Determination of ignition delay times of different hydrocarbons in a new high pressure shock tube

The impending scarcity of fossil fuel in the future requires continued development in hydrocarbon combustion research. Biofuels offer a promising alternative to traditional fossil fuel-based combustion. To optimize engine design for biofuels, adequate combustion characteristics for new fuels have to be known. In this study, a new high pressure stainless steel shock tube for measuring ignition delay times is presented. When compared with other shock tubes for investigating ignition delays, the new tube provides superior maximum working pressures and geometric properties. Shock tube performance is determined by reference experiments with air as driven gas. These experiments allow to determine the available test time and the influence of shock attenuation. Owing to the large inner diameter of the shock tube, shock attenuation is <1% as it is typical for low pressure shock tubes. However, contrast to typical low pressure shock tubes, non-diluted fuel–air mixtures at high pressures can be investigated in the new shock tube due to the high allowable working pressure. First experiments concerning the ignition delay time have been performed with methane and n-heptane. The results of these experiments show a good agreement to literature data. As a first biofuel ethanol has been investigated at elevated pressures up to 40 bar.     

The effect of shock pressures on the inactivation of a marine Vibrio sp.

The effect of shock pressures on the inactivation of a marine Vibrio sp. was studied experimentally and numerically. In the experiment, an aluminum impactor plate accelerated by a gas gun was used to induce shock waves in a sealed aluminum container with cell suspension liquid inside. The shock pressures in the container were measured by a piezofilm gauge. Several 10–100 MPa of pressure were measured at the shock wave front. An FEM simulation, using the Johnson–Cook model for solid aluminum and the Tait equation for the suspension liquid, was carried out in order to know the generation mechanism of shock pressures in the aluminum container. The reflection, diffraction and interaction of shock waves at the solid–liquid boundaries in the aluminum container were reasonably predicted by the numerical simulation. The changes in shock pressures obtained from the computational simulation were in good agreement with those from the experiment. The number of viable cells decreased with the increase of peak pressures of the shock waves. Peak pressures higher than 200 MPa completely inactivated the cells. At this pressure, the cell structures were deformed like the shape of red blood cells, and some proteins leaked from the cells. These results indicate that the positive and negative pressure fluctuations generated by shock waves contribute to the inactivation of the marine Vibrio sp.      

High speed jet formation by impact acceleration method

This paper describes the generation of high-speed liquid jets by the impact acceleration method using a vertical two-stage light gas gun specially designed and constructed for this project at the Interdisciplinary Shock Wave Research Laboratory, Institute of Fluid Science, Tohoku University. Results of pressure measurements and double exposure holographic interferometric visualization and high speed video-recording of shadow graph images of waves propagating in a conically shaped container of liquid are included. In the experiments, an optical fiber pressure transducer of 0.1 mm in diameter and resonant frequency of 100 MHz was used for precise pressure measurements of waves in the container at 300 m/s projectile impacts. To verify the contribution of longitudinal and transversal waves created in metal containers, we used a 10.6 mm × 10.6 mm container of water with thick acrylic observation windows and quantitatively visualized waves by using double exposure holographic interferometry. We found that: (1) longitudinal and transversal waves did exist in the metal parts of the container and also in the acrylic observation windows; (2) before the nozzle flow started, these waves and their reflected waves coalesced with the main impact generated shock wave; (3) the primary jet was driven by pressures of 12.4 GPa caused by the 300 m/s projectile impingement; (4) successive shock reflections inside the container of liquid drove intermittent multiple liquid jets; (5) the contribution of released longitudinal and transversal waves to multiple jet formation is marginal; and (6) negative pressures detected with the optical fiber pressure transducer are attributable to impact flash and have no physical significance.      

OH-PLIF visualisation of radical farming supersonic combustion flows

Experimental investigations employing Planar Laser-induced fluorescence visualisation of the qualitative distribution of the OH radical (OH-PLIF), coupled with surface pressure measurements, have been made of flow in a generic, nominally two-dimensional inlet-injection radical farming supersonic combustion scramjet engine model. The test flows were provided by a hypersonic shock tunnel, and covered total enthalpies corresponding to the flight Mach number range 8.7–11.8 and approximately 150 kPa dynamic pressure. The surface pressure measurements displayed radical farming behaviour, that is a series of adjacent high and low pressure regions corresponding to successive shock/expansion structures, with no significant combustion-induced pressure rise until the second structure. OH-PLIF imaging between the first two structures provides the first direct experimental evidence of significant OH radical concentrations upstream of the ignition point in this mode of scramjet operation and shows that combustion reactions were occurring in highly localised regions in a complex turbulent and poorly micromixed fuel/air mixing layer confined to the fuel injection side of the combustor.     

Unloading effects in the dynamic response of granular soil

Experimental studies are described in which two different types of air shock are used to induce stress waves in an elastically confined, cylindrical specimen of sand, the objective being to permit direct observation of the effects of unloading on the dynamic response of granular material. In one case, “pure” unloading waves are generated by suddenly subjecting the end of a prestressed specimen to pressures below atmospheric. In the second type of test, the specimens are impacted at one end by an air shock which has the form of a sharp front followed immediately by a rapid exponential decay of pressure. The decay of the shock pressure generates unloading waves which cause attenuation of the wave as it propagates in the granular material. As a result of the tests, it is suggested that seismic-wave velocity may be correlated to the modulus of unloading cycles in a quasi-static test and that, when strainrate effects are included, a relatively simple model may be used to predict the dynamic response of granular materials.     

Numerical models for afterburning of TNT detonation products in air

Afterburning occurs when fuel-rich explosive detonation products react with oxygen in the surrounding atmosphere. This energy release can further contribute to the air blast, resulting in a more severe explosion hazard particularly in confined scenarios. The primary objective of this study was to investigate the influence of the products equation of state (EOS) on the prediction of the efficiency of trinitrotoluene (TNT) afterburning and the times of arrival of reverberating shock waves in a closed chamber. A new EOS is proposed, denoted the Afterburning (AB) EOS. This EOS employs the JWL EOS in the high pressure regime, transitioning to a Variable-Gamma (VG) EOS at lower pressures. Simulations of three TNT charges suspended in a $26\,\hbox {m}^3$ explosion chamber were performed. When compared to numerical results using existing methods, it was determined that the Afterburning EOS delays the shock arrival times giving better agreement with the experimental measurements in the early to mid time. In the late time, the Afterburning EOS roughly halved the error between the experimental measurements and results obtained using existing methods. Use of the Afterburning EOS for products with the Variable-Gamma EOS for the surrounding air further significantly improved results, both in the transient solution and the quasi-static pressure. This final combination of EOS and mixture model is recommended for future studies involving afterburning explosives, particularly those in partial and full confinement.     

Visualization of a confined accelerated bubble

High-speed photography was used to study the collapse of a confined two-dimensional, air cavity in water, subjected to a propagating pressure disturbance. The 5–6 mm diameter cavity was confined in a rectangular duct. A sustained pressure disturbance was created by an accelerating piston in contact with the water 240 mm away from the bubble. The pressure increased from 0.1 MPa to about 0.12 MPa with a rise time of the order of 2 ms. The pressure pulse was not reflected until its arrival at the end of the duct, 320 mm from the piston. A microjet was produced at the proximal wall which penetrated the distal cavity wall, thereby producing a pair of bubbles which was thought to be regions of intense vorticity. The features of such confined bubble collapse were not found in previous investigations of unconfined bubble accelerations by weak pressure disturbances. Confinement apparently intensified the effect of the disturbance significantly. Received 18 August 1998 / Accepted 12 May 1999     

Development of a PVDF sensor array for measurement of the impulsive pressure generated by cavitation bubble collapse

To study the impulsive pressure generated by cavitation bubble collapse, a PVDF piezoelectric array of pressure sensors is developed. The sensor array is fabricated directly on a 25 μm thick aluminum-metalized polarized PVDF film using a laser micro-machining technique. Dynamic calibration of the sensor array is accomplished in a gas shock tube. The average response time of the PVDF sensors to the fast-rising gas dynamic shock is found as fast as 31 ns. The array sensor is then attached on the solid boundary attacked by the collapse of the bubble. The features and the possible mechanisms of the impulsive pressure are discussed. The high sensitivity, low crosstalk, and low cost of the PVDF sensor array indicates its applicability in high amplitude impulsive field measurements.     

水下爆炸柱形高压气泡膨胀过程的RGFM和高精度格式数值模拟

为了对柱形装药水下爆炸高压气泡膨胀过程进行三维数值模拟,用level set方法追踪气水界面,详细描述了精确对柱形气泡进行level set建模;对于流场,使用Euler方程描述,并用高精度格式(五阶WENO和四阶R-K法)离散空间项和时间项;对于level set方程,使用五阶HJ-WENO离散;用RGFM处理气水界面附近网格节点。给出了水下流场不同时刻的压力云图、柱形高压气泡的形状演变以及流场中几个指定点的压力峰值。通过三维建模和计算验证,用RGFM结合高精度格式可以很好地对柱形高压气泡膨胀问题进行三维数值模拟,同时也可以较精确地追踪高密度比、高压力比的三维气水界面。计算结果表明,柱形高压气泡在膨胀过程中,形状逐渐向椭球形变化;位于固壁附近的柱形高压气泡受固壁反射波的影响,在固壁法线方向上的膨胀会受到抑制;双圆柱形高压气泡膨胀产生的冲击波,可以彼此抑制对方的膨胀。     

基于气泡形态影响的水下气幕对冲击波衰减效果分析

气泡帷幕是水下爆炸冲击波防护的重要手段,对其作用机理及技术参数的深入研究对水下爆破安全与应用具有重要意义。采用高速摄影技术对室内小型水下气泡帷幕模型拍摄发现气幕在形成过程和与水下爆炸冲击波相互作用过程中均具有高度非连续性和非均匀性,且气幕区域内气体与液体混杂,界面轮廓复杂多样。在此基础上,考虑气泡形状及界面影响下,通过LS-DYNA有限元软件自带的APDL语言进行编程,实现了在设定的气幕区域内,通过设定气泡直径变化范围及气泡直径之间的最小差异值随机投放一定数量不同直径的气泡来模拟真实气幕中气泡的分布,并通过改变固定区域内气泡个数来模拟不同气压值工况下的气幕效果。分析发现该方法能够更加真实反映气幕在冲击波防护过程中的防护机理,随着单位区域内气泡数量的增大,防护效果越明显,但当气泡数量达到一定数量后气幕整体连续性及稳定性基本固定,防护效果也趋于稳定。     

Characterisation of blast loading in complex,confined geometries using quarter symmetry experimental methods

Explosions in confined spaces lead to complicated patterns of shock wave reflection and interactions which are best investigated by use of experimental tests or numerical simulations. This paper describes the design and outcome of a series of experiments using a test cell to measure the pressures experienced when structures were placed inside to alter the propagation of shock waves, utilising quarter symmetry to reduce the size of the required test cell and charge. An 80 g charge of PE4 (a conventional RDX-based plastic explosive) was placed at half height in one corner of the test cell, which represents the centre of a rectangular enclosure when symmetry is taken into consideration. Steel cylinders and rectangular baffles were placed within the test cell at various locations. Good reproducibility was found between repeated tests in three different arrangements, in terms of both the recorded pressure data and the calculated cumulative impulse. The presence of baffles within the test cell made a small difference to the pressures and cumulative impulse experienced compared to tests with no baffles present; however, the number and spacing of baffles was seen to make minimal difference to the experienced pressures and no noticeable difference to the cumulative impulse history. The paper presents useful experimental data that may be used for three-dimensional code validation.     

Experimental and computational studies of shock wave-to-bubbly water momentum transfer

Momentum transfer from shock waves (SWs) of various intensity (from 0.05 MPa to 0.5 MPa in amplitude) to water containing air bubbles 2.5 to 4 mm of mean diameter is studied both experimentally and by means of numerical simulation. Experiments are performed in a vertical shock tube of a 50 × 100 mm² rectangular cross section consisting of a 495-mm long high-pressure section (HPS), 495-mm long low-pressure section (LPS), and 990 mm long test section (TS) equipped with an air bubbler and filled with water. Experiments have shown that as the initial gas volume fraction in water increases from 0 to 0.3 the momentum imparted in bubbly water by SWs increases monotonically, gradually levelling off at an air volume fraction of about 0.30. The experimental data are confirmed by two-dimensional (2D) simulation of SW propagation in bubbly water in terms of the SW velocity versus the air content, pressure profiles, as well as liquid and gas velocity behind the shock front.     

密闭空间内爆炸载荷抑制效应实验研究

炸药在密闭空间内爆炸时的爆炸载荷与在敞开环境中有很大差异,在密闭空间内,TNT炸药的爆炸产物能够与周围空气充分混合并发生燃烧反应进而释放额外的能量,使密闭空间内的反射冲击波及准静态压力均明显增加。为探究不同气体环境对密闭空间内爆炸载荷的抑制效应,开展了3种不同药量的TNT分别在空气、水雾和氮气环境密闭空间内的爆炸实验研究,通过理论计算和实验对比分析了密闭空间内的爆炸载荷压力、温度及受载钢板试件响应特性。结果表明,水雾和氮气均能有效降低空间内的准静态压力和温度,对准静态压力的平均降幅分别为36.0%和51.7%,对温度的平均降幅分别为42.6%和40.3%;在水雾和氮气环境中的爆炸载荷作用下,钢板试件动态响应较空气环境中显著降低,其中160 g药量下,水雾和氮气环境中钢板试件的最终变形分别减少了15.9%和23.5%,氮气的减弱效果优于水雾;水雾和氮气均能及时有效地抑制封闭空间内的爆炸载荷,降低结构的损伤程度。     

Shock structure in bubbly liquids: comparison of direct numerical simulations and model equations

Shock wave structure in a bubbly mixture composed of a cluster of gas bubbles in a quiescent liquid with initial void fractions around 10% inside a 3D rectangular domain excited by a sudden increase in the pressure at one boundary is investigated using the front tracking/finite volume method. The effects of bubble/bubble interactions and bubble deformations are, therefore, investigated for further modeling. The liquid is taken to be incompressible while the bubbles are assumed to be compressible. The gas pressure inside the bubbles is taken uniform and is assumed to vary isothermally. Results obtained for the pressure distribution at different locations along the direction of propagation show the characteristics of one-dimensional unsteady shock propagation evolving towards steady-state. The steady-state shock structures obtained by the present direct numerical simulations, which show a transition from A-type to C-type steady-state shock structures, are compared with those obtained by the classical Rayleigh–Plesset equation and by a modified Rayleigh–Plesset equation accounting for bubble/bubble interactions in the mean-field theory.      

Sound generation on bubble coalescence following detachment

A system in which bubbles coalesced on formation was used to probe one mechanism by which bubbles create sound. The aim was to determine in which situations sound is produced and to predict its amplitude. A set of carefully co-ordinated high-speed video and acoustic timeseries showed that needle-formed bubbles generated loud bubble-acoustic emissions at the instant of coalescence of secondary bubbles with the primary bubble. As the air flow rate increased, the size and number of secondary bubbles increased, and the sound amplitude also increased. On coalescence, the sound pressure always rose initially. A dimensionless scaling found that the sound amplitude emitted scaled with the volume of the secondary bubble. This scaling was shown to be consistent with the sound-emission mechanism being the equalization of pressures in the coalescing bubbles. The trend in amplitude with bubble production rate was well predicted by the scaling.     

Air–water flow in a vertical pipe: experimental study of air bubbles in the vicinity of the wall

This study deals with the influence of bubbles on a vertical air–water pipe flow, for gas-lift applications. The effect of changing the bubble size is of particular interest as it has been shown to affect the pressure drop over the pipe. Local measurements on the bubbles characteristics in the wall region were performed, using standard techniques, such as high-speed video recording and optical fibre probe, and more specific techniques, such as two-phase hot film anemometry for the wall shear stress and conductivity measurement for the thickness of the liquid film at the wall. The injection of macroscopic air bubbles in a pipe flow was shown to increase the wall shear stress. Bubbles travelling close to the wall create a periodic perturbation. The injection of small bubbles amplifies this effect, because they tend to move in the wall region; hence, more bubbles are travelling close to the wall. A simple analysis based on a two-fluid set of equations emphasised the importance of the local gas fraction fluctuations on the wall shear stress.     

Processes of hydrate formation and dissolution behind a shock wave in a liquid containing gas bubbles (mixture of nitrogen and carbon dioxide)

The processes of dissolution and hydrate formation behind a moderate-amplitude shock wave in water containing gas bubbles (mixture of nitrogen and carbon dioxide) are studied in experiments with different initial static pressures in the medium and concentrations of carbon dioxide in bubbles. An increase in static pressure in the gas-liquid medium is demonstrated to enhance the influence of the non-reacting gas (nitrogen) on the processes of dissolution and hydrate formation. __________ Translated from Prikladnaya Mekhanika i Tekhnicheskaya Fizika, Vol. 50, No. 2, pp. 178–187, March–April, 2009.     

Shock tube studies of thermal radiation of diesel-spray combustion under a range of spray conditions

A tailored interface shock tube and an over-tailored interface shock tube were used to measure the thermal energy radiated during diesel-spray combustion of light oil, α-methylnaphthalene and cetane by changing the injection pressure. The ignition delay of methanol and the thermal radiation were also measured. Experiments were performed in a steel shock tube with a 7 m low-pressure section filled with air and a 6 m high-pressure section. Pre-compressed fuel was injected through a throttle nozzle into air behind a reflected shock wave. Monochromatic emissive power and the power emitted across all infrared wavelengths were measured with IR-detectors set along the central axis of the tube. Time-dependent radii where soot particles radiated were also determined, and the results were as follows. For diesel spray combustion with high injection pressures (from 10 to 80 MPa), the thermal radiation energy of light oil per injection increased with injection pressure from 10 to 30 MPa. The energy was about 2% of the heat of combustion of light oil at P _inj = about 30 MPa. At injection pressure above 30 MPa the thermal radiation decreased with increasing injection pressure. This profile agreed well with the combustion duration, the flame length, the maximum amount of soot in the flame, the time-integrated soot volume and the time-integrated flame volume. The ignition delay of light oil was observed to decrease monotonically with increasing fuel injection pressure. For diesel spray combustion of methanol, the thermal radiation including that due to the gas phase was 1% of the combustion heat at maximum, and usually lower than 1%. The thermal radiation due to soot was lower than 0.05% of the combustion heat. The ignition delays were larger (about 50%) than those of light oil. However, these differences were within experimental error.

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An abridged version of this paper was presented at the 18th Int. Symposium on Shock Waves at Sendai, Japan during July 21 to 26, 1991 and at the 19th Int. Symposium on Shock Waves at Marseille, France during July 26 to 30, 1993.     

摩擦材料在无围压和加围压条件下的形变比较

研究铜基粉末冶金摩擦材料在无围压和加围压条件下的动态力学特性及其形变特征。试验在Hopkinson压杆上完成,通过试验发现,材料在无围压、应变率低于1000-1s时,有应变率强化效应;在更高应变率下,材料有损伤软化效应。微观分析可以看到试件上大量的平行滑移裂纹导致了材料破坏,形变是滑移伴随少量的孪晶;裂缝中有大量的碳纤维组织,这些纤维状组织对裂纹的扩展起抑制作用。而材料在加围压下的性能得到了很大的改善,同一应变率下最大应力、屈服极限和动态杨氏模量均有提高。在高应变率时,无论是加围压还是无围压,破碎的硬质颗粒都是长条状的。由此得出推论,球状、细化的硬质颗粒,可提高基体的强度。     

RDX基铝纤维炸药空中爆炸性能

将铝纤维炸药与传统铝粉炸药和RDX炸药进行空中爆炸实验并得到压力时程曲线,经过分析计算得到3种炸药的压力峰值、二次击波、正相持续时间以及冲量。结果表明:铝纤维炸药的压力峰值相对于RDX没有明显提高,但其压力时程曲线衰减速度慢于RDX的,使铝纤维炸药的正相持续时间大于RDX,铝纤维炸药的冲击波冲量相对于RDX的平均提高了18%,与铝粉炸药的相当。铝纤维炸药的二次击波超压幅值与到达时间与铝粉炸药的接近,而铝纤维炸药的二次击波到达时间早于RDX,说明二次击波的超压幅值与到达时间与炸药类型有关。