Implicit and explicit computations of flows past cavities with and without yaw

Implicit and explicit computations are presented to study the supersonic, turbulent flows past three-dimensional, rectangular cavities at 0 and 45 deg yaw angle. The Reynolds-averaged, unsteady, compressible, complete Navier-Stokes equations are solved time-accurately, including the Reynolds stresses. The number of major vortices inside and the separation characteristics on the cavity floor are different for cavities with length-to-depth ratios of 3.0 and 6.7. Due to the oscillations of the shear layer, which randomly exposes the cavity flow to the external flow, vortices are shed into the mainstream. When the upstream flow approaches a cavity at yaw, the width-to-depth ratio also becomes an important parameter. The dominant rotational planes of the major vortices incline at an angle to the vertical plane due to yaw. The execution of the implicit scheme is about three times faster, but it requires about four times more computer memory.