Calculation of Flowfield Behind Shock Wave in Mars Atmosphere Using New Rate Constants for CO₂ + O ⇆ CO + O₂

The new reaction rate constants CO2 + O → CO + O2 are examined for the chemical kinetic analysis for hypersonic flow in the Mars atmosphere. The flowfield behind a shock wave in the CO2-N2 mixture is calculated by integrating the quasi-one-dimensional conservation equations for flow properties and rate equations of chemical species concentrations. Fifteen species, CO2, CO, CO+, O2, N2, NO, CN, C2, C, C+, N, N+, O, O+, and e− , and their 22 pseudo species, are considered to treat collisional electronic excitations. The new rate constants have impact on the temperature distributions and the molar density distribution of CO2, CO, and O2.