Numerical Modeling of Rotating and Pulsed Detonation Engines

Abstract

Propulsion systems based on detonation waves, such as rotating and pulsed detonation engines (RDEs and PDEs), have the potential to substantially improve efficiency and power density compared to traditional gas turbine engines. There are, however, a number of unresolved technical challenges, including obtaining more efficient injection and mixing of air and fuels, more reliable detonation initiation, and better understanding of the flow in the ejection nozzle. Each of these challenges can be addressed using numerical simulations, which can allow low cost, safe, and relatively rapid analysis and optimization of detonation engines. Here we discuss the design and computational details of such simulations, with a specific focus on the modeling required to represent highly unsteady flow fields in the presence of combustion, shock waves, fluid-structure interactions, and turbulence. Results from simulations of RDEs and PDEs are presented and future research directions are outlined. A brief review is also provided of other research performed at the Turbulence and Energy Systems Laboratory (TESLa) at CU.

PETER HAMLINGTON

Associate Professor

Peter is an associate professor in the Paul M. Rady Department of Mechanical Engineering at the University of Colorado Boulder and the principal investigator of the Turbulence and Energy Systems Laboratory.