Numerical Model of Compression Plasma Flows in Channels under a Longitudinal Magnetic Field

Abstract

We consider a mathematical model of plasma flows in nozzle channels formed by two coaxial electrodes. The acceleration of plasma in an azimuthal magnetic field is accompanied by its compression and heating in the compression zone at the channel axis past the tip of the shorter central electrode. The mathematical apparatus of the model is based on numerically solving two-dimensional MHD problems using the Zalesak flux-corrected transport (Z-FCT) scheme. In the computations, we study the dependence of the compression phenomenon and its quantitative characteristics on the channel geometry, the problem parameters, and the additional longitudinal magnetic field present in the channel.