INVESTIGATION OF THE PERFORMANCE OF A SINGLE-TUBE PULSE DETONATION ENGINE

This study investigates the performance of a pulse detonation engine (PDE) utilizing methane-air mixtures, where detonation is initiated in a single-tube configuration using Shchelkin spirals. The experiments focused on five 400 mm long spirals with blockage ratios ranging from 0.08 to 0.17. The methane-air equivalence ratio varied in the experiments between 0.5 and 3.1. The measured detonation shock pressures and velocities closely matched the Chapman-Jouguet values, with both peaking at equivalence ratios between 0.9 and 1.2. The thrust of the PDE was estimated based on test data. The study shows that detonation shock pressure and velocity are only marginally affected by the blockage ratio, while its impact on the frequency of the detonation pressure wave is negligible. These findings highlight critical insights into how the design of the Shchelkin spiral governs the deflagration-to-detonation transition (DDT) and shapes the overall detonation dynamics in PDEs.