Front Cellular Structure and Thrust Performance on Hydrogen–Oxygen Rotating Detonation Engine

Abstract

Numerical simulations of three-dimensional rotating detonation engines for a hydrogen–oxygen mixture are performed using the detailed chemistry model. The grid-resolution study indicates that the cellular structure of the detonation appears near the inner wall as the circumferential grid resolution increases. However, the effects of the grid resolution are small on . The grid resolution for the high-mass-flow cases should be carefully considered because the rotating detonation velocity increases to produce higher thrust under the low grid resolution. As the annular width increases, a complicated shock structure such as a Mach stem appears, and the cycle time decreases. The effects of the annular width are small on . As the number of the rotating detonations increases, the asymmetric detonation heads rotate along the circumferential direction with the same cycle time after 30 cycles. for the two-waved rotating detonation engine decreases approximately 10% less than for the one-waved rotating detonation engine. This is because the injected mixture mass flow rate for the two-waved rotating detonation engine increases 16% larger than that for the one-waved rotating detonation engine, whereas the thrusts between them coincide.