Initiation of Combustion in a Supersonic Hydrogen-Air Mixture Flow by CO2-Laser Radiation

Abstract

Features of the ignition kinetics of an H2/air mixture in the supersonic flow behind an inclined shock front are analyzed when asymmetric vibrations of a small amount (<1%) of O3 molecules specially introduced into the initial mixture are excited by 9.7 μm wavelength radiation. It is shown that this radiation leads to intensification of the chain reactions and makes it possible to organize combustion at small distances from the front (of the order of 1 m) of even relatively weak shocks at small values of the laser radiation energies absorbed by the gas. This method of initiating combustion in a supersonic flow is 10–100 times more efficient than the thermal method.