Effect of the Switching Times on the Operating Behavior of a Shockless Explosion Combustor

In the past, a wide range of investigations are made in order to increase the efficiency gain in gas turbines by using constant volume combustion. In comparison to detonation-based concepts, such as pulse detonation engine and rotation detonation engine, a new promising way was proposed by Klein and Paschereit and firstly assessed by Bobusch et al. (Combust Sci Technol 186(10–11):1680–1689 (2014), [1]), the so-called shockless explosion combustion (SEC). The principle is based on a quasi-homogeneous auto-ignition process that leads to an approximate constant volume combustion (aCVC). In order to achieve a quasi-homogeneous auto-ignition, it is necessary to achieve constant ignition delay times along the combustor. The combustion process in the SEC is similar to the one in internal combustion engines, namely Homogeneous Charge Compression Ignition (HCCI). This paper focuses on the use of wastegates to actively control filling and flow motion in the combustor dedicated to perform quasi-homogeneous auto-ignition. The results clearly show the ability to actively control the fuel distribution and purging time in the combustor which is an important step in the evolution of the SEC.