Aerothermal Enhancement of Hypersonic Waveriders Using Sonic Jets and Surface Shaping

Waveriders achieve high aerodynamic efficiency by sustaining an attached shock along the lower surface. However, the proximity of the shock and sonic surface ([Formula: see text]) to the body results in significant thermal loading due to entropy confinement. This study investigated an integrated passive–active aerothermal control strategy for a hypersonic waverider at Mach 6 under high-altitude conditions using design-oriented Reynolds-averaged Navier–Stokes simulations. This approach combines blunt-nose shaping, sonic jet injection, and geometric surface modification to influence shock–entropy coupling and surface pressure distribution. A gas mixture with a high heat-capacity ratio (80% helium and 20% argon) was injected sonically through the nose to modify local thermoacoustic properties associated with Sanal flow choking, displace the sonic surface outward, and reduce entropy transport toward the wall. Surface shaping induced streamtube divergence, which led to controlled Prandtl–Meyer expansion and improved aerodynamic load distribution. Results show that increasing sonic-surface standoff distance is associated with increased shock standoff distance and reduced aerodynamic heating potential while maintaining or improving lift-to-drag ratio. The analysis includes quantitative evaluation of sonic-surface standoff distance and nondimensional Vinay-layer thickness. Although configuration-specific, the results establish a design-oriented framework linking thermoacoustic effects and surface shaping for coupled aerodynamic and thermal performance improvement.