Bifurcations of the flow characteristics of an adjustable supersonic nozzle

A ground-based experimental study of the flow characteristic of an adjustable high-altitude nozzle was performed. It is shown that the flow characteristic of the adjustable nozzle can significantly depend on the design of its supersonic part and operation conditions. It is found that the operation such nozzles can involve different flow regimes of the working fluid depending on the position of the regulator; under certain conditions, there may be an abrupt change in the flow regime, which leads to an abrupt change (bifurcation) of the flow characteristic of the nozzle.