A study of the impulsive wave discharged from the inclined exit of a tube

Abstract

The propagation of the impulsive wave discharged from the inclined exit of a tube is investigated using a shock tube experiment and by numerical computations. The pressure histories and wavefront geometries of the impulsive wave propagating outside the exits of the tube with several different configurations are analysed for the range of an initial shock wave Mach number between 1.1 and 1.4. In the shock tube experiments, the impulsive waves are visualized by a Schlieren optical system for the purpose of validation of computational work. Computations using the two-dimensional, unsteady, compressible, Euler equations are carried out to represent the experimental impulsive waves. The results obtained show that the inclination angle of the tube exit reduces the magnitude of the impulsive wave and affects the wavefront geometry of the impulsive wave. It is also found that the propagation direction and magnitude of the impulsive wave depend on the Mach number of the initial shock wave, while the impulsive waveform does not significantly vary with the Mach number of the initial shock wave. The computed results obtained predict the experimental ones with quite good accuracy.