Aero-mechanical jitter analysis of a supersonic wedge
Aero-mechanical jitter refers to the unintentional movements of a laser weapon system caused by aerodynamic forces (i.e., unsteady pressure loading on the outer mold line) and mechanical vibrations (i.e., base motion via engine/airframe vibration). This jitter can significantly impact the accuracy and effectiveness of the laser weapon, making accurate prediction tools and mitigation strategies a critical area of research. In this presentation, we discuss the aero-mechanical jitter of a wedge installed in a Mach 2 wind-tunnel to support an ongoing in-house test campaign. We couple unsteady computational fluid dynamics analyses, enabled by the DoD HPCMP, with a dynamic finite element model to predict the aero-mechanical jitter during testing. We identify critical structural modes excited by the flow and discuss mitigation strategies to minimize the induced jitter. Finally, we describe extensions of our current analysis method to relevant DoD systems.  

DISTRIBUTION STATEMENT A. Approved for public release: distribution is unlimited. AFRL Case Number AFRL20252598
IMPACT
Accomplishment: Analyzed laser performance under supersonic aerodynamic loading. Result: Verified modeling framework that is being used to predict laser weapon system performance and to mitigate potential performance degradations prior to flight test campaigns, reducing prototype cost by hundreds of thousands of dollars.
PRESENTER
Walgren, Patrick
patrick.walgren.2@us.af.mil
907-306-9556
AFRL/RDLQ
CO-AUTHOR(S)
Tam, Chung-Jen (John)
Chung-Jen.Tam@us.af.mil
Battema, Koby
koby.battema.1@us.af.mil
CATEGORY
Comp Structural Mechanics
SECONDARY CATEGORY
Comp Fluid Dynamics
SYSTEM(S) USED
Navy DSRC/Nautilus, Air Force DSRC/Warhawk