A Three-Dimensional Hypersonic Viscous Interaction

The displacement-interacting boundary layer in the symmetry plane region of a flat hypersonic delta wing is studied through a method of control volume balances for mass, momentum, and energy. Free-parameter-bearing expressions for the velocity components, density, and boundary-layer thickness are postulated and substituted into the integral balance equations. The resulting algebraic system for the free parameters is a very complicated one, but solutions are readily extracted by means of iterative machine computations. Answers for the assumed set of flight conditions indicate that the inboard drift of boundary-layer fluid from both sides gives rise to a center-plane region which is three-dimensional in character and which exhibits increased boundary-layer thickness, elevated pressures, and reduced skin-friction and heat-transfer coefficients.