6

LAVAL NOZZLE

MEKHANIKA ZHIDKOSTI I GAZA

FLOW CALCULATION

U. G. P i r u m o v
Izv. AN SSSR. M e k h a n i k a Z h i d k o s t i i G a z a ,

Vol. 2, No. 5, pp~ 1 0 - 2 2 1 i 9 6 7

The inverse problem of the theory of the Laval nozzle is considered,

which leads to the Cauchy problem for the gasdynamic equations; the
streamlines and the flow parameters are found from the known velocity distribution on the axis of symmetry.

The inverse problem of LavaI nozzle theory was considered in 1908 by

Meyer [1], who expanded the velocity potential into a series in powers of the Cartesian coordinates and constructed the subsonic and supersonic solutions in the vicinity of the center of the nozzle. Taylor [2]
used a similar method to construct a flowfield which is subsonic but
has local supersonic zones in the vicinity of the minimal section.
Frankl [3] and Fal'kovich [4] studied the flow in the vicinity of the
nozzle center in the hodograph plane. Their solution, just as the
Meyer solution, made it possible to obtain an idea of the structure of
the transonic flow in the vicinity of the center of the nozzle.
A large number of studies on transonic flow in the vicinity of the
center of the nozzle have been made using the method of small perturbations. The approximate equation for the transonic velocity potential in the physical plane, obtained in [3-6], has been studied in
detail for the plane and axisymmetric cases. In [7] Ryzhov used this
equation to study the question of the formation of shock waves in the
vicinity of the center of the nozzle, and conditions were formulated
for the plane and axisymmetric cases under which the flow will not
contain shock waves. However, none of the solutions listed above for
the inverse problem of Laval nozzle theory makes it possible to calculate the flow in the subsonic and transonic parts of the nozzles with
Iarge gradients of the gasdynamic parameters along the normal to the
axis of symmetry.
Among the studies devoted to the numerical calculation of the flow in
the subsonic portion of the Laval nozzle we should note the study of
Alikhashkin et al., and the work of Favorskii [9], in which the method
of integral relations was used to solve the direct problem for the plane
and axisymmetric cases.
The present paper provides a numerical solution of the inverse problem of Lava1 nozzIe theory. A stable difference scheme is presented
which permits analysis with a high degree of accuracy of the subsonic,
transonic, and supersonic flow regions. The result of the calculations
is a series of nozzles with rectilinear and curvilinear transition surfaces
in which the flow is significantly different from the one-dimensional
flow. The flowfield in the subsonic and transonic portions of the nozzIes is studied. Several asymptotic solutions are obtained and a comparison is made of these solutions with the numerical solution.
w1. P r o b l e m f o r m u l a t i o n a n d c a l c u l a t i o n m e t h o d .
This paper considers the inverse problem of Laval
n o z z l e t h e o r y . An a n a l y t i c v e l o c i t y d i s t r i b u t i o n i s
g i v e n o n t h e a x i s of s y m m e t r y i n t h e s u b s o n i c , t r a n s o n i c , a n d s u p e r s o n i c r e g i o n s . A c c o r d i n g to t h e
Cauchy-Kovalevskii
theorem, for analytic initial conditions for the equations of gasdynarnies there is a
unique solution of the Cauehy problem in some vicinity
of t h e a x i s of s y m m e t r y .
The formulation of the inverse problem, which is in essence a Cauchy problem,
does not involve any fundamental difficulties. We note
that in this regard the inverse problem differs favorably from the direct problem, for which up till now no
unique solution has been obtained and the conditions
f o r s h o c k - f r e e f l o w in t h e t r a n s o n i c r e g i o n h a v e n o t

b e e n f o r m u l a t e d evefl f o r n o Z z l e s w h o s e w a i l s a r e
m a d e i n t h e f o r m of a n a l y t i c c u r v e s [7].
H o w e v e r , d e f i n i t e p r o b l e m s a r i s e in t h e n u m e r i c a l
s o l u t i o n of t h e C a n c h y p r o b l e m . In t h e g e n e r a l c a s e
t h e C a n c h y p r o b l e m in t h e e l l i p t i c r e g i o n i s i n c o r r e c t ,
a l t h o u g h , if t h e c l a s s of a n a l y t i c f u n c t i o n s i s c o n s i d e r e d , t h e n in a l i m i t e d r e g i o n t h e p r o b l e m b e c o m e s
c o r r e c t [10]. N e v e r t h e l e s s , e v e n f o r a n a l y t i c i n i t i a l
c o n d i t i o n s i n t h e s u b s o n i c p o r t i o n of t h e n o z z l e , w h e r e
the gasdynamic equations are elliptic, with a poorly
selected difference scheme the roundoff errors, which
inevitably arise in the numerical solution, increase
e x t r e m e l y r a p i d l y i n t h e s o l u t i o n of t h e C a n c h y p r o b l e m . T h e r e f o r e , to o b t a i n a s t a b l e s o l u t i o n w e m u s t
select a difference scheme such that its use will not
l e a d to t h e r o u n d o f f e r r o r s e x c e e d i n g t h e a p p r o x i m a tion errors significantly.
On t h e o t h e r h a n d , i n t h e g e n e r a l c a s e t h e r e l a t i o n s h i p of t h e s t e p s i n t h e d i f f e r e n c e s c h e m e i n t h e h y p e r b o l i c r e g i o n s h o u l d b e s u c h t h a t t h e r e g i o n of i n f l u e n c e
of t h e a p p r o x i m a t i n g s y s t e m d o e s n o t e x t e n d b e y o n d
t h e r e g i o n of i n f l u e n c e of t h e b a s i c s y s t e m of d i f f e r e n t i a l e q u a t i o n s [11]. H o w e v e r , i n t h e c l a s s of a n a l y t i c f u n c t i o n s t h e r a t i o of t h e s t e p s i n t h e d i f f e r e n c e
scheme cannot be arbitrary,
s i n c e i n v i e w of t h e a n a l y t i c i t y of t h e i n i t i a l c o n d i t i o n s w e c a n n o t a l t e r t h e m
in any great segment without altering them throughout
t h e e n t i r e r e g i o n of a n a l y t i c i t y [12].
The system of gasdynamic equations which des c r i b e s t h e i r r o t a t i o n a l , i s e n t r o p i c flow of a n i d e a l
gas with a constant adiabatic exponent in the variables
(r i s t h e s t r e a m f u n c t i o n ) a n d x h a s t h e f o r m [13]

Ogz~

2J

Og

Op

k Ov

O~

pu'

8x

O~

gJ Ox'

p = p,.4~,

u=-

k-- I

k-- I

H e r e u a n d v a r e t h e p r o j e c t i o n s of t h e v e l o c i t y
v e c t o r w o n t h e x a n d y a x e s of t h e C a r t e s i a n c o o r d i n a t e s y s t e m , r e f e r r e d to a . - - t h e c r i t i c a l s p e e d of s o u n d ;
p, p a r e p r e s s u r e a n d d e n s i t y , r e f e r r e d to t h e
pressure and density for w = a.; k is the specific heat
ratio; and j = 0 and 1 for the plane or axisymmetric
cases, respectively.
Let us write the difference scheme, corresponding
to (1~
which is used in the present study. Let all
t h e f l o w p a r a m e t e r s o n t h e n - t h l a y e r ~n = c o n s t b e
known at i points, which in the general case are not
e q u a l l y d i s t a n t f r o m o n e a n o t h e r (i = 0.1 . . . . .
M)o
T h e n t h e p a r a m e t e r s o n t h e (n + 1 ) - t h l a y e r r
=
= const are defined by the formulas
[ (~) ,~
yi(n+l)J"

~]'in23 "@ 2 J - ' h ~

t
],
+ (pu)~.,:,,l),/}~

(1.2)

FLUID DYNAMICS

7
('~)

t h e d i f f e r e n c e g r i d s t e p m u s t be s u f f i c i e n t l y s m a l l so
t h a t t h e a p p r o x i m a t i o n e r r o r s a r e s m a l l ; in t h i s e a s e
t h e r o u n d o f f e r r o r s in t h i s r e g i o n a r e a l s o smM1 b e c a u s e of t h e l a r g e v a l u e s of the d e r i v a t i v e s . In t h e r e g i o n of t h e m a x i m u m , j u s t a s in r e g i o n 1, t h e d i f f e r ence grid step should be selected sufficiently large
for analogous reasons.

Pi(n+i) -'~

(~)

12i(n+f)

(v)

~,y+ [(@70;)(2,~,)1~

L k- t

}-

= IpZI+,,>,
(,~)
[k+l
u~(,,+~) =
k --

2 [P'(:'~)t)](k--')/k- [d~)]2] '1=" (1.5)

1 --

k --

H e r e v is t h e i t e r a t i o n n u m b e r , and A r i s t h e i n t e g r a t i o n s t e p a l o n g t h e n o r m a l to t h e s t r e a m l i n e s . T h e
a p p r o x i m a t i o n e r r o r in t h i s d i r e c t i o n is (Ar 2.
Let us examine the iteration method for calculating
t h e p a r a m e t e r s u s i n g ( 1 . 2 ) - ( 1 . 5 ) . In t h e f i r s t a p p r o x i m a t i o n we u s e (1.2) and (1.3) to c a l c u l a t e t h e q u a n t i t i e s
y(1)i(n+ D and p(1)i(n+l) at a l l p o i n t s of the ( n + 1 ) - t h
l a y e r ; h e r e t h e q u a n t i t i e s w i t h s u p e r s c r i p t (o) a r e t a k e n
e q u a l to t h e c o r r e s p o n d i n g q u a n t i t i e s on t h e n - t h l a y e r .
T h e n we u s e t h e r e s u l t i n g v a l u e s of y to d e t e r m i n e
(Oy/0x)~})+l) (the m e t h o d f o r c a l c u l a t i n g 0 y / 0 x and
Ov/0x is d e s c r i b e d l a t e r ) and w e u s e (1.4) t o d e t e r m i n e
v(1)i(n+l). F i n a I l y , we u s e (1.5) to d e t e r m i n e t h e v a l u e s of p and u. T h e p a r a m e t e r s in all t h e f o l l o w i n g
iterations are calculated similarly.
In t h e a x i s y m m e t r i e e a s e (1.3) h a s a r e m o v a b l e
s i n g u l a r i t y on t h e a x i s of s y m m e t r y . In t h i s c o n n e c tion, in t h e a x i s y m m e t r i e e a s e t h e c a l c u l a t i o n b e g i n s
not w i t h t h e a x i s of s y m m e t r y a s in t h e p l a n e e a s e ,
b u t w i t h s o m e s t r e a m l i n e n e a r the a x i s of s y m m e t r y .
3

0.8

g
x

Fig. 1

Let us turn to the difference form of the derivatives 3v/0x and 3y/Sx. Figure i shows a typical variation of v with nozzle length. We see from this figure
that in region i, corresponding
to subsonic flow with
low velocities, the variation of the function v is not
large and its derivatives are small; conversely,
regions 2 and 4 are regions of large gradients of the
function v, while in region 3, in the vicinity of the
maximum,
the variation of v is slight. In this connection it is natural when replacing the derivative by a
difference relation in region 1 to select larger difference g r i d s t e p s in t h e d i r e c t i o n of t h e x a x i s , s i n c e
as a r e s u l t of t h e i o w g r a d i e n t s in t h i s r e g i o n t h e a p p r o x i m a t i o n e r r o r s w i l l b e s m a l l , and t h e r o u n d o f f
e r r o r s b e c a u s e of t h e l a r g e d i f f e r e n c e g r i d s t e p s w i l l
a l s o b e s m a l l . On t h e o t h e r h a n d , in r e g i o n s 2 and 4

,4

M( /

y~
M=/

Fig. 2
Thus, when calculating the flow in the elliptic region it is advantageous to use a difference grid with a variable step. The use of large
difference grid steps in regions with small gradients leads to a situation in which the growth of the roundoff errors in the numerical solution of the Cauchy problem for the elliptic equations is practica!ly not
noticeable and has no effect on the calculation stability. Special calculations were made to verify these facts, in which a different arrangement of the points on the layer was used. If we use a difference grid
with constant but small step, the roundoff error growth in region 1
leads to the calculation becoming unstable after a small number of
steps in the direction along the normal to the streamline. If we use a
difference grid with a constant but large step, such that the growth of
the roundoff error in region I became practically imperceptible, the
approximation errors in regions 2 and 4 became so large that, as before, the calculation rapidly becomes unseable. Only with the use of
a difference grid with small steps in the regions 2 and 4 and large steps
in regions 1 and 3 was it possible to obtain a stable solution with high
accuracy in the entire flow region right up to the singular point in the
transonic region.
V a r i o u s d i f f e r e n c e s c h e m e s m a y b e u s e d to c a l c u l a t e t h e d e r i v a t i v e s 8 v / 0 x and 0 y / ~ . S p e c i a l c a l c u l a t i o n s m a d e in t h e p r e s e n t s t u d y on t h e s e l e c t i o n
of t h e n u m b e r of p o i n t s f o r c a l c u l a t i n g t h e d e r i v a t i v e s
showed that the three-point scheme is most stable.
T h u s , in t h e c a l c u l a t i o n w i t h a f i v e - p o i n t s c h e m e u s i n g t h e s a m e a r r a n g e m e n t of p o i n t s on t h e l a y e r a s
u s e d in the c a l c u l a t i o n w i t h t h e t h r e e - p o i n t s c h e m e ,
c a l c u l a t i o n i n s t a b i l i t y s h o w e d up f o r a c o n s i d e r a b l y
s m a l l e r n u m b e r of s t e p s a l o n g t h e n o r m a l to t h e
streamlines than for the calculation using the threep o i n t s c h e m e . T h u s , t h e d e r i v a t i v e s w i t h r e s p e c t to
x were calculated using the formula

( &P )
-~x

2x--(x~+' + xd

~= ~-~

(x~_, -

2x -- (xi+~ + xi-l)
+9i

(x~ - - x i - , ) (xi - - z i + d

z~) ( x i - , -

xi+,) t-

2x -- (xi + xi+Q
+ ~ + 1 (x~+, - - x~_~) (x~+~ - -

xd'

w h e r e r is e i t h e r of t h e f u n c t i o n s v and y. In c a l c u l a t i o n of t h e d e r i v a t i v e s at t h e e x t r e m e p o i n t s of t h e
l a y e r , x is s e t e q u a l to x i _ 1 o r xi+ ~ f o r t h e l e f t and
r i g h t e n d s , r e s p e c t i v e l y . At t h e r e m a i n i n g p o i n t s of
t h e l a y e r x = x i.

MEKHANIKA ZHIDKOSTI I GAZA

In order to determine the maximal step A~Oin the three-point

scheme with variable step on the layer, a series of calculations was
made with variable steps A~, equal to 0.2 9 10 "~, 0.1 9 10 -~, 0.4 9
9 10 -z, 0 . 2 . 10 -2 , 0.1 9 10 -z a n d 0 . 5 . 10 -s. It was foun&that with
accuracy to 0.01% the results of the calculation with steps 0,2 9 10 "z,
0.1 " 10 "2, and 0.5 9 10-~agreed with one another. This fact also
means that the roundoff errors have practically no effect on the calculation results. An integral verification was also made of the calculation accuracy. To do this we calculated the difference in the momentum of a fixed section at the left end and several running sections,
The momentum difference was compared with the integral calculated
along the streamline of the pressure forces projected on the x axis.
The difference of these quantities in the two calculations was no more
than 0.05%

dot

k - - = -- (YtP~ -[-'2goP~),
dx

LV2 ,+
"' = 2.oL

o---;=

Po=

k-~2t

k--,I
]h/(a-t)
2 u~

I 2 ( k+ f

u~-

k -- 1

2
uo z -- I

x[
L

2.~

Fig.

An attempt was made to calculate the flow in the subsonic portion

using the matrix pivotal method [11]. In the process of the calculations it was found that in order to ensure stability of the pivotal method
in the subsonic region it is necessary to increase the difference grid
step so much that the approximation errors become excessively large,
so that the pivotal method was not suitable for calculating the flow in
the subsonic region.
w

Some asymptotic

some

asymptotic

pared

with the numerical

makes

it p o s s i b l e

convergence

Solutions.

solutions

Below we present

which will later be com-

solution.

This comparison

not only to establish

the region

of

o f t h e a s y m p t o t i c s o l u t i o n s b u t a l s o to e v a l -

uate the accuracy

of the numerical

a definite range,

should coincide with the approximate

solution which,

in

solution.
2.1 ~ Expansion into a series in @in the vicinity of the symmetry
axis. Let us construct the solution of the system (1.1) in the vicinity
of the symmetry axis in the form of series. In this subsection we consider only axisymmetric flow, although it is not difficult to obtain
analogous results for the plane case as well. In view of the flow symmetry relative to the axis, we represent the sought parameters in the

/tO ~

dx

and the continuity equation

[k.i

--

rk+t

+ 2uv-'~x -[-

k,
_

U2

k--i

"

lt2

"lay
- -

j 0,+

(u2 + vz)

dyo
dy~
ui---Jc'uo ~
dx
dx

Yo(p~uo+poa~)-]-4y~poao~O,

vi,

(2.2)

(2.6)

l+u,(y)x+u~(y)x2
vdy)x+v2(y)xZ+v~(~)x~+

+v~(g)x~-}-...4:-v~(g)x ~ + ....
dvo
k--~--yop~,
dx

=0.

In the vicinity of a rectilinear sonic line, on which u = 1 and

v = 0, it is natural to seek the solution of (2.5) and (2.6) in the form

v=

~3~

(2.5)

Ou l Og = Ov / Ox

u=
2,

(2.4)

2.2". Expansion into a series in x in the vicinity of the rectilinear

sonic line. A detailed study of the flow in the vicinity of the rectilinear sonic line has been made by Ovsyannikov [14]. The results
presented in the present subsection repeat certain results of Ovsyannikov, Here the gasdynamic equations are considered in cylindrical
coordinates for axisymmetric flow. For the approximate solution we
use the equation for absence of vorticity

n~O

pOUO1]O 2 ~

(duo/dx) 2

~--Uo~(k--i)(k+i)

and, as comparison with the numerical solution shows (see the following
section), i~ is particularly small in the transonic flow region.
Therefore this solution cannot be used for the calculation of regions
quite far from the symmetry axis.

(2.1)

dyo

'

w h e r e f is any of the functions p, p, u, v / ' ~ , y / ~ ' . If we substitute

these expansions into (1.1) and equate coefficients of like powers of
in the left and right sides of the equations, we obtain a system of equations for determining the functions Pn, On, Vn' Un, Yn.
The system for determining the first and second coefficients of the
series (2.1) is the following:

'

We can find vl(x), yl(x), th(x) similarly from (2.3). Analytic

expressions were obtained for these quantities, just as for y2(x), but
are not presented here because of the length of the formulas.
Formulas (2.4) were used to calculate the streamline lying close to
the axis, from which the numerical integration of the system (1.1) was
initiated, with the aid of series (2.1) in the vicinity of the symmetry
axis we can calculate the flow in both the supersonic and subsonic
regions. In a certain sense this solution will be a generalization of the
Meyer solution.
However, the region of convergence of the series (2.1) is bounded

form
f = ~ ] f ~ ( x ) $ ,~,

J
d~o

P'=--2[i--Uo~(k'i)/(k+t)]

fg

\V(~-k)Th

u3Z)

2 l--uo2(k--i)/(k-t-1)-~z

vo:

Xl
3.0

l/k
po:Po-.

From (2.2) we find

go

/I

(2.3)

In solving the inverse problem we set u = u0(x) for ~ = 0 on the

symmetry axis. Then

g~

].

(2.7)

After substituting (2.7) into (2.5) and (2,6) and equating coefficients
of zero and first powers of x in the left and right sides of these equations, it is not difficult to find that vi(y) ~- 0, ul(y ) ~- 0, v2(y) ~- 0.

FLUID DYNAMICS

These conditions are the known Gortler conditions [15], which are
necessary and sufficient for the sonic l i n e to be r e c t i l i n e a r . Equating
coefficients of the other powers of x, we obtain
du2

t d~z

--=3~,d~

-~(~+t).~+--~,+-~-=0,

duz
--=4c,~,
dg

dZa~
l da~
----+------20(k+t)uauz~O,
dy 2
y dy
du~
-~

d 0 ~ ,

do
d~-~-----.

k+l

d~az

5yo

(2.s)

(2,9)

5o5,

Substituting (2.12) into (2.8) and equating coefficients of l i k e powers of y - Y0, we can find the coefficients d i. In particular,

dr5
--=6(k+l)uau~+3(k+t)(2k--l)u~+6v~----,

vs

dy

The values of Y0 and Cz were d e t e r m i n e d from the condition of

m a t c h i n g the a s y m p t o t i c solution (2.12) with the solution which is
obtained in the n u m e r i c a l integration of (2.8). It follows from (2.11)
and (2.12) that the point x = 0, y = Y0 is a corner point, and at this
point there is a Prandtl-Meyer flow [14]. For the distribution of the
v e l o c i t y along the axis u = uo~ + (1 - u ~ ) / ( 1 + Ax z) with u ~ = 0.1 and
A = 10 we h a v e Y0 = 0.725.

(2.10)

etc.

x-0.2

l.O

0.5

Let the v e l o c i t y distribution on the s y m m e t r y axis in the v i c i n i t y

of the r e c t i l i n e a r sonic line on the subsonic side for x > 0 be g i v e n in
the form
a = i + a~x~ + a~x ~ + a~x~ + . . .

Q- a,,x '~ + . . . .

(2.tl)
02

Then the boundary conditions wilI be:

for the system (2.8)

d~t2/dy=O,

r/,2 =

a2 <

Fig.
for y = O ;

for g = O ;

aa~aa

2.8 ~ Solution of the inverse problem of Laval n o z z l e theory for an

incompressible fluid. For low v e l o c i t i e s we can consider the flow in
the subsonic portion of the n o z z l e as the flow of an incompressible
fluid. The flow of an incompressible fluid is described by the equations

for the system (%10)

du~ / dg = O,

for

u~ = a~

g = O.

The system of equations ( 2 . 8 ) - ( 2 . 1 0 ) cannot be i n t e g r a t e d in

closed form for a2 e 0 in the a x i s y m m e t r i c case. Therefore for the
v e l o c i t y distribution on the axis, g i v e n in the form u = u ~ + (1 - u ~ ) / ( 1 + Ax z) for u ~ = 0.1 and A = 10, this system was i n t e g r a t e d
n u m e r i c a 1 i y and the values of 89
u~(y), udy), and vs(y), vs(y),
vT(y) were c a l c u l a t e d ; the functions u with odd numbers and the functioh~ v with e v e n numbers are e q u a l to zero.

Ov

Ou

Oy

--

Ox

02a

12-~105

02a

--~+
Ox 2

Ou

+]----=0.

(2.13)

Oy

For the inverse problem the boundary conditions are v = 0 and u =

= u0(x ) for y = 0. In the plane case, when the second of Eqs. (2.13) is
the Laplace equation, the solution of the inverse problem has the form

u = Re [~o (~ + iy)],
u

In the l o c a l supersonic zone in the v i c i n i t y of the r e c t i l i n e a r sonic

l i n e there arises a c o m p r e s s i o n - w a v e fan w h i c h begins from the chara c t e r i s t i c OB (Fig. 2) and t e r m i n a t e s with the r e c t i l i n e a r characteristic OA, c o i n c i d i n g with the sonic line.

for the system (2.9)

du~/dg~O,

O*

v = Re [iao(z + iy)].

o
In the a x i s y m m e t r i c case, by the c h a n g e Yi = iy we reduce the
second of (2.13) to the Darboux equation, whose solution after s i m p l e
transformations m a y be reduced to the form [16]

t~

u 0.00!
. = Ro-- + \ F<+-+y

+i~,/+,,

,d

G.5
0

0
0.!

0.~

0.3

y U.~
where F(x - iy sin t) is an arbitrary function. Then in the r e a l p l a n e
the solution of the inverse p r o b l e m has the form

Fig. 4
For some v a l u e y : y0 the function 89 vanishes and then changes
sign, b e c o m i n g positive; and for some y = Y0 the function 89 goes
to infinity. The c h a n g e of sign of the function 89
m e a n s that in addition to the r e c t i l i n e a r sonic l i n e at the point where uz(y ) = 0 there
arises stilI another sonic Iine, b e g i n n i n g from the point y = y0 of the
r e c t i l i n e a r sonic l i n e and e x t e n d i n g u p s t r e a m from the r e c t i l i n e a r
sonic line toward the subsonic zone [14]. Here the fl0w b e t w e e n the
r e c t i l i n e a r and c u r v i l i n e a r sonic lines is supersonic (Fig. 2). In the
v i c i n i t y of the point y = Y0, where the function 89 goes to infinity,
the solution of the second e q u a t i o n of (2.8) is sought in the form [14,
7]
do

(y - - yo)

v=Re:

['X
----

u0(x--iysdnt) sintdt

JI

(y - yo)

-b dz -}- d~(y - - Y o ) + d~.(y - - yo) z "q-'ds(y - - yo) 3 "1-

(2.12)

(2.14)

The flow of the i n c o m p r e s s i b l e fluid was c a l c u l a t e d for the a x i s y m m e t r i c case and a v e l o c i t y distribution along the axis g i v e n in the
form
ao = a ~ + ( t - - a ~ ) / (t + Ax2),

d~

-t- d6(y - - yo) 4 l n ( y ~ Yo)+ C~(y -- yo) ~ + . . . .

u~ = 0.t,

A=

10.

For this v e l o c i t y distribution in the p l a n e x = 0 for y = ~

the
v e l o c i t y u goes to infinity, i . e . , the point x = 0, y = ~
w i l l be a
corner. For an arbitrary v e l o c i t y distribution along the axis, the corner point for the flow of an i n c o m p r e s s i b l e fluid arises at the poles of

10

MEKHANIKA ZHIDKOSTI I GAZA

the initial function continued into the complex plane. For the flow of
a compressible fluid it is not possible to establish the coordinates of
the corner singular point so simply, although, as the results of the calculations show, such a point always exists.

~/Z5

u,...,~

/..~O

For the inverse problem the unknown constants Po, Pi, and ih are
determined with the aid of the boundary conditions from the known
uoo

and u~. W e have

0.005

Pt = -- kp~tt~ut,

Pz = -

1 pi ~

Pi

"q#
EO
Fig.

p~

kp|

k p~

(9.tt.uz + ut2),

P2

+ -- + -- +
Z

(2.17)

....

Z2

6
F r o m (2.16) and (2.17) it follows, first, that the first three terms

2.4 ~. Solution of the approximate equations for the transonic flow

potential. The approximate equation for the transonic flow potential
was obtained in [3-6]. In deriving this equation it was assumed that
the magnitude of the gas speed is close to the speed of sound, and the
angle between the velocity direction and the x axis is s m a l l We derived the exact solution for this equation, which is also the first term
of the series constructed by Meyer near the center of the nozzle.
The exact solution obtained with the Frankl' solution [9] and the
approximate transonic solution were compared in [17] for the
plane case in the vicinity of the nozzle center. It was shown that the

exact and approximate values of the coordinates of the sonic line and
the line O = 0 differ by about 10-20%. It was also shown that the exact
and approximate values of the flow parameters, for example, the inclination of the velocity at the sonic line and the Math number On the
line 0 = 0, differ significantiy even for small distances from the axis.
Therefore the approximate transonic solution [3-6] is essentially not
suitable for calculating flows in nozzles in cases of practical interest.
Only in nozzles in which the flow in the vicinity of the critical section
differs little from onerdimensinnal flow can this solution be used for
calculation, as was assumed in deriving the approximate equation for
the transonic flow potential. Similar results are obtained in the present
paper (see Section 3.2) for the axisymmetric case.
2.5". Asymptotic solution in the vicinity of an infinitely remote
point in the subsonic region. Let us construct the asymptotic solution
in the vicinity of an infinitely remote point for the system (1.1) i n the
axisymmetric case for the direct and inverse problems. We write the
sought parameters in the form

(2.15)

f = ~, l.(~)z-~,
n~0

where f is any of the functions p, p, u, y and v. The boundary conditions for the inverse problem have the form
UI

y=v=O,

lll~

Ig,n

u=w:-l--~'l--~'t-'...@-~-"l-..,

for * = 0 .

in the asymptotic expansion of the function p do not depend on 0 (the

dependence on 0 shows up in the following terms of the expansion,
which may be obtained by similar methods) and, second, that with
reduction of x, i.e., in the direction of motion of the gas in the vicinity of an infinitely remote point, the pressure on all the streamlines can only diminish (Pl < 0; P2 < 0, if Pl = 0, etc. ). This means
that a positive pressure gradient at the point of joining of the cylindrical and converging ;segments in the subsonic part of the nozzle must
also be accompanied by a minimum pressure segment. This nature
of the distribution has been observed experimentally and is obtained
as a result of the calculations made in the present article.
In the direct problem the constants P0 and Pi are determined as
follows. For a given 0 k we find from the boundary conditions and (2.16)
t)~

= q ( ~ ) = 2% 1/o,

~(a~)
P~--

n(i) '

/o+

M~ z - t I l l

f_L+I__2+

This equation implies that i f f 1 < 0 (i, e., if the subsonic part is
converging), then P1 < 0 on all the streamlines and the pressure on all
the streamlines in the vicinity of the infinitely remote point diminishes in the direction of the gas motion, L e., the pressure variation
has the same nature as in the inverse problem.
We note that in the direct problem with a given equation for the
nozzle contour the flow parameters (see 2.18)) are uniquely determined by the single parameter Ok. (This statement is still valid if we
consider all the subsequent expansion terms as well. ) This fact is quite
obvious physically and indicates that we can vary only the single
parameter Ok in the numerical solution of the direct problem with the
use of the asymptotic expansion in the vicinity of an infinitely remote
point. We note that the asymptotic behavior of the subsonic flow at
infinity with application to the external problems was considered in

[18].

cp) T-"

g' =

------

I.

A
--

Xn

nl,
. . . .

X2

X3

(~ = ~ ) .

~n+l

In the direct problem ~0k is the value of the discharge on the nozzle contour and must be given as a function of the flow regime, but
0 must not exceed the criticaI value for which the flow in the subsonic region does not depend on the backpressure.
Substituting the series (2.15) into (1.1) and equating coefficients
of the same powers of x, we obtain the system of equations for determining the functions yn(~), pn(0), Vn(0), Pn~), Un(0), which may
be solved in closed form. In particular, we have
vo = vi = O,

:C57;'

po ~ const~

(2.18)

'll;~

(~ = o),

2p~u~

p~hkM~'i/

P' ~

For the direct problem the boundary conditions have the form

u=v=O

'~,

q ( ~ ) = ~ [V~(k + t ) - - % ( k - - t ) ~ p / ( ~

pi = const,

p~ = const,
(2.1~)

08

/~F

2.0

.r

Fig. 7
w Calculation results. The present section describes the results
of the calculation of an axisymmetric flow in the subsonic, transonic,
and supersonic regions, obtained in the numerical solution of the inverse problem with the use of a three-point scheme with a variable

FLUID

DYNAMICS

11

step on the layer. A comparison is made with the approximate solutions described in the preceding section. Flows with rectilinear and
curviIinear transition surfaces are analyzed separately.
S,1 ~ L~val n o z z l e with rectilinear transition surface. To ensure

a rectilinear sonic line it is necessary and sufficient that dw/dx -- 0

for w = 1 [15]. In connection with this the following velocity distributions aiong the nozzle axis were given:

w~-t

t~Ax

2 ,

w~ ~ 0 . t ,

1~Ax

line shows that for x = 0.05 the agreement between the exact and approximate solutions is very good. For x ~ 2 the series (2.7) diverge.
For the velocity distribution w = woo + (1 - w~)/(1 + Ax a) along
the axis, the streamlines in the vicinity of the rectilinear sonic line
are parallel to the axis over a segment which is still longer than in the
preceding case. Again in this case a local supersonic zone arises in
the flowfleld; however, the second sonic line has a common point
with the rectilinear sonic line at infinity.

3 ,

A = 10.

For the first velocity distribution numerical calculations were

made of the flowfield and, in addition, the approximate solutions
described in the preceding section were obtained, The calculations
were made using (1.2)-(1.5) with = 0.2. 10 -z, and on each layer
-- const the nodes of the difference grid were located at the points
x = 0-0.16 (h = 0.02), 0.2-0.6 (h = 0.05), 0.67, 0.76, 0.88, 1.00,
1.15, 1.40, 1.70, 2.00, 2.25, 2.50, 2,75, 3.00.
The calculation results are shown in Fig. 3, which shows the
family of streamlines and the lines w = const. Each of these streamlines may be selected as a nozzle contour. We see from this figure
that the flow differs markedly from one-dimensional, particularly for
high velocity values. In the vicinity of the rectilinear sonic line, locared in the plane x = 0, for y > 0.25 a local supersonic zone and a
second sonic line appear. The flow in this zone will be shoekfree. Between the second sonic line and the rectilinear sonic line the gas is
initially accelerated and then decelerated (Fig. 2), which leads to
the appearance in this region of a positive pressure gradient, which
may lead to separation of the boundary layer. In the vicinity of the
rectilinear sonic line the streamlines are practically parallel to the
axis. Figure 3 shows also the variation of the velocity w =
with length on the streamline ~ = 0.06 (curve 1). This same figure
shows the values of w calculated from one-dimensional theory (curve
2) and the variation of w with length along the axis (curve 3). We see
from this figure that while the flow is nearly one-dimensional on the
streamlines sufficiently close to the nozzle axis (~ = 0.02), on the
streamlines which are remote from the axis of symmetry ~ e flow differs markedly from one-dimensionality, particularly for high velocities. For low velocities the flow is also almost one-dimensional. We
see from this figure that the vicinity of the critical section must be
gently sloping to ensure a rectilinear sonic l i n e .
Calculations of the flowfield were made for various values of the
adiabatic exponent. The calculation results show that flow parameters
in the subsonic region depend little on k.
Figures 4 - 6 show the comparison of the numerical solution (curve
!) obtained in the present study with the approximate solution obtained
as a result of expanding the flow parameters in a series in {0 in the
vicinity of the symmetry axis (curve 2), with the solution obtained as
a result of expanding the solution in a series in x in the vicinity of
the rectilinear sonic line (curve 3), and with the solution of the inverse problem for the incompressible fluid (curve 4). in expansions (2.1) account was taken of three terms, and the velocity components for the flow of the incompressible fluid were calculated using
(2.14). We see from Figs. 4 - 6 that for small values of x ~ 0.05 the
expansion in a series in ~ diverges even for small values of y (this fact
may also be established analytically). For large vaiues of x the radius
of convergence of series (2.11) increases, and for x > 1 the results of the exact and approximate solutions practically coincide.
Thus, the approximate solution obtained as a resutt of expanding the
parameters in a series in r in the vicinity of the symmetry axis may
be used for calculating the flow only for sufficiently low subsonic
velocities. We also see from Figs. 4 - 6 that for small values of x, for
which the effects of compressibility are significant, the solution of
the inverse problem for the incompressible fluid cannot be used for
describing the flow of the compressible fluid. For large values of x,
when the gas motion velocity is not 1argo (w < 0.3), the flow parameters of the compressible and incompressible fluids differ little. The
comparison shown in Figs. 4 - 6 with the solution obtained as a result
of the expansion in a series in x in the vicinity of the rectilinear sonic

-~

-2

-r

Fig.

3.2". Laval nozzle with eurvilinear transition surface. When the

velocity gradient in the center of the nozzle is nonzero, the sonic
line will be eurvilinear, and the calculation of the subsonic and supersonic regions must be carried out jointly. Here, because of the analyticity of the velocity distribution along file axis, the calculation region on the side of the supersonic portion will not necessarily be
bounded by a limiting characteristic of the second family.
The velocity distribution along the axis is given in the subsonic
and supersonic regions. Calculations of the flowfield were made for
the following velocity distributions along the axis:
w= i +

.,arctg(e :x -- e-~=),

w = i ~-

(3.1)

(3.2)
(t -- w~)e-~/b + ( ~

-- t)

The results of the calculation for the distribution (3.1) with Woo =
= 0.1, a = 2.3, b = 0.2 are shown in Fig. 7. This figure shows the
family of streamlines, the lines w = const, the sonic line (dark circles),
and the line 0 = 0 (light circles). We see from this figure that the
sonic line and the line 0 = 0 are inclined upstream from the nozzle
center so that the sonic point is located downstream of the minimal
nozzle section.
Figure 7 also shows the variation of the velocity w with distance
along the streamline with ~ = 0.08 (curve 1). Figure 7 shows the values of w calculated from one-dimensional theory (curve 2) and the
variation of w with distance along the axis (curve 3). We see from
this figure that the calculated flow differs markedly from the onedimensional flow, particularly in the velocity range from 1.2 to 0.5.
For this velocity distribution along the axis the flow in the supersonic
region for w > 1.2 is nearly one-dimensional. Although for low supersonic speeds the velocity w may with small error be calculated from
one-dimensional theory, the one-dimensional theory naturally does
not m a r e it possible to study the fine details of the flow, for example,
the occurrence of positive pressure gradients in this region (Fig. 7).
The velocity distribution on the streamline ~ = 0.08 shown in Fig.
7 has two singularities. First, in the transonic region behind the transition line the variation of the velocity is not monotonic. This means
that a sharp variation of the contour form in the transonic region may
lead to the formation of positive pressure gradients in this region.
Second, in the region of low subsonic velocities, where the nozzle
contour is practically rectilinear and parallel to the axis, there also
arises a zone with a positive pressure gradient, which, in accordance

12
with the analysis in Section 2.5, precedes a region in which the pressure diminishes.
Figure 7 shows the v a r i a t i o n of the pressure coefficient Cp = 2(p - poo)/(poov~) with distance along the nozzle, whose m a x i m a l vaIue
for the considered case is 0.01. It should be p a r t i c u l a r l y e m p h a s i z e d
that as a result of the c a l c u l a t i o n s of the nozzles with a r e c t i l i n e a r
sonic line, just as for the nozzles with a curvilinear sonic line, it
was found that for c e r t a i n forms of the transonic portion of the n o z z l e
contour the occurrence in this area of regions with a positive pressure
gradient is possible.
The results of the c a l c u l a t i o n for the distribution (3.2) with woo =
= 1.9, w m = 0.1, 1 / b = 3.5 are shown in Fig. 8. C h a r a c t e r i s t i c for
this v e l o c i t y distribution will b e the fact that in the subsonic portion
for x -> 1.5 the streamlines are p r a c t i c a l l y r e c t i l i n e a r and para!1e1
to the axis. In the supersonic region, in contrast with the p r e c e d i n g
case, the flow differs s i g n i f i c a n t l y from o n e - d i m e n s i o n a l flow. Figure
8 also shows the v a r i a t i o n of the v e l o c i t y with distance on the s t r e a m l i n e with @ = 0.06 (curve 1). We see from these figures and from the
c a l c u l a t i o n results that on a l l the streamlines, beginning with the
s t r e a m I i n e with ~ = 0. 03, at the b e g i n n i n g of the c y l i n d r i c a l portion
of the n o z z l e contour, there is a positive pressure gradient whose m a g nitude increases with increase of the Iength of the c y l i n d r i c a l portion.
Thus, on the contour with ~ = 0.08 the m a x i m a l v a l u e of Cp = 0.2,
w h i l e on the contour with ~ = 0.08 it is 0.5. We note that the coordinates of the n o z z l e contour with ~ = 0.06 are very close to the coordinates of the contour of the subsonic portion of the n o z z l e for which the
v i c i n i t y of the c r i t i c a l section toward the subsonic part of the n o z z l e
is m a d e in the form of a circular arc with radius R2 = 1.6r,, to which
is joined a c o n i c a l portion with angle 0in = 35 ~ which joins the c y l i n d r i c a l portion with radius R1 = r ~ (Fig. 8).
We see from the results of the c a l c u l a t i o n s presented in this section
that, as a rule, a positive pressure g r a d i e n t arises in the c y l i n d r i c a l
portion of the subsonic part of the nozzle. The positive pressure g r a d ient in this region m a y be e l i m i n a t e d if we use contours which suffic i e n t l y g r a d u a l l y approach the g i v e n radius of the entry to the subsonic
part of the nozzle. Thus, on the n o z z l e contour corresponding to the
s t r e a m l i n e with ~ = 0.05 for the v e l o c i t y distribution (3.1) the pressure
decreases m o n o t o n i c a l l y along the e n t i r e n o z z l e length, and a positive
pressure g r a d i e n t does not arise in either the transonic or subsonic regions.
The m e t h o d proposed in the present paper permits c a l c u l a t i n g the
flow in both the subsonic and supersonic portions of the n o z z l e with a
high d e g r e e of a c c u r a c y . The supersonic part of the n o z z l e m a y also
be c a l c u l a t e d by the m e t h o d of c h a r a c t e r i s t i c s i f the flow p a r a m e t e r s
are known on some i n i t i a l characteristics in the transonic region. The
method suggested here is an i m p r o v e m e n t on the method of c h a r a c t e r istics in that a single s c h e m e m a y be used to c a l c u l a t e s i m u l t a n e o u s l y
the subsonic and supersonic regions of the nozzle.
In addition, the c a l c u l a t i o n using the proposed s c h e m e of the entire flowfield occupies only 1 0 - 1 5 minutes on the M-20 computer,
while the c a l c u l a t i o n of the supersonic part of the n o z z l e using the
method of c h a r a c t e r i s t i c s requires 1 - 2 hours. The coordinates of the
sonic line, the Iine 0 = 0, and also the v e l o c i t y c o m p o n e n t on the
l i n e 0 = 0 and the v e l o c i t y c o m p o n e n t v on the l i n e w = 1, corresponding to the v e l o c i t y distribution (3.1), were c a l c u l a t e d with the
aid of the a p p r o x i m a t e transonic solution. As a result of the c a l c u l a tions it was found that for y > 0.1 the a p p r o x i m a t e solution gives a
considerable error in c a l c u l a t i n g the v e l o c i t y components. The coordinates of the line 0 = 0 and of the sonic Iine were c a l c u l a t e d suff i c i e n t l y a c c u r a t e l y to a v a l u e of y .~ 0.3.
In a l l cases the c a l c u l a t i o n breaks down on some s t r e a m l i n e in
c o n n e c t i o n with the f o r m a t i o n of corner points in the transonic region.
Since in s h o c k - f r e e f l o w a corner point c a n n o t exist on a fluid s t r e a m line, a shock w a v e e m a n a t e s from this point, e x t e n d i n g d o w m t r e a m .
As a rule, shock waves were formed on those s t r e a m l i n e s on w_hieh the
d e r i v a t i v e of the v e l o c i t y at the c e n t e r of the n o z z l e d>,./dx (x is the
ratio of the x c o o r d i n a t e to the throat radius) exceeds some l i m i t i n g
v a l u e (d)v/dx-)*.
The v a l u e of (dk/dx)* was d e t e r m i n e d from the results of an exp e r i m e n t a l study m a d e by Sergienko of the v e l o c i t y distribution along

MEKHANIKA

ZHIDKOSTI

I GAZA

the n o z z l e axis which arises with flow about corner points. According
to these data the values of (dk/dx~ ~ are e q u a l to about 0 . 6 - 0 . 7 for the
a x i s y m m e t r i c case. In the plane case this value is about 0.5 [17].
About the same values of (d)v/dx'y' were obtained as a result of the c a l culations. Thus, t h e r e a r e n o s h o c k - f r e e flows with (dk/dx-) > (dh/dx-):',
while for (dk/dx-) < (dk/d~)* the e x i s t e n c e of both shock-free flows and
flows with shock waves is possible. Even for dX/dx = 0 a corner point
is formed in the flow (Section 2.2).
In the coordinates ~, x used in the present paper, it is c o n v e n i e n t
to m a k e the c a l c u l a t i o n s of m u i t i l a y e r flows with different physical
properties. Such a c a l c u l a t i o n may be m a d e within a framework of
the i d e a l fluid without account for m i x i n g of the layers; in this case
the iota1 temperatures, t o t a l pressures, and a d i a b a t i c indices in the
layers m a y be different. Assume that up to some s t r e a m l i n e ~ = ~p the
gas has the a d i a b a t i c index k = k 1 and the t o t a l pressure P01, while
b e g i n n i n g with this s t r e a m l i n e the a d i a b a t i c index k = k z and the t o t a l
pressure is P0z. On the s t r e a m l i n e # = e p both flows must have the
same directions of the v e l o c i t i e s and the same values of the static
pressure.
In this connection, on the s t r e a m l i n e ~ = ~p the foIIowing r e l a tions must hold:

= (k2 + J ~J(h'--l)(i (j
pz

va

k2-- t

k -

k2-- I

k'-- iw, 2 )hl/(kl--l)

p, = pz,/h2,

k~--~-t

vi

Po21

After r e p l a c i n g the p a r a m e t e r s with index 1 on the l i n e ~ = ~0p by

the p a r a m e t e r s with index 2, the c a l c u l a t i o n proceeds using ( 1 . 2 ) -

(1.5).
The proposed method may be used for calculating equilibrium and
nonequilibrium flows.
The author wishes to thank G. D. Vladimirov for
compiling the large number of programs
and carrying out the calculations on the M-20 computer.
REFERENCES
i. Th. Meyer, Uber Zweidimensionale
Bewegung
vorgSnge in einem Gas das mit Ubershallgesohwindigkeit str~mt, Forsehungs
Heft, 72, 1908.
2. G. I~ Taylor, The Flow of Air at High Speed
past Curved Surfaces, Great Britain Aeronautieal Research Committee
Reports and Memoranda,
No. 1381,
1930.
3. F. I. Frankl, "On the theory of Laval nozzles, "
Izv. AN SSSR, Set. matem.,
vol. 9, no. 5, 1945.
4. S. V. Fal'kovich, "On the theory of Laval nozzles, " PMM,
vol. i0, no. 4, 1946.
5. Th. Von Karman,
"The similarity law of transonic flow, " J. Math. and Phys., 26, 182-190, 1947.
6. K. G. Guderley, Transonic Flow Theory [Russian translation], Izd. inostr, lit., 1960.
7. O. S. Ryzhov,
"Study of transonic flows in
Laval nozzles, " Tr. VTs AN SSSR, 1965.
8. Ya. I. Alikhashkin,
A. P. Favorskii, and P. I.
Chushkin,
"On the calculation of flow in a plane Laval
nozzle, " Zh. vychisl, matem,
i matem,
fiz., vol. 3,
no. 6, 1965.
9. A. P. Favorskii, "Calculating Laval nozzles, "
Zh. vychisl, matem,
i matem,
fiz, vol. 5, no. 5,
1965.
i0. M. M. Lavrent'ev,
"On the Cauchy problem
for the Laplace equation, " Izv. AN SSSR, Ser.
matem~
vol. 20, 6, 1956.

F LUID DYNAMICS
11. I. S. B e r e z i n and N. P. Zhidkov, Computational Methods [in Russian], F i z m a t g i z , 1959.
12. G. Dahlquist, "Convergence and s t a b i l i t y f o r
a hyperbolic d i f f e r e n c e equation with analytic values,
Math. Scand, 2, 1954.
13. N. Ye. Kochin, I. A. Kibel, and N. V. Roze,
T h e o r e t i c a l H y d r o m e c h a n i c s , P a r t 2 [in Russian],
F i z m a t g i z , 1963.
14. L. V. Ovsyannikov, "Study of gas flows with
a n o r m a l shock line, " T r . LKVVIA, no. 33, 1950.
1 5 . G . H . G S r t t e r , Zum ~bergang yon U n t e r s c h a l l
zu 0 b e r s c h a l l g e s e h w i n d i g k e i t e n in Diisen, Z. angew.
Math. und Mech., vol. 19, no. 6, 1938.

13
16. R. Courant and D. Hilbert, Methods of Mathe m a t i c a l P h y s i c s , Vol. 2 [Russian translation], Gostekhizdat, 1951.
17. V. N. Kamzolov and U. G. Pirumov, "Computational study of a s u p e r s o n i c j e t issuing f r o m an opening with plane walls," P M T F [Journal of Applied
Mechanics and Technical P h y s i c s ] , no. 2, 1967.
18. L. Bers, M a t h e m a t i c a l Questions of Subsonic
and T r a n s o n i c G a s d y n a m i c s [Russian t r a n s l a t i o n ] ,
Izd. i n o s t r , l i t . , 1961.

19 November

1966

Moscow