Calculation of shock-separated turbulent boundary layers

Numerical solutions of the complete, time-averaged conservation equations using several eddy-viscosity models for the Reynolds shear stress to close the equations are compared with experimental measurements in a compressible, turbulent separated flow. An efficient time-splitting, explicit difference scheme was used to solve the two-dimensional conservation equations. The experiment used for comparison was a turbulent boundary layer that was separated by an incident shock wave in a Mach 2.93 flow with a unit Reynolds number of 5.7 x 10 to the seventh power m. Comparisons of predicted and experimental values of surface pressure, shear stress along the wall, and velocity profiles are shown. One of the tested eddy-viscosity models which allows the shear stress to be out of equilibrium with the mean flow produces substantially better agreement with the experimental measurements than the simpler models. A tool is thereby provided for inferring additional information about the flow, such as static pressures in the stream, which might not be directly obtainable from experiments.