The transition from slow burning to detonation

Abstract The transition from slow burning to detonation in a premixed gas is reexamined. Applying a simple law for the turbulent flame propagation, the acceleration of a flame and the formation of a detonation wave in a tube of constant cross section is predicted for different cases. The flame acceleration which is mainly governed by interaction processes between the flame and gasdynamic discontinuities reveals a strong influence of the heat liberated by chemical reaction. It is not so sensitive to changes of the turbulent transport coefficients. Different possible ways of generating a detonation wave are shown.