MECH 301/302

Compressible Flow in a DeLaval Nozzle

To be Learned:

This lab is an introduction to compressible flow. The lab includes a program for
calculating the quasi-one-dimensional, unsteady flow in a nozzle.

For this lab, we will run a computer code to calculate the steady flow in a
converging/diverging nozzle. You will see that, provided the spatial and temporal step
size of the simulation are chosen appropriately, it is possible to reproduce accurately the
quasi-1D steady theory we develop in MECH 380. You will also encounter a situation in
which it is difficult for the simulation to predict the compressible flow field.

This lab will have served its purpose if you leave the lab with:
• an understanding of the speed of sound
• a knowledge of the definition of the Mach number of a flow
• a qualitative sense of the behaviour of flow in a deLaval nozzle
• the realization that computer simulations of flow, although powerful,
should be
treated with due caution

The Scenario:

It is now one or two years from today. You are out in the workforce working for a
company that manufactures rockets. Your supervisor has asked you to predict what
happens in the rocket when the upstream pressure is increased with time. The rocket
nozzle flow can be treated as a quasi-one-dimensional, compressible flow. Having had
some experience under your belt, you know that one thing to try is the development of a
transient, one-dimensional computer code to predict the flow. Being generally wary of
such codes, you also want to run some steady test cases of your code to confirm that they
agree well with the one-dimensional, steady theory we develop in MECH 380.

Review of the Basics:1

The speed of sound in a fluid is the speed of propagation of an infinitesimal pressure

wave, and is a finite number because of the compressibility of the fluid. The time
separation between when a flash of lightening is seen and the associated thunder is heard
(about 3 seconds per kilometre) is evidence of the finite speed of sound.

For an ideal gas, one may show that the speed of sound, which is normally given either
the symbol c or a, is:

c (or a)=(γ RT)1/2=(γp/ρ )1/2

where γ is the ratio of specific heats of the gas (γ=1.4 for air), ρ is the local gas density
(for a compressible flow, by definition, ρ varies from place to place in the flow), p is the
1
Refer to Chapter 9 of Fluid Mechanics by Frank White for more information on compressible flow.
local pressure (which also varies in the flow), T is the local temperature, and R is the gas
constant (i.e., p=ρRT). Because T varies from place to place in a compressible flow, so
too does the speed of sound.

In MECH 380 we define the Mach number as the ratio of the local fluid velocity to the
local speed of sound, M=V/c. The Mach number is an important quantity in flows for
which the local fluid velocity is greater than about 30% of the speed of sound of the
medium, i.e., when M>0.3. High velocity gas flows are examples of flow for which the
fluid compressibility is important. Flows for which V/c is less than 1 (i.e., M<1) are
called “subsonic,” whereas those for M>1 are “supersonic.” For M=1 the flow is “sonic.”
In MECH 380 we show that it is possible to accelerate a subsonic flow to supersonic
speeds by passing the flow through a converging/diverging nozzle, which is also called a
deLaval nozzle. Such a nozzle looks approximately like a duct with flexible walls, that
has been squeezed in the centre, as shown below. The location where the duct area is a
minimum is called the throat.

FLOW A(x)
_)

THROAT
x

Through the use of the continuity and momentum equations, one may show that the flow
in such a nozzle, when it operates properly, is subsonic up to the location where the
nozzle area, A(x), is a minimum, and is supersonic thereafter. One may also show that
the pressure falls monotonically (i.e., the pressure does nothing but decrease), the
temperature falls monotonically, and the velocity rises monotonically, as one passes from
the inlet to the exit. The exact shapes of the pressure, temperature, and velocity curves
depend on the shape of the nozzle.

The Computer Simulation:

The floppy disk contains a copy of the EXCEL spreadsheet NOZZLE.XLS. This
spreadsheet calculates the transient, one-dimensional, compressible flow in nozzle. The
program uses a procedure called MacCormack’s Method to carry out this computation. If
you take MECH 483, you will learn about this method. For this lab all that you need to
know is that if the pressure, velocity, and temperature everywhere in the nozzle are
known at one instant in time, and the pressure, velocity, and temperature at the nozzle
inlet are also known as a function of time, the program will calculate what happens one
small “time step,” ∆ t, later. If you run the program for many time steps, you can
calculate what happens for longer times.
We can calculate the steady state flow in the nozzle by starting with an (almost) arbitrary
pressure, velocity, and temperature distribution, and running the simulation for a long
time with constant inlet conditions until p, V, and T stop changing with time.
Alternatively, we can run the simulation with variable inlet conditions to see what
happens if we have transient flow in the nozzle.

Running the Lab:

1. Open the EXCEL spreadsheet NOZZLE.XLS. The spreadsheet was created in

EXCEL 7.0a and should run on any version of EXCEL that is at least that recent.
2. Go to the sheet labelled COARSE GRID. Confirm that the following variables have
been entered at the top of the sheet:
∆x=0.05 m
∆t=10-5 s
pinlet =500 kPa
Vinlet =100 m/s
Tinlet = 638 K
γ=1.4
R=287 m2/s2-K
3. To start with, let us try some steady state simulations. We do not know the initial
pressure, velocity, and temperature distribution in the nozzle, so let’s start with
some wild guesses. Let’s guess that the pressure varies linearly from pinlet =500
kPa at the nozzle inlet to 0 kPa at the exit. Similarly, we guess that the velocity
varies linearly from 100m/s at the exit to 1000m/s at the outlet, and the
temperature varies from 638 K at the inlet to 0 K at the outlet. Confirm that the
entries in rows 20, 21, and 22 have the required linear form.
4. In row 19, confirm that the area of the nozzle as a function of x is given by
A(x)=0.1+0.1*x-1.51.70951. This nozzle therefore is symmetric about x=1.5 m.
The area decreases from 0.3 m at the inlet (x=0) to 0.1m at the throat (x=1.5), and
then increases back to 0.3 m at the exit (x=3 m). Produce a plot of the A(x)
function, but don’t print it.
5. Confirm that the initial time is set to 0 in cell E23.
6. Now, run the simulation for 25 time steps. You can do this by typing 25 in cell D37.
To avoid driving yourself crazy with a flashing screen, have at least rows 20 to 35
displayed on the screen simultaneously. Then, push the “Iterate” button. A
moment later the computer will have stopped. Copy the pressure, velocity, and
temperature results (which overwrite what was initially in rows 20 to 22) to rows
46-48.
7. Repeat step 6 with another 25 iterations (copy results to rows 49-51), then another 50
iterations (don’t forget to change cell D37 to 50, and copy the results to rows 52-
54) and a further 100 iterations (rows 55-57). Go to the Figure 1 sheet and
observe and print the results.
8. Comment on the behaviour in Figure 1.
9. Repeat step 6 for another 300 iterations, 500 iterations, and 1000 iterations, and copy
the results to rows 58-66, as appropriate. Go to the Figure 2, 3, and 4 sheets to
observe and print the results.
10. Comment on the three figures.
11. Use the definition of the Mach number to fill in rows 112-114, making use of the
data in rows 86-88, 95-97, and 104-106, as appropriate.
12. Observe and print the Figure 5 sheet. Comment.
13. One of the things it is always worth checking in numerical simulations is the effect of
grid size. Because this simulation includes variations in time, we can check the
effect of ∆t. Reset all variables back to the state they were in at step 6, and run
1000 iterations of the simulation for ∆t=0.00002s and ∆t=0.00004s. Copy the
results to rows 120-122 as appropriate, and observe the result in sheet “Delta t.”
Repeat with ∆t=0.00006s.
14. Comment on your findings in step 13.
15. Now, let’s check the effect of the spatial step size.
16. The sheet labeled “Fine Grid” looks just like the “Coarse Grid” sheet you have been
working with. Run the simulation with ∆t=0.00001, and record the results after
1000, 2000, and 3000 iterations. Transfer the pressure results to rows 59-61 and
observe and plot the Figure 6 sheet.
17. Comment on the effect of ∆x.
18. Now, in “Fine Grid,” change ∆t to 0.00002s and record the results after 350, 380, 385
iterations. Record the pressure results in rows 67-69. Comment on the results
(hint: look at the downstream end of the nozzle.). Compare the stability with the
fine grid with the coarse grid stability.
19. In the above steps, you should have seen that MacCormack’s Method does a good job
of replicating a theory we will develop in MECH 380, provided one does not
choose an excessively large time step, and provided the spatial step size is
reasonable. This may not be the case if our nozzle has corners.
20. Program your “Coarse Grid” spreadsheet so that the area falls linearly from 0.3 to 0.1
from x=0 to x=1, then is constant at 0.1 from x=1 to x=2, and finally rises
linearly from 0.1 to 0.3 as x goes from 2 to 3. Run the simulation with
∆t=0.00001s and record the pressure results after 500, 1000, and 2000 iterations
in rows 128-130. Observe and print Figure 7. Does the simulation converge? Is
the pressure distribution physically plausible? Explain.
21. Finally, now that we have a clearer sense of the capabilities and limitations of
MacCormack’s Method, let’s try an unsteady flow problem. With a time step of
∆t=0.00001s in the “Coarse Grid” sheet, set up cell D20 so that the pressure rises
linearly at the nozzle inlet from 450kPa to 500kPa in 5ms. Record your pressure
results every millisecond in rows 136 to 141. Print Figure 8.
22. Comment on your results (you should realize that they are unphysical).
23. Can you suggest ways to make the program converge to reasonable results?