Experimental investigation of forced flow regime transition in a dual bell nozzle by secondary fluidic injection

Abstract

Experiments on an axisymmetric dual-bell nozzle were performed at EDITH nozzle test facility of CNRS in Orléans, France. The main purpose of the study was to explore the possibility of controlling the flow regime transition by a secondary fluidic injection in the dual bell nozzle. The main focus of the present paper is to investigate the impact of the secondary injection parameters on the flow regimes transition in such nozzles. Secondary injection has been found to effectively control the flow regime transition and consequently to increase the propulsive performance of the device. It has also been pointed out that even a very low injected secondary mass flow rate leads to the control of the transition and contributes to reducing the lateral loads which can exist, moreover, when transitions are operated without injection.