Aircraft Propulsion Inlets & Nozzles

Module 3

INLETS & NOZZLES

Syllabus:
Subsonic Inlets: Internal flow and Stall in Subsonic inlets, Boundary layer separation.
Major features of external flow near a subsonic inlet. Relation between minimum area
ratio and eternal deceleration ratio. Diffuser performance.
Supersonic inlets: Supersonic inlets, starting problem in supersonic inlets, Shock
swallowing by area variation, External deceleration. Modes of inlet operation.
Nozzles: Theory of flow in isentropic nozzles, Convergent nozzles and nozzle choking,
Nozzle throat conditions. Nozzle efficiency, Losses in nozzles. Over-expanded and
under-expanded nozzles, Ejector and variable area nozzles, Thrust reversal.

3.1 Inlets
Air intakes form the first component of all air breathing propulsion systems. The
word Intake is normally used in the UK and Inlet in the United States. Air intakes are
usually manufactured by the airframe manufacturer in coordination with the engine
manufacturer. An aircraft may have one or more intakes depending upon the engine.

Air intakes are required to capture freestream air, sometimes change its direction
and then supply this to the engine. This must be with as little flow distortion (non-
uniformity) as possible. The intake must also not result in excessive external drag to the
aircraft. Intake must ensure proper operation over the entire flight regime. Modern aircraft
intakes also contain noise-absorbing materials.

Intakes used in transport aircraft are quite different from the military air intakes. All
operational transport aircraft are subsonic. Subsonic intakes consist of surfaces with smooth
continuous curves. Usually such intakes have a thick leading edge: lip. Intakes of
turboprops are slightly more complicated due to the presence of the propeller and the
gearbox.

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3.2 Subsonic (pitot type) intakes

The most common type of a subsonic intake is the Pitot intake. Pitot intakes make
the best use of the ram effect due to forward motion. These intakes also suffers the
minimum loss of ram pressure during changes in altitude. However these intakes are
primarily for subsonic operation.

The most common type of a subsonic intake is the Pitot intake. Pitot intakes make
the best use of the ram effect due to forward motion. These intakes also suffers the
minimum loss of ram pressure during changes in altitude. However these intakes are
primarily for subsonic operation. There are three types of Pitot intakes:

 Podded intakes
 Integrated intakes
 Flush intakes

Podded intakes are commonly used in transport aircraft (civil or military).

Integrated intakes are used in combat aircraft. Flush intakes are used in missiles.

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Podded intakes: Usually the friction losses in podded intakes are insignificant. Flow
separation may drastically affect the performance. The leading edge of the intake captures
a certain stream tube and then divides this stream into internal flow and external flow. The
design of the duct must be such that it preserves good aerodynamics of the airframe and an
internal flow with minimal loss.

Integrated and flush intakes: For integrated intakes, the internal flow problems are of
concern. The duct is usually longer and with bend(s). The aircraft fuselage ahead of the
intake feeds a boundary layer into the intake. Curvature of the intake also leads to
generation of secondary flows leading to flow distortion. Flush intakes are used in missiles
as these can be easily accommodated into missile airframes as well as for canister
launching.

3.3 Internal flow, stall in subsonic inlets and Boundary layer

Separation (subsonic inlet with typical stream line patterns)
Depending on the flight speed and the mass flow demanded by the engine, the inlet
may have to operate with a wide range of incident stream conditions. The Figure shows the
streamline patterns for two typical subsonic conditions and the corresponding
thermodynamic path of an “average” fluid particle.

During level cruise the streamline pattern may include some deceleration of the
entering fluid External to the inlet plane and hence low mass flow rate[Fig. a]. During low-
speed high-thrust operation (e.g., during takeoff and climb), the same engine will demand
more mass flow and the streamline pattern may resemble Fig. b, which illustrates external
acceleration of the stream near the inlet. .

For given air velocities external acceleration raises the inlet velocity and lowers the
inlet pressure, thereby increasing the internal pressure rise across the diffuser. If this
pressure increase is too large, the diffuser may stall because of boundary layer separation;
stalling usually reduces the stagnation pressure of the stream as a whole.

Conversely, external deceleration requires less internal pressure rise and hence a
less severe loading of the boundary layer.

Therefore the inlet area is often chosen so as to minimize external acceleration

during takeoff, with the result that external deceleration occurs during level-cruise

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operation. Under these conditions the “upstream capture area” Aa is less than the inlet area
A1, and some flow is “spilled over” the inlet, accelerating as it passes over the outer surface.

In the actual engine inlet, separation can take place in any of the three zones shown
in below Figure.

Separation of the external flow in zone 1 may result from local high velocities and
subsequent deceleration over the outer surface. Separation on the internal surfaces may take
place in either zone 2 or zone 3, depending on the geometry of the duct and the operating
conditions. Zone 3 may be the scene of quite large adverse pressure gradients since the f
low accelerates around the nose of the center body, then decelerates as the curvature
decreases.

3.4 Major features of external flow near a subsonic inlet

Figure shows a typical streamline pattern for large external deceleration. In flowing
over the lip of the inlet, the external flow is accelerated to high velocity, much as the flow
is accelerated over the suction surface of an airfoil. This high velocity and the
accompanying low pressure can adversely affect the boundary layer flow in two ways:

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For entirely subsonic flow, the low-pressure region must be followed by a region of
rising pressure in which the boundary layer may separate. Hence one might expect a
limiting low pressure Pmin or, equivalently, a maximum local velocity Umax, beyond which
boundary layer separation can be expected downstream.

For higher flight velocities (or higher local accelerations), partially supersonic flow
can occur. Local supersonic regions usually end abruptly in a shock, and the shock-wall
intersection may cause boundary layer separation. One might expect a limiting local Mach
number that should not be exceeded.

3.5 Relation for minimum area ratio (Amax/Ai) in terms of

external deceleration (Ui/Ua)

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The main point here is that the larger the external deceleration (i.e., the smaller the
value of Ui/Ua), the larger must be the size of the nacelle if one is to prevent excessive
drag. Even in the absence of separation, the larger the nacelle, the larger the aerodynamic
drag on it. But if the external deceleration is modest (e.g., U/ISa > 0.8), its effect on
minimum nacelle size is quite small.

It shows that the performance of an inlet depends on the pressure gradient on both
internal and external surfaces. The external pressure rise is fixed by the external
compression and the ratio, Amax/Ai of maximum area to inlet area. The internal pressure
rise depends on the reduction of velocity between entry to the inlet diffuser and entry to the
compressor (or burner, for a ramjet). Nacelle size required for low drag can be quite
strongly dependent on the degree of external deceleration.

3.6 Diffuser
The flow within the inlet is required to undergo diffusion in a divergent duct. This
reduction in flow velocity creates an increase in static pressure that interacts with the
boundary layer. If the pressure rise due to diffusion occurs more rapidly than turbulent
mixing can reenergize the boundary layer, the boundary layer will assume the
configurations shown in Fig.

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The rate of area increase in a diffuser has a direct effect on the behavior of flow in
the diffuser, as shown in Fig.

If the rate of area increase is greater than that needed to keep the boundary layer
energized and attached, the flow may be characterized by unsteady zones of stall. The
turbulent mixing is no longer able to overcome the pressure forces at all points in the flow,
and local separation occurs at some points. The total pressure decreases markedly due to
the irreversible mixing of a fairly large portion of low-velocity fluid with the main flow. If
the diffuser walls diverge rapidly, the flow will separate completely and behave much as a
jet, as shown in Fig. d. The rate of area increase without stall for a diffuser depends on the
characteristics of the flow at the entrance and on the length of the divergent section

Use of vortex generators as a mechanical mixing device to supplement the turbulent

mixing:

In the presence of an adverse pressure gradient (static pressure increasing in the

direction of flow), boundary layers tend to separate when the boundary layer is not
reenergized rapidly enough by turbulent mixing. Taylor proposed the use of vortex

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generators as a mechanical mixing device to supplement the turbulent mixing. If vortices

are generated by vortex generators in pairs, regions of inflow and outflow exist. These carry
high energy air into the boundary layer and low-energy air out. Figure shows how vortex
generators reenergize a boundary layer.

By using vortex generators together with a short, wide-angle diffuser, it may be

possible to have a lower total pressure loss than with a long diffuser without vortex
generators. Here, the reduced skin friction losses associated with flow separation are traded
against vortex losses. The use of shorter diffusers may reduce weight and facilitate engine
installation.

3.7 Subsonic diffuser Performance and its Efficiency

Isentropic efficiency: we can define the isentropic efficiency of a diffuser in this form:

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3.8 Shocks

 Within the distance of a mean free path, the flow passes from a supersonic to a
subsonic state, the velocity decreases suddenly and the pressure rises sharply.
 A shock is said to have occurred if
there is an abrupt reduction of velocity
in the downstream in course of a
supersonic flow in a passage or around
a body.
 Normal shocks are substantially
perpendicular to the flow and oblique
shocks are inclined at any angle.

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3.9 The operation of subsonic inlet under various flow speed

Most subsonic aircraft have their engines placed in nacelles; thus, in this section we
do not deal with the inlet alone but include the nacelle at subsonic Mach numbers. The
cross section of a typical subsonic inlet and its geometric parameters are shown in Fig. 10.1
in section 3.2. The inlet area A1 is based on the flow cross section at the inlet highlight.
Because the subsonic inlet can draw in airflow whose free stream area A0 is larger than the
inlet area A1, variable inlet geometry is not required (except sometimes blow-in doors or
auxiliary inlets are used to reduce installation drag during takeoff). The material in this
section on subsonic inlets is based on a fixed-geometry inlet.

The operating conditions of an inlet depend on the flight velocity and mass flow
demanded by the engine. Figure 10.2 shows the streamline pattern for three typical subsonic
conditions. Figure 10.2a shows acceleration of the fluid external to the inlet that will occur
when the inlet operates at a velocity lower than the design value or at a mass flow higher
than the design value.

Figure 10.2c shows deceleration of the fluid external to the inlet that will occur at a
velocity higher than design or a mass flow lower than design.

3.10 The major design requirement of an aircraft inlet

A list of the major design variables for the inlet and nacelle includes the following:

 Inlet total pressure ratio and drag at cruise

 Engine location on wing or fuselage (avoidance of foreign-object damage, inlet
flow upwash and downwash, exhaust gas reingestion, ground clearance)
 Aircraft attitude envelope (angle of attack, yaw angle, cross-wind takeoff)

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 Inlet total pressure ratio and distortion levels required for engine operation
 Engine-out wind milling airflow and drag (nacelle and engine)
 Integration of diffuser and fan flow path contour
 Integration of external nacelle contour with thrust reverser and accessories
 Flow field interaction between nacelle, pylon, and wing
 Noise suppression requirements

3.11 Supersonic Inlets

The supersonic inlet is required to provide the proper quantity and uniformity of air
to the engine over a wider range of flight conditions than the subsonic inlet is. In addition,
the nature of supersonic flow makes this inlet more difficult to design and integrate into the
airframe. In supersonic flight, the flow is decelerated by shock waves that can produce a
total pressure loss much greater than, and in addition to, the boundary-layer losses.

Working Principle of Supersonic Inlets:

A supersonic inlet is made up of two distinct parts. First the flow is compressed
supersonically from the velocity of the flight vehicle or, in other words, the free stream
Mach number. This is done by reducing the flow area as the flow proceeds downstream. In
this region the flow velocity is reduced through a series of compression waves and/or
oblique shocks. Flow velocity is reduced to a minimum speed at the duct minimum area,
called the throat of the inlet, where the flow approaches sonic velocity or a Mach number
of one. At this point the flow Mach number will be reduced from supersonic, above one, to
subsonic, below one, through a normal shock. This begins the second part of the inlet, the
subsonic diffuser. In this region the velocity is reduced as the flow area is increased. The
result of this process is conditioned air, smooth, subsonic air at high pressure, which is then
delivered to the engine.

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Supersonic Inlet Types:

Internal compression inlet: The internal compression inlet shown in Figure achieves
compression through a series of internal oblique shock waves followed by a terminal
normal shock positioned downstream of the throat (its stable location). This type of inlet
requires variable throat area to allow the inlet to swallow the normal shock (during starting).
Fast reaction bypass doors are also required downstream of the throat to permit proper
positioning of the normal shock under varying flight and engine conditions.

External compression inlet: The compression of the external compression inlet is

achieved through either one or a series of oblique shocks followed by a normal shock, or
simply through one normal shock.

Mixed compression inlet: At flight Mach numbers above 2.5, the mixed compression inlet
is used to obtain an acceptable total pressure ratio (by utilizing the required number of
oblique shocks) while obtaining acceptable cowl drag. The mixed compression inlet is more
complex, heavier, and costlier than the external compression inlet. The typical mixed
compression inlet achieves compression through the external oblique shocks, the internal
reflected oblique shocks, and the terminal normal shock. The ideal location of the normal
shock is just downstream of the inlet throat, to minimize total pressure loss while
maintaining a stable operating location of this shock. Similar to the internal compression
inlet, the mixed compression inlet requires both fast-reacting bypass doors (to maintain the
normal shock in a stable location) and variable throat area.

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The supersonic inlet must have the following characteristics:

 Provide adequate subsonic performance
 Good pressure distribution at the compressor inlet
 High pressure recovery ratios, and
 Must be able to operate efficiency at all ambient pressures and temperatures during
takeoff, subsonic flight, as well as its supersonic design condition.

3.12 Starting of an intake (Successive steps in the acceleration

and over speeding of a one-dimensional supersonic inlet)

Condition (a) illustrates low subsonic speed operation, for which the inlet is not
choked. In Condition (b), though the flight velocity is still subsonic, the flow is assumed
to be accelerated to sonic velocity at the minimum area At and the inlet mass flow rate is
limited by the choking condition at At. Once the shock is established, the flow entering the
inlet is no longer isentropic. Hence when the design Mach number of the aircraft is first
reached, as at condition (d), the “reversed isentropic nozzle” mass flow cannot pass
through the throat area At. At the Design Mach number, the inlet is capable of ingesting the
entire incident mass flow without spillage. The shock position will be just on the lip of the
inlet, as in condition (e), and a slight increment in speed, as to condition (e’), will cause
the shock to enter the convergence. Since a shock cannot attain a stable position within the
convergence it will move quickly downstream to come to rest within the divergence, at a
position determined by downstream conditions. Having thus attained isentropic flow in the

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inlet, the Mach number may be reduced from M0 to MD, as at condition (f). At exactly the
design speed, the throat Mach number would be just unity and isentropic deceleration from
supersonic to sub sonic flow would exist. Even for this simplified model, however, this
condition.

3.13 The Starting Problem / Shock swallowing by area variation

Internal supersonic deceleration in a converging passage is not easy to establish. In
fact design conditions cannot be achieved without momentarily over speeding the inlet air
or varying the diffuser geometry. This difficulty is due to shocks that arise during the
deceleration process, while we examine the starting behavior of a converging-diverging
diffuser.

An inlet having Ai/At, greater than 1 ( Ai>At ) will always require spillage upon
reaching supersonic flight velocities, since Aa/At, will always pass through a minimum of
1 just as sonic flight velocity is attained. It is necessary to perform some operation other
than simply accelerating to the design speed in order to “swallow” the starting shock and
establish isentropic flow. Over speeding is one such operation, but there are others.

If over speeding is not it might be possible to swallow the shock by a variation of

geometry at constant flight speed. The principle is easily seen in terms of simple one-
dimensional analysis.

Suppose the inlet is accelerated to the design Mach number MD with the starting
shock present, as at point (d) in the above figure, if the actual area ratio can be decreased
from Ai/At to the value that can ingest the entire inlet flow behind the shock, the shock will
be swallowed to take up a position downstream of the throat. This variation would normally
involve a momentary increase of throat area from At to a new value that we will call At*

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Having thus achieved isentropic flow within the convergence, the throat Mach number M,
is greater than 1, and a relatively strong shock occurs farther downstream. Completely
isentropic flow can then be achieved by returning the area ratio to its original value, while
the operating conditions move from (d) to (f).

If the shock should undergo a momentary motion into the converging section of the
diffuser the shock Mach number will be lowered and the down-stream stagnation pressure
increased. This will increase the mass flow through the diffuser throat, lowering the density
and the static pressure downstream of the shock. To accommodate this, the shock must
move further down the converging section. From these arguments there is no location in
the converging section at which the shock will be stable so the shock will move through
the throat. If no adjustments are made in conditions downstream of the diffuser, the shock
will move to a location in the diverging section of the diffuser at an area corresponding to
the test section area, where it will then be stably positioned. This process is known as
swallowing the shock. Once it occurs the shock can be positioned by changing the operating
conditions of the exhauster.

In practice the shock must be maintained somewhat downstream of the diffuser

throat because the shock is unstable in the converging part of the diffuser. If the shock
moves upstream slightly, the shock Mach number increases, increasing the stagnation
pressure loss and decreasing the mass flow capacity of the diffuser throat.

3.14 Modes of operation of an external compression intake

External compression intakes complete the supersonic diffusion outside the covered
portion of the intake. These intakes usually have one or more oblique shocks followed by
a normal shock.

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Depending upon the location of these shocks, the intake may operate in subcritical,
critical or supercritical modes.

Subcritical:

 At Mach numbers below the design value.

 The normal shock occurs ahead of the cowl lip.
 High external drag due to spillage.

Supercritical:

 Occurs at same mass flow as critical mode

 Higher losses as the normal shock occurs in a region of higher Mach number.

Critical:

 Design point operation.

 The normal shock is located exactly at the cowl lip.

Total pressure losses are highest in the case of a diffuser with a single normal shock.
A number of oblique shocks followed by a normal shock would lead to lower total pressure
losses. Oblique shocks are generated using steps in the Centre body. A diffuser with a
smoothly contoured center body may have infinite oblique shocks: Isentropic external
diffuser.

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3.15 External Deceleration

External deceleration must occur upstream of the inlet plane in order to reduce the
Mach number of the normal shock to a suitable value. The simplest and most practical
external deceleration mechanism is an oblique shock or, in some cases, a series of oblique
shocks. Though such shocks are not isentropic, the stagnation pressure loss in reaching
subsonic velocity through a series of oblique shocks followed by a normal shock is less
than that accompanying a single normal shock at the flight velocity. The losses decrease as
the number of oblique shocks increases, especially at high flight Mach numbers.

In the external compression process, shocks and boundary layers may inter act
strongly, so that it is highly desirable to locate the oblique shocks at points where boundary
layers are absent The shape, size, and the number of the oblique planes influences the
normal shocks.

Considering the typical single oblique shock system and the double oblique shock
systems. The double shock systems theoretically give better performance. . If the
deceleration had been achieved by a single normal shock, the overall stagnation pressure
ratio would have been only 0.33. But in case of double oblique shock systems the overall
stagnation pressure ratio would have been only 0.875. The following figure provides a ideal
geometry to achieve low losses, while at the same time avoiding the starting problems of
an internal convergence.

However, several practical difficulties would be encountered in the operation of

such an inlet. This geometry, like that of the isentropic internal flow diffuser, would
function properly at only one Mach number, and performance would be very sensitive to
angle of attack. Furthermore, the boundary layer along the curved surface, unlike that along
plane or conical surfaces, would be subject to a high adverse pressure gradient, which might
cause separation. Finally, for high flight Mach numbers it would be necessary that the flow
turn through large angles before reaching sonic velocity.

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3.16 The Flow Stability Problem

Consider a fixed geometry inlet designed for shock-free operation at Compressible
internal flow. At supersonic Mach numbers below the design value the inlet cannot pass
the flow in the upstream stream tube and the excess must be diverted around the inlet. A
shock therefore stands in front of the inlet, as in Figure (a). This mode is known as
subcritical mode.

As the Mach number is increased towards MD, the corrected flow per unit area of
the incoming stream decreases, reducing the flow that must be spilled round the inlet, and
allowing the shock to move closer to the inlet. At the design Mach number, the shock will
sit on the inlet lip. In this position it is unstable, because a small perturbation that moves it
into the inlet causes a decrease in shock Mach number, this mode is known as Critical mode

With achieving shock swallowing in the diffuser, the consequence of the transient
is shock motion through the throat to a downstream position determined by the variable
nozzle. To achieve the best recovery, the nozzle is adjusted to position the shock at the
throat. The mode is known as supercritical Mode.

3.17 Theory of flow in isentropic nozzles

The task of the exhaust nozzle is to convert gas potential energy into kinetic energy
(i.e. gas velocity) necessary for the generation of thrust. This is accomplished solely by the
geometrical shape of the nozzle, which is basically a tube of varying cross-section. Not
every nozzle type performs in the same manner. Depending on the type of aircraft, and
design flight speed, different types of nozzles are employed.

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To illustrate the nature of the flow in the different regions of Nozzle we consider
the case of a nozzle designed for air (Ɣ = 1.4) and at exit Mach number M = 3 under
different back pressure.

 Pa/Pt, = I: The hack pressure is equal to the supply stagnation pressure and there is
no flow in the Nozzle.
 Pa/Pt = 0.987: The back pressure is low enough to have the flow accelerate and
choke the throat
 Pa/Pt = 0.70: Here the back pressure is low enough to ensure starting but not low
enough to permit supersonic flow throughout the nozzle. The supersonic flow must
“shock down.” that is. A normal shock must appear to bring down the Mach number
to an appropriate subsonic level so that a higher static pressure is produced behind
the shock. Further diffusion through the increasing area duct serves to bring the
pressure at the exit up to the appropriate level.
 Pa/Pt = 0.28: In this instance. the back pressure is low enough to ensure supersonic
flow throughout the nozzle but still higher than the pressure at the end of the nozzle.
 0.28 :> Pa/Pt > 027: In this range of hack pressure the flow is continuously
supersonic throughout the nozzle and the adjustment of the exhaust pressure takes

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place through shock waves occurring outside the nozzle proper. Because the back
pressure is higher than the exit pressure. the nozzle is said to be “over expanded.”
 Pa/Pt = 0.027: Here the exit pressure is exactly equal to the back pressure, the flow
is continuously supersonic throughout. and the exhaust stream is perfectly adapted
to the surrounding ambient pressure. This case is called the perfectly expanded
nozzle.
 Pa/Pt< 0.027: For all back pressures below the perfectly expanded value the flow
through the nozzle is supersonic and the adjustment to the low back pressure takes
place outside the nozzle. This case is called the under expanded’ nozzle.

3.18 Functions of the Nozzles

 Accelerate the flow to a high velocity with minimum total pressure loss
 Match exit and atmospheric pressure as closely as desired
 Permit afterburner operation without affecting main engine operation
 Allow for cooling of blades
 Mix core and bypass streams of turbofan if necessary
 Allow for thrust vectoring
 Suppress jet noise and infrared radiation
 Thrust vector control.

3.19 Classifications of exhaust nozzles

 Convergent or C-D types

 Axisymmetric or two-dimensional types
 Fixed geometry or variable geometry types

Convergent nozzle:

In a convergent nozzle that the cross-section of a duct decrease in the stream wise
direction if a subsonic fluid flow is to be accelerated. A convergent nozzle is fitted to all
airliners which fly at subsonic or transonic speeds. Thus it is either of the axisymmetric or

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annular geometry. All subsonic/ transonic turbojets and turboprop engines have one
axisymmetric convergent nozzle.

Convergent-Divergent Nozzles:

For higher exhaust velocities above Mach 1.5. Convergent-Divergent nozzle shape
is required. The geometric characteristic of this nozzle is a decreasing cross- sectional area
in its forward part (much like a convergent nozzle), followed by a cross-sectional increase
in its rearward portion (the divergent section).

In this nozzle, the subsonic flow is accelerated in the converging section up to the
minimum area or throat. It reaches a sonic speed exactly at the throat In the divergent
section, pressure is allowed to decrease below its critical value, with fluid velocity
continuing to accelerate to supersonic values.

Variable Geometry Nozzles:

Variable area nozzle, which is sometimes identified as adjustable nozzle, is

necessary for engines fitted with afterburners. Generally, as the nozzle is reduced in area,
the turbine inlet temperature increases and the exhaust velocity and thrust increase. Three
methods are available, namely:

 Central plug at nozzle outlet

 Ejector type nozzle
 IRIS nozzle

Central plug at nozzle outlet

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The plug nozzle is the exact analogue of the isentropic spike inlet. The improvement
in off - design performance results from the flow remaining attached to the spike at pressure
ratios below design, while the stream tube leaving the nozzle contracts to satisfy the
requirements for lower expansion ratio.

Variable geometry ejector nozzle with tailflaps

This type of nozzle is effective through a secondary airflow and spring-loaded

petals. At subsonic speeds, the airflow constricts the exhaust to a convergent shape. As the
aircraft speeds up, the two nozzles dilate, which allows the exhaust to form a C-D shape,
speeding the exhaust gases past Mach 1 Advantages of the ejector nozzle are relative
simplicity and reliability. Disadvantages are average performance (compared to the other
nozzle type) and relatively high drag due to the secondary airflow.

IRIS nozzle

Iris nozzle, which is used for higher performance nozzles. This type uses
overlapping, hydraulically adjustable “petals.” Although more complex than the ejector
nozzle, it has significantly higher performance and smoother airflow. It is employed
primarily on high performance fighters such as F-16. Some modern iris nozzles have the
ability to change the angle of the thrust.

3.20 Thrust Reversers

Based upon the types of engine, the conventional kind of reverse system is built into
the engine nacelle or at the end of the engine. The main function of the thrust reverser is to
redirect the airflow to generate the reverse engine thrust. Thrust reverse system is applied
immediately when aircraft lands on the run way. The thrust reverse force is generated by

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redirection the air flow through thrust system. In this case, the thrust reverser reaches its
highest value at high speed, but the wheel brakes are restricted by the high velocity. As the
airplane speed slow down, the thrust reverse force also decrease.

Types of Thrust Reverses:

 Clamshell door system is used for turbojet engine;

 Bucket target system is suit for low bypass ratio (BPR) engine,
 Cold stream reverser system is designed for high bypass ratio turbofan engine.

Clamshell door system: forward position, which means the exhaust air flow is not guided
by this reverser system. And the doors situated before the end of the engine compose the
convergent part of the convergent-divergent nozzle. When the pilot selects the reverse
thrust, the two doors actuated by pneumatic system rotate to the convergent area of the
nozzle and form a cone-shaped space closing the exit of the convergent duct. Meanwhile,
the hot gas is directed by the cascade vanes located outside of the engine. The air flow
passed through the cascade vanes generates the opposing thrust.

Bucket target system: The bucket door thrust reverser designed at the end of the nozzle
makes up of divergent part of the convergent-divergent nozzle during the flaying situation
The buck door thrust reverser is actuated by hydraulic system. It is also constructed by two
doors actuated by a pushrod system. In the reverse thrust position, these two doors turn to
the end of the engine to deflect air flow which comes from bypass and core engine.

Cold stream reverser system: Cold stream reverser system, is used for high bypass ratio
turbofan engine. In this case, only the bypass air flow accelerated by the fan is guided to
the forward of the aircraft because the main part of the propulsive force is created by the
bypass air flow. There are two types of cold stream reverser systems.
 cascade reverser,
 pivoting reverser.

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3.21 Thrust Vectors

Thrust vectoring is a technique whereby the orientation of the primary exhaust jet
from a propulsive unit is varied in order to provide useful aircraft control moments.

 Mechanical thrust vectoring is achieved by mechanically deflecting the exhaust

flow of an aircraft using some sort of physical object changes in nozzle geometry.
This is usually achieved using various nozzles or vanes.
 On the other hand, fluidic thrust vectoring systems use a secondary air jet to control
the direction of the primary jet. Fluidic control in exhaust nozzles includes throat
area, expansion ratio, and thrust vector angle.

Mechanical Thrust Vectoring Methods

 Flaps: Flaps deflect the engines flow in much the same way as wing flaps deflect
the external air flow see figure (15 a). This type of system introduces a thrust loss
of approximately 3-6% when vectored to 90 degrees. The vectoring flaps can also
be external to the nozzle as a part of the wing flap.
 Bucket: The bucket thrust vectoring mechanism is similar to the commonly used
clamshell thrust reverser see figure(15 b).The great advantage to this concept is that

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all the force is transmitted through the hinge line of the bucket meaning actuators
can be reasonably small. Another advantage of this system is that the turning surface
can be made very efficient. This method can be used to create 90 degree vectoring
with about 2-3% thrust loss.
 Axisymmetric: In this type of nozzle (figure 15 c) the tailpipe is broken along
slanted lines into three pieces as shown. The three pieces are connected with circular
rotating ring bearings so that the middle (shaded) piece can be rotated about its
longitudinal axis while the other parts remain un-rotated. This causes the middle
and end parts of the nozzle to vector thrust downward. This vectoring nozzle has a
3-5% thrust loss when vectoring at 90 degrees.
 Ventral: The ventral nozzle (figure 15 d ) is simply a hole in the bottom of the
tailpipe leading to a downward facing nozzle. The normal exhaust opening is
blocked by some sort of valve. These valves can be used easily on aircraft with
afterburners because they can be placed upstream of the afterburner. These ventral
nozzles an help solve the balance problem of VTOL aircraft. The ventral nozzle has
a thrust loss of 3-6% when vectored to 90 degrees.
 Elbow Nozzle: This type of nozzle is used on the AV-8 Harrier. The elbow nozzle
is simple and lightweight and doesn’t require much actuating force. A disadvantage
of this design is the fact that the flow is always being turned through a total of 180
degrees, even in forward flight. Because the flow is always being turned this nozzle
type suffers 6-8% thrust loss at all times. All the other types of vectoring nozzle
only impose a thrust loss during vertical flight.

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3.22 Losses in a Nozzle

 Thrust loss due to exhaust velocity vector angularity.

 Thrust loss due to the reduction in velocity magnitude caused by friction in the
boundary layers
 Thrust loss due to loss of mass flow between nozzle entry and exit from leakage
through the nozzle walls
 Thrust loss due to flow no uniformities.

3.23 Behavior of the Nozzles at different altitudes

When exit pressure, Pe, is greater than the ambient pressure, Pa, the expansion
process to the ambient pressure is incomplete. The nozzle is then said to be an under-
expanded nozzle. The opposite conditions prevail when Pe<Pa The exit pressure is lower
than the ambient pressure and the nozzle is said to be over expanded.

A rocket traverses different altitudes, and the ambient pressure decreases as the
rocket moves away from the surface of the Earth. If the area ratio of the nozzle is designed
for optimum conditions at a given altitude of operation, it will be operating in an 'under-
expanded' condition for altitudes higher than the design altitude (Pe=Pa) whereas it will
function as an 'over-expanded' nozzle for the lower altitudes (Pe<Pa).

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3.24 Engine backpressure control

The throat area of the nozzle is one of the main means available to control the thrust
and fuel consumption characteristics of an existing engine. In preliminary engine cycle
analysis, selection of specific values for the engine design parameters and the design mass
flow rate fixes the throat area of the nozzle. This assumption of constant areas establishes
the off-design operating characteristics of the engine and the resulting operating lines for
each major component. Changing the nozzle throat area from its original design value will
change the engine design and the operating characteristics of the engine at both on- and
off-design conditions.

At reduced engine corrected mass flow rates, the operating line of a multistage
compressor moves closer to the stall or surge line. Steady-state operation close to the stall
or surge line is not desirable because transient operation may cause the compressor to stall
or surge. The operating line can be moved away from the stall or surge line by increasing
the exhaust nozzle throat area. This increase in nozzle throat area reduces the engine
backpressure and increases the corrected mass flow rate through the compressor.

Large changes in the exhaust nozzle throat area are required for afterburning
engines to compensate for the large changes in total temperature leaving the afterburner.
The variable-area nozzle required for an afterburning engine can also be used for back
pressure control at its no afterburning settings.

One advantage of the variable-area exhaust nozzle is that it improves the starting of
the engine. Opening the nozzle throat area to its maximum value reduces the backpressure
on the turbine and increases its expansion ratio. Thus the necessary turbine power for
starting operation may be produced at a lower turbine inlet temperature. Also, because the
backpressure on the gas generator is reduced, the compressor may be started at a lower
engine speed, which reduces the required size of the engine starter.

3.25 Nozzle choking

Fluid flow through a restricted area whose rate reaches a maximum when the fluid
velocity reaches the sonic velocity at some point along the flow path.

The phenomenon of choking exists only in compressible flow and can occur in
several flow situations.

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Through Varying-Area Duct:

Choked flow can occur through a convergent flow area or nozzle attached to a huge
reservoir. Flow exits the reservoir through the nozzle if the back pressure is less than the
reservoir pressure. When the back pressure is decreased slightly below the reservoir
pressure, a signal from beyond the nozzle exit is transmitted at sonic speed to the reservoir.

The reservoir responds by sending fluid through the nozzle. Further, the maximum
velocity of the fluid exists at the nozzle throat where the area is smallest. When the back
pressure is further decreased, fluid exits the reservoir more rapidly. Eventually, however,
the velocity at the throat reaches the sonic velocity.

Then the fluid velocity at the throat is sonic, and the velocity of the signal is also
sonic. Therefore, further decreases in back pressure are not sensed by the reservoir, and
correspondingly will not induce any greater flow to exit the reservoir. The nozzle is thus
said to be choked, and the mass flow of fluid is a maximum.

With Friction:

Choked flow can also occur through a long constant-area duct attached to a
reservoir. As fluid flows through the duct, friction between the fluid and the duct wall
reduces the pressure acting on the fluid.

As pressure is reduced, other fluid properties are affected, such as sonic velocity,
density, and temperature. The maximum Mach number occurs at the nozzle exit, and
choked flow results when this Mach number reaches 1.

With Heat Addition:

A reservoir with a constant-area duct attached may also be considered in the case
that the flow through the duct is assumed to be frictionless but heat is added to the system
along the duct wall.

3.26 Over - Under Expanded Nozzle

Expansion is the process that converts the thermal energy of combustion into kinetic
energy to move an object forward. In other words, the hot gases created by burning fuel
inside a jet or rocket engine are exhausted through a nozzle to produce thrust. It is the shape
of this nozzle that is key to the expansion process. As that high temperature flow is

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exhausted, it expands against the walls of the nozzle to create a force that pushes the vehicle
forward.

The behavior of this expansion process is largely dictated by pressure--both the

pressure of the exhaust itself as well as the pressure of the external environment into which
it exhausts. Of greatest concern is to design the shape and length of the nozzle so that it
converts as much of that thermal energy into thrust as possible. In an ideal nozzle that
optimizes performance, the exit pressure (Pexit) will be equal to the ambient pressure of
the external atmosphere (P¥). The flow in this case is perfectly expanded inside the nozzle
and maximizes thrust.

Unfortunately, this situation can only occur at one specific atmospheric pressure on
a fixed-geometry nozzle. As we have seen previously, pressure decreases as altitude
increases. Nozzle designers typically must select a shape that is optimum at only one
altitude but minimizes the losses that occur at lower or higher altitudes. These losses result
from the fact that the atmospheric pressure will either be higher than the exit pressure of
the exhaust gases, i.e. at low altitudes, or lower than the exit pressure, i.e. at high altitudes.

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This first case, where the external pressure is higher than the exit pressure, is
referred to as over expanded. When an over expanded flow passes through a nozzle, the
higher atmospheric pressure causes it to squeeze back inward and separate from the walls
of the nozzle. This "pinching" of the flow reduces efficiency because that extra nozzle wall
is wasted and does nothing to generate any additional thrust. Ideally, the nozzle should have
been shorter to eliminate this unnecessary wall.

The opposite situation, in which the atmospheric pressure is lower than the exit
pressure, is called under expanded. In this case, the flow continues to expand outward after
it has exited the nozzle. This behavior also reduces efficiency because that external
expansion does not exert any force on the nozzle wall. This energy can therefore not be
converted into thrust and is lost. Ideally, the nozzle should have been longer to capture this
expansion and convert it into thrust.

3.27 Nozzle throat condition

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3.28 Nozzle performance coefficients:

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