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This paper presents an experimental study on rotating detonations in a hollow combustor with the slit-orifice nozzle. The experimental results reveal that the propagation speed of detonation waves increases with the rise of mass flow rates and is greater than the Chapman–Jouguet detonation speed (VC−J). Furthermore, numerical simulations of rotating detonation in a non-premixed three-dimensional cylindrical combustor have been conducted based on a multispecies reacting code. The influence of two mixing schemes—that is, slit-orifice and coaxial injector—on detonation waves are studied to determine whether the characteristics of detonation waves tend toward high-frequency combustion instability due to changes in the mixing scheme. It is found that the slit-orifice scheme's detonation speed, pressure, and temperature are significantly higher than those of the coaxial injector scheme. In particular, the detonation speed of the former reaches 124% of the VC−J, while that of the latter is only 80.5% of the theoretical value. The numerical results reveal that the low-speed detonation is caused by the deterioration of the hydrogen (H2)/air mixing conditions. Moreover, the flow-field structures of two mixing schemes were comparable, both containing transverse detonation waves, oblique shocks, contact surfaces, and wedge-shaped reactant regions. Furthermore, the Rayleigh index analysis showed that the unsteady heat release was in phase with the pressure fluctuations, amplifying the pressure. Therefore, it is suggested that high-frequency combustion instability may be a manifestation of rotating detonation waves under poor mixing conditions. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

A plasma filament is generated upstream of the fuel jet through quasi-dc discharge in a scramjet combustor. The effects of the plasma filament on fuel mixing and combustion are numerically investigated based on the dominant thermal blocking mechanism. Results have shown that temperature distribution of the whole flowfield is changed prominently due to heat release from the plasma filament. Since the shock waves induced by the transverse fuel jet are partly weakened and move upstream by the plasma filament, the separation zone upstream of the fuel orifice can be controlled to provide a better combustion environment. Compared with the no-plasma case, more water appears in higher space above the bottom wall while less near the bottom wall of combustor. Although the stagnation pressure loss increases a little owing to the plasma filament, the combustion efficiency rises obviously with only a little external energy addition. [ABSTRACT FROM PUBLISHER]

Lift-enhancement–drag-reduction technology is strongly required by near-space vehicles with low Reynolds number. It is known that a flow control method by a surface dielectric barrier discharge (SDBD) plasma can play an important role in this field. In order to obtain the discharge characteristics and evaluate the flow control effect of a SDBD actuator, the nanosecond-pulse discharge and induced flow field by the SDBD plasma are simulated at various altitudes using discharge-aerodynamics models. The results show that the ignition voltage decreases with altitude and it is very easy to discharge in near space. Compared with a SDBD at ground level, the plasma is produced on both sides of the exposed electrode and distributes more uniformly in near space. Although the body force generated by the SDBD actuator is less effective in inducing a jet with nanosecond-pulse excitation than that with alternating voltage excitation, the induced jet by body force is with longer extent, thicker profile and higher velocity in near space than at ground level. The plasma bulk heating should be taken into account for nanosecond-pulse excitation. The Joule heating of electrons is the main source of plasma bulk heating which acts as a micro-explosion and mainly induces pressure perturbation. The discharge at ground level is like a ‘point explosion’, but a ‘region explosion’ in near space, which indicates a diffuse distribution of energy, should be responsible for the fact that the effect of bulk heating is reduced in near space. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This study investigates the mixing processes of liquid jets in supersonic crossflows at a Mach number of 2.1 by using numerical simulations that employ the Coupled Level-Set/Volume-of-Fluid (CLSVOF) method, which is based on the Delayed Detached Eddy Simulation (DDES). The instantaneous spray morphology from the simulations agreed well with the experimental data. The spray presents the 'Ω' shape when viewed from the front, and the maximum error in the penetration depth was 15% from a side perspective. The direction of the air movement determined the shape of the liquid column shearing and breaking. In turn, the breaking process of the liquid jet significantly affects the structure of the air flow. Three-dimensional flow around the liquid column occurred when the supersonic incoming flow impinged on the liquid column, ultimately forming counter-rotating vortex pairs (CVP) in the inner region of the spray. Evolution of the reverse vortex pair accelerated the mixing process of the spray. Single liquid jet was used as a basis to further study double jets in Mach 2.1 airflow. The results show that the breaking length and penetration depth of the downstream jet are significantly improved. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]