A Review of HPC-Accelerated CFD in National Security and Defense

Abstract

Using High-Performance Computing (HPC), Computational Fluid Dynamics (CFD) now serves as an essential component in defense-related national security applications including missile interception and hypersonic propulsion as well as naval stealth optimization and urban hazard dispersion. This review combines two decades of open-source and public-domain research on HPC-accelerated CFD in defense, addressing three key questions: Which security-sensitive simulations have utilized open-source CFD frameworks such as OpenFOAM, SU2 and ADflow? Which HPC techniques, such as MPI domain decomposition and GPU acceleration together with hybrid parallelism best enhance open-source frameworks to manage large defense CFD simulations? Which technological advancements and research voids currently drive the directional development of the field? Examining several research studies sourced from NASA, DoD HPC centers, and academic institutions, scientific contributions have been classified into air, maritime, and space domains. Modular frameworks like NavyFOAM and SU2 and ADflow's adjoint-based solvers show how custom open-source solutions support workflows with rapid completion of multi-million cell simulations. The conclusion highlights new trends that combine exascale readiness with machine learning surrogate models for real-time CFD applications and interdisciplinary HPC-driven multi-physics integration to deliver practical insights for improving CFD use in defense research and development.