Conditionally Sampled Pulsejet Driven Ejector Flow Field Using DPIV

Authors: Wentworth T. John, Daniel E. Paxson and Mark P. Wernet

Digital Particle Imaging Velocimetry (DPIV) is a planar measurement technique, which enables the study of transient flows and significantly reduces facility test time. DPIV was used in the Glenn Research Center’s Rocket lab to characterize the high temperature, high speed flow field properties of a pulsejet coupled with an ejector of rectangular cross-section. Using a dynamic pressure transducer located in the pulsejet combustion chamber, the DPIV system was used to conditionally sample the flow field leaving the pulsejet and entering the ejector. The pulsejet driven ejector flow was sampled over a range of phase steps to completely map the operational cycle of the pulsejet. The instantaneous velocity maps obtained using DPIV were used to determine mean and fluctuating flow properties. These measurements will ultimately be used to properly validate the computational model predictions of the pulsejet driven ejector flow.