Physical and chemical effects

Abstract

At high supersonic flight speed, gas heating within the bow wave gives rise to such physical and chemical processes as excitation of the internal energy of the molecules, dissociation, chemical reactions, ionization, and radiation. Intensive aerodynamic heating of the vehicle often results in destruction of the heat protection material. The chapter which follows deals with numerical simulation of the viscous shock layer flows coupled with the above physical and chemical processes which considerably influence the shock layer flow field and heat transfer. The examples of calculations are presented pertaining to spacecraft flight in the Earth and other planet atmospheres.