Linear stability of the confined compressible reacting mixing layer

This paper investigates the linear stability of confined mixing layers with special emphasis on the effects of heat release and compressibility. The results show that reflection of supersonic disturbances by the walls makes the confined supersonic mixing layer more unstable than the unconfined free shear layer. Decreasing the distance between the walls makes the flow more unstable. However, subsonic disturbances are relatively unaffected by the walls. Heat release and Mach number hardly change the growth rates of supersonic disturbances. The most unstable supersonic disturbances are two-dimensional in rectangular channel flows, but three-dimensional in partially confined flows. Finally, the reactants are not strongly mixed by supersonic instabilities, which mainly disturb one side of the layer.