Supersonic combustion induced by reflective shuttling shock wave in fan-shaped two-dimensional combustor.

Abstract As a novel detonation combustor that differs from a pulse and a rotating detonation engine, a reflective shuttling detonation combustor (RSDC), in which detonation waves shuttle repeatedly, was proposed. In a fan-shaped two-dimensional combustor, detonation waves propagate, repeating attenuation and re-ignition by a shock reflection at the side wall. In the demonstration experiment, chemiluminescence visualization and pressure measurement with ethylene–oxygen mixture were conducted at the same time. As the result, a single shuttling wave coupled with pressure rise was observed in the combustor. The tangential velocity of the wave was 1526 ± 12 m/s and approximately 60% of the estimated Chapman–Jouguet velocity of 2513 m/s. The ratio of pressure in front of the wave to one behind the primary wave or the reflected wave was in good agreement with one-dimensional shock theory, and it was suggested that the rapid reaction behind the reflected shock wave sustained the continuous propagation of the shock wave. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]