Monte Carlo Simulation of a Rarefied Multiphase Plume Flow

A method for the simulation of flows involving a disperse particle phase and a rarefied gas is extended for increased accuracy and efficiency in modeling the high altitude plume flow from a solid propellant rocket. First, a procedure is presented so that calculations involving the interphase transfer of momentum and energy may be avoided in regions where these calculations will have negligible impact on bulk flow properties. A model for nonequilibrium particle phase change is then described, and a series of simulations is performed for the plume flow from a subscale solid propellant rocket exhausting into a vacuum.