Subsonic and supersonic combustion using noncircular injectors

Abstract

Nonreacting and combustion tests were performed for subsonic, sonic, and supersonic conditions using noncircular injectors in a gas generator combustor. The noncircular injectors, including square, equilateral-, and isosceles-triangular nozzles, were compared to a circular injector. The flowfields of the jets were mapped with hot-wire anemometry and visualized using spark schlieren photography. The combustion characteristics were visualized by high-speed photography and thermal imaging, and the temperature distribution was measured by a rake of thermocouples . The present tests conducted at high Reynolds and Mach numbers confirmed earlier results obtained for the low range of these numbers, i.e., the combination of large-scale mixing at the flat sides with the fine-scale mixing at the vertices is beneficial for combustion. Large-scale structures provide bulk mixing between the fuel and air, whereas fine-scale mixing contributes to the reaction rate and to better flameholding characteristics.