Triggering Detonation in an Annular Flow Chamber

Abstract

The Navier–Stokes equations were used to carry out the numerical modeling of chemically reactive gas flow in an annular flow chamber. The model was based on laws of conservation of mass, momentum, and energy for nonstationary two-dimensional compressible gas flow in the case of axial symmetry with a tangential component of the gas velocity. Viscosity, thermal conductivity, and turbulence were taken into account. Fuel and oxidizer were fed into the chamber separately, and heat release in the chemical reaction zone was largely determined by the rate of turbulent mixing of the gas components. The possibility of burning out of the mixture in the chamber was demonstrated numerically. Detonation failure can occur if reagents temporarily cease to be fed into the chamber, which can be caused by high pressure in the reaction zone. With short combustion chamber lengths, there are the underburning of fuel and the release of unreacted hydrogen into the atmosphere.