On the one-dimensional flow of a conducting gas in crossed fields

Abstract

The equations governing the quasi-one-dimensional steady flow of a conducting perfect gas in crossed, transverse electric and magnetic fields are treated under the assumptions that the electric conductivity is a scalar, that the wall drag is small and that the magnetic field due to the currents in the gas is negligible. The equations are normalized and different flow situations are illustrated by means of phase diagrams (drawn for a gas of constant specific heats, γ = 1.33 \gamma = 1.33 ). The possibility of a smooth transition from supersonic to subsonic motion is pointed out and the phenomena of standing shock fronts and choking are surveyed for constant-area, small-friction, power-yielding flow. The appendix contains some general remarks on the system of non-linear differential equations: x ′ = P ( x , y ) / R ( x , y ) x’ = P\left ( {x,y} \right )/R\left ( {x,y} \right ) ; y ′ = Q ( x , y ) / R ( x , y ) y’ = Q(x,y)/R(x,y) .