1 2 1 1 2 2 2 3 2 1 3 1 2 3 2
1 2
2
2
+ + +
+

eq. 23
( ) ( )
[ ]

3 1 1 3 1 1 3 1
1
2
+ + A M M C S S eq. 24
The entropy is given by eq.18, repeated here for convenience:
S S
S S
X X
X X
M
M
3 1
2 1
3 2
3 1
1
1
2
2
2
1
2
1
1
1
+

+

+
+
4.5 Calculation of Boundary Point

The unknown point 3 can be obtained from the known points 1 and 2 by the following
formulae, point 1 being on the boundary
1
:
( )
X
X r r X
3
2 2 1 2 1 1
1 2
1
eq. 25
( )
r r X X
3 2
2
3 2
1
+
eq. 26
( )
M
P
P
t
3
3
1
1
2
2
1
1
|
.
`
,

]
]
]
]
'
'
/
eq. 27
( ) ( ) ( )

3 2 2 3 2 2 3 2 2 3 2
+ + A M M B X X C S S eq. 28
The entropy S
3
is a constant along the boundary until a shock is encountered. The subscript
t refers to stagnation conditions.
4.6 Calculation of Central Point
The unknown point 2 can be calculated from the known point 1 as follows
1
:
X X
r
2 1
1
1

eq. 29
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r
2
0 eq. 30
( ) ( )
[ ]
M M
A
b X X C S S
2 1
1
1 1 2 1 1 2 1
1
+ + eq. 31
2
0 eq. 32
4.7 Computing Procedure
The MOC computing procedure is to a certain extent arbitrary. The procedure followed in
the present code is briefly described below.
1. Compute points
1
, 2, ...,
n
(virtual characteristic line) at the corner by the Prandtl-
Meyer flow equation, the number of points depending on the mesh size desired.
2. Calculate interior (22, 23, ...) points on the first left running characteristic
1
b
1
.
3. Calculate the boundary point b
1
.
4. Repeat the steps 2 and 3 for all the left running characteristics which originate from the
data points
i
until they are exhausted.
5. Calculate the central point 30.
6. Calculate the interior point 31.
7. Calculate all the remaining interior points (32, 33, ...) on the characteristic 30b
3
.
8. Repeat steps 5,6 and 7 for all the downstream characteristics until a shock is encountered
or until the computation is sufficiently far downstream.
9. In case the computation is stopped by a shock, locate the shock by tracing through the
compression-wave crossings. Determine the flow downstream of the shock. Continue the
calculation of flow by the method of characteristics essentially according to the foregoing
procedure. Of course, the computation of corner expansion is to be omitted here. (Note: Step
9 is NOT implemented in the present release of MOCpluh code).
0
=
0
,...,
n
1
12
11
1b
21
22
23
24
2b
0
30
31
x
r
Figure 1 MOC mesh points.
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5. Using the Program
The program is run by invoking the file mocpluh.m from the MATLAB command
window. The necessary routines must be either in the current MATLAB directory or in the
MATLAB path, as defined in the matlabrc.m MATLAB configuration file. A list of
the necessary routines is shown below:
ames2.m
build.m
ifaxis.m
ifshock.m
init.m
moccoef.m
plubound.m
pmeyer.m
postpro.m
Routine postpro2.m is used to display the results in a MATLAB graphic window and
can therefore be omitted or modified by the user. A sample graphing routine is provided to
show how to handle output data.
5.1 Input Data
Two input files are needed by the program: const.m and inflow.dat. The two files
can be edited using a simple ASCII editor.
The file const.m contains a number of constants needed during the run, specifically the
specific heats ratio, , the gas constant, R, the background pressure, P
, the number of left

running characteristics to be calculated. Comments are marked with a % symbol. A sample
const.m file is listed below.
% Specific heats ratio (frozen or equivalent)
gamma=1.38;
% Gas constant j/kg/K
R=280;
% Background pressure (pa)
pe=10;
% Number of left running characteristics to be calculated
numcar=30;
The file inflow.dat contains the data for the initial known points. As many points as
needed by the mesh size can be used, positioned in an arbitrary way in the two-dimensional
space. The first point is assumed to be positioned at the nozzle lip. The only constraint is that
no point must be specified on the axis. An error checking routine is used to insure this fact.
The inflow.dat file is made of as many columns of values as are the known points.
Each column contains the following data for the specific point: X position (not zero, meters),
R position (not zero, meters), local velocity angle to the axis (degrees), local Mach number,
local non dimensional entropy, local total pressure (Pascal), local total temperature (Kelvin).
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A sample inflow.dat file is shown below.
0.00001 0.00001 0.00001 0.00001 0.00001 0.00001 0.00001
.030 .025 .020 .015 .010 .005 .001
0 0 0 0 0 0 0
6 6 6 6 6 6 6
0 0 0 0 0 0 0
650000 650000 650000 650000 650000 650000 650000
1800 1800 1800 1800 1800 1800 1800
5.2 Output Data
The output data is written in MATLAB compact binary form in the file rundat.mat
at the end of each successful run. If a file with the same name is present it is overwritten. The
output file can be read from within the MATLAB environment and contains (among the
others) the following lower triangular matrices:
M Mach number distribution
S entropy distribution
Ttot total temperature distribution
ptot total pressure distribution
r radial positions of mesh points
tet local velocity angle distribution
x axial positions of mesh points
These matrices can be post-processed and displayed in various ways. Each user will find
the one most suited to his/her needs.
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5.3 Sample Results
A set of sample results is shown, using as input data the flow field produced by the Mach 6
nozzle for Centrospazio HEAT hypersonic facility. Therefore the calculation was performed
assuming a homogenous axial jet with a diameter of 0.03 meters, a stagnation pressure of
650,000 Pa, a stagnation temperature of 1800 K, a background pressure of 10 Pa, an
equivalent of 1.38, a gas constant R=280 J/(kg K).
Fifteen (15) left running characteristic lines were calculated.
Figure 2 Computed left running characteristic lines.
Figure 3 Contour graph of plume Mach number distribution.
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6. Bibliography
1 Wang, C.J., Peterson, J.B. - Spreading of Supersonic Jets From Axially Symmetric
Nozzles - Jet Propulsion Journal - May 1958
2 Zucrow, M.J., Hoffman, J.D. - Gas Dynamics - John Wiley and Sons - New York, 1976

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