Drag reduction and lift enhancement mechanism induced by a novel combinational spike and high-pressure capturing wing concept in hypersonic flows

The blunt cone vehicle experiences significant shockwave-induced drag during hypersonic flight, compromising its aerodynamic performance. To enhance the lift-to-drag ratio of hypersonic blunt cone vehicles, this study proposes an innovative combinational spike and high-pressure capture wing (S-HCW) configuration. The drag reduction and lift enhancement mechanism of the S-HCW configuration was analyzed. The spike significantly reduces drag by pushing the bow shock away from the cone's leading edge. The high-pressure capture wing (HCW) captures high-pressure regions behind both the bow shock and reattachment shock, greatly enhancing the lift. To achieve increased lift, the HCW must capture as much of the high-pressure region following the reattachment shock as possible. Additionally, the effects of the spike length and aerodisk diameter on the flow field and aerodynamic characteristics of the on-design S-HCW configuration were discussed. The lift-to-drag ratio first rises and then falls as the spike length increases, while it steadily declines with a larger aerodisk diameter. At a 0° angle of attack, compared to the blunt cone configuration, the optimal S-HCW reduces drag by approximately 53%, while the lift coefficient and lift-to-drag ratio increase significantly. Furthermore, the aerodynamic characteristics of the three-dimensional S-HCW configuration were also examined. Although its lift-to-drag ratio is slightly lower than that of the two-dimensional configuration, it remains relatively high, further validating the configuration's feasibility. The proposed S-HCW configuration enhances the lift-to-drag ratio of hypersonic blunt cone vehicles, demonstrating significant application potential in the aerodynamic design of hypersonic vehicles.