Exhaust Plume Effects on Sonic Boom for a Delta Wing and Swept Wing-Body Model

Supersonic travel is not allowed over populated areas due to the disturbance caused by the sonic boom. Research has been performed on sonic boom reduction and has included the contribution of the exhaust nozzle plume. Plume effect on sonic boom has progressed from the study of isolated nozzles to a study with four exhaust plumes integrated with a wing-body vehicle. This report provides a baseline analysis of the generic wing-body vehicle to demonstrate the effect of the nozzle exhaust on the near-field pressure profile. Reductions occurred in the peak-to-peak magnitude of the pressure profile for a swept wing-body vehicle. The exhaust plumes also had a favorable effect as the nozzles were moved outward along the wing-span. Nomenclature AOA Angle of attack, degrees Β Nozzle boat-tail angle, degrees c Airfoil chord, in. D Nozzle diameter (outer), in. h Distance below vehicle, in. L v Vehicle length, in. M ∞ Free-stream Mach number NPR Nozzle pressure ratio = P t / P ∞ P Local static pressure, psia