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Completed TRL 3 (started at 5, targeting 7)
The primary objective of this task is to advance development of the US3D CFD code such that it is suitable for release as a production tool for NASA entry aerothermodynamics analysis by mid-FY14. US3D will be considered Class D software when completed.
The effort is undertaken collaboratively between NASA and the inventors of US3D at the University of Minnesota. NASA is requesting enhancements to the current version of the code to make it amenable for solution of the types of problems currently solved using DPLR. Staff members at the University and NASA collaboratively share responsibility for code implementation. As completed, enhancements are validated by comparison to DPLR and to available experimental datasets. NASA bears primary responsibility for the code validation effort.
In order to qualify as a production-ready aerothermodynamics CFD code, the team has developed a set of required additional capability for US3D, as detailed in the Milestones for this task. The activities were selected to address capability gaps and to validate US3D solutions against accepted DPLR benchmarks.
The primary risk to successful completion of this task is the dependence on a timely technology transfer from the University of Minnesota in terms that are amenable to the Government. The US3D code has been developed primarily at the University of Minnesota, with support from NASA and the Air Force Office of Scientific Research. Both NASA and the primary developer at the University are interested in seeing this transfer occur, but there are legal hurdles that must be overcome. The HEDL project is in the process of managing those legal hurdles in order to ensure that they do not stand in the way of successful task completion.
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