Detonation characteristics of dimethyl ether and ethanol–air mixtures

Abstract

The detonation cell structure in dimethyl ether vapor and ethanol vapor–air mixtures was measured at atmospheric pressure and initial temperatures in the range of 293–373 K. Tests were carried out in a 6.2-m-long, 10-cm inner diameter tube. For more reactive mixtures, a series of orifice plates were used to promote deflagration-to-detonation transition in the first half of the tube. For less reactive mixtures prompt detonation initiation was achieved with an acetylene–oxygen driver. The soot foil technique was used to capture the detonation cell structure. The measured cell size was compared to the calculated one-dimensional detonation reaction zone length. For fuel-rich dimethyl ether mixtures the calculated reaction zone is highlighted by a temperature gradient profile with two maxima, i.e., double heat release. The detonation cell structure was interpreted as having two characteristic sizes over the full range of mixture compositions. For mixtures at the detonation propagation limits the large cellular structure approached a single-head spin, and the smaller cells approached the size of the tube diameter. There is little evidence to support the idea that the two cell sizes observed on the foils are related to the double heat release predicted for the rich mixtures. There was very little influence of initial temperature on the cell size over the temperature range investigated. A double heat release zone was not predicted for ethanol–air detonations. The detonation cell size for stoichiometric ethanol–air was found to be similar to the size of the small cells for dimethyl ether. The measured cell size for ethanol–air did not vary much with composition in the range of 30–40 mm. For mixtures near stoichiometric it was difficult to discern multiple cell sizes. However, near the detonation limits there was strong evidence of a larger cell structure similar to that observed in dimethyl ether air mixtures.