Perturbation methods applied to problems in detonation physics

A theoretical study of an explosive which releases a small fraction of its total energy via resolved reactions is presented. Two separate problems are treated. First a time-dependent one-dimensional unsupported detonation is considered. It is shown that the detonation is a reactive simple wave. The particle velocity profiles are calculated for a model explosive. Second, the detonation edge effect for a steady-state semi-infinite unconfined detonation is considered. It is shown that the near-field flow is dominated by the Prandtl--Meyer singularity, whereas the far-field flow is controlled by the reactivity and streamline divergence. The shock locus, sonic locus, and limiting characteristic are calculated and the effects of confinement are discussed