SUNScholar - Browsing by Author "Marais, A. L."

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Computational fluid dynamic modelling of a stealthy air inlet
(Science Africa for the South African Institution of Mechanical Engineers, 2004) Thiart, G. D.; Marais, A. L.
The aerodynamic performance of a stealthy air inlet design was evaluated using commercial computational fluid dynamics software. The simulations showed that the aerodynamic performance of this type of inlet is adversely affected by the constraints of a stealthy design. Flow separation ahead of the inlet capture plane was identified as one of the major problem areas. It is demonstrated that by modifying the base configuration to alleviate the flow separation problem, it is possible to improve the aerodynamic performance of the inlet. The two designs are compared quantitatively in terms of the kinetic energy correction factor at the engine face, which is a measure of the uniformity of the flow into the engine; significant reduction of this factor is seen to be possible, albeit only in theory.