Numerical study on solid-fuel scramjet combustor with fuel-rich hot gas

Abstract

Solid-fuel scramjet combustor with cavity faces challenges of ignition and flame holding. In the current study, a novel concept, solid-fuel scramjet combustor with fuel-rich hot gas, is proposed. The Reynolds-average Navier–Stokes (RANS) equations coupled with the SST k−ω turbulence model and the second-order spatially accurate upwind scheme are employed to calculate its flow field. The feasibility of the solid-fuel scramjet combustor with fuel-rich hot gas is studied based on the validation of numerical method. The comparison of the performance is made between the combustor with fuel-rich gas and the combustor with cavity. Various parameters, namely excess air coefficient of gas generator and mass flow rate of fuel-rich gas, are studied, and their effects on the combustion efficiency, total pressure recovery and fuel regression rate are analyzed. This is the basic study for experiments of a solid-fuel scramjet combustor with fuel-rich hot gas.