Published online by Cambridge University Press: 28 March 2006
The travelling-wave plasma converter is analyzed allowing for the compressible nature of the fluid. The study is restricted to conditions for which the magnetic Reynolds number is small. Steady and time-varying flow conditions are investigated using small perturbation theory. Relations for optimum conversion effectiveness are established and the effects of variable electrical conductivity are investigated. Conditions for electromechanical resonance are derived and it is shown that the conversion process introduces a damping effect.