Buffeting is a critical concern in the aerodynamic design of launch vehicles due to its impact on structural loads and vehicle dynamics. In this work, a hybrid methodology, the Stress-Blended Eddy Simulation (SBES), is employed to predict buffeting on a canonical launcher configuration. Such methodology blends the Reynolds-Averaged Navier–Stokes (RANS) approach with a Large-Eddy Simulation (LES) one. The SBES simulations are performed on a body-fitted mesh, significantly reducing computational cost with respect to other high fidelity approaches while retaining the capability to capture essential flow physics, including vortex shedding and pressure fluctuations. The results demonstrate that SBES provides accurate predictions of unsteady aerodynamic loads, comparable to previous high-fidelity LES studies in which an immersed boundary approach was employed, but at a fraction of the computational effort. This confirms the suitability of SBES for efficient and reliable buffeting assessment in large-scale launcher applications. • Hybrid RANS–LES SBES approach applied to launcher buffeting prediction. • Accurate reproduction of pressure fluctuations compared to experiments. • Good agreement with LES and ZDES in transonic conditions (M = 0.8). • Capability to capture shock–boundary layer interaction effects. • Significant reduction of computational cost compared to immersed boundary LES.
Palma et al. (Wed,) studied this question.