Direct Numerical Simulation of Shock/Turbulent Boundary Layer Interaction in a Supersonic Compression Ramp

A direct numerical simulation of the shock/turbulent boundary layer interaction flow in a supersonic 24-degree compression ramp is conducted with the free stream Mach number 2.9. The blow-and-suction disturbance in the upstream wall boundary is used to trigger the transition. Both the mean wall pressure and the velocity profiles agree with those of the experimental data, which validates the simulation. The turbulent kinetic energy budget in the separation region is analyzed. Results show that the turbulent production term increases fast in the separation region, while the turbulent dissipation term reaches its peak in the near-wall region. The turbulent transport term contributes to the balance of the turbulent conduction and turbulent dissipation. Based on the analysis of instantaneous pressure in the downstream region of the mean shock and that in the separation bubble, the authors suggest that the low frequency oscillation of the shock is not caused by the upstream turbulent disturbance, but rather the instability of separation bubble.

Experimental Investigation of Performance of a Miniature Direct Methanol Fuel Cell in Short-Term Microgravity

Experimental study of a liquid fed direct methanol fuel cell has been conducted in different gravity environments. A small single cell with 5 cm x 5 cm active area has single serpentine channel on the graphite cathode polar plate and 11 parallel straight channels on the graphite anode flow bed. Cell voltage and current have been measured and two-phase flow in anode channels has been in situ visually observed. The experimental results indicate that the effect of gravity on power performance of the direct methanol fuel cell is large when the concentration polarization governs fuel cells operation. Gravitational effect becomes larger at higher current density. Increasing methanol feeding molarity is conducive to weaken the influence of gravity on performance of liquid fed direct methanol fuel cells. Increasing feeding flow rate of methanol solution from 6 to 15 ml/min could reduce the size of carbon dioxide bubbles, while the influence of gravity still exist. Transport phenomena inside direct methanol fuel cells in microgravity is also analyzed and discussed.

Instabilities in a non-transferred direct current plasma torch operated at reduced pressure

Using an oscilloscope, a high-speed video camera and a double-electrostatic probe system, the periodicity and amplitude of the fluctuations in arc voltage, jet luminance and ion saturation current of a plasma jet were monitored to investigate various sources of instabilities and their effects in a non-transferred dc plasma torch operated at reduced pressure. The results show that besides a 300 Hz main fluctuation inherited from the power supply, arc voltage fluctuation of 3–4 kHz with an amplitude less than 5% of the mean voltage was mainly affected by the total gas flow rate. The arc voltage fluctuation can affect the energy distribution of the plasma jet which is detectable by electrostatic probes and a high-speed video camera. The steadiness of energy transfer is also affected by the laminar or turbulent flow state of the plasma.