Three-dimensional numerical simulation of the operation of the rotating-detonation chamber

The aim of this work is to apply three-dimensional numerical simulation to determining the conditions of the stable operation of the rotating-detonation chamber (RDC), the thermal state of the chamber walls, as well as the most important parameters of the flow at the inlet and outlet, keeping in mind the possibility of placing the RDC between a compressor and a turbine in a prospective gas turbine installation. The model is based on a system of three-dimensional unsteady Reynolds-averaged Navier-Stokes, energy, and species conservation equations for a multicomponent reacting gas mixture supplemented by a turbulence model. The system is solved using a combined algorithm based on the finite-volume and particle methods. The capabilities of the computer program are demonstrated by the example of a circular RDC with inner and outer walls 260 and 306 mm in diameter and with axial introduction of a hydrogen-air mixture through an annular gap at the bottom of the chamber (with a relative area of 0.6). The detonation wave spun over the bottom at a frequency of ∼126000 rpm. Calculations have shown that such an RDC can operate in a steady mode with one detonation wave.