Limit Cycle Oscillating Detonation Wave Behavior Analysis Within a Rotating Detonation Engine

Journal Article · 21 May 2024 · Journal of Propulsion and Power

DOI: https://doi.org/10.2514/1.b39271 · OSTI ID:2453911

Johnson May, Kristyn B. ^[1]; Weber, Justin ^[1]; Ferguson, Donald ^[1]; Nix, Andrew ^[2]; Sidwell, Todd G. ^[1]

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1. National Energy Technology Laboratory (NETL), Morgantown, WV (United States)
2. West Virginia Univ., Morgantown, WV (United States)

Limit cycle oscillation (LCO) detonation wave behaviors are presented and analyzed for test times exceeding 20 s in a water-cooled rotating detonation engine (RDE). LCO detonation waves exhibit cyclic acceleration and deceleration, resulting in oscillating wave spacing at unique process conditions. In previous RDE studies, similar behaviors have been studied as microsecond-scale instabilities leading to ascending or descending modal transitions. In the current work, however, LCO waves are considered a persistent wave mode, occupying unique portions of the operational envelope adjacent to those of their equally spaced counterparts. These occurrences of LCO waves are repeatable, enduring behaviors. A method to generate shifted contour surfaces specifically intended to extract and analyze wave spacing variation through time, termed limit cycle oscillation visualization (LCOV) surfaces, is presented. LCOV surfaces transform data into the reference frame of a primary traveling wave and are used to analyze quasi-steady, short-timescale, and transitional LCO modes. Results are leveraged to understand the relationship between fill height, wave strength, local wave acceleration, and subsequent LCO wave spacing for individual wave sets. In conclusion, quasi-steady LCO waves display wave spacing oscillations between equal spacing values associated with ±1 wave across runs exceeding 18 s.

• Research Organization: National Energy Technology Laboratory (NETL), Pittsburgh, PA, Morgantown, WV, and Albany, OR (United States)
• Sponsoring Organization: USDOE Office of Fossil Energy and Carbon Management (FECM), Office of Carbon Management
• OSTI ID: 2453911
• Report Number(s): DOE/NETL--2024/4506
• Journal Information: Journal of Propulsion and Power, Journal Name: Journal of Propulsion and Power Journal Issue: 5 Vol. 40; ISSN 0748-4658
• Publisher: American Institute of Aeronautics and Astronautics (AIAA)Copyright Statement
• Country of Publication: United States
• Language: English