Experimental Investigation of Nozzle Exit Reflector Effect on Supersonic Jet

The present study describes an experimental work to investigate the effect of a nozzle exit reflector on a supersonic jet that is discharged from a convergent–divergent nozzle with a design Mach number of 2.0. An annular reflector is installed at the nozzle exit and its diameter is varied. A high-quality spark schlieren optical system is used to visualize detailed jet structures with and without the reflector. Impact pressure measurement using a pitot probe is also carried out to quantify the reflector’s effect on the supersonic jet which is in the range from an over-expanded to a moderately under-expanded state. The results obtained show that for over-expanded jets, the reflector substantially increases the jet spreading rate and reduces the supersonic length of the jet, compared with moderately under-expanded jets. The reflector’s effect appears more significant in imperfectly expanded jets that have strong shock cell structures, but is negligible in correctly expanded jet.