Characteristics of self-excited shock wave oscillations in a supersonic isolator with exit duct configurations

The structure and dynamics of multiple shock waves inside a constant area isolator of a model scramjet engine are studied numerically using a finite volume solver. The flow is accelerated through a nozzle with an exit Mach number of 1.75 and continues in the constant area isolator where multiple shock waves are formed. To analyze the effect of duct acoustics on the dynamics of shock train oscillations, three ducts with a duct length of 0D, 50D, and 150D are attached to the exit of the isolator, where D is the isolator exit height. The wall static pressure variation along the bottom wall and four specific locations are monitored. The wall shear stress variation along the wall provides the location of separation and reattachment points in the flow field. The statistical analysis provided more insights into the oscillation mechanisms. The lower frequency components from the duct resonance are enhanced as the duct length is increased and it altered the dominant frequency of shock oscillation. The dependence of shock train length on the exit duct confirmation is analyzed by the pressure ratio method. The different frequency components in the flow field are analyzed using the power spectral density of wall static pressure fluctuations and are distinguished based on the frequency range. The cross-spectral analysis of the wall pressure fluctuations provided the correlation between pressure signals and their narrowband time delay. Thus, the origin and directions of the perturbations are obtained and discussed. The increase in exit duct length decreases the downstream disturbance velocity, indicating the duct resonance effect on shock train oscillations.