Effects of thermal stratification on detonation development in hypersonic reactive flows

In this paper, we first examine the wave morphology induced by reactant thermal stratification in hypersonic reactive flows. Three flow regimes are observed: autoignition-driven reaction front, detonation wave, and decoupled shock/reaction front. The results suggest that local autoignition behavior can be significantly influenced by reactivity nonuniformity in the reactive flow; and an undesirable detonation wave can be initiated given a suitable temperature gradient. This also indicates that oblique detonation waves can be generated without mechanical devices such as blunt bodies and wedges.