A Numerical Simulation on the Process of Diaphragm Opening in Shock Tube Flows

Shock tube flow measurement has been often troubled with a finite opening time of diaphragm, but there is no systematic work to investigate its effect on the shock tube flow. In the present study, both the experimental and computational works have been performed on the shock tube flows at low pressure ratios. The computational analysis has been performed using the two-dimensional, unsteady, compressible Navier-Stokes equations, based upon a TVD MUSCL finite difference scheme. It is known that the present computational results reproduce the experimental data with good accuracy and simulate successfully the process of diaphragm opening as a function of time. The concept of an imaginary center is introduced to specify the non-centered expansion wave due to a finite opening time of diaphragm. The results obtained show that the diaphragm opening time is reduced as the initial pressure ratio of shock tube increases, leading to the effect of a finite opening time of diaphragm to be more remarkable at low pressure ratios.