A non-absorption-loss immune TDLAS sensor for online Mach number evaluation in supersonic flows

Tunable diode laser absorption spectroscopy (TDLAS) techniques are widely used in combustion monitoring by using direct absorption spectroscopy (DAS). However, the DAS method is sensitive to laser intensity fluctuations and fails to work in harsh application cases. A non-absorption-loss immune TDLAS sensor was proposed for robust online evaluation of Mach number from temperature and speed in supersonic flows and in situ validated on a scramjet. Spectral lines of H₂O at 7185.58 and 7444.35 cm⁻¹ were selected to perform evaluations of target molecules, i.e., of water vapor. In highly turbulent supersonic flows of Mach 2.8, the proposed TDLAS sensor has improved the signal-to-noise ratio (SNR) of the transmitted laser intensity by about 6.46 dB, compared to the conventional single-ended TDLAS sensor. When the ramjet was running stably, the average Mach number was 2.82, and standard deviations of the Mach number were less than 0.09. Relative errors of measured Mach numbers were less than 1.39 %. The proposed sensor monitors the entire ramjet engine process from ignition to propellant cut-off at a rate of 5 kHz and yields detailed insights for ramjet performance evaluation.