Investigation on the stability of the Rijke-type thermoacoustic system with an axially distributed heat source

Due to the incurred damages to the combustors, large-amplitude self-sustained thermoacoustic oscillations are unwanted in many propulsion systems, such as liquid/solid rocket motors and aero-engines. To suppress these thermoacoustic oscillations efficiently, the mechanism of thermoacoustic instability needs to be clarified. Following the previous experimental work, the transitions to instability in a Rijke-type thermoacoustic system with an axially distributed heat source are studied numerically in this paper. The URANS numerical method is utilized and verified by means of a mesh sensitivity analysis. The influences of the axially distributed heater length, the heater location, and the mean flow velocity on the nonlinear dynamic behaviors of thermoacoustic oscillations are evaluated. To explore the corresponding mechanism behind these influences, the principle of acoustic energy conservation has been applied. The acoustic energy gains from the thermal-acoustic coupling are quantified via Rayleigh’s integral, and their phase differences are calculated by the cross-correlation function. The acoustic damping induced by the vortex dissipation is qualitatively analyzed by the characteristics of the flow fields in the Rijke tube. Finally, as the heater length, the heater location, or the mean flow velocity is varied, three mechanisms of the transitions to instability in a Rijke-type thermoacoustic system are identified.