Detonation combustion of hydrogen in a convergent-divergent nozzle with a central coaxial cylinder

The feasibility of steady detonation combustion of a hydrogen-air mixture entering at a supersonic velocity in an axisymmetric convergent-divergent nozzle with a central coaxial cylinder is considered. The problem of the nozzle starting and the initiation of detonation combustion is numerically solved with account for the interaction of the outflowing gas with the external supersonic flow. The modeling is based on the gasdynamic Euler equations for an axisymmetric flow. The calculations are carried out using the Godunov scheme on a fine fixed grid which allows one to study in detail the interaction of an oblique shock wave formed in the diffuser with the nozzle axis. It is shown that a central coaxial cylinder ensures the starting with the formation of supersonic flow throughout the entire nozzle and stable detonation combustion of a stoichiometric hydrogen-air mixture in the divergent section of the nozzle.     

Shock structure in separated nozzle flows

In the case of high overexpansion, the exhaust jet of the supersonic nozzle of rocket engines separates from nozzle wall because of the large adverse pressure gradient. Correspondingly, to match the pressure of the separated flow region, an oblique shock is generated which evolves through the supersonic jet starting approximately at the separation point. This shock reflects on the nozzle axis with a Mach reflection. Thus, a peculiar Mach reflection takes place whose features depend on the upstream flow conditions, which are usually not uniform. The expected features of Mach reflection may become much difficult to predict, depending on the nozzle shape and the position of the separation point along the divergent section of the nozzle.      

Detonation combustion of hydrogen in a Laval nozzle under rarefied atmosphere conditions

Detonation combustion of a hydrogen-air mixture entering an axisymmetric convergent-divergent nozzle at a supersonic velocity is considered under atmospheric conditions at altitudes up to 24 km. The investigation is carried out on the basis of the two-dimensional gasdynamic Euler equations for a multicomponent reacting gas. The limiting altitude ensuring detonation combustion in a Laval nozzle of given geometry is numerically established for freestream Mach numbers 6 and 7. The possibility of the laser initiation of detonation in a supersonic flow of a stoichiometric, preliminarily heated hydrogen-air mixture is experimentally studied. The investigation is carried out in a shock tube under conditions simulating a supersonic flow in the nozzle throat region.     

Numerical investigation of transient nozzle flow

Abstract. The starting process of two-dimensional and axisymmetric nozzle flows has been investigated numerically. Special attention has been paid to the early phase of the starting process and to the appearance of a strong secondary shock wave. For both cases, shock intensities and velocities are obtained and discussed. The flow evolution in the axisymmetric case is proved to be more complex and the transient starting process is slower than in the plane case. Finally, the effects of changing the nozzle angle and the incident shock wave Mach number on the transient flow are addressed. It is shown that a faster start-up can be induced either by decreasing the nozzle angle or increasing the Mach number of the incident shock wave. Received 16 November 2001 / Accepted 24 September 2002 / Published online 4 December 2002 Correspondence to:A.-S. Mouronval (e-mail: mouronv@coria.fr)     

Numerical investigation of shock starting of supersonic nozzles and comparison with experimental data

A numerical investigation was made of the interaction of a shock wave with a contracting and expanding channel in the process of shock starting of planar and axisymmetric supersonic nozzles. The calculated results are compared with experimental data. The justification is given for the use of a method based on integration of the one-dimensional nonstationary equations of motion of an inviscid gas with allowance for a variable specific heat in the calculation of the propagation of wave structure in the nozzle starting process. The influence of the shape of the entrance opening of the reflecting channel during the nozzle starting is considered.Translated from Izvestiya Akademii Nauk SSSR, Mekhanika Zhidkosti i Gaza, No. 1, pp. 120–127, January–February, 1980.     

Numerical modeling of detonation combustion of hydrogen-air mixtures in a convergent-divergent nozzle

The flow of igniting hydrogen-air mixtures entering an axisymmetric convergent-divergent nozzle at a supersonic velocity is considered. A possibility of stabilizing detonation combustion is numerically investigated at different freestream Mach numbers with account for nonuniform distribution of hydrogen concentration at the nozzle entry. The investigation is performed on the basis of the two-dimensional gasdynamic Euler equations for a multicomponent reacting gas. A detailed model of chemical reactions is used. The calculated thrust is compared with the drag of a conical housing containing the supersonic nozzle considered.     

Nozzle startup in an oncoming flow

Three variants of the startup of an axisymmetric convergent-divergent nozzle are considered with the static pressures at the entry and exit of the nozzle being the same at the beginning of the process. The subsonic startup corresponds to open nozzle acceleration in air. The supersonic startup simulates the sudden opening of a cover at the nozzle inlet under supersonic flight conditions. A successful nozzle startup with the formation of steady supersonic flow along the whole channel is realized in the third variant of supersonic startup with gas injection through a small region of the wall of the divergent nozzle section. The investigation is performed numerically, on the basis of the Euler equations for axisymmetric gas flows.     

Stabilization of detonation combustion in a high-velocity flow of a hydrogen-oxygen mixture

The flow of a hydrogen-oxygen mixture diluted with argon in a supersonic axisymmetric nozzle consisting of an inlet cylinder, a convergent region, a cylindrical throat, and a divergent region is considered. The supersonic flow enters the channel along the axis of symmetry. The flow structure is calculated with allowance for hydrogen ignition. A possibility of stabilizing the combustion zone is studied and the forces acting on the nozzle from the flow are determined. The problem is solved in the two-dimensional approximation with account for detailed combustion kinetics.     

Thrust shock vector control of an axisymmetric conical supersonic nozzle via secondary transverse gas injection

Transverse secondary gas injection into the supersonic flow of an axisymmetric convergent–divergent nozzle is investigated to describe the effects of the fluidic thrust vectoring within the framework of a small satellite launcher. Cold-flow dry-air experiments are performed in a supersonic wind tunnel using two identical supersonic conical nozzles with the different transverse injection port positions. The complex three-dimensional flow field generated by the supersonic cross-flows in these test nozzles was examined. Valuable experimental data were confronted and compared with the results obtained from the numerical simulations. Different nozzle models are numerically simulated under experimental conditions and then further investigated to determine which parameters significantly affect thrust vectoring. Effects which characterize the nozzle and thrust vectoring performances are established. The results indicate that with moderate secondary to primary mass flow rate ratios, ranging around 5 %, it is possible to achieve pertinent vector side forces. It is also revealed that injector positioning and geometry have a strong effect on the shock vector control system and nozzle performances.     

Calculation of supersonic steady-state flow in axisymmetric nozzles with an upwind difference scheme

This paper is on the application of the upwind difference scheme proposed by the author^[1] to the calculation of supersonic steady-state flow in axisymmetric nozzles. The upwind scheme is conservative (or weakly conservative), it yields results approximating those from the characteristic relations, and it has corresponding boundary difference schemes. The entropy phenomenon in the calculation of shock reflection on boundaries with the shock-capturing method will be discussed and a correction of this phenomenon will be proposed. From numerical experiments on an arbitrary nozzle, it is seen that the upwind difference scheme, its corresponding boundary scheme, and the improved treatment of shock reflection work well for the calculation of supersonic steady-state flow in axisymmetric nozzles.     

“Lateral” interaction of a supersonic underexpanded ideal-gas jet with surfaces of different shape

A numerical investigation is made of the interaction of an underexpanded jet of an inviscid and nonheat-conducting gas issuing from an axisymmetric conical nozzle with plane, cylindrical, and spherical surfaces. It is assumed that the flow turning angle for flow about a barrier is smaller than the critical angle, and subsonic regions are absent in the flow field studied. The effect of the characteristic parameters (Mach number at the nozzle exit, jet underexpansion) on the flow pattern and jet forces is analyzed. The results of numerical calculations are compared to the results of approximate theories and experimental data. A theoretical solution of the problem of the effect of a supersonic jet on a surface of given shape, even in the approximation of an inviscid, nonheat-conducting gas, is quite difficult. A reason for this is that the flow region contains shock waves interacting with each other, contact discontinuities, and zones of mixed sub-and supersonic flow. As far as is known to the authors, the results obtained for three-dimensional problems for the interaction of supersonic jets with each other or with barriers are primarily experimental (for example, [1–6]). A numerical analysis of the interaction of axisymmetric ideal-gas jets was carried out in [7–10]. In [7] a three-dimensional form of the method of characteristics was used to calculate the initial interaction region for two supersonic cylindrical jets (with Mach number M=10) intersecting at an angle of 60. The interaction of several jets has been considered in [8, 9], where the solution was obtained according to the Lax—Wendroff method without elimination of the discontinuity lines of flow parameters. In [10] the lateral interaction of axisymmetric supersonic jets with each other and with a plate is investigated by means of a straight-through calculationTranslated from Izvestiya Akademii Nauk SSSR, Mekhanika Zhidkosti i Gaza, No. 6, pp. 3–8, November–December, 1974.The authors thank A. N. Kraiko for useful discussions of the results, and A. L. Isakov and É. N. Gasparyan for kindly providing the experimental data.     

Calculations of axisymmetric jet leaving a nozzle at jet pressure lower than pressure in medium

The problem of discharge of a supersonic axisymmetric jet from a nozzle at a jet pressure less than the pressure in the surrounding medium is considered. A calculation method is presented with account for the subsonic flow downstream of the central shock which forms near the axis of symmetry. Comparison of the results of the computation on a digital computer with the experimental data show the effectiveness of this method for determining the structure of the initial section of such an axisymmetric jet.     

Detonation combustion of hydrogen in an axisymmetric channel with a central body

The problem of initiation and stabilization of detonation combustion of a hydrogen–air mixture injected into an axisymmetric channel with a finite-length central body in a flow with a Mach number M₀ = 5–9 is solved. It is numerically demonstrated that the presence of the central body both in a convergent–divergent nozzle and in an expanding channel leads to stabilization of detonation combustion of a stoichiometric hydrogen–air mixture at free-stream Mach numbers M₀ > 7. Various channel configurations that ensure different values of thrust generated by detonation combustion of a stoichiometric hydrogen–air mixture are compared.     

Effectiveness of secondary tabs for supersonic mixing

The effect of vortex generators, in the form of small tabs projecting into the flow at the nozzle exit, aided by secondary tabs on either side, on the mixing characteristics of an axisymmetric jet at Mach number 1.7 is investigated. Experimental studies on the basic features of the jet from a nozzle with secondary tabs are conducted to assess the free jet characteristics as well as the momentum and thermal mixing behavior. The secondary tabs were found to increase the jet spread and distort the jet cross-section and were found to cause substantial enhancement of mixing of supersonic jets. Jet structure is observed using flow-visualization techniques. LLS images are employed to obtain cross-sectional views of the jet with the introduction of secondary tabs. The ability of secondary tabs to eliminate the screech noise of the supersonic jet is also observed. Received: 3 February 2000/Accepted: 8 February 2001     

Interaction of a supersonic jet exhausting into vacuum with an obstacle

A study is made of the interaction between an axisymmetric supersonic jet exhausting into vacuum and an obstacle of a fairly complicated configuration and positioned relative to the nozzle in such a way that in the interaction region behind the detached shock wave there is a three-dimensional flow possessing a symmetry plane. The flow in the interaction region is described by the system of equations of motion of an inviscid perfect gas with boundary conditions on the shock wave (Rankine-Hugoniot relation) and on the surface of the obstacle (no-flow condition). The other boundaries of the region are the symmetry plane of the flow and an arbitrarily chosen surface in the supersonic part of the flow.Translated from Izvestiya Akademii Nauk SSSR, Mekhanika Zhidkosti Gaza, No. 1, pp. 156–161, January–February, 1981.     

Gasdynamics of a Convergent Air-Intake with a Nose Compression Surface

A model configuration of a hypersonic vehicle realizing the principle of compression convergence along spatially-convergent directions of the entire jet captured by an air-intake is studied. The configuration includes a convergent air-intake, whose gasdynamic design is performed using the axisymmetric supersonic flow in an internal convergent channel. The air-intake is integrated with the swept transversely-concave nose surface of the vehicle, which forms at high supersonic velocities a three-dimensional compression flow, also convergent. The results of numerical and experimental studies at freestream Mach numbers 4 and 6 are presented; they reveal the salient features of the gasdynamic pattern of the flows near the nose and the external compression wedge of the air-intake, as well as in the internal channel.     

Profiling the Supersonic Part of a Plug Nozzle with a Nonuniform Transonic Flow

The effect of transonic flow nonuniformity on the profiling of optimal plug nozzles is studied in the inviscid gas approximation. Sonic and supersonic regions providing maximum thrust for given nozzle dimensions and a given outer pressure are designed for given subsonic contours and calculated nonuniform transonic flows. As in the case of uniform flow on a cylindrical sonic surface, the initial regions of the designed contours satisfy the condition that in these regions the flow Mach number is unity or near-unity. In all the examples calculated, the optimal plug nozzles produce a greater thrust than the optimal axisymmetric and annular nozzles with a near-axial flow for the same lengths and the same gas flow rates through the nozzle. It is established that contouring without regard for transonic flow nonuniformity can result in considerable thrust losses. However, these losses are due only to a decrease in the flow rate, while the specific thrust may even increase slightly.     

Flow in a viscous jet escaping through a supersonic nozzle into a semi-infinite ambient space

The problem of an axisymmetric gas flow in a supersonic nozzle and in the jet escaping from the nozzle to a quiescent gas is solved within the framework of Navier-Stokes equations. The calculated pressure distribution is compared with that measured in the jet by a Pitot tube. The influence of the jet pressure ratio, Reynolds number, and half-angle of the supersonic part of the nozzle on nozzle flow and jet flow parameters is studied. It is shown that the distributions of gas-dynamic parameters at the nozzle exit are nonuniform, which affects the jet flow. The flow pattern for an overexpanded jet shows that jet formation begins inside the nozzle because of boundary-layer displacement from the nozzle walls. This result cannot be obtained with the inviscid formulation of the problem.     

Numerical investigations on shock oscillations ahead of a hemispherical shell in supersonic flow

A clear understanding of the mechanism responsible for large amplitude shock pulsations ahead of a hemispherical cavity in supersonic flow is presented for the first time in this article. This has applications in supersonic parachute decelerators during the atmospheric descent stage of aerospace vehicles. A cell-centered finite volume code FaSTAR is used to solve the full Navier–Stokes equations on a hemispherical shell facing a Mach 4.0 supersonic free stream. The numerical method is validated against earlier experimental results. First, Flow Configuration A appears consisting of an axisymmetric shock that undergoes low-amplitude oscillations. This flow transitions to Flow Configuration B that has an asymmetric shock structure and undergoes large-amplitude non-stationary shock pulsations. The shock stand-off distance in Flow Configuration B is 1.65 times that in Flow Configuration A. The generation of vortices from the curved shock, amplification of vortices of one kind due to the dynamics of the cavity flow, and further interaction of these amplified vortices with the shock in a loop causes the large-amplitude shock pulsations. The oscillation frequencies as determined from cavity pressure and shock stand-off distance signals extracted from the unsteady results are 1.26 kHz during Flow Configuration A, and 859 and 863 Hz during the non-stationary pulsations of Flow Configuration B. The Helmholtz resonator model predicts quite accurately the frequency of Flow Configuration A (1.27 kHz), and to a good extent the frequency in Flow Configuration B (916.7 Hz).     

Laval nozzle flow calculation

The inverse problem of the theory of the Laval nozzle is considered, which leads to the Cauchy problem for the gasdynamic equations; the streamlines and the flow parameters are found from the known velocity distribution on the axis of symmetry.The inverse problem of Laval nozzle theory was considered in 1908 by Meyer [1], who expanded the velocity potential into a series in powers of the Cartesian coordinates and constructed the subsonic and supersonic solutions in the vicinity of the center of the nozzle. Taylor [2] used a similar method to construct a flowfield which is subsonic but has local supersonic zones in the vicinity of the minimal section. Frankl [3] and Fal'kovich [4] studied the flow in the vicinity of the nozzle center in the hodograph plane. Their solution, just as the Meyer solution, made it possible to obtain an idea of the structure of the transonic flow in the vicinity of the center of the nozzle.A large number of studies on transonic flow in the vicinity of the center of the nozzle have been made using the method of small perturbations. The approximate equation for the transonic velocity potential in the physical plane, obtained in [3–6], has been studied in detail for the plane and axisymmetric cases. In [7] Ryzhov used this equation to study the question of the formation of shock waves in the vicinity of the center of the nozzle, and conditions were formulated for the plane and axisymmetric cases under which the flow will not contain shock waves. However, none of the solutions listed above for the inverse problem of Laval nozzle theory makes it possible to calculate the flow in the subsonic and transonic parts of the nozzles with large gradients of the gasdynamic parameters along the normal to the axis of symmetry.Among the studies devoted to the numerical calculation of the flow in the subsonic portion of the Laval nozzle we should note the study of Alikhashkin et al., and the work of Favorskii [9], in which the method of integral relations was used to solve the direct problem for the plane and axisymmetric cases.The present paper provides a numerical solution of the inverse problem of Laval nozzle theory. A stable difference scheme is presented which permits analysis with a high degree of accuracy of the subsonic, transonic, and supersonic flow regions. The result of the calculations is a series of nozzles with rectilinear and curvilinear transition surfaces in which the flow is significantly different from the one-dimensional flow. The flowfield in the subsonic and transonic portions of the nozzles is studied. Several asymptotic solutions are obtained and a comparison is made of these solutions with the numerical solution.The author wishes to thank G. D. Vladimirov for compiling the large number of programs and carrying out the calculations on the M-20 computer.