Numerical Simulation of Reactive Flows in Ramjet Type Combustors and Associated Validation Experiments

Twenty years ago, a review listed the main challenges to overcome to accurately predict the reactive flow fields in ramjet combustion chambers. These issues were grouped into five topics: flow organization, combustion phenomena, stability and performance, unsteady combustion and heat transfer. The aim of this paper is to give a brief overview of the numerical and experimental studies that have been carried out since this inventory in the specific program named “Research Ramjet” to improve CFD codes. First, the experimental setup designed to obtain a better understanding and to build-up an experimental database in order to validate numerical simulations is  described. Then, the progress made with regard to these technical issues is presented. Significant improvements came from the implementation of Large Eddy Simulations. However, some challenges still remain, including the prediction of the overall performance parameters and the combustion instabilities.