Reactive impulse from the explosion of a gas mixture in a semiinfinite space

The reactive impulse from the explosion of an acetylene-oxygen mixture in a cylindrical chamber is calculated and measured. The gas mixture was charged into the closed end of the chamber and filled all or part of the length of the chamber. In the latter case, air filled the remaining part of the chamber volume. With a variation in the ratio of chamber and charge lengths from 1 to 7–10, the specific impulse from detonation of the mixture increases from 160 to 500–540 sec. In the case of fuel-air mixtures, the theoretical specific impulse is several times lower per unit mass of the mixture and several times greater per unit mass of the fuel.