Session: CIE-02 / 03 / 04 AMS: Joint Topics

Paper Number: 143763

143763 - Towards a Computational Framework for Hypervelocity-Induced Atmospheric Plasma Modeling 

We present  the initial steps towards estimating the spectral radiance being emitted from plasma induced by  the  interaction of hypervelocity material systems  with the atmosphere. The motivation of this effort originates from the need to compute the radiative heat fluxes  imparted to hypersonic vehicles for the purpose of facilitating their design, control and maintenance.
In response to this need, a computational framework was established to predict the fluid dynamics fields around  a hypervelocity vehicle that in turn is coupled with the plasma physics that enable the calculation of the plasma fields and species dynamics. This framework currently  implements  a one-way coupling between fluid dynamics and plasma physics models. The framework solves the fluid dynamics partial differential equations representing the conservation of mass, momentum and energy.  The computed pressure, velocity and  temperature fields are subsequently  utilized to drive the plasma physics PDEs describing the  mass transport and energetics of all the nitrogen-oxygen 11-species present according to the so-called Dunn plasma model. An application of this framework for a spherical body for a wide range of velocities is presented as verification of the framework's functionality. Typical distributions of the fluid and plasma dynamics are presented. Finally, the plasma radiance spectra are produced by employing statistical mechanics principles.

Presenting Author: Benjamin Graber US. Naval Research Laboratory

Presenting Author Biography: Benjamin Graber is a Research Physicist at the US. Naval Research Laboratory (NRL), in Washington, D.C. He is a graduate of Temple University with a Ph.D. in High Power Terahertz Spectroscopy. His current research is focused on computational multiphysics and mechanics, plasma modeling, spectroscopy, and multi-scale modeling. Benjamin was awarded the Karles Fellowship at NRL where he holds more than 10 patents in addition to multiple publications.

Authors:

Benjamin Graber US. Naval Research Laboratory
Athanasios Iliopoulos US Naval Research Laboratory
John Michopoulos US. Naval Research Laboratory
John Steuben US Naval Research Laboratory
Andrew Birnbaum US Naval Research Laboratory
Nicole Apetre US Naval Research Laboratory