The Combustion of HMX
The burn rate of HMX was measured at high pressures (p more than 1000 psi). The self deflagration rate of HMX was determined from 1 atmosphere to 50,000 psi. The burning rate shows no significant slope breaks.
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The burn rate of HMX was measured at high pressures (p more than 1000 psi). The self deflagration rate of HMX was determined from 1 atmosphere to 50,000 psi. The burning rate shows no significant slope breaks.
Experimental results and hazards associated with the pre-combustion behavior of high energy propellants are discussed. Special attention was given to future needs for modeling and the problem of deflagration to detonation transition.
Deflagration to Detonation (DDT) was predicted to occur in porous beds of high-energy solid propellants by solving the unsteady fluid mechanical convective heat transfer from hot gas products, obtained from the rapid burning at high pressures, provides the impetus to develop a narrow combustion zone and a resulting strong shock. A parametric study clearly indicates that DDT occurs only when a combination of the solids loading fraction, the burning rate constants, the propellant chemical energy, and the particle size provide for critical energy and gas release to support a detonation wave. Predictions for the run-up length to detonation as a function of these parameters are presented.
As the need for more energetic solid propellants continues, a number of problems arises. One of these is the tendency of high energy propellants to transition from burning (deflagration) to detonation in regions where the propellant is present in small particle sizes; e.g., in case bonding areas of a motor after a rapid depressurization causes a shear zone at the bond interface as the stressed propellant and motor case relax at different rates. In an effort to determine the susceptibility of propellants to high strain rate break up (friability), and subsequent DDT, the propulsion community uses the shotgun/relative quickness test as one of a number of screening tests for new propellant formulations. Efforts to standardize test techniques and equipment are described.
This paper presents a model for the purpose of estimating the fraction of aluminum powder that will form agglomerates at the surface of deflagrating composite propellants. The basic idea is that the fraction agglomerated depends upon the amount of aluminum that melts within effective binder pocket volumes framed by oxidizer particles. The effective pocket depends upon the ability of ammonium perchlorate modals to encapsulate the aluminum and provide a local temperature sufficient to ignite the aluminum. Model results are discussed in the light of data showing effects of propellant formulation variables and pressure.
The initial mass of the Crab Nebula's progenitor star is estimated by comparing the observed nebular chemical abundances with detailed evolutionary calculations for 2.4- and 2.6-solar-mass helium cores of stars with masses of 8 to 10 solar masses. The results indicate that the mass of the Crab's progenitor was between the upper limit of about 8 solar masses for carbon deflagration and the lower limit of about 9.5 solar masses set by the dredge-up of the helium layer before the development of the helium-burning convective region. A scenario is outlined for the evolution of the progenitor star. It is suggested that the Crab Nebula was probably the product of an electron-capture supernova.
The initial value problem of one-dimensional gas-dynamics involving discontinuous, nonuniform initial data is discussed. Canonical solutions which are valid in a small x, t region aroung a discontinuity, and which include the first order effects of nonuniformities in the data, are derived explicitly. The theory is derived by considering a group of elementary piston problems. Solutions with a shock or with a centered expansion wave are worked out individually in order to relate initial flow properties and their gradients to the speed and acceleration of the discontinuity waves. They are then combined to represent the solution of a general initial value problem by regarding the piston path as a contact line. In addition, problems with chemical reaction are discussed in terms of elementary piston problems which involve strong detonation waves, Chapman-Jouguet detonation waves, and deflagration waves.
The purpose of this paper is to present an asymptotic analysis of the laminar mixing of the simultaneous chemical reaction between parallel supersonic streams of two reacting species. The study is based on a one-step irreversible Arrhenius reaction and on large activation energy asymptotics. Essentially it extends the work of Linan and Crespo to include the effect of free shear and Mach number on the ignition regime, the deflagration regime and the diffusion flame regime. It is found that the effective parameter is the product of the characteristic Mach number and a shear parameter.
The results of the hydrodynamic collapse of an accreting C + O white dwarf are presented. Collapse is induced by electron captures in the iron core behind a conductive deflagration front. The shock wave produced by the hydrodynamic bounce of the iron core stalls at about 115 km, and thus a neutron star formed in such a model would be formed as an optically quiet event.
New low-dispersion IUE spectra of a faint sdOb star located in a direction near the center of the SN 1006 remnant are presented. The UV spectrum of the star exhibits several strong absorption features which are uncharacteristic of its optical sdOB star classification. The identification by Wu et al. (1983) of very broad absorption features at 1610, 2370, 2600 A as Fe II gas associated with the SN 1006 remnant is supported. The observed Fe II line profiles indicate a concentration of Fe(+) toward the remnant's center with a radial velocity range on the order of + or - 5000 km/s. Strong absorption lines at 1281, 1331, and 1420 A are interpreted as originating from clumps of O-, Si- and S-rich ejecta with central radial velocities in the range 5000-6500 km/s. The presence in the SN 1006 remnant of an expanding sphere of iron-rich ejecta interior to O-, Si-, and S-rich clumps of ejecta having velocities over the maximum seen for the Fe II absorbing gas is consistent with type Ia Sn observations and carbon deflagration models.
The validity of carbon-deflagration models white dwarf models for type Ia supernovae is investigated by examining whether most of the iron in the center of SN 1006 exists in forms other than Fe II, such as iron grains or other ionic stages of iron, as the models require. The possible ways in which iron can be hidden in SN 1006 are reviewed, and an argument on observational grounds is made against any appreciable fraction of iron in grains or Fe I. Various mechanisms for ionizing unshocked iron beyond Fe II are discussed; the most probable mechanism for ionizing the iron appears to be photoionization by UV and X-ray emission from reverse-shocked ejecta. A detailed model for this reverse-shcok photoionization mechanism is described.
Spectroscopic and photometric observations of SN 1990N were obtained at ultraviolet and optical wavelengths, beginning 14 days before maximum light. The early observations reveal important differences from spectra of SN Ia's around maximum light. Photometry and spectroscopy obtained after maximum show that SN 1990N is a typical SN Ia and that most of the observed differences are due to the early epoch of the observations. The most significant characteristics are (1) the high velocities of Ca and Si up to 22,000 km/s; (2) the presence of Co and Fe 2 weeks before maximum; and (3) the more rapid increase in the UV flux compared to the optical. The most popular models for white dwarf deflagration that have provided the standard interpretation for SN Ia's at maximum light do not reproduce the high velocities of Ca II and Si II lines observed in SN 1990N.
Consideration is given to the explosion of the Type Ia supernova SN 1991T in the nearby galaxy NGC 4527 detected in gamma-ray lines by the recently launched GRO. The dominant gamma-line and continuum features of the new 'delayed detonation' model FDEFA1 are calculated and compared to those for standard deflagration models W7 and cdtg7. It is shown that there are many useful hard photon discriminants of the Type Ia explosion mechanism that can, in principle, be detected by the OSSE and COMPTEL instruments on the GRO. Either SN 1991T, if bright enough, or one of the several Type Ia supernovae expected to be within the GRO's range during its active life, may make it possible to settle the detonation/deflagration debate, verify the generic thermonuclear white dwarf model of Type Ia explosions, and calibrate the Type Ia B(max)/847 keV line flux ratio.
A numerical integration is undertaken of the integral expression for the thermal conductivity due to collisions of relativistic degenerate electrons and compared to the limiting-case analytic formula. The integration is designed to encompass all temperature/electron-plasma-frequency temperature ratios between the melting temperature and the Fermi temperature. High accuracy fits are demonstrated by interpolating the values of the integrals of the function and by using an asymptotic function by Urpin and Yakovlev (1980). The numerically integrated expression compares favorably to the limiting-case analytic asymptotic formula by Urpin and Yakovlev, and the results are valid for temperatures above and below the electron-plasma-frequency temperature. The present techniques can be used in stellar opacity calculations and in the study of the propagation of deflagration fronts of compact stellar remnants.
The 8-Foot High Temperature Tunnel (HTT) at NASA Langley Research Center is a combustion-driven blow-down wind tunnel. A major potential failure mode that was considered during the combustor redesign was the possibility of a deflagration and/or detonation in the combustor. If a main burner flame-out were to occur, then unburned fuel gases could accumulate and, if reignited, an explosion could occur. An analysis has been performed to determine the safe operating limits of the combustor under transient explosive loads. The failure criteria was defined and the failure mechanisms were determined for both peak pressures and differential pressure loadings. An overview of the gas dynamics analysis was given. A finite element model was constructed to evaluate 13 transient load cases. The sensitivity of the structure to the frequency content of the transient loading was assessed. In addition, two closed form dynamic analyses were conducted to verify the finite element analysis. It was determined that the differential pressure load or thrust load was the critical load mechanism and that the nozzle is the weak link in the combustor system.
Combustion within the channels of a wave rotor is examined as a means of obtaining pressure gain during heat addition in a gas turbine engine. Several modes of combustion are considered and the factors that determine the applicability of three modes are evaluated in detail; premixed autoignition/detonation, premixed deflagration, and non-premixed compression ignition. The last two will require strong turbulence for completion of combustion in a reasonable time in the wave rotor. The compression/autoignition modes will require inlet temperatures in excess of 1500 R for reliable ignition with most hydrocarbon fuels; otherwise, a supplementary ignition method must be provided. Examples of combustion mode selection are presented for two core engine applications that had been previously designed with equivalent 4-port wave rotor topping cycles using external combustion.
Calculated late-time spectra of two classical hydrodynamical models for Type Ia supernovae (deflagration model W7 of Nomoto, Thielemann, & Yokoi, and delayed detonation model DD4 of Woosley & Weaver) are compared with observations of SN 1992A and other spectroscopically normal SNe Ia. An important new piece of information is provided by observations done with the Hubble Space Telescope (HST) which cover the ultraviolet range at the nebular phase of a SN Ia: SN 1992A in NGC 1380. For the first time a picture of SN Ia emission from the ultraviolet through the optical is obtained at these phases. Predictions of the classical model (W7 and DD4) are compared with the observed spectrum of SN 1992A and with the optical spectra of SN 1989M in NGC 4579 and SN 1990N in NGC 4639 at similar epochs. The absolute B and V magnitudes of the models are also estimated at these late phases. Taken at face value the nebular spectra of these 'classical' models are more consistent with the long extragalactic distance scale, pointing to distances to NGC 4579 around 21 +/- 3 Mpc and a slightly larger distance, 22 +/- 3 Mpc, to NGC 4639, on the back side of the Virgo Cluster. However, the calculated Fe(+3) luminosity as predicted from the models exceeds the observed limit from the HST data of SN 1992A. Other differences in the ratios of the line intensities between calculated and observed spectra, show some disagreement with the observed spectra at the nebular phases. They may not be the best choice for spectroscopically normal SNe Ia, and their use as an independent calibration of the extragalactic distance scale should be viewed with caution.
We compute optical and infrared light curves of the pulsating class of delayed detonation models for Type Ia supernovae (SN Ia's) using an elaborate treatment of the Local Thermodynamic Equilbrium (LTE) radiation transport, equation of state and ionization balance, expansion opacity including the cooling by CO, Co(+), and SiO, and a Monte Carlo gamma-ray deposition scheme. The models have an amount of Ni-56 in the range from approximately or equal to 0.1 solar mass up to 0.7 solar mass depending on the density at which the transition from a deflagration to a detonation occurs. Models with a large nickel production give light curves comparable to those of typical Type Ia supernovae. Subluminous supernovae can be explained by models with a low nickel production. Multiband light curves are presented in comparison with the normally bright event SN 1992bc and the subluminous events Sn 1991bg and SN 1992bo to establish the principle that the delayed detonation paradigm in Chandrasekhar mass models may give a common explosion mechanism accounting for both normal and subluminous SN Ia's. Secondary IR-maxima are formed in the models of normal SN Ia's as a photospheric effect if the photospheric radius continues to increase well after maximum light. Secondary maxima appear later and stronger in models with moderate expansion velocities and with radioactive material closer to the surface. Model light curves for subluminous SN Ia's tend to show only one 'late' IR-maximum. In some delayed detonation models shell-like envelopes form, which consist of unburned carbon and oxygen. The formation of molecules in these envelopes is addressed. If the model retains a C/O-envelope and is subluminous, strong vibration bands of CO may appear, typically several weeks past maximum light. CO should be very weak or absent in normal Sn Ia's.