A shock wave focusing initiation engine was assembled and tested in an experimental program. The effective pyrolysis rate of the pre-combustor was evaluated over a range of supplementary fuel ratio in this paper. Results highlight two operational modes of the resonant cavity: (1) pulsating combustion mode, (2) stable combustion mode. The appearance of the two combustion modes is jointly affected by the flow and the structural characteristic value of the combustion chamber. This paper uses images, time-frequency analysis, and nonlinear time series analysis methods to identify and distinguish these two combustion modes. It is believed that the interaction between the combustion chamber and the supply plenum is the probable reason for different combustion modes. The experiment has found that structural parameters and import flow parameters have an impact on the initiation of the combustion chamber. Increasing the injection pressure can appropriately broaden the fuel-rich boundary of initiation. Low equivalence ratio and high injection pressure can also appropriately increase the combustion working frequency in a small range. From the perspective of pressure utilization, under the premise of ensuring successful initiation, injection pressure should not be too high.
Keywords: combustion mode; nonlinear time series analysis; pressure utilization; pyrolysis; shock wave focusing.