Experimental research on ignition, quenching, reinitiation and the stabilization process in rotating detonation engine

Abstract

This paper presents an experimental research on ignition, quenching, reinitiation and the stabilization process in hydrogen-air rotating detonation engine with an array of injection holes. The stabilization process can be divided into six sections, including deflagration, deflagration to detonation transition (DDT) process, coexistence of detonation with deflagration, coexistence of strong & weak detonations, unstable to stable detonation transition and stable detonation. The phenomenon of single-double-single wave transition is found and analyzed for the first time in the experiment. During the transition, the initial strong detonation wave weakens until it disappears, and the weak detonation wave becomes stronger until it propagates steadily. The reinitiation phenomenon is related to the injection pressures of the propellant. Increasing the injection pressure helps to reinitiate, thus avoiding the occurrence of the quenching phenomenon.