2D Axisymmetric Converging–Diverging Nozzle Performance Map 

Abstract

This project developed a two-dimensional axisymmetric computational fluid dynamics model of a converging–diverging nozzle in ANSYS Fluent to generate a compact performance map across varying back-pressure conditions. The nozzle geometry was parameterized by throat and exit radii (Rt = 5 mm, Re = 8.66 mm; Ae/At ≈ 3.0) and discretized using a quad-dominant mesh with local refinement at the throat to resolve high-gradient regions. Compressible, energy-enabled flow with ideal-gas density was simulated under steady inlet total conditions (stagnation pressure and temperature prescribed) while the outlet static pressure was swept through multiple back-pressure values to capture subsonic, choked, and overexpanded operating regimes. Resulting fields of Mach number and static pressure were post-processed to identify regime transitions, assess shock formation and location in overexpanded cases, and quantify trends in mass flow rate and exit conditions. The study demonstrates an end-to-end CFD workflow including geometry creation, boundary naming, meshing strategy, solver setup, and parametric evaluation, producing portfolio-grade visualizations and a defensible operating envelope characterization for a representative nozzle configuration.