A compact shock-assisted free-piston driver for impulse facilities

A free-piston driver that employs entropy-raising shock processes with diaphragm rupture has been constructed, which promises significant theoretical advantages over isentropic compression. Results from a range of conditions with helium and argon driver gases are reported. Significant performance gains were achieved in some test cases. Heat losses are shown to have a strong effect on driver processes. Measurements compare well with predictions from a quasi-one-dimensional numerical code. Received 7 September 1996 / Accepted 5 October 1996     

Numerical study of free-piston shock tunnel performance

A free-piston shock tunnel (FPST) is one of the most useful ground testing facilities for hypervelocity flow research of re-entry vehicles and scramjet engines. For an efficient operation with tuned piston motion, the design of facility and the comprehension of the physical phenomena in a FPST, a numerical simulation which can properly predicts the flow with actual losses is required. But there are few successful numerical methods which can simulate its overall performance. In the present study, numerical method was developed by using the KRC shock capturing scheme and by modeling the flow losses in suitable forms for a quasi-1D numerical computation. The present numerical results were compared with the data obtained in two different facilities, T4 and T5. The applicability of the present numerical method as a design tool is discussed briefly.This article was processed using Springer-Verlag T_EX Shock Waves macro package 1.0 and the AMS fonts, developed by the American Mathematical Society.     

On the compression process in a free-piston shock-tunnel

Preliminary results in the Marseille free-piston shock-tunnel facility are presented. The compression of the driver gas by the piston is studied experimentally for two different geometries of the end of the compression tube. Peak pressures obtained with the end of the compression tube closed, and with bursting of the diaphragm separating the high pressure from the low pressure chamber, are compared with calculated values in the cases of N₂ and He as driver gases. A phenomenon of accoustic resonance has been uncovered, generating strong pressure oscillations which, if not properly dealt with, could impair the quality of the useful flow in such a facility.This article was processed using Springer-Verlag T_EX Shock Waves macro package 1.0 and the AMS fonts, developed by the American Mathematical Society.     

A new, friction controlled, piston actuated diaphragmless shock tube driver

A new friction operated single piston shock tube driver design that is capable of generating shock waves of Mach number 1.1 to 2 is presented. By using different test gases and evacuating the driven section Mach 5 shock waves can easily be produced. The driver is efficient with shock wave Mach numbers within 9% of that predicted by ideal shock tube theory and the non-dimensional formation length lies between 20 and 40. The brake pad mechanism, that restrains the piston until tests commence, removes the necessity of venting an auxiliary chamber rapidly, thus speeding up the displacement of the piston. It is believed that the design is a practical, simple and cost effective way of generating reproducible shock tube tests with very short test turn around times, while removing the necessity of using a diaphragm and exposing the test gases to the atmosphere. Results for three pistons with masses of 4.4, 0.71 and 0.38 kg (brass, PVC and hollow aluminium respectively) with driver gauge pressures of between 2 and 50 bar (Mach 1.2 to 2) are given. Received 27 February 1998 / Accepted 8 July 1998     

A technique for rapid two-stage dynamic tensile loading of polymers

A method for rapid two-stage dynamic-dynamic tensile loading of polymers, based on a tensile Hopkinson bar apparatus, is established. In this technique, the initial incident wave and its reflection are used to load a specimen in quick succession. Consequently, the specimen is stressed, momentarily unloaded, then reloaded until fracture. By adopting appropriate assumptions, a procedure to obtain the associated stress-strain curves for such double-stage loading is formulated. These assumptions are examined experimentally and analytically to substantiate their validity. To verify the proposed approach, a relatively rate-insensitive material, LEXAN 141 polycarbonate, was subjected to two-stage dynamic tension. The stress-strain curves obtained via the procedure established were compared with results from static loading. Favorable correlation between the two indicates that the proposed technique can be applied to the study of load history effects on the dynamic behavior of polymeric materials.     

Mass spectrometric measurements of driver gas arrival in the T4 free-piston shock-tunnel

Available test time is an important issue for ground-based flow research, particularly for impulse facilities such as shock tunnels, where test times of the order of several ms are typical. The early contamination of the test flow by the driver gas in such tunnels restricts the test time. This paper reports measurements of the driver gas arrival time in the test section of the T4 free-piston shock-tunnel over the total enthalpy range 3–17 MJ/kg, using a time-of-flight mass spectrometer. The results confirm measurements made by previous investigators using a choked duct driver gas detector at these conditions, and extend the range of previous mass spectrometer measurements to that of 3–20 MJ/kg. Comparisons of the contamination behaviour of various piston-driven reflected shock tunnels are also made. PACS 07.75.th; 47.40.-x     

Near-resonant holographic interferometry of hypersonic flow

Near-Resonant Holographic Interferometry is a powerful technique which extends the established advantages of conventional holographic interferometry by allowing a species-specific number density to be determined. It has been tested in the harsh flow conditions generated in a high enthalpy facility yielding information about the shock shape on a cylindrical body and on the distribution of a trace species seeded into the flow. Received 7 April 2000 / Accepted 1 November 2000     

Flow tagging velocimetry in a superorbital expansion tube

Abstract. A non-intrusive laser-based method for direct velocity measurements has been demonstrated in a superorbital flow facility. The method is based upon laser enhanced ionisation velocimetry in which a tagged region is created by two step excitation of sodium and subsequent collisional ionisation. The achieved depletion of neutral atoms is then interrogated by planar laser induced fluorescence. The velocities were measured in the freestream at a superorbital condition yielding km/s. These results compare favourably with the measured shock speeds in the facility. Received 15 March 1999 / Accepted 2 March 2000     

Diagnostic modelling of an expansion tube operating condition

Computational simulations of an expansion tube were conducted to estimate flow parameters and verify experimental uncertainties. Two types of simulations of the complete facility were undertaken: a one-dimensional simulation, and a hybrid simulation where a one-dimensional simulation of the shock tube section was coupled with a two-dimensional simulation of the acceleration tube. Good agreement between the one-dimensional simulations and experiments were obtained in the shock tube portion of the facility. In the acceleration section, initial two-dimensional simulations did not match the experimentally measured pitot pressure and showed a discrepancy in the shock speed. Further studies examined how the accelerator gas composition affected shock speed, static pressure and pitot pressure levels in expansion tube operation. Subsequent two-dimensional simulations, using an 8% level of air contamination in helium, showed reasonable agreement with experimental data. This prediction of air contamination was later confirmed with experimental measurements of the air partial pressure before operation.      

Detonation driver for enhancing shock tube performance

The development of a shock-induced detonation driver for enhancing the performance of a shock tube is described. The detonation wave is induced by the expansion of helium or air. Various gaseous fuel-oxidizer combinations are examined. This method produces a detonation wave which propagates downstream that transitions into a shock wave in the driven section. High-enthalpy flows with a maximum total temperature of 4200 K and a maximum total pressure of 34 atm in the driven tube are achieved. The problems of achieving the so-called perfectly-driven mode as well as those of inadequate fuel-oxidizer mixing are discussed.Received: 26 April 2002, Accepted: 23 December 2002, Published online: 28 April 2003     

Optical study of a light diaphragm rupture process in an expansion tube

Abstract. Rupture of a light cellophane diaphragm in an expansion tube has been studied by an optical method. The influence of the light diaphragm on test flow generation has long been recognised, however the diaphragm rupture mechanism is less well known. It has been previously postulated that the diaphragm ruptures around its periphery due to the dynamic pressure loading of the shock wave, with the diaphragm material at some stage being removed from the flow to allow the shock to accelerate to the measured speeds downstream. The images obtained in this series of experiments are the first to show the mechanism of diaphragm rupture and mass removal in an expansion tube. A light diaphragm was impulsively loaded via a shock wave and a series of images was recorded holographically throughout the rupture process, showing gradual destruction of the diaphragm. Features such as the diaphragm material, the interface between gases, and a reflected shock were clearly visualised. Both qualitative and quantitative aspects of the rupture dynamics were derived from the images and compared with existing one-dimensional theory. Received 10 April 1999 / Accepted 17 April 2000     

Gaseous detonation driver for a shock tunnel

The concept of a shock tunnel with gaseous detonation driver is discussed. A detonation driver presents an alternative to a free-piston driver because comparable values of high enthalpy can be attained, however, without the fast movement of a heavy piston. Wave diagrams, pressure and temperature distributions are presented. Finally, first experimental results are given.This article was processed using Springer-Verlag T_EX Shock Waves macro package 1.0 and the AMS fonts, developed by the American Mathematical Society.     

Frequency analysis of a two-stage planetary gearbox using two different methodologies

This paper is focused on the characterization of the frequency content of vibration signals issued from a two-stage planetary gearbox. To achieve this goal, two different methodologies are adopted: the lumped-parameter modeling approach and the phenomenological modeling approach. The two methodologies aim to describe the complex vibrations generated by a two-stage planetary gearbox. The phenomenological model describes directly the vibrations as measured by a sensor fixed outside the fixed ring gear with respect to an inertial reference frame, while results from a lumped-parameter model are referenced with respect to a rotating frame and then transferred into an inertial reference frame. Two different case studies of the two-stage planetary gear are adopted to describe the vibration and the corresponding spectra using both models. Each case presents a specific geometry and a specific spectral structure.     

Superorbital expansion tube tests of a caret waverider

A computational and experimental study was conducted to assess the potential of testing waverider configurations in a high-performance, short-duration expansion tube facility. The tests were performed in the newly commissioned X3 superorbital expansion tube and provide the first experimental data of a waverider tested at a stagnation enthalpy and equivalent flight speed exceeding 40 MJ/kg and 9 km/s, respectively. Two simple caret configurations were chosen as benchmark test cases to test the use of the facility, instrumentation and numerical models to investigate these flows. The general performance of the sharp and blunt leading edge waveriders at angles of attack ranging from 0° to 5° were analyzed and compared to CFD and theoretical predictions. For the conditions tested, the presence of a strong viscous interaction caused the shock wave to be detached from the leading edge of the models resulting in a significant loss in performance. An analytical model was developed to account for the strong coupling between the shock wave and boundary layer. Results were shown to be in very good agreement with CFD estimates for both configurations at all angles of attack considered. Finite-rate chemistry CFD simulations indicated that real gas effects other than the residual levels of nonequilibrium freestream dissociation present in the expansion tube flow were negligible for the conditions tested. The study also revealed that a past flow visualization technique gave a false indication of the leading edge shock location. An improved experimental visualization technique was successfully tested with results from these tests correlating well with computational estimates. This study successfully demonstrated the use of the facility to study waverider performance at speeds representative of orbital flight.      

Contact surface tailoring condition for shock tubes with different driver and driven section diameters

The contact surface tailoring conditions normally used for shock tubes do not apply to shock tubes with different driver and driven section diameters. A theoretical model is presented that predicts the contact surface tailoring condition for a convergent shock tube, designed to have a larger driver cross-section area than the driven section. The tailoring condition previously developed for shock tubes with uniform driver and driven diameters can be recovered from this model. Representative on- and off-model performance is verified experimentally in a high-pressure convergent shock. Tailoring conditions calculated with the model are also given for commonly used driven gases (Ar, N₂ and air) and He–N₂ driver mixtures as a function of driver/driven area ratio.      

Motion analysis of a diaphragmless driver section for a narrow channel shock tube

We set up a diaphragmless driver section as the first step towards developing a shock tube at microscale which has high experimental efficiency, independent of tube dimensions or the ratio of driver and driven pressure. The experiment described in this paper is performed by using our diaphragmless driver section. We measured the operating time and the velocity of the fast opening valve. Additionally we have introduced and calculated the differential equation, by using the Runge–Kutta–Gill method, to understand the motion of the fast opening valve. We achieved good agreement between experimental and calculated results for the velocity. We can conclude that the diaphragmless driver section is highly suitable for a narrow channel shock tube.      

前向爆轰驱动变截面激波管特性的数值模拟

讨论的激波管由氢氧前向爆轰产生高压驱动气体、并配有收缩截面段,它能产生高焓超高速气流.对此进行了模拟.既对变截面角度的作用,两端截面积比的作用又对比正向反向爆轰有何不同效果做了探讨.正向爆轰时主膜处的收缩段产生的汇聚作用既加强主激波又产生反向激波,缓解了爆轰波阵面后紧跟着的稀疏波导致主激波衰减偏快的不利影响.当收缩角度在30°和45°之间时,主激波的强度较高,衰减较小;当β接近90°时在主激波传播过一小段距离之后,主激波后高温高速气流较均匀,且主激波的衰减最小,具有实用价值.驱动段与被驱动段的截面积比越大,主激波的强度越高,但是最初阶段衰减也越快.反向爆轰时产生的主激波衰减最缓,但是同样的主激波强度需要的驱动段与被驱动段初始压力比前向爆轰高1个量级.     

A computational technique for high enthalpy shock tube and shock tunnel flow simulation

A contact discontinuity tracking method with a specially designed moving grid is developed to eliminate the interface smearing completely. In order to precisely locate the contact surface, an updated Riemann solver for unsteady one-dimensional inviscid flows is also developed to allow consideration of the specific heat ratio change across the shock wave. These two new computational techniques are illustrated in a high Mach number shock tube flow field computation. Received 30 October 1997 / Accepted 6 December 1997     

Test-time extension behind reflected shock waves using CO2–He and C3H8–He driver mixtures

To study combustion chemistry at low temperatures in a shock tube, it is of great importance to increase experimental test times, and this can be done by tailoring the interface between the driver and driven gases. Using unconventional driver-gas tailoring with the assistance of tailoring curves, shock-tube test times were increased from 1 to 15 ms for reflected-shock temperatures below 1,000 K. Provided in this paper is the introduction of tailoring curves, produced from a one-dimensional perfect gas model for a wide range of driver gases and the production and demonstration of successful driver mixtures containing helium combined with either propane or carbon dioxide. The He/CO₂ and He/C₃H₈ driver mixtures provide a unique way to produce a tailored interface and, hence, longer test times, when facility modification is not an option. The tailoring curves can be used to guide future applications of this technique to other configurations. Nonreacting validation experiments using driver mixtures identified from the tailoring curves were performed over a range of reflected-shock temperatures from approximately 800 to 1,400 K, and some examples of ignition-time experiments that could not have otherwise been erformed are presented.     

Experimental study on the tuned operation of a free piston driver

An experimental study of the tuned operation of a free-piston driver is described. Two series of experiments were carried out. The first was performed to validate a theory which has been developed recently to predict the operation with a small free piston-driver named NAL-CTA. The driver has a transparent window at the end of the compression tube to allow observation of piston motion. In the second, a theoretically determined length of piston buffer was used to tune the operating condition. Piston collision speeds of less than 3 m/sec were observed. A quasi-one-dimensional numerical code including leakage of driver gas through the piston clearance gap was derived. The numerical result agreed well with the experimental result. It is concluded that tuned operation, by using an appropriate length of the piston buffer, can be extrapolated to large-size tunnels. Received 6 March 1998 / Accepted 29 October 1998