Investigation of Spinning Detonation and Detonation Stability

The stability of a detonation wave and the nature of a spinning detonation have been investigated by observing the patterns inscribed by the wave in soot coatings on films located on the circumference of the detonation tube and on the end plate. The detonation instability reported by others persists to an initial pressure of over 2 atm and to wave velocities at least 75% greater than the equilibrium value. The wave front of a simple spinning detonation contains a complex Mach interaction with wave inclinations as high as 37° to the tube diameter. The acoustic theory of spinning detonation does describe high-order spin if it is assumed that two or more modes of vibration coexist.