Effects of the penetration height of ethylene transverse jets on flame stabilization behavior in a Mach 2 supersonic crossflow

Effects of fuel jet penetration height on supersonic combustion behaviors were investigated experimentally in a supersonic combustion ramjet model combustor at a Mach speed of 2 and at a stagnation temperature of 1900 K. The jet-to-crossflow momentum flux ratio was varied to control the fuel-jet penetration height, using several injectors with different orifice diameters: 2, 3, and 4 mm. First, transverse nitrogen jets were observed to identify a relationship between the fuel jet penetration height and the momentum flux ratio by focusing Schlieren photography. Then, supersonic combustion behaviors of ethylene were investigated through combustion pressure measurements. Simultaneously, time-resolved images of CH* chemiluminescence and shadowgraphs were recorded with high-speed video cameras. Furthermore, a morphology of supersonic combustion modes was investigated for various equivalence ratios and fuel penetration heights in a two-dimensional latent space trained by the shared Gaussian process latent variable models (SGPLVM), considering CH* chemiluminescence images and the shock parameters. The results indicated that the penetration height of nitrogen jets was a function of the jet momentum flux ratio; this function was expressed by a fitting curve. Five typical combustion modes were identified based on time-resolved CH* chemiluminescence images, shadowgraphs, and pressure profiles. Even for a given equivalence ratio, different combustion modes were observed depending on the fuel penetration height. For an injection diameter of 3 and 4 mm, cavity shear-layer and jet-wake stabilized combustions were observed as the scram modes. On the other hand, although the cavity shear-layer and lifted-shear-layer stabilized combustions were observed, no jet-wake stabilized combustion was observed for an orifice diameter of 2 mm. Fuel penetration heights above the cavity aft wall were expected to affect the combustion behavior. Finally, a morphology of the supersonic combustion modes was clearly shown in the two-dimensional latent space of the SGPVLM.     

Experimental investigation of ethylene/air combustion instability in a model scramjet combustor using image-based methods

The combustion instabilities of supersonic combustion were investigated experimentally in a laboratory-scale scramjet combustor with a cavity flame holder. Ethylene was injected transversely from an orifice to the supersonic flow of Mach 2 with a stagnation temperature of 1900 K and a total pressure of 0.37 MPa. The dynamic pressure, CH* chemiluminescence and shadowgraph images were measured with a pressure sensor and a high-speed video camera. Dynamic pressure was analyzed by fast Fourier transform, and time-resolved CH* chemiluminescence images were modally decomposed by the sparsity-promoting dynamic mode decomposition (SP-DMD). The results indicated that two combustion instabilities were observed for cavity shear-layer stabilized combustion and the oscillation between jet-wake stabilized and cavity shear-layer ram combustions for the power spectral density (PSD) of pressure. In the case of the combustion instability of cavity shear-layer stabilized combustion, a dominant peak of approximately 128 Hz was observed for the PSD of pressure. This instability corresponded to an entire flame oscillation of the cavity shear-layer stabilized combustion, which was validated by the SP-DMD and a low rank reproduction with 10 modes. This was driven by a fuel injection oscillation in the injection orifice. In the case of oscillation between the jet-wake stabilized and the cavity shear-layer ram combustions, peaks around 1600 Hz were observed for the PSD of pressure. This mechanism was also explained by the SP-DMD modes and a low rank reproduction using within 10 modes. The DMD and shadowgraph images indicated that the vortex formed by a separation of the boundary layer induced a strong jet-wake flame, resulting in the temporal thermal choke followed by cavity shear-layer stabilized ram combustion. The data-driven approach with SP-DMD clarified the combustion instability mechanisms of the supersonic combustion in detail.     

Flame dynamics under various backpressures in a model scramjet with and without a cavity flameholder

Flame dynamics under various backpressure conditions were experimentally investigated using direct flame visualization, high-speed CH* chemiluminescence imaging, and wall pressure measurements. The stagnation pressure and temperature used in the present study were 100 kPa and 2500 K, respectively, with a freestream Mach number of 4.5. Rectangular scramjet models with and without a cavity were used to explore the effects of the cavity on flame dynamics when operating in scramjet mode, ramjet mode, and unstart. The flow rate of the ethylene jet was varied to impose backpressures corresponding to each operation mode. For both models, reverse flame propagation was observed for ramjet mode and unstart. For ramjet mode, flame fluctuation occurred within the isolator due to the coupling of fluid dynamics and combustion. The presence of a cavity enhanced combustion and reduced flame fluctuation in both scram and ramjet mode. The cavity promoted unstart because of the greater heat release from combustion. Further research using spatially resolved diagnostic techniques is needed to identify the flame locations for ramjet mode and unstart.     

Effect of fuel injection location on a plasma jet assisted combustion with a backward-facing step

Non-reacting and reacting experiments on the ignition by a plasma jet (PJ) torch were performed to understand the correlation between fuel injection location and combustion characteristics in unheated Mach 2 airflow. Fuel was injected through three sonic injectors in the recirculation region behind a backward-facing step: a parallel injector at 2 mm from the bottom wall and two normal injectors at 2 and 9 mm from the step wall. In order to mitigate the combustion pressure interaction with nozzle, an isolator was installed between the nozzle and combustor. The combustion performance of normal injection was little affected by the difference of fuel injection locations. Moreover, normally injected fuel was escaped not to be held in the recirculation region despite of low fuel injection rates. This led to lower combustion performance relative to the parallel injection which provided fuel not to leave the recirculation region. In this case, the role of the recirculation region was to fully hold fuel, and the PJ torch provided hot gases as a heat source and acted as a flame-holder to ignite fuel–air mixtures. In a low temperature inflow condition, combustible regions were constrained around the bottom wall where embedded with the PJ torch. When thermal choking occurred in the combustor, it induced shock train both in the combustor and isolator. Under this unstable condition, the combustion performance of the normal injection was lower than that of the parallel injection. This is because the normal injection led most fuel into low temperature incoming air-stream.     

Dual/scram-mode combustion limits of ethylene and surrogate endothermically-cracked hydrocarbon fuels at Mach 8 equivalent high-enthalpy conditions

This paper examines the scram/dual-mode combustion limits of hydrocabon fuels within a Mach 8, scramjet combustor. Flight-equivalent flows were delivered to the axisymmetric, cavity combustor via a reflected shock tunnel. Two scramjet fuels were examined: ethylene and a surrogate mixture representing endothermically cracked n-dodecane. Combustion modes were examined via static pressure sensors and through both chemiluminescence imaging, and planar laser induced fluorescence (PLIF) of the OH combustion radical in the combustor exhaust plume. Ethylene-fuelled experiments developed scram-mode combustion under reduced fuelling conditions, experiencing shock wave dominated flowfields. OH PLIF diagnostics indicated such combustion modes developed a ring-like structure of combustion products, primarily axisymmetrically adjacent to the combustor wall. Increased fuelling anchored combustion downstream of the fuel injector, while further increases instigated dual-mode combustion. In this mode, subsonic combustion regions combine with the supersonic coreflow to permit the transfer of information upstream with substantially increased pressure encountered. Optical diagnostics indicate broadly asymmetric, unsteady combustion features. The surrogate mixture representing endothermically cracked n-dodecane experienced rapid onset from no-combustion (optically confirmed) to fully developed dual-mode combustion at critical fuelling rates. OH PLIF signals and chemiluminescence of this fuel were weaker than comparable ethylene cases, indicating potential differences in combustion pathways.     

Towards the development of an efficient low-NOx ammonia combustor for a micro gas turbine

Recent studies have demonstrated stable generation of power from pure ammonia combustion in a micro gas turbine (MGT) with a high combustion efficiency, thus overcoming some of the challenges that discouraged such applications of ammonia in the past. However, achievement of low NOx emission from ammonia combustors remains an important challenge. In this study, combustion techniques and combustor design for efficient combustion and low NOx emission from an ammonia MGT swirl combustor are proposed. The effects of fuel injection angle, combustor inlet temperature, equivalence ratio, and ambient pressure on flame stabilization and emissions were investigated in a laboratory high pressure combustion chamber. An FTIR gas analyser was employed in analysing the exhaust gases. Numerical modeling using OpenFOAM was done to better understand the dependence of NO emissions on the equivalence ratio. The result show that inclined fuel injection as opposed to vertical injection along the combustor central axis resulted to improved flame stability, and lower NH₃ and NOx emissions. Numerical and experimental results showed that a control of the equivalence ratio upstream of the combustor is critical for low NOx emission in a rich-lean ammonia combustor. NO emission had a minimum value at an upstream equivalence ratio of 1.10 in the experiments. Furthermore, NO emission was found to decrease with ambient pressure, especially for premixed combustion. For the rich-lean combustion strategy employed in this study, lower NOx emission was recorded in premixed combustion than in non-premixed combustion indicating the importance of mixture uniformity for low NOx emission from ammonia combustion. A prototype liner developed to enhance the control and uniformity of the equivalence ratio upstream of the combustor further improved ammonia combustion. With the proposed liner design, NOx emission of 42?ppmv and ammonia combustion efficiency of 99.5% were achieved at 0.3?MPa for fuel input power of 31.44?kW.     

Visualization of flameholding mechanisms in a supersonic combustor using PLIF

Laser-induced fluorescence of OH and CH₂O was imaged to investigate the flame stabilization mechanism in a flameholder with a Mach 2.4 free stream. Ethylene was burned in a rectangular cavity with two points of injection: the aft wall and the cavity floor. When injected from the aft wall, the fuel came into immediate contact with hot combustion products from the reaction zone under the shear layer. Primary combustion occurred under the shear layer and in the aft region of the cavity volume. In contrast, when fuel was injected from the floor, a jet-driven recirculation zone of hot products near the upstream wall of the cavity served as a flameholder. The reaction then occurred on the underside of the shear layer. In conditions near lean blowout, significant changes in the flameholding mechanisms were observed. Improved CH₂O fluorescence signal was obtained by taking advantage of the long fluorescence lifetime at low pressures and delaying the camera gate to reduce the background signal.     

Three-dimensional numerical simulation of the characteristics of a ramjet power plant with a continuous-detonation combustor in supersonic flight

Multi-variant three-dimensional numerical simulations demonstrate the feasibility of the continuous- detonation process in an annular combustor of a ramjet power plant operating on hydrogen as fuel and air as oxidant in conditions of flight at a Mach number of M ₀ = 5.0 and an altitude of 20 km. Conceptual schemes of an axisymmetric power plant, 400 mm in external diameter and 1.3 to 1.5 m in length, with a supersonic intake, divergent annular combustor, and outlet nozzle with a frusto-conical central body are proposed. Calculations of the characteristics of the internal and external flows, with consideration given to the finite rate of turbulent-molecular mixing of the fuel mixture components with each other and with the combustion products, as well as the finite rate of chemical reactions and the viscous interaction of the flow with the bounding surfaces, have shown that, in these flight conditions, the engine of such a power plant has the following performance characteristics: the thrust, 10.7 kN; specific thrust, 0.89 (kN s)/kg; specific impulse, 1210 s; and specific fuel?consumption 0.303 kg/(N h). In this case, the combustor can operate with one detonation wave traveling in the annular channel at an average velocity of 1695 m/s, which corresponds to a detonation wave rotation frequency of 1350 Hz. It is shown that, an operating combustor has regions with subsonic flow of detonation products, but the flow is supersonic throughout its outlet section.     

Effect of cavity location on combustion flow field of integrated hypersonic vehicle in near space

Abstract  

The cavity has been widely employed as the flame holder to prolong the residence time of fuel in supersonic flows since it improves the combustion efficiency in the scramjet combustor, and also imposes additional drag on the engine. In this paper, the two-dimensional coupled implicit Reynolds Average Navier–Stokes equations, the RNG k–ε turbulence model and the finite-rate/eddy-dissipation reaction model have been employed to numerically simulate the combustion flow field of an integrated hypersonic vehicle. The effect of cavity location on the combustion flow field of the vehicle has been investigated, and the fuel, namely hydrogen, was injected upstream of the cavity on the walls of the first stage combustor. The obtained results show that the viscous lift force, drag force and pitching moment of the vehicle are nearly unchanged by varying the cavity location over the location range and designs considered in this article, namely the configurations with single cavity, double cavities in tandem and double cavities in parallel. The variation of the fuel injection strategy affects the separation of the boundary layer, and the viscous effect on the drag force of the vehicle is remarkable, but the viscous effects on the lift force and the pitching moment are both small and they can be neglected in the design process of hypersonic vehicles. In addition to varying the location of the cavities, three fuel injection configurations were considered. It was found that one particular case can restrict the inlet unstart for the scramjet engine.     

Control of oscillating combustion and noise based on local flame structure

To control combustion oscillations, the characteristics of an oscillating swirl injection premixed flame have been investigated, and control of oscillating combustion and noise based on local flame structure has been conducted. The r.m.s. value of pressure fluctuations and noise level show significantly large values between = 0.8 and 1.1. The beating of pressure fluctuations is observed for the large oscillating flame conditions in this combustor. Relationship between beating of pressure fluctuations and local flame structure was observed by the simultaneous measurement of CH/OH planar laser induced fluorescence and pressure fluctuations. The local flame structure and beating of pressure fluctuations are related and the most complicated flame is formed in the middle pressure fluctuating region of beating. The beating of pressure fluctuations, which plays important roles in noise generation and nitric oxide emission in this combustor, could be controlled by injecting secondary fuel into the recirculating region of oscillating flames. Injecting secondary fuel prevented lean blowout, and low NO_x combustion was also achieved even for the case of pure methane injection as a secondary fuel. By injecting secondary fuel into the recirculating region near the swirl injector, the flame lifted from the swirl injector and its reaction region became uniform and widespread, hence resulting in low nitric oxide emission. Secondary mixture injection, fuel diluted with air, is not effective for control of combustion oscillations suppression and lean blowout prevention.     

Investigation on the flameholding mechanisms in supersonic flows: backward-facing step and cavity flameholder

Abstract  

As effective devices to extend the fuel residence time in supersonic flow and prolong the duration time for hypersonic vehicles cruising in the near-space with power, the backward-facing step and the cavity are widely employed in hypersonic airbreathing propulsive systems as flameholders. The two-dimensional coupled implicit RANS equations, the standard k-ε turbulence model, and the finite-rate/eddy-dissipation reaction model have been used to generate the flow field structures in the scramjet combustors with the backward-facing step and the cavity flameholders. The flameholding mechanism in the combustor has been investigated by comparing the flow field in the corner region of the backward-facing step with that around the cavity flameholder. The obtained results show that the numerical simulation results are in good agreement with the experimental data, and the different grid scales make only a slight difference to the numerical results. The vortices formed in the corner region of the backward-facing step, in the cavity and upstream of the fuel injector make a large difference to the enhancement of the mixing between the fuel and the free airstream, and they can prolong the residence time of the mixture and improve the combustion efficiency in the supersonic flow. The size of the recirculation zone in the scramjet combustor partially depends on the distance between the injection and the leading edge of the cavity. Further, the shock waves in the scramjet combustor with the cavity flameholder are much stronger than those that occur in the scramjet combustor with the backward-facing step, and this causes a large increase in the static pressure along the walls of the combustor.     

Testing of solid fuel ramjet with measurement of thrust characteristics in aerodynamic facilities

A design of an axisymmetric solid fuel ramjet consisting of a multi wedges nose air intake, solid fuel gas gene-rator, combustion chamber, and a nozzle, was developed. According to this design, a ramjet model for tests in the ground wind-tunnel facilities was fabricated. Experiments with solid fuel combustion were carried out in the Transit-M and T-313 wind tunnels, ITAM SB RAS, at air-flow Mach numbers М = 2.5?5.0. High values of the internal and net excess thrust were obtained.     

用于高超音速推进的反循环发动机热力性能分析

符号表fIkg空气对应的燃料流量ISP燃料比冲Ti后燃烧室出口温度马比推力，燃料空气当量比WT涡轮输出功MT飞行马赫数＄前登燃烧室出口温度。T涡轮膨胀比H飞行高度T4＊热交换器出口温度7TC压气机压比1引言八十年代以来，美、俄、德、法、英、日等主要空间大国均提出了各自的高超音速计划，如NASP、Sanger、HOTOL、STAR等。各国的方案在Ma＞6．5均采用火箭发动机或超燃冲压发动机，对于Ma＜6．5采用何种方案则分歧较大，有涡轮一冲压组合发动机方案、ATR方案、LACE方案等。本文对反循环发动机（InverseCgcleEngine）方案作了进…     

Numerical investigation of low-frequency instability and frequency shifting in a scramjet combustor

The combustion instability in a laboratory-scale direct-connect hydrogen-fueled scramjet combustor is investigated numerically. The numerical simulation has been carried out using a delayed detached eddy simulation (DDES) with a detailed reaction mechanism. The computational framework has high fidelity by applying multi-dimensional high order accurate schemes for handling convective and viscous fluxes. The field data were accumulated up to 100 milliseconds on each case to capture sufficiently the repetitive behavior of low-frequency instability of order of 100 Hz. The numerical results exhibit the formation/dissipation of pressure and shock wave induced by continuous heat release in the combustor. This motion of pressure/shock wave, so-called upstream-traveling shock wave, presents repeated dynamics between isolator and combustor with a period of several milliseconds. With this periodic hydrodynamic characteristic, the upstream-traveling shock wave interacts with the boundary layer and injected fuel stream affecting fuel/air mixing and burning, and finally inducing the combustion instability in a scramjet combustor. Frequency analysis derived major instability frequencies of 190 Hz and 450 Hz in the isolator and combustor for low and high equivalence ratios, respectively. Current numerical results present the underlying flow physics on the shifting of the instability frequency by changing the equivalence ratio observed by the previous experimental studies. The fact that an instability frequency exists homogeneously from isolator to combustor informs that the combustion instability of scramjet engine is the fully coupled flow/combustion dynamics throughout the engine on a macroscopic scale.     

烧蚀支板对超燃冲压发动机燃烧室性能的影响

为了提高超燃冲压发动机燃烧室的性能,本文提出了燃料喷注支板与烧蚀支板组合的燃烧室新方案,并研究了新方案对超燃冲压发动机燃烧室性能的影响。相比于单燃料喷注支板方式而言,加入烧蚀支板后,虽然燃烧室内的总压恢复系数有所下降,但燃烧室内燃料与空气的混合效率、燃烧效率均有显著提高,燃烧效率的提高弥补了燃烧室内总压损失所带来的机械能损失,使得燃料喷注支板和烧蚀支板组合方式下的燃烧室比冲高于单燃料喷注支板时的比冲。     

Exergy method for estimating the ramjet specific impulse

The exergy method is developed for computing the ramjet thrust-economic characteristics with regard for real thermodynamic properties of combustion products when using as fuel the hydrogen and hydrocarbon fuel for the freestream Mach numbers M = 4 ÷ 14. The estimates for the specific impulse of the given engine using the presented technique are shown to agree with the estimates computed by other authors. The computational method is intended for obtaining the ramjet characteristics and conduction of the parameter analysis at the research initial stage as well as for its use at the conceptual developments of hypersonic flying vehicles.     

Investigations of three-dimensional flow characteristics in a liquid ramjet combustor using the PIV method

Three-dimensional flow characteristics in a liquid fuel ramjet combustor were investigated using the PIV method. The combustor had two rectangular inlets that form a 90-degree angle with each other, with intake angles of 30 degrees. Three guide vanes were installed in each rectangular inlet to improve flow stability. The experiments were performed in a water tunnel test with the same Reynolds number as Mach 0.3 at the inlet. PIV software was developed to measure the characteristics of the flow field in the combustor. Accuracy of the developed PIV program was verified with a rotating disk experiment and standard data. The experimental results showed that the two main streams from the rectangular intakes collided near the plane of symmetry and generated two large longitudinal vortices, which was in agreement with three dimensional computational results. A large and complex threedimensional recirculating flow was measured behind the intakes.     

支板凹腔一体化超燃冲压发动机实验研究

本文针对以凹腔支板一体化燃烧室为基本结构的超燃冲压模型发动机在自由射流风洞中的性能,主要研究了燃料在不同位置喷入时,燃烧室几何结构/气动性能/燃料混合及燃烧特性的相互耦合,以及对发动机推力性能的影响.结果表明支板与凹腔的一体化在合理配置燃料分布情况下可以获得较好的发动机性能.     

Combustion characteristics in a supersonic combustor with hydrogen injection upstream of cavity flameholder

Combustion characteristics in a supersonic combustor with hydrogen injection upstream of a cavity flameholder were investigated both experimentally and numerically. The combustion was observed to be stabilized in the cavity mode around the shear layer via a dynamic balance and then spread into the main stream in the region around the jet centerplane where the flow was decelerated and turned to the main stream, supplying a favorable condition for the combustion to spread. The combustion spreading from the cavity shear layer to the main stream seemed to be dominated not only by the traditional diffusion process but also by the convection process associated with the extended recirculation flows resulting from the heat release and the interaction between the jet and the cavity shear layer. Therefore, the cavity-stabilized combustion appeared to be a strongly coupled process of flow and heat release around the cavity flameholder.     

进口条件对超燃冲压发动机氢气燃烧流场特性的影响分析

对不同进口条件下的超燃冲压发动机燃烧室内氢气喷流超声速燃烧流动特性进行了数值模拟与分析.宽范围超燃冲压发动机是吸气式高超声速飞行器推进系统设计中的热点问题之一,受实验设备硬件条件及实验技术限制,数值模拟技术仍然是超燃冲压发动机燃烧室内燃气燃烧特性及流场特性的主要研究手段.采用基于混合网格技术的多组元N-S方程有限体积方法求解器,在不同进口Mach数及压强条件下,对带楔板/凹腔结构的燃烧室模型氢气喷流燃烧流场进行了数值模拟,对比分析了氢气喷流穿透深度、喷口前后回流区结构、掺混效率及燃烧效率等流场结构与典型流场参数的变化特性及影响规律.研究成果可为宽范围超燃冲压发动机喷流燃烧流动特性分析提供参考.