Shock wave structure in a mixture of gas, vapour and droplets

Abstract

The structure of the relaxation zone behind a shock wave of moderate strength in a mixture of gas, vapour and droplets is analysed. A model is presented for shock induced evaporation, which is based on wet-bulb equilibrium and on the absence of relative motion between droplets and gas. Experimental and numerical data on heterogeneous condensation induced by an unsteady rarefaction wave and on re-evaporation due to shock wave passage are reported for a mixture of water vapour, nitrogen gas and condensation nuclei. Pressure, temperature, saturation ratio and droplet size are experimentally obtained and are very well predicted by a numerical simulation based on the non-linear quasisteady wet-bulb model for phase transition, as well for the expansion wave as for the shock wave. During expansion, droplet number density decays much faster than predicted, which is not yet satisfactorily explained. Shock induced droplet evaporation is studied for post-shock saturation ratios ranging from 5×10−3 to 0.2, corresponding to shock Mach numbers of 1.2 to 1.9. The evaporation times are well predicted by the theoretical model. No evidence is found for droplet break-up for Weber numbers up to 13, and droplet radii of the order of 1μm.