Performance analysis of a rotating detonation combustor based on stagnation pressure measurements

This study explores the effect of differing inlet and outlet boundary conditions on the operation and performance of a rotating detonation combustor (RDC) over an annulus mass flux range of 50 to 210 kgs−1m−2 and equivalence ratios of 0.7, 1.0, and 1.3. The RDC is equipped with either a uniform outlet restriction or with a set of nozzle guide vanes to simulate turbine integration. Stagnation pressure data from Kiel probes placed in the high-enthalpy exhaust flow are presented for the operational envelope. The RDC’s operation is categorized into different modes distinguished by the number of co- and counter-rotating combustion waves in the annulus. With increasing mass flux, a typical progression proceeding from a pair of counter-rotating waves, to a single detonation wave, and then further to multiple co-rotating waves is observed with wave speeds reaching up to 84% of the CJ velocity. It is shown that a choking condition at the outlet throat correlates with the transition from two counter-rotating waves to a single wave detonation regime. The channel Mach number is then calculated from measured pressure ratios and is shown to agree with area ratio-based estimates. The pressure gain of the RDC is expressed as the stagnation pressure change from the air plenum to the outlet throat, and it is shown that the specific operating mode of the device – in conjunction with the chosen injector and outlet area ratios – can significantly decrease the pressure gain performance in some cases, while not significantly affecting it in others. While no positive pressure gain was achieved in the experiments, the presented experimental data compare well with numerical results of similar boundary conditions and underline the importance of minimizing injector pressure loss while applying outlet restrictions to the combustor. The data also suggest that specific geometric combinations may lead to adverse modes such as longitudinally pulsing combustion, resulting in a reduction in the measured pressure gain relative to numerical results. This observation occurs more often for geometric combinations which are the most promising for exhibiting positive pressure gain, and suppressing these modes will be an important topic to achieving this goal. It is further shown that transition regions exist between modes of one and multiple co-rotating waves, and that wave multiplication may be necessary to unlock further increases in the pressure gain.