An experimental investigation of the propagation mechanism of critical deflagration waves that lead to the onset of detonation

The reflection of a CJ detonation from a perforated plate is used to generate high speed deflagrations downstream in order to investigate the critical conditions that lead to the onset of detonation. Different perforated plates were used to control the turbulence in the downstream deflagration waves. Streak Schlieren photography, ionization probes and pressure transducers are used to monitor the flow field and the transition to detonation. Stoichiometric mixtures of acetylene–oxygen and propane–oxygen were tested at low initial pressures. In some cases, acetylene–oxygen was diluted with 80% argon in order to render the mixture more “stable” (i.e., more regular detonation cell structure). The results show that prior to successful detonation initiation, a deflagration is formed that propagates at about half the CJ detonation velocity of the mixture. This “critical” deflagration (which propagates at a relatively constant velocity for a certain duration prior to the onset of detonation) is comprised of a leading shock wave followed by an extended turbulent reaction zone. The critical deflagration speed is not dependent on the turbulence characteristics of the perforated plate but rather on the energetics of the mixture like a CJ detonation (i.e., the deflagration front is driven by the expansion of the combustion products). Hence, the critical deflagration is identified as a CJ deflagration. The high intensity turbulence that is required to sustain its propagation is maintained via chemical instabilities in the reaction zone due to the coupling of pressure fluctuations with the energy release. Therefore, in “unstable” mixtures, critical deflagrations can be supported for long durations, whereas in “stable” mixtures, deflagrations decay as the initial plate generated turbulence decays. The eventual onset of detonation is postulated to be a result of the amplification of pressure waves (i.e., turbulence) that leads to the formation of local explosion centers via the SWACER mechanism during the pre-detonation period.     

Correlation of resonance scattering and superconductivity in PbxSn1−xTe solid solutions doped with In

The Hall coefficient and resistivity were measured on a series of samples of Pb_xSn_1−xTe with 0x0.45 and 5 at% of InTe as a dopant. All samples show p-type conductivity with hole concentration in the range from 10¹⁹ to 10²¹ cm⁻³ at 77 K. A slight decrease of Hall mobility and corresponding increase in the scattering cross-section of holes by impurity atoms was observed with an extremum at x=0.25. All samples exhibit a transition to a superconducting state with the critical temperatures ranging from 0.3 to 3.0 K. The maximum of dH_c2/dT (where H_c2 is the second critical field) correlates with the fall in mobility (or rise in the scattering cross-section of holes), which shows that the resonance scattering mechanism is playing an important role in the enhancement of superconducting properties of these solid solution materials.     

Reaction propagation modes in millimeter-scale tubes for ethylene/oxygen mixtures

Effects of tube diameter and equivalence ratio on reaction front propagations of ethylene/oxygen mixtures in capillary tubes were experimentally analyzed using high speed cinematography. The inner diameters of the tubes investigated were 0.5, 1, 2 and 3 mm. The flame was ignited at the center of the 1.5 m long smooth tube under ambient pressure and temperature before propagated towards the exits in the opposite directions. A total of five reaction propagation scenarios, including deflagration-to-detonation transition followed by steady detonation wave transmission (DDT/C–J detonation), oscillating flame, steady deflagration, galloping detonation and quenching flame, were identified. DDT/C–J detonation mode was observed for all tubes for equivalence ratios in the vicinity of stoichiometry. The velocity for the steady detonation wave propagation was approximately Chapman–Jouguet velocity for 1, 2, and 3 mm I.D. tubes; however, a velocity deficit of 5% was found for the case in 0.5 mm I.D. tube. For leaner mixtures, an oscillating flame mode was found for tubes with diameters of 1 to 3 mm, and the reaction front travelled in a steady deflagrative flame mode with velocities around 2–3 m/s when the mixture equivalence ratio becomes even leaner. Galloping detonation wave propagation was the dominant mode for the fuel lean regime in the 0.5 mm I.D. tube. For rich mixtures beyond the detonation limits, a fast flame followed by flame quenching was observed.     

Detonation properties of stoichiometric gaseous n-heptane/oxygen/argon mixtures

A study of detonation velocity and cellular structure for stoichiometric heptane/oxygen and for some stoichiometric heptane/oxygen/argon mixtures is carried out in a shock tube at low initial pressure. The critical conditions for the detonation onset and for the propagation of a self-sustained detonation wave are determined. A simplified form of the ZND model used in conjunction with a validated detailed kinetic model leads to the determination of the proportionality factor, A, between the detonation cell width, λ, and the induction distance, Δ, in the detonation wave. This A factor is of practical importance to estimate the detonation properties of n-heptane based mixtures including n-heptane/air. The prediction of detonation cell size λ for n-heptane based mixtures is discussed according to the recent semi-empirical detonation model of Gavrikov et al. The cell sizes predicted according to this detonation model are underestimated by a factor of about 8. The limitations of this model are underlined when applied to n-heptane based mixtures.     

Detonability limits in thin annular channels

In this paper, detonability limits in two-dimensional annular channels are investigated. Since the channel heights are small in comparison to the tube diameter, curvature effects can be neglected and the annular channels can be considered to be essentially two-dimensional. Mixtures that are highly diluted with argon are used since previous investigations seem to indicate that detonations in such mixtures are “stable” in that cellular instabilities play minor roles on the propagation of the detonation. For stable detonations where the ZND structure is valid, boundary layer effects can be modeled as a flow divergence term in the conservation of mass equation following the pioneering work of Fay [J.A. Fay, Phys. Fluids 2(3) (1959) 283–289]. Expansion due to flow divergence in the reaction zone results in a velocity deficit. There exists a maximum deficit when an eigenvalue detonation velocity can no longer be found, which can be taken as the onset of the detonability limits. Experimentally, it was found that unlike “unstable” detonations, the detonability limits for “stable” detonations are well-defined. No unstable near-limit phenomena (e.g., galloping detonations) was observed. Good agreement is found between the theoretical predictions and the experimentally obtained velocity deficits and limits in the two channel heights of 2.2 and 6.9 mm for hydrogen–oxygen and acetylene–oxygen mixtures diluted with over 50% argon. It may be concluded that at least for these special mixtures where the detonation is “stable,” the failure mechanism is due to flow divergence caused by the negative displacement thickness of the boundary layer behind the leading shock front of the detonation wave.     

An “instantaneous” distribution of the ionization-passive electrons and holes under irradiation of a dielectric by intense electron or laser beams

A method is worked out for calculation of an “instantaneous” energy distribution of the ionization-passive electrons and holes resulting from the electron-electron collisions before the onset of electron-phonon relaxation under 10⁻¹⁵–10⁻¹⁴ s irradiation of a dielectric by an intense electron or laser beam. The method is based on the solution of a system of integral-differential kinetic equations of general form. The Auger and impact ionization as well as hole recoil due to the momentum conservation law are taken into account in calculations. The “instantaneous” distribution is calculated in NaCl under irradiation of the sample by a high-density electron beam. The “instantaneous” distribution of ionization-passive electrons and holes is the initial one in solutions of all kinetic equations describing further relaxation of electron excitations in irradiated materials.__________Translated from Izvestiya Vysshikh Uchebnykh Zavedenii, Fizika, No. 11, pp. 15–22, November, 2004.     

Near extremal Schwarzschild-de Sitter black hole area spectrum from quasi-normal modes

Using the quasi-normal modes frequency of near extremal Schwar-zschild-de Sitter black holes, we obtain area and entropy spectrum for the black hole horizon. By using Bohr-Sommerfeld quantization for an adiabatic invariant I = ∫dEω(E), where E is the energy of the system and ω(E) is the vibrational frequency, we arrive at an equally spaced mass spectrum. In the other terms, we extend directly the Kunstatter’s approach kun [6] to determine mass and entropy spectrum of near extremal Schwarzschild-de Sitter black holes which are asymptotically de Sitter rather than asymptotically flat. We show the mass and area spectrum is equally spaced only for a fixed l. For different l there are multiplets with different values of spacing.     

以HMX为基的两种压装高密度炸药的燃烧转爆轰实验研究

 为研究以HMX为基的固体高能炸药的燃烧转爆轰性能,采用同轴电探针和压力传感器测试技术对常用的A、B两种压装高密度高能炸药开展燃烧转爆轰实验,研究装药组分和约束条件对压装高密度炸药燃烧转爆轰性能的影响。实验结果表明：这两种压装高密度炸药难以发生燃烧转爆轰;在强约束条件下（45号钢,内径25.4 mm、外径65 mm、长度600 mm）,A压装炸药（HMX质量分数为95%,密度为1.86 g/cm³）基本实现了燃烧转爆轰,爆轰诱导距离约为545 mm;在相同的实验条件下,A压装炸药比B压装炸药（HMX质量分数为87%,密度为1.84 g/cm³）更易于发生燃烧转爆轰,即A压装炸药的安定性相对较差。     

Ultrasonic transmission through multiple-sublattice subwavelength holes arrays

The ultrasonic transmission through plates perforated with 2 × 2 or 3 × 3 square array of subwavelength holes per unit cell are studied by numerical simulations. Calculations are obtained by means of a theoretical model under the rigid-solid assumption. It is demonstrated that when the inter-hole distance within the unit cell is reduced, new transmission dips appear resulting from Wood anomalies that have influence on the second and the third order Fabry-Perot peak. When the inter-hole distance within the unit cell is reduced, the transmission spectrum of the multiple-sublattice holes arrays tends to the transmission spectrum of a plate perforated with only one hole in the unit cell.     

Peel-off case failure in thermal explosions observed by the deflagration cylinder test

We have discovered a previously unidentified thermal explosion mode using the Los Alamos deflagration cylinder test (DFCT). The DFCT is a “pipe bomb”-style test similar to the detonation cylinder test (DTCT), which has been used for many years to calibrate detonation product equations of state. The shot is heated in an oven to a uniform test temperature. The pre-heated high explosive (HE) is triggered by a hot wire initiator on one end. The tube is back-illuminated by a bright light source, and its combustion-driven deformation and subsequent break-up are observed by a high-speed framing camera. Like the DTCT, the DFCT tube wall motion provides the primary diagnostic. A variety of reactive responses are possible, including quasi-steady deflagration and deflagration-to-detonation transition. This paper focuses on the behavior of the HMX-based explosive PBX 9501 at 155 °C. Under this condition burning appeared to occur only at the HE/tube interface, causing the tube to peel away from the HE core. Peel-off propagated as a wave that traveled along the tube at 500 m/s. This failure mode resulted in vigorous case venting, but the response was otherwise benign. We derive a steady peel-off-wave model that reproduces the essential observed features for realistic PBX 9501 parameter values.     

Numerical simulations of flame propagation and DDT in obstructed channels filled with hydrogen–air mixture

We study flame acceleration and deflagration-to-detonation transition (DDT) in channels with obstacles using 2D and 3D reactive Navier–Stokes numerical simulations. The energy release rate for the stoichiometric H₂–air mixture is modeled by a one-step Arrhenius kinetics. Computations show that at initial stages, the flame and flow acceleration is caused by thermal expansion of hot combustion products. At later stages, shock–flame interactions, Rayleigh–Taylor, Richtmyer–Meshkov, and Kelvin–Helmholtz instabilities, and flame–vortex interactions in obstacle wakes become responsible for the increase of the flame surface area, the energy-release rate, and, eventually, the shock strength. Computations performed for different channel widths d with the distance between obstacles d and the constant blockage ratio 0.5 reproduce the main regimes observed in experiments: choking flames, quasi-detonations, and detonations. For quasi-detonations, both the initial DDT and succeeding detonation reignitions occur when the Mach stem, created by the reflection of the leading shock from the bottom wall, collides with an obstacle. As the size of the system increases, the time to DDT and the distance to DDT increase linearly with d². We also observe an intermediate regime of fast flame propagation in which local detonations periodically appear behind the leading shock, but do not reach it.     

Numerical study on three-dimensional C-J detonation waves: detailed propagating mechanism and existence of OH radical

An unsteady three-dimensional simulation is performed for a hydrogen/air C–J detonation in a rectangular tube, where a detailed chemical reaction model is used to reveal the C–J detonation structure. In this simulation, detailed propagating detonation structures for a diagonal mode are described in three-dimensions. The detonation front structures, the line of triple points, and the strong explosions at the corners of the rectangular tube are revealed by using a three-dimensional numerical visualization. From the spatial isosurface profiles of H₂ mass fraction, it is confirmed that the triple point lines have a role of “shutter” to generate unburned gas pockets and become of a ring shape behind the detonation front due to its explosion. The explosion process and its influence on an induction delay are observed by visualizing the spatial isosurface profiles of OH mass fraction. Moreover, a high “peninsula-shaped” OH mass fraction area, which has been experimentally reported, is reproduced on the side wall of the rectangular tube.     

Observation of a threshold effect in the anomalous J/ψ suppression

We report on a search for a phase transition from ordinary nuclear matter to a state of deconfined quarks and gluons as predicted by lattice QCD calculations. A new measurement of charmonium production in Pb-Pb interactions at 158 GeV/c per nucleon agrees with our previous results and confirms the anomalous J/ψ suppression we had already observed on a significantly smaller data sample. New event selection and analysis techniques show that, for peripheral collisions, the J/ψ cross-section per nucleon-nucleon collision agrees with the precise suppression pattern inferred from a wide range of measurements extending from p-p up to S-U collisions. As the collisions become more central, the Pb-Pb cross-section exhibits a clear departure from this normal behaviour. The onset of the anomalous J/ψ suppression reported here is the first clear observation of a threshold effect in heavy ion collisions and can be considered as a strong indication of the production of a deconfined quark-gluon phase in central Pb-Pb collisions.     

Flame acceleration and the transition to detonation of stoichiometric ethylene/oxygen in microscale tubes

Flame propagation in capillary tubes with smooth circular cross-sections and diameters of 0.5, 1.0, and 2.0 mm are investigated using high-speed photography. Flames were found to propagate and accelerate to detonation speed in stoichiometric ethylene and oxygen mixtures initially at room temperature in all three tube diameters. Ignition occurs at the midpoint along the length of the tube. We observe for the first time transition to detonation in micro-tubes. Detonation was observed with both spark and hot-wire ignition. Tubes with larger diameters take longer to transition to detonation. In fact, transition distance scales with the diameter in our 1.0 and 2.0 mm cases with spark ignition. Flame structures are observed for various stages of the process. Three types of flame propagation modes were observed in the 0.5 mm tube with spark ignition: (a) acceleration to Chapman–Jouguet (CJ) detonation speed followed by constant CJ wave propagation, (b) acceleration to CJ speed, followed by the detonation wave failure, and (c) flame acceleration to a constant speed below the CJ speed of approximately 1600 m/s. The current detonation mechanism observed in capillary tubes is applicable to predetonators for pulsed detonation, micro propulsion devices, safety issues, and addresses fundamental issues raised by recent theoretical and numerical analyses.     

Retardation characteristics and birefringence of a multiple-order crystalline quartz plate

A crystalline quartz plate of thickness 1.070 mm is calibrated between 370 and 794 nm. Throughout this spectral interval, the retardance varied by 32π and the plate introduced quarterwave retardance 16 times at different wavelengths. The birefringence (n_e−n_o) of crystalline quartz was calculated as a single quantity and varied from 0.00971 at 370 nm to 0.00891 at 794 nm. All measurements were carried out at 23°C.     

Enhancement of the Debye frequency due to a charged-boson exchange model of high temperature superconductors

A simple model of 1-2-3 superconductors in which electrons (holes) in CuO₂ planes interact via exchange with two kinds of bosons is considered. Namely, via one-phonon exchange (weak coupling-Cooper pairing), and via paired holes on oxygen O⁰ from Cu-O chains. The mechanisms of paired holes exchange (“charged bosons”-“O⁰” exchange) considered here in strong coupling leads to the enhancement of the Fröhlich constant g_f (g²_F→Kg²F), and as a consequence to the enhancement of the Debye frequency ω_D^K=f^Kω_D, f^K 1. In the proposed model the exact expression for the constant K is derived.     

Parameter-dependent resonant third-order susceptibility contributed by inter-band transitions in quantum wells

The resonance enhancement of the third-order nonlinear optical susceptibility χ⁽³⁾ for degenerated four-wave mixing, due to the transition between valence band and conduction band, in InGaN/GaN multi-quantum wells have been calculated. The band structures of valence bands and conduction bands and the wave functions are calculated by the theory of effective mass. The contributions of the subbands of holes (heavy holes, light holes and the spin-orbit split-off bands) to χ⁽³⁾ in the different directions are discussed. The correlations between χ⁽³⁾ in the different directions and the width of the quantum wells, and the constituents of the quantum wells are obtained.     

On the possibility of binding of two holes in an antiferromagnetic state

The energy of a pair of holes in a half-filled 2—d Hubbard model is studied assuming an antiferromagnetic spin configuration. By comparing with the energy of a single hole, we discuss the possibility of pairing of holes in connection with the recently discovered highT _c superconductivity.     

Effects of interactions and disorder on the compressibility of two-dimensional electron and hole systems

The compressibility χ of dilute two-dimensional electron and hole gases in GaAs semiconductor structures has been studied in the ranges of the interaction parameter r_s=1–2.5 and r_s=10–30 for the electron and hole system, respectively. Nonmonotonic dependence of χ^-1 with an upturn at low carrier densities is observed. Despite the large difference in r_s the behavior of χ^-1 in both systems can be accurately described by the theory of nonlinear screening of disorder by the carriers.     

Mid-infrared lasing from self-consistent quantum wells at a type II single broken-gap heterointerface

A new physical approach for the design of mid-IR lasers operating at 3–5 μm based on type II heterojunctions with effective electron–hole confinement owing to a large asymmetric band-offset at the interface (ΔE_C>0.6 eV and ΔE_V>0.35 eV) has been proposed. The creation of high barriers for carriers leads to their strong accumulation in the active region and increases the quantum emission efficiency of the spatially separated electrons and holes across the heteroboundary due to a tunnel-injection radiative recombination mechanism within the device. An extremely weak reduction of the electroluminescence (EL) intensity for the interface tunnelling-assisted emission band with increasing temperature from 77 to 300 K was observed. This coherent emission (λ=3.146 μm at 77 K) was totally polarised in the plane perpendicular to the p–n heterojunction plane, which means the laser emission was TM-polarised due to tunnelling-assisted light-hole–electron recombination across the interface.