Side Force Determination in the Rocket Motor Thrust Vector Control System

 

Nikola Gligorijević

Saša Živković

Sredoje Subotić

Stevan Kozomara

Momčilo Nikolić

Slobodan Čitaković

 

The side force of a thrust vector controlled (TVC) rocket depends on the rocket motor thrust and the efficiency of the applied type of a TVC system. The value of the efficiency is important in the calculating procedure of the rocket maneuvering capability. The special static test equipment is necessary to obtain the accurate values of the side force. During the research of the rocket motor and the Bumbar TVC system with jet tabs, the relation is made between the accurate but expensive test results from the complex six-component test stand (6-K), and the results obtained from the simple one-component test stand (1-K). Afterwards, on the basis of this relation, using the computational fluid dynamics program (CFD), a physical model is developed to get exactly the same relations between the characteristic parameters of the TVC system as in the tests. The successful numerical model is adjusted to predict the characteristics of some other TVC system, only on the basis of the simple test results.

The TVC system with jet deflectors is applied on the Maljutka antitank rocket. The CFD model is used to evaluate the lateral force on the basis of two simple and inexpensive types of tests on the 1-K test stand: the first, with the TVC switched ON with constant frequency during the motor work, and the second, without involving the TVC.

Key words: rocket motor, thrust, thrust vector control, static test, side force, computational fluid dynamics method.