An Experimental Study on the Characteristics of Rectangular Supersonic Jet on a Flat Plate

The present study focuses on the characteristics of a supersonic jet flowing from a rectangular nozzle exit on a flat plate. Flow visualization techniques using schlieren and kerosene-lampblack tracing are utilized to investigate shock reflection structures and boundary-layer separations over a flat plate. Wall pressure measurements are also carried out to quantitatively analyze the flow structures. All observations are repeated for multiple jet flow boundary conditions by varying the flap length and nozzle pressure ratio. The experimental results show that the jet flow structures over the flat plate are highly three-dimensional with strong bleeding flows from the plate sides, and that they are sensitive to plate length and nozzle pressure ratio. A multicomponent force measurement device is also utilized to observe the characteristics of the jet flow thrust vectoring over the plate. The maximum thrust deflection angle of the jet is about 8 degrees, demonstrating the applicability of thrust vector control via a flat plate installed at the nozzle exit.