Structure and multiplicity of detonation regimes in heterogeneous hybrid mixtures

The problem of propagation of steady nonideal detonations in heterogeneous hybrid mixtures is studied in the case of a hydrogen-air gaseous mixture with suspended fine aluminum particles. Due to the difference in the order of magnitude of the characteristic induction and combustion times of gaseous mixture and solid particles, the process of energy release behind the leading shock front occurs over an extended period of time and in a nonmonotonic way. An approximate numerical model has been improved to find the steady propagation regimes and investigate their structure. The problem is analyzed in the frame of the theory of the mechanics of multiphase media with mass, momentum and heat exchanges between particles and gases. The one-dimensional ZND model of detonation with losses to the lateral boundaries is used. It is shown that three different steady propagation regimes may exist: the Pseudo-Gas Detonation (PGD), the Single-Front Detonation (SFD) and the Double-Front Detonation (DFD). The numerical results match the available experimental results obtained previously. The influence of the fundamental parameters of the system on the domains of existence of the different regimes is displayed. Moreover, it is shown that, according to the theory of nonideal detonations with nonmonotonic energy release, there may exist a multiplicity of detonation modes. However, the total number of solutions actually obtained by numerical calculations differs from that predicted by the theory. The reasons for these discrepancies are discussed.     

Three-dimensional cellular structure of detonations in suspensions of aluminium particles

Recently, we have used scarce available data on the detonation cell size in suspensions of aluminium particles in air and oxygen to adjust the kinetic parameters of our two-phase model of detonations in these mixtures. The calculated detonation cell width was derived by means of two-dimensional (2D) unsteady simulations using an assumption of cylindrical symmetry of the flow in the tube. However, in reality, the detonation cells are three-dimensional (3D). In this work, we have applied the same detonation model which is based on the continuous mechanics of two-phase flows, for 3D numerical simulations of cellular detonation structures in aluminium particle suspensions in oxygen. Reasonable agreement on the detonation cell width was obtained with the aforementioned 2D results. The range of tube diameters where detonations in $\text{ Al/O}_2$ mixture at a given particle size and concentration would propagate in the spinning mode has been estimated (these results make a complement to our previous analysis of spinning detonations in Al/air mixtures). Coupling these results with the dependencies of detonation cell size on the mean particle diameter is of great interest for the understanding of fundamental mechanisms of detonation propagation in solid particle suspensions in gas and can help to better guide the experimental studies of detonations in aluminium suspensions. It is shown that the part of detonation wave energy used for transverse kinetic energy of both gas and particles is quite small, which explains why the propagation velocity of spinning and multi-headed detonations reasonably agrees with the ideal CJ values.     

Investigation of the detonation regimes in gaseous mixtures with suspended starch particles

The existence of a secondary discontinuity at the rear of a detonation front shown in experiments by Peraldi and Veyssiere (1986) in stoichiometric hydrogen-oxygen mixtures with suspended 20-m starch particles has not been explained satisfactorily. Recently Veyssiere et al. (1997) analyzed these results using a one-dimensional (1-D) numerical model, and concluded that the heat release rate provided by the burning of starch particles in gaseous detonation products is too weak to support a double-front detonation (DFD), in contrast to the case of hybrid mixtures of hydrogen-air with suspended aluminium particles in which a double-front detonation structure was observed by Veyssiere (1986). A two-dimensional (2-D) numerical model was used in the present work to investigate abovementioned experimental results for hybrid mixtures with starch particles. The formation and propagation of the detonation has been examined in the geometry similar to the experimental tube of Peraldi and Veyssiere (1986), which has an area change after 2 m of propagation from the ignition point from a 69 mm dia. section to a 53 mm 53 mm square cross section corresponding to a 33% area contraction. It is shown that the detonation propagation regime in these experiments has a different nature from the double-front detonation observed in hybrid mixtures with aluminium particles. The detonation propagates as a pseudo-gas detonation (PGD) because starch particles release their heat downstream of the CJ plane giving rise to a non-stationary compression wave. The discontinuity wave at the rear of the detonation front is due to the interaction of the leading detonation front with the tube contraction, and is detected at the farthest pressure gauge location because the tube length is insufficient for the perturbation generated by the tube contraction to decay. Thus, numerical simulations explain experimental observations made by Peraldi and Veyssiere (1986). Received 5 July 1997 / Accepted 13 July 1998     

Two-cell detonation: losses effects on cellular structure and propagation in rich H2–NO2/N2O4–Ar mixtures

Detonation experiments in H₂–NO₂/N₂O₄–Ar mixtures (Equivalence ratio 1.2 and initial pressure lower than 0.1 MPa) confined in a tube of internal diameter 52 mm reveal two propagation regimes depending on initial pressure: (1) a quasi-CJ regime is observed along with a double cellular structure at high pressures; (2) at lower pressures, a low velocity detonation regime is observed with a single structure. Transition between this two regimes happens when the spinning detonation of the larger cell vanishes. Each detonation regime is characterized by velocity and pressure measurements and cellular structure records. Coherence between all experimental data for each experiment leads in assumption that losses are responsible for the transition between one regime to another. In a second part, we study such behaviour for a two-step mixture through numerical simulations using a global two-step chemical kinetics and a simple losses model. Numerical simulations qualitatively agree with experiments. Both detonation regimes with their own cellular structures are reproduced.     

Global modelling of heat release during initiation and propagation of detonation and deflagration waves in methane-air-particle systems

In the present paper the direct initiation of a self supporting detonation and propagation of a low-speed combustion in methane-air-coal particles mixtures are solved. For particles, a heterogeneous regime of combustion is used, for methane one overall chemical reaction is taken into account: CH + 2O = CO + 2HO. The heat release rate is assumed to be defined as a delay time based on the well-known thermal theory of Frank-Kamenetsky (1967). The proposed model allows one to investigate the influence inert particles or coal dust on the explosion limits of methane-air mixtures. It is shown that the addition of a limited quantity of particles leads to detonation stability. In low speed combustion problems this method allows one to get a good correlation between theoretical and experimental velocities of steady flame propagation in carbon-hydrogen gaseous mixtures. Coal dust influence on gasdynamics of a methane-air mixture combustion is investigated in an unsteady problem by using of the global modelling. It is shown that limited coal dust concentration increases the flame wave intensity in lean methane-air mixtures in contrast to inert particles. In stoichiometric gas mixtures, sand and coal dusts decrease a flame velocity. Far from the ignition point flame, the velocity is largely defined by the dust mass concentration and not by the size of particles. Received 5 July 1997 / Accepted 13 July 1998     

Modelling of detonation cellular structure in aluminium suspensions

Heterogeneous detonations involving aluminium suspensions have been studied for many years for industrial safety policies, and for military and propulsion applications. Owing to their weak detonability and to the lack of available experimental results on the detonation cellular structure, numerical simulations provide a convenient way to improve the knowledge of such detonations. One major difficulty arising in numerical study of heterogeneous detonations involving suspensions of aluminium particles in oxidizing atmospheres is the modelling of aluminium combustion. Our previous two-step model provided results on the effect on the detonation cellular structure of particle diameter and characteristic chemical lengths. In this study, a hybrid model is incorporated in the numerical code EFAE, combining both kinetic and diffusion regimes in parallel. This more realistic model provides good agreement with the previous two-step model and confirms the correlations found between the detonation cell width, and particle diameter and characteristic lengths. Moreover, the linear dependence found between the detonation cell width and the induction length remains valid with the hybrid model.     

悬浮RDX炸药和铝颗粒混合粉尘爆轰的数值模拟

采用两相流方法对炸药颗粒直径为20.0 m时与铝颗粒混合物的爆轰波的发展与传播过程及爆轰波参数进行了数值计算。结果表明,在炸药粉尘中加入铝颗粒,可以大大提高爆轰波参数。当铝颗粒直径为3.4 m时,尽管铝颗粒的直径较炸药颗粒直径小,但由于炸药颗粒的点火温度低,二者的点火时间相差不多。如果铝颗粒的直径为7.0 m,由于铝颗粒的点火滞后于炸药颗粒的点火,混合颗粒粉尘中可能形成双波阵面的爆轰波。     

Detonation in heterogeneous mixtures of liquids and particles

The mechanisms of detonation propagation in heterogeneous systems comprising closely packed particles and a liquid explosive are not fully understood. Recent experimental work has suggested the presence of two distinct modes of detonation propagation. One mode is valid for small particles (which is the regime we will address in this paper) with another mode for large particles. In this work we model numerically the detail of the wave interactions between the detonating liquid and the solid particles. The generic system of interest in our work is nitromethane and aluminium but our methodology can be applied to other liquids and particles. We have exercised our numerical models on the experiments described above. Our models can now qualitatively explain the observed variation in critical diameter with particle size. We also report some initial discrepancies in our predictions of wave speeds in nominally one dimensional experiments which can be explained by detailed modelling. We find that the complex wave interaction in the flow behind the leading shock in the detonating system of liquid and particles is characterised by at least two sonic points. The first is the standard CJ point in the reacting liquid. The second is a sonic point with respect to the sound speed in the inert material. This leads to a steady state zone in the flow behind the leading shock which is much longer than the reaction zone in the liquid alone. The width of this region scales linearly with particle size. Since the width of the subsonic region strongly influences the failure diameter we believe that this property of the flow is the origin of the observed increase in failure diameter with particle size for small inert particles. Received 3 December 1999 / Accepted 5 July 2000     

Transition of plane overdriven detonation wave to the Chapman-Jouguet regime

The asymptotic laws of behavior for plane, cylindrical, and spherical infinitely thin detonation waves were found in [1, 2] for increasing distance from an igniting source in those cases in which the waves changed into Chapman-Jouguet waves as they decayed. It was shown that the plane overdriven detonation wave approaches the Chapman-Jouguet regime asymptotically, while the transition of the cylindrical or spherical strong detonation wave into the Chapman-Jouguet wave may occur at a finite distance from the initiation source.Similar conclusions are valid for the propagation of stationary steadystate detonation waves which arise with flow of combustible gas mixtures past bodies.However, numerous experiments [3, 4] on firing bodies in a detonating gas show that the overdriven detonation wave which forms ahead of the body decays and decomposes into an ordinary compression shock and a slow combustion front. To establish why the wave does not make the transition to the Chapman-Jouguet regime, in the following we consider the propagation of a plane detonation wave and account for finite chemical reaction rates. We use the very simple two-front model (ordinary shock wave and following flame front). Conditions are found for which transition to the Chapman-Jouguet regime does not occur. We first consider the propagation of an unsteady plane wave and then the steady plane wave. It is found that for all the mixtures used in these experiments transition to the Chapman-Jouguet regime is not possible within the framework of the assumed model.     

夹层聚能装药作用过程的数值模拟

基于凝聚炸药冲击起爆的Lee-Tarver模型,利用AUTODYN有限元计算软件对夹层聚能装药作用过程进行了数值模拟。分别对夹层聚能装药爆轰波形传播过程及其特性参数进行了数值计算,对典型聚能装药采用单一结构装药、夹层装药的射流成型过程进行了数值研究,最后对不同爆速炸药匹配关系的夹层聚能装药射流参数进行了计算分析。计算结果表明,相对于单一结构装药,夹层装药射流头部速度提高了20%,夹层聚能装药能有效提高聚能金属射流头部速度、提高侵彻深度、增加炸药装药的作功能力。     

Investigation of detonation initiation in aluminium suspensions

Detonation initiation is investigated in aluminium/oxygen and aluminium/air mixtures. Critical conditions for initiation of spherical detonations are examined in analogy with the criteria defined for gaseous mixtures, which correlate critical parameters of detonation initiation to the characteristic size of the cellular structure. However, experimental data on the detonation cell size in these two-phase mixtures are very scarce, on account of the difficulty to perform large-scale experiments. Therefore, 2D numerical simulations of the detonation cellular structure have been undertaken, with the same combustion model for Al/air and Al/O₂ mixtures. The cell size is found to be λ = 37.5 cm for a rich (r = 1.61) aluminium–air mixture, and λ = 7.5 cm for a stoichiometric aluminium-oxygen mixture, which is in reasonable agreement with available experimental data. Calculations performed in large-scale configurations (up to 25 m in length and 1.5 m in lateral direction) suggest that the critical initiation energy and predetonation radius for direct initiation of the unconfined detonation in the aluminium–air mixture are, respectively, 10 kg of TNT and 8 m. Moreover, numerical simulations reveal that the structure of the detonation wave behind the leading front is even more complicated than in pure gaseous mixtures, due to two-phase flow effects. This paper is based on work that was presented at the 21st International Colloquium on the Dynamics of Explosions and Reactive Systems, Poitiers, France, July 23–27, 2007.     

高速弹丸诱导斜爆轰激波结构实验研究

斜爆轰推进系统在高超声速推进领域具有广阔的应用前景,其释热迅速、比冲高、燃烧室结构简单的优点吸引研究人员的持续关注.然而,斜爆轰的地面试验同时涉及到高速试验环境模拟、燃料与氧化剂混合、高温燃烧流场结构测量等技术难点,当前国内外系统的试验研究仍然十分有限,难以支撑斜爆轰发动机的研制.为了研究自持传播的斜爆轰激波结构与波面流动特性,基于爆轰驱动二级轻气炮开展了高速弹丸诱导斜爆轰实验研究,使用直径30 mm球头圆柱形弹丸发射进入充满氢/氧可燃混合气体的实验舱中以起爆斜爆轰波,并采用两种阴影技术对实验流动结构进行测量.实验中在不同速度、不同充气压力下观察到三种弹丸诱导激波结构,即激波诱导燃烧、弹丸起爆爆轰波和相对弹丸驻定的斜爆轰波,实验舱充气压力下降则会造成爆轰横波尺度增加与波面流动失稳.实验中,斜爆轰激波角与理论分析结果吻合较好,弹丸气动不稳定带来较大的弹丸攻角会对激波角测量带来一定偏差.通过对斜爆轰波波面法向传播速度的测量发现,随着远离弹丸,斜爆轰传播速度由弹丸飞行速度衰减至接近实验气体CJ速度,弹丸速度的降低会加速斜爆轰波传播速度的衰减.     

Intensification of a detonation wave in the zone of secondary reactions in a two-phase medium

A method is proposed for the numerical calculation of one-dimensional nonsteady-state flows of a mixture of a gas with particles, based on the separation of a system of differential equations for a two-phase medium into two subsystems. The problem is solved concerning the propagation of a plane detonation wave in a mixture of a detonating gas with particles, behind the front of which secondary chemical reactions are taking place between the vapors of the particle material and the detonation products. The velocity profiles of the gas and of the thermodynamic functions behind the detonation wave front are determined, and also the dependence of the detonation velocity on the distance to the point of initiation. The conditions for intensification of the detonation wave are obtained in the zone of secondary reactions.Leningrad. Translated from Izvestiya Akademii Nauk SSSR, Mekhanika Zhidkosti i Gaza, No. 5, pp. 92–96, September–October, 1972.     

Existence of the detonation cellular structure in two-phase hybrid mixtures

The cellular detonation structure has been recorded for hybrid hydrogen/air/aluminium mixtures on 1.0 m 0.110 m soot plates. Addition of aluminium particles to the gaseous mixture changes its detonation velocity. For very fine particles and flakes, the detonation velocity is augmented and, in the same time, the cell width diminishes as compared with the characteristic cell size of the mixture without particles. On the contrary, for large particles, the detonation velocity decreases and the cell size becomes larger than . It appears that the correlation law between the cell size and the detonation velocity in the hybrid mixture is similar to the correlation between the cell size and the rate of detonation overdrive displayed for homogeneous gaseous mixtures. Moreover, this correlation law remains valid in hybrid mixtures for detonation velocities smaller than the value D of the mixture without particles. Received 10 May 2001 / Accepted 12 August 2002 Published online 19 December 2002 Correspondence to: B. Veyssiere (e-mail: veyssiere@lcd.ensma.fr)     

The detonation burning of a fuel mixture resulting from a double explosion

A study is made of the propagation of a multifront detonation burning in a fuel mixture consisting of a gaseous fuel and an oxidant with additions of combustible solid or liquid particles arising as a result of a double point explosion. In such combustible media it is possible for there to be propagation of several detonation or burning fronts following one after the other. The easily igniting gaseous fuel burns in the first detonation wave, which propagates in the gaseous mixture with particles which are heated by the products of the explosion, ignite and burn in the second detonation wave or in the flame front. Self-similar regimes of propagation of such waves in an idealized formulation were studied in [1].Translated from Izvestiya Akademii Nauk SSSR, Mekhanika Zhidkosti i Gaza, No. 2, pp. 126–131, March–April, 1985.     

Cinematographic investigations of the explosively driven dispersion and ignition of solid particles

We present results of an experimental study of blast wave propagation and particle dispersion induced by a free-field detonation of spherical charges made of a 125 g C-4 explosive surrounded by inert or reactive particles. Visualization of the flow was performed with a high-frame-rate video camera. Background oriented Schlieren (BOS) methods were adapted to process the images that allowed the detection of the shock waves. BOS analysis also revealed that particles form agglomerates, which may generate precursor perturbations on the recorded pressure signals. While inert glass particles notably delay the shock, the combustion of aluminium particles can accelerate it, especially if they are small atomized or flaked particles. When a mixture of inert glass particles with reactive particles is dispersed, the agglomerates are formed by coalescence of both materials.     

旋转爆轰胞格结构的实验和数值研究

对爆轰波在环形圆管(预混气体为2H2/O2/Ar)内的传播分别进行了实验和数值研究。实验研究 采用烟迹板记录了环形圆管内爆轰波的胞格结构。数值计算利用二阶附加半隐的Runge-Kutta法和五阶 WENO格式分别离散欧拉方程的时间和空间导数项,采用基元反应简化模型描述化学反应过程,得到了旋转 爆轰的流场及数值胞格结构。实验和数值模拟结果表明:爆轰波在圆环管中传播时,由于圆环的内壁发散、外 壁收敛,圆环内侧爆轰强度小于外侧,胞格尺寸较大;内侧OH 的分布区域大于外侧,浓度较低。旋转爆轰的 这种性质,使爆轰波能以稳定的角速度绕轴旋转。     

以DSD理论和LS方法为基础的程序燃烧法

给出了二维弯曲爆轰波后产物流场计算方法。爆轰波阵面传播规律满足Detonation Shock Dynamics (DSD)理论并用level set (LS)方法计算,波阵面传播规律与波后流场的耦合通过程序燃烧法实现,反应进程变量可作为LS函数的函数给出。爆轰波从刚性细管道向粗管道传播产生绕射的二维计算结果表明,化学反应速率不影响波后流场分布,只影响反应区结构。此方法可用于钝感炸药的驱动计算问题。     

Decoupling and recoupling of detonation waves associated with sudden expansion

Detonation propagation behavior associated with sudden expansions has been investigated both experimentally and numerically. Different mechanisms, from sustained propagation to detonation failure and reinitiation including shock and flame front decoupling and recoupling have been observed with the schlieren technique. The shock-induced flame propagation has been modeled with two-step chemistry and structured two-dimensional CFD on arbitrary geometries. The results of the numerical simulations show good correspondence to the variety of phenomena observed in experiments. Thus the numerical simulation can be used to study detonation propagation in complex geometries. It provides a tool for the design of safety devices and aids experimental investigations. Received 4 August 1995 / Accepted 25 April 1996     

Detonation and deflagration initiation at the focusing of shock waves in combustible gaseous mixture

Abstract. Detonation and deflagration initiation under focusing conditions in a lean hydrogen-air mixture was experimentally investigated. The experiments were carried out in a shock tube equipped with the laser schlieren system and pressure transducers. Two-dimensional wedges (53° and 90°), semi-cylinder and parabola, were used as the focusing elements. The peculiarities of mild and strong ignition inside the reflector cavity were visualized. A hydrogen-nitrogen mixture was taken for comparison between reactive and inert mixture. It was found that mild ignition inside the reflector cavity can lead to detonation initiation outside the cavity. Schlieren pictures of the process were obtained and the dependence of the distance of detonation initiation on Mach number of the incident shock wave was established. Received 30 August 1999 / Accepted 23 February 2000