Durability of Laser-Supported Detonation by Periodic Change of Irradiated Laser Intensity

Abstract

Laser-supported detonation (LSD), a type of supersonic flow, is regarded as a very important phenomenon in Laser propulsion systems, because it can generate the required high pressures and temperatures. In this study, the unsteady performances are investigated by simple one-dimensional geometry and variable laser intensity using a computational fluid dynamics (CFD) analysis with the thermochemical non-equilibrium model for inert gas plasma. Though the periodic irradiative laser intensity is too exaggerated below the level of LSD-LSC (laser-supported combustion) transition, LSD can be sustained shorter than 0.9μs in the atmospheric pressure argon gas. In the region of the shorter period, LSD propagation velocity is sustained over 3.8×103 m/s, the level in the case of LSD-LSC threshold.