Spectroscopic measurements of sub- and supersonic plasma flows for the investigation of atmospheric re-entry shock layer radiation

Spectroscopic measurements of sub- and supersonic plasma flows for the investigation of atmospheric re-entry shock layer radiation
By Damien Le Quang Huy

PhD Thesis from the von Karman Institute / Université Blaise Pascal, June 2014, ISBN 978-2-87516-078-2, 211 pgs

Abstract

During planetary atmospheric entries, thermochemical non-equilibrium processes in the shock layer limit the reliability of aerothermal environment prediction. To improve prediction accuracy, non-equilibrium kinetic models are being developed. These models are experimentally assessed through the comparison with well characterized non-equilibrium experiments. For this purpose, the present work is dedicated to the thermodynamic characterization of non-equilibrium in high enthalpy reactive flows. Conversely to common studies that employ short duration facilities to investigate shock layer kinetics, we will assess the possibility of producing significant departure from equilibrium using radio-frequency and microwave stationary plasma flows, including supersonic plasma flows where vibrational non- equilibrium is strongly expected. Suitable spectroscopic diagnostics have been applied allowing future comparisons to be made between the microscopic description of the experiments and theoretical non-equilibrium models.