Using the Reynolds stress model to predict shock-induced separation on transport aircraft

Additional results about the wing-body of the NASA Common Research Model at flight conditions derived from those of the AIAA Computational Fluid Dynamics Drag Prediction Workshop are introduced in this Paper. An initial assessment compared the widely used shear stress transport model with the full Reynolds stress model as two possible closures for the Reynolds-averaged Navier–Stokes problem. The study, based on the 6th AIAA Computational Fluid Dynamics Drag Prediction Workshop, confirmed the limitations of linear eddy-viscosity turbulence models in highly anisotropic turbulent flows. A side-of-body separation larger than previous experiments was predicted by the shear stress transport model. By comparison, the study revealed that the Reynolds stress model is capable of simulating higher-incidence transonic flight as the trends observed in the results were in overall good agreement with the experiment. The aim herein was to investigate the high-incidence transonic aerodynamics about the Common Research Model. Using Reynolds-Averaged Navier–Stokes closed with the Reynolds stress model, the aeroelastically deformed Common Research Model was then simulated at incidences outside of the Drag Prediction Workshop remit. The evolution of shock-induced boundary-layer separation was observed. A separation bubble was first predicted at an incidence of 3.5 deg, then developed in the chordwise and spanwise directions, triggering the stall of the aircraft at an incidence of 5.75 deg. Using shear lines helps one understand the three-dimensionality of this phenomenon as large areas of crossflow are present, starting in the wing-kink region and extending toward the wing tip.