Numerical Visualization of the Unsteady Shock Wave Flow Field in Micro Shock Tube

Abstract

Recently micro shock tube is extensively being used in many diverse fields of engineering applications but the detailed flow physics involved in it is hardly known due to high Knudsen number and strong compressibility effects. Unlike the macro shock tube, the surface area to volume ratio for a micro shock tube is very large. This unique effect brings many complexities into the flow physics that makes the micro shock tube different compared with the macro shock tube. In micro shock tube, the inter- molecular forces of working gas can play an important role in specifying the flow characteristics of the unsteady shock wave flow which is essentially generated in all kinds of shock tubes. In the present study, a CFD method was used to predict and visualize the unsteady shock wave flows using the unsteady compressible Navier-Stokes equations, furnished with the no-slip and slip wall boundary conditions. Maxwell's slip equations were used to mathematically model the shock movement at high Knudsen number. The present CFD results show that the propagation speed of the shock wave is directly proportional to the initial pressure and diameter of micro shock tube.