Computational Modeling of Jet Vanes for Thrust Vector Control

In rocketry, thrust vector control (TVC) guides a vehicle's thrust to perform controlled maneuvers allowing for active stabilization. Jet vane TVC (JVTVC), in particular, performs TVC and active stabilization through the actuation of diamond-shaped control surfaces placed in the exhaust. The Guidance, Navigation, and Control (GNC) team at Georgia Institute of Technology's Ramblin' Rocket Club aims to develop a JVTVC system for a solid-propellant rocket. To characterize jet vane performance, computational fluid dynamics (CFD) analyses were conducted for deflection angles ranging from 0 to 30 degrees and chamber pressures ranging from 1 to 4 MPa. Ansys Fluent was also used to generate unstructured meshes of the computational geometry and perform simulations with the density-based solver and the k-ω SST turbulence model. Furthermore, conjugate heat transfer analysis of the jet vane and vane backing was conducted using a fluid-solid coupled mesh. Finally, this CFD study produced regression models as functions of the deflection angle and chamber pressure for the vane side force, pitching moment, and drag. The methodology of this study can inform medium-fidelity three-dimensional CFD analysis of jet vanes in supersonic flow for actively stabilized rocketry design at the collegiate level.