While significant progress has been made in analyzing rotating detonation flow fields, research gaps remain in characterizing two-phase flow fields—particularly when integrating the energy conversion process. This study addresses this gap by developing a novel theoretical model that couples the microscopic interaction between detonation waves and kerosene droplets with the macroscopic operation of the combustion chamber. The model explicitly incorporates the energy conversion pathway within the flow field. Results show that in the premixed flow field, detonation combustion accounts for more than half of the combustion in the rotating detonation combustion chamber. When using low activity fuel, the proportion of detonation combustion is relatively small, and the remaining fuel is not burned and exits the combustion chamber with the detonation vortex zone. When using highly active fuels, the proportion of detonation combustion increases, and the detonation vortex zone tends to narrow until it becomes a slip line. For non-premixed flow fields, the discontinuity of the detonation surface will reduce the fuel consumption of detonation combustion, and the proportion of fuel that exits the combustion chamber without combustion will increase. A theoretical formula for calculating the outlet velocity and thrust was proposed and validated, in which the innovation lies in analyzing the rotating detonation flow field for outlet performance enhancement and enabling a degree of prediction for the thrust of rotating detonation waves under varying inflow parameters. The results indicate that the theoretical model demonstrates high accuracy with prediction errors below 1% for wave speed and frequency.
Luan et al. (Sun,) studied this question.