Stabilization of solid fuel combustion in a ramjet engine

Abstract

Combustion stability problem for solid fuel ramjet engine is considered. Stabilization is achieved due to the presence of a wider section in the combustion channel near the air inlet. In this part, playing the role of flame holder, a recirculation zone develops which increases the residence time of combustion products in contrast to the straight part of the channel. In this work, numerical modelling of solid fuel ramjet engine is carried out for PMMA as a fuel. A simple model for gasification rate is used in order to describe the solid fuel decomposition under the incident heat flux. Reacting multicomponent gas equations are solved by a low-dissipation numerical scheme suitable for a wide range of Mach numbers, with Eddy Break-Up model for turbulent combustion. Simulation results are presented for subsonic conditions in the ramjet inlet.