Abstract

This paper describes ongoing research efforts in the scramjet community on cavity e ame holders, a concept for e ame holding and stabilization in supersonic combustors. During the last few years, cavities have gained the attention of the scramjet community as a promising e ame-holding device, owing to results obtained in e ight tests and to feasibility demonstrations in laboratory-scale supersonic combustors. However, comprehensive studies are needed to determine the optimal cone guration that will yield the most effective e ame-holding capability with minimum losses. The e owe eld characteristics of cavities and research efforts related to cavities employed in lowand high-speed e ows are summarized. Open questions impacting the effectiveness of the cavities as e ame holders in supersonic combustors are discussed.