Experimental Investigation Of Simulated Launch Regarding Pulse Detonation Engine

Pulse detonation engine(PDE) is a new concept of propulsion system which uses pulse detonation waves to produce thrust. Due to its obvious advantages PDE has wide applications in aeronautical and astronautical area. In order to promote PDE research from laboratory level to engineering applications, this study conducted simulation test of PDE flight test. The test system consisted of a pulse detonation rocket and a launcher. The pulse detonation rocket contained a pulse detonation tube, pulse ignition device, supplies of air and fuel and a controller. The detonation tube had inner diameter of 8mm and Shchelkin spirals for speeding up deflagration to detonation transition. The PDE controller was a programmable logic controller(PLC) which controlled ignition frequency and PDE working time sequence. The manifold for air and fuel supplies was designed and manufactured. The air came from laboratory supply or compressed air bottle. The launcher was made up of a track frame and a barrow. The PDE system can move freely on the track.Since the volume of compressed air bottle was limited, the first step test used air from laboratory air supply and the PDE thrust and detonation pressure were measured. Two methods for thrust measurement are adopted. The first method employed thrust sensor to measure its averaged thrust. The second method used a high-speed camera(HSC) to measure PDE's displacement, speed and acceleration from which PDE thrust and specific impulse can be deduced. The second step test utilized air from compressed air bottle. Since bottle volume was small and the flow was unsteady, the ignition frequency and intermittent supply of air and fuel were controlled by PLC. The PDE motion parameters were recorded by HSC ands its specific impulse was obtained by data processing.The experiments showed that the PDE can produce effective thrust under certain detonation frequency and its operation was stable. This study will bring important heuristics for PDE's applications.