Analysis of characteristics of guided missile’s

aerodynamics using CFD (ANSYS R15.0)

software
Cite as: AIP Conference Proceedings 2226, 020002 (2020); https://doi.org/10.1063/5.0002284
Published Online: 22 April 2020

A. R. Pandie, and P. L. Prabantara

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AIP Conference Proceedings 2226, 020002 (2020); https://doi.org/10.1063/5.0002284 2226, 020002

© 2020 Author(s).
 Analysis of Characteristics of Guided Missile’s
Aerodynamics using CFD (ANSYS R15.0) Software
A. R. Pandie1,2,a) and P. L. Prabantara2,3,b)
1
Master student at Department of Aircraft Engineering, Samara National Research University named after S.P.
Korolev, Russia
2
Alumnus from Department of Aircraft Engineering, Sekolah Tinggi Teknologi Adisutjipto Yogyakarta, Indonesia
3
Lion Air Group, Soekarno-Hatta International Airport, Cengkareng, Indonesia

a)
Corresponding author: andrey.renaldy@gmail.com
b)
pandularas19@gmail.com

Abstract. The research that will be discussed in this research is the making of fluid flow simulations that pass the surface
of the missile using CFD software. This research was conducted to determine the aerodynamic characteristics of the
missiles described in the form of simulations. In this research, observations were made on the form of SCUD missiles.
Because there is no specific geometry and image of this SCUD missile, the researchers tried to make observations,
depictions and modifications to their geometry in the CATIA program. Process of research consist of initial study phase,
and CFD simulation phase. The output and parameters of this research that are to be seen are pressure contours, velocity
contours, lift and drag, which in each parameter is carried out by angle of attack α of 0˚, 5˚, 10˚, and 15˚. The nature of the
air flow around the missile when simulated has different characteristics of velocity and pressure in each variation α given.
The change in α is directly proportional to the value of pressure. The speed value changes relative to each change α.

INTRODUCTION
A missile is a military rocket weapon that has an automatic control system to find targets or a weapon that is
controlled remotely to adjust to the intended direction/target. In practice, there is often confusion about the
mention/difference between rockets and missiles. Rocket itself is an aerospace vehicle that can be used as a satellite
launcher, weather research, missiles, and ballistic rockets. Actually, the term "missile" refers to rockets equipped with
a control system, while "rockets" refer to rockets that do not have a control system.
To launch a missile, it should be noted about its aerodynamic characteristics such as lift, drag, and moment so as
to facilitate the movement and control of the missile. The aerodynamic characteristics need to be considered because
it greatly affects the altitude and distance that can be reached by the missile. In addition, note also the Mach value
possessed by the missile when fired with each different speed. The most crucial thing about a missile is its
flying/cruising height, where the height must be as low as possible to avoid detection from the radar, but also in its
low altitude the missile must not lose the lift. In simulations, missile aerodynamic characteristics can be obtained
through coefficients (CL and CD). The software used for modeling and simulation is CATIA and ANSYS 15.0
software. To get a good simulation result, a highly structured meshing model needs to be made.
This research is covered by the problem:
1. The analysis process is only carried out on the speed and pressure experienced by the missile when it is
launched.
2. Only variations in the value of α (with intervals of 5̊ from 0-15̊) are used to see the characteristics of missile
aerodynamics.
The objective(s) of this research is:
1. To know the nature of the air flow around the missile when simulated.
2. To know the aerodynamic characteristics of missiles which simulated.

7th International Seminar on Aerospace Science and Technology – ISAST 2019

AIP Conf. Proc. 2226, 020002-1–020002-12; https://doi.org/10.1063/5.0002284
Published by AIP Publishing. 978-0-7354-1985-8/$30.00

020002-1
 LITERATURE REVIEW
A missile is a system that has a warhead, a propulsion system, and a control system that is capable of making the
missile be controlled remotely and capable of reaching far distances. Missiles use infrared, GPS, radar and lasers as
control systems that can direct them towards the target.

FIGURE 1. SCUD B Missile Variant, i.e. SS-21, SS-23, Iskandev-E, SS-1c Modification 1, SS-1c Modification 2, Al Hussein,
Prithvi, Vector, Hatf-1, Shahean, CSS-7, CSS-8, and Al Mahmud from left to right side respectively. Source:
http://www.coldwar.org//bcmt/images/compsrbm-2k.jpg

FIGURE 2. Components of Missile2

In general, the missile structure consists of:2

1. The nose section, is the part of the missile that first hit the fluid while flying, so that it experiences the greatest
force compared to the other structures. The shape of this part affects the stability of the missile when sliding.
Nose cone is made taper because the pointed shape has a maximum speed and can divide the airflow better.
2. The body, is a part of the missile that rubs against the fluid which then flows/passes fluid from the nose cone
to the fin. In addition, this section is equipped with a chip that functions as a control system; and a place to
put warheads.
3. Fin, is a fin that functions as a guide to the flow of air from the tip of the missile to its rear, and also serves to
make the missile movement more stable. Wing/fin is a thing that has a big role in the success of missiles in
terms of aerodynamics. The theory used for this wing study is linearization theory or Ackeret theory, which
assumes that: Airfoil used is thin; The type of flow used is two-dimensional flow. The selection of the wing/fin

020002-2
 plan-form/shape must consider the aerodynamics, distance and expected maneuverability, suitability of the
operating system, mass and configuration of the structure, and production costs.

Experiment Review about Missile GM (Original, 2M, 2F, 2TT)

This experiment was conducted by Goran J. Ocokoljic.1 The purpose of this experiment is to determine the
configuration of the wing as the location of the normal force coefficient and moment of pitching.
For the computational process, Mach 0.35 is used at the angle of attack -10̊ to 10̊. Iteration will converge if there
has been a change in the aerodynamic coefficient of < 2% from the last 100 iterations.
From the results of experiments and simulations, GM type 2FF missiles are the most effective configuration
compared to other configurations. This is because the 2FF configuration has stable (good) aerodynamic characteristics
even though the drag value is low, but the lift value generated is high, as well as the lift to drag ratio.

Governing Equations6
The general form of the mass conservation equation, Reynolds-averaged Navier-Stokes equations, energy equation
and other scalar transport equations can be written as:
U   U 
  u iU   e   Su (1)
t xi  xi 
where ρ and U = (1, u, v, w, h, k, ε and αi) stand for the fluid density and the flow primitive variables for the
continuity, momentum, energy, turbulence model and species mass-fraction equations respectively. This general form
of the transport equation has one exception that fluid temperature instead of enthalpy is used for the diffusion (heat
conduction) terms of the energy equation. The source terms SU comes from the momentum, energy, turbulence model,
and species mass-fraction equations in 3-dimensional space. The turbulence kinetic energy production rate which is
written as:
 1  u 2 2 
   j ui  2  uk  
Pr  i        (2)
 2 x x  3  x
  i j   k  

METHODOLOGY AND RESEARCH OBJECTS

Simulation uses CFD software (ANSYS 15.0). Simulation will help visualize the characteristics/patterns of fluid
flow across the surface of the missile, so that it can produce some of the information needed in an effort to improve
the performance of the missile.
In this research, observations were made on the form of SCUD missiles. Because there is no specific geometry
and image of this SCUD missile, the researchers tried to make observations, depictions and modifications to their
geometry in the CATIA program.
The geometry (units in mm) and specifications of the missile can be seen in the following figure:

11350

2233.977 9116.023

880

700
3136.855
1368.571

FIGURE 3. Geometry of Missile Modification

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 TABLE 1. Data of object research
№ Parameter Value
1 Length 11.350 m
2 Diameter 0.88 m
3 Launch Weight 5900 kg
4 Operational Range 300 km
5 Thrust 13350 N
6 Velocity 5 Mach = 1700 m/s
7 Height 450 m
8 Temperature 285.225 K
9 Pressure 96.0346 kPa
10 Density 1.17295 kg/m3
11 Speed of sound 338.563 m/s

Process of research consist of:

a) Initial Study Phase
The initial study phase is the identification stage of the earliest problem used in this study because this stage
is very necessary to determine the aerodynamic characteristics of the missile.
b) CFD Simulation Phase
Preprocessing, is the first step in building and analyzing a CFD model. The stages in preprocessing are
making the geometry and meshing of the model. The preprocessing stage uses CATIA V5 software to simplify
the geometry of the model, after the model is created using CATIA V5, the next step is to import into ANSYS
15.0 software, using ANSYS 15.0 software model which is then made to meshing so that it can be analyzed
and simulated.
Mesh size contained in an object will affect the accuracy and computational power of CFD analysis. The
smaller/finer the mesh is made, the more obtained results will be, but the greater the computational power and
the longer it takes.
Processing, after the Preprocessing stage, the next step is the Processing stage using ANSYS 15.0 software.
At this stage, iterates and simulates a missile model with certain parameters.
Post-processing, is the final step in analyzing CFD. The thing done in this stage is to analyze the CFD
simulation data in the form of cl, cd values and in the form of contours such as pressure contours and velocity
contours.
The research method in fluid flow simulation using CFD software is as follows:

Preprocessing
Problem
Start Problem CFD (modeling
restricting
and meshing)

Processing CFD
Done Conclusion Post Processing
(solving)

FIGURE 4. The research method

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 RESULTS AND DISCUSSION
The output and parameters of this research that are to be seen are pressure contours, velocity contours, lift and
drag, which in each parameter is carried out by α of 0˚, 5˚, 10˚, and 15˚.

Contour of Pressure

At 𝛼 of 0̊, 5˚, 10˚, and 15˚ it can be seen that the highest pressure is on the front of the nose section. The pressure
decreases when the air flow further away from the nose surface. It's just that the pressure on the fin is greater than the
pressure on the body of the missile because the direct air flow about the fin when compared to the body of the missile
where the air flow has spread away from the body. The smaller the pressure the reduction is based on the pressure in
the nose section.

FIGURE 5. Pressure at α = 0̊ is 2.136x106 Pa

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 FIGURE 6. Graphic at α = 0̊

FIGURE 7. Pressure α = 5̊ is 2.215x106 Pa

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 FIGURE 8. Graphic at α = 5̊

FIGURE 9. Pressure at α = 10̊ is 2.323x106 Pa

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 FIGURE 10. Graphic at α = 10̊

FIGURE 11. Pressure at α = 15̊ arises from 2.432x106 Pa

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 FIGURE 12. Graphic at α = 15̊

Contour of Velocity

a). 𝛼 of 0˚; The velocity of air flow that is related to the nose section is smaller than the speed with respect to the
body and fin parts, which is equal to 8.812x102 m/s. The lowest speed is located on the rear body of the missile that
is close to the fin, which is equal to 5.024x10 m/s.

FIGURE 13. Velocity at α = 0̊

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 b). 𝛼 of 5̊; The velocity of air flow that is related to the nose section is smaller than the speed with respect to the
body and fin parts, which is equal to 8.645x102 m/s. The lowest speed is located in the area behind the body of the
missile that is close to the fin, which is equal to 2.768x10 m/s.

FIGURE 14. Velocity at α = 5̊

c). 𝛼 of 10̊; The speed of air flow that is related to the nose section is smaller than the speed that is related to the
body and fin, which is equal to 8.675x102 m/s. The lowest speed is located on the rear body of the missile that is close
to the fin, which is equal to 9.384x10 m/s. While the highest speed is on the surface of the missile body, which is
1.726x103 m/s.

FIGURE 15. Velocity at α = 10̊

d). 𝛼 of 15̊; The velocity of air flow regarding the nose section is the same as the speed with respect to the body
and fin, which is 1.434x103 m/s. The lowest speed lies in the area behind the body of the missile that is close to the
fin, which is equal to 6.602 m/s. It's just that the speed on the pointed front is small, which is 7.201x102 m/s.

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 FIGURE 16. Velocity at α = 15̊

Lift and Drag

Lifts and drags on each angle of attack variation are shown in the following table:
TABLE 2. Data lift and drag
0̊ 5̊ 10̊ 15̊
Lift 1.107e+04 [N] 1.672e+06 [N] 3.736e+06 [N] 6.183e+06 [N]

Drag 1.316e+06 [N] 1.365e+06 [N] 1.506e+06 [N] 1.678e+06 [N]

From the table above, it can be seen that at α 0̊ the value of lift < drag so that the fin missile must be > 0̊ so that
the missile does not stall.
The greater the deflection of α, the greater the lift produced to the maximum permissible α (α maximum is unknown
because it has not been reflected to maximum α). It is also seen that the greater the α, the greater the difference between
the lift and drag.

CONCLUSION
From the discussion above, it can be concluded that:
1. The nature of the air flow around the missile when simulated has different characteristics of velocity and
pressure in each variation α given. The change in α is directly proportional to the value of pressure. The speed
value changes relative to each change α.
2. Aerodynamic characteristics of missiles which simulated:
0̊ 5̊ 10̊ 15̊
Lift 1.107e+04 [N] 1.672e+06 [N] 3.736e+06 [N] 6.183e+06 [N]
Drag 1.316e+06 [N] 1.365e+06 [N] 1.506e+06 [N] 1.678e+06 [N]

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 ACKNOWLEDGEMENT
We confirm that we, and/or our University, hold copyright on all of the original material included in our paper.
We also confirm we use citation, from the copyright holder of any third party material included in our paper, to publish
it as part of our paper. We also would like to thank for ISAST committee whom invite us to present, accept and revised
our paper.

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