Abstract Hollow combustors without centerbodies are becoming popular for rotating detonation engines. The present experimental study compares detonation and pressure gain performances of hollow combustors with two fuel orifice schemes to choose a better one. Hydrogen and air sources at room temperatures of 280–285 K are used as propellants. The combustors are optically accessible by embedding a piece of quartz glass in the outerbody. The hollow combustor channel here has an outer diameter of 100 mm. Fuel is injected into the combustor from 150 cylindrical orifices in a diameter of 0.8 mm or 90 orifices in a diameter of 2 mm, and air is injected through a circular channel with a throat width of 1 mm. Results show that the hollow combustor with 150 cylindrical orifices in a diameter of 0.8 mm has a better detonation performance and a higher pressure gain performance than the other one. High-speed images show the wall surface roughness affects the RDW strength greatly.
Highlights Fuel orifice scheme affects rotating detonation performance. High wall surface roughness weakens rotating detonation. Periodic pressure waves occur due to high air flow rate. Periodic pressure waves weaken rotating detonation.
Rotating detonation engines with two fuel orifice schemes
Acta Astronautica ; 161 ; 262-275
2019-05-21
14 pages
Article (Journal)
Electronic Resource
English