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Although underwater submerged launching has been rigorously investigated for decades, there remains a dearth of comprehensive understanding regarding the underwater interior ballistic characteristics for varying barrel lengths. To address this knowledge gap, the present study aims to explore, via numerical simulations, the initial velocity of interior ballistics, projectile drag, and the mechanism of initial flow field formation at the muzzle under various barrel lengths, thereby considering the influence of differing barrel lengths. The five distinct lengths of barrels are expressed as dimensionless ratios of the weight of water column in front of the projectile to the weight of the projectile in order to be more general. Five different ratios of water-to-projectile weight are investigated: 1.0, 1.2, 1.5, 1.8, and 2.0, all possessing identical diameters and evaluated under equivalent launch conditions. Different ratios significantly impact muzzle velocity, with shorter barrels yielding higher muzzle velocities, while ensuring complete propellant combustion. Further investigations indicate that variations in drag constitute the fundamental cause of initial velocity changes. Furthermore, it is observed that barrels of different lengths exhibit identical characteristics at the point of maximum drag. The initial flow field at the muzzle exhibits considerable variations in terms of length, profile dimensions, and intensity. The findings of this study offer valuable insights into exploring the mechanism of submerged launching and will be utilized to investigate the optimal barrel length. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

An excellent flame suppression effect can be achieved using a novel porous brake. To understand the flame-suppression mechanism of a porous brake, combustion using a muzzle brake is investigated. A set of internal ballistic equations is employed to provide accurate velocity and pressure for a projectile moving to the muzzle. The multispecies transport Navier–Stokes equations, which incorporate complex chemical reactions, are solved by coupling a real gas equation of state, the Soave–Redlich–Kwong model, and a detailed chemical reaction kinetic model. The development of muzzle flow with a chemical reaction is simulated, and the interaction between chemical reactions with the muzzle flow field is numerically calculated to explain the muzzle combustion mechanism with a porous brake. The underlying mechanism is analyzed in detail. The results demonstrate that, first, the gas is fully expanded in the brake, leading to a reduction in pressure and temperature at the muzzle, thereby reducing the initial flame. In addition, the shock wave weakens due to the expansion and separation process, leading to a reduction in the mixture of gas and air, ultimately resulting in a reduction in the intermediate and secondary flames. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The Noble–Abel (NA) equation of state (EOS) is widely used in the interior ballistics of guns as well as rocket propulsion computations. Its simplicity and accuracy are key points for intensive computations with hyperbolic two-phase flow models considered in interior ballistics codes. An alternative formulation is examined in the present contribution through a first-order virial (VO1) equation of state. Appropriate methods for the determination of related parameters, such as specific gas constant, co-volume, and condensed material energy, for both formulations (NA and VO1) are presented. For this, a combination of closed bomb vessel experiments and thermochemical code computations is needed. An extended VO1 EOS with temperature-dependent specific heat is examined. Then, its extension to multiple reactive materials is addressed. Examples are examined for each formulation (NA and VO1) and comparisons are done with the Becker–Kistiakowsky–Wilson (BKW) EOS as reference. Several conclusions have emerged. First, a consideration of the specific heat temperature dependance in computations of the interior ballistics of guns appeared insignificant. Second, VO1 appeared to be more accurate than NA, particularly when gas density is beyond the range used for EOS parameter determination. Last, regarding mixtures of condensed reactive materials, producing burnt gas mixtures, NA again appeared to be less accurate than VO1. However, its formulation is explicit, while VO1 requires numerical solving of a non-linear equation, with consequences on computational cost. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This work explores the use of surface-mesh flow solvers to model solid rocket internal ballistics with arbitrary grain geometry. Specifically, a surface-vorticity approach, originally intended for external flow applications, is adapted for internal flow analysis using boundary conditions that are suitable for solid rocket motors. In this study, an enhanced panel code is shown to be capable of resolving internal rocket flowfields with a striking level of fidelity and with such a degree of computational efficiency to make it valuable in the conceptual and preliminary design of rocket motors. In this process, the vortex paneling approach embodied within FlightStream® is refined using boundary conditions appropriate for solid rocket rotational flows. The simulation results are then compared to existing analytical solutions for cylindrical and planar chamber configurations exhibiting small taper angles and uniform headwall injection. For a more realistic validation case, the space shuttle's reusable solid rocket motor (RSRM) is examined. Guided by the analytical models, simple rotational and compressibility corrections are incorporated into the solver, and the results are subsequently compared to two other computational models and experimental measurements gathered from qualification motors. For the basic configurations, our results are shown to agree well with theoretical predictions. For the RSRM case, the corrected solution agrees well with the validation data in the first half of the motor; however, it becomes less robust in the aft region unless a recirculation zone boundary patch is applied; the latter approximates the added vorticity introduced by intersegmental gaps and the submerged nozzle effects. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]