Gasdynamics: Fundamentals and Applications

In the previous century, humanity quickly moved from enabling mechanical flight to flying farther, higher, and faster. Now, humanity is endeavoring to explore and colonize other planets. Similarly, engineers are seeking to make compact and efficient systems in the domains of energy and power. All these scenarios and several more, including natural events like explosive volcanic eruptions, involve the high-speed Flow of gases. Speeds at which the compressible nature of gases becomes significant. In this course on the fundamentals and applications of gasdynamics, we shall understand and model the compressible flow phenomena of gases from first principles. We will discover the importance of Mach number (M), the ratio of the flow velocity to the speed of sound, in describing such flows. We will find a close coupling of thermodynamics and fluid dynamics. We shall encounter and explain counter-intuitive behavior as the flow Mach number changes from subsonic (M<1) to supersonic (M>1). These are wave-dominated flows. The shock wave is a particularly exciting phenomenon existing only in supersonic flows. We will learn about shock waves and their interactions, and means of producing them in a controlled manner in the laboratory. The understanding of gasdynamics gained will be applied to design and analyze typical engineering systems like nozzles, diffusers, intakes, shock tubes, wind tunnels, pipe flows, to name a few. Flow visualizations taken in the unique high-speed experimental facilities at the Indian Institute of Science will enable deeper insights. Special topics on hypersonic flows and shock wave boundary layer interactions will be introduced towards the end of the course.