Investigation of injector-coupled combustion dynamics in a methane–oxygen combustor using large eddy simulation and dynamic mode decomposition

Abstract

This paper uses a reactive flow large eddy simulation (LES) and decomposition techniques to study combustion instabilities in a methane–oxygen combustor. This work examines two case scenarios to elucidate the significance of injector–chamber frequency coupling as the cause of thermo-acoustic instability. Initial investigation in a well-known benchmark case of the continuously variable resonance combustor (CVRC) reports the potential instability mechanisms and the role of injector–chamber frequency coupling in thermo-acoustic instability. Subsequently, the multi-element rocket combustor case study identifies the critical resonant modes and highlights potential frequency coupling between the injector and the chamber region. The interplay between longitudinal pressure oscillations in the oxidizer post and transverse pressure waves in the chamber is responsible for the enhanced pressure dynamics in the combustor. The present work uses the dynamic mode decomposition (DMD) technique to reveal the evolution of acoustic modes in the injector and the chamber for CVRC and multi-element combustor. The dominant pressure mode forms found by DMD analysis also showcase the role of injector–chamber frequency coupling in amplified combustion dynamics. The results demonstrate how the predominant cause of combustion instability in rocket combustors can be effectively determined using the high-fidelity LES framework in conjunction with the modal decomposition technique.