Experimental study on transmission of an overdriven detonation wave across a mixture

Summary

Two sets of experiments were performed to achieve a strong overdriven state in a weaker mixture by propagating an overdriven detonation wave via a deflagration-to-detonation transition (DDT) process. First, preliminary experiments with a propane/oxygen mixture were used to evaluate the attenuation of the overdriven detonation wave in the DDT process. Next, experiments were performed wherein a propane/oxygen mixture was separated from a propane/air mixture by a thin diaphragm to observe the transmission of an overdriven detonation wave. A simple wave intersection model showed that the rarefaction effect must be included to ensure that the post-transmission wave properties are not overestimated. The experimental results showed that the strength of the incident overdriven detonation plays an important role in the wave transmission process. After the wave transmission process, the propagation of the detonation directly correlates with detonability limits.