Curvilinear deflagration of energetic materials

Abstract

The effects of material interface curvature on deflagration of a homogeneous solid energetic material (EM) is studied in a limit when the radius of curvature is much larger than the deflagration front thickness. Under the assumption of quasi-steady burning, a method of matched asymptotics is employed do derive first-order curvature corrections to the mass flux across the gas–solid interface as well as to the interface temperature. As an illustration, a problem of quasi-steady spherical particle deflagration is solved numerically and the simulation results are used to verify those obtained through asymptotic analysis. An algorithm for a fully-coupled unsteady solver suitable for EM deflagration simulation is presented. Numerical solution of the unsteady spherical particle deflagration is used to show that the assumption of quasi-steady deflagration is valid.

Keywords:

• Asymptotic
• Curvature
• Deflagration
• Particle
• Propellant

Acknowledgements

The University of Illinois Center for Simulation of Advanced Rockets research program is supported by the US Department of Energy through the University of California under subcontract B341494. D.S. Stewart has also been supported by the Los Alamos National Laboratory, DOE/LANL I2933-0019 and the US Air Force.