The advantages of detonation cycles involving supersonic combustion have been recognized for several decades. However, these cycles, which are more efficient than those currently used in commercial applications (based on subsonic combustion and several variants of the constant-pressure Brayton cycle), have not yet been implemented in continuous-flow power generation systems. This is because there are still several technical challenges that must first be overcome. One of these challenges is related to the strong interactions between shock waves, turbulence, and chemical reactions that occur in such systems, which remain poorly understood. Therefore, this project aims to experimentally and numerically characterize interactions between shock waves and turbulence. The experimental characterization will be carried out using Schlieren and particle image velocimetry (PIV) techniques, and the numerical characterization will be do so using high-fidelity numerical models developed for this purpose. These characterizations will provide a greater understanding of how these interactions affect both the injection and mixing processes of reactants in rotating detonation engines (RDE) and the mechanisms that control the stable propagation of detonation waves in these engines. Possible areas of future application for the results of this project include gas turbine-based engines used in aircraft, marine vessels, and power generation, as well as engines used in hypersonic propulsion.

Keywords: Compressible fluid, Shock waves, Turbulence, PIV, Schlieren, Computational fluid dynamics (CFD)