On the free unsteady expansion of an ideal gas (Q1316804)

The asymptotic laws governing the unsteady flow of an ideal (i.e. inviscid and non-heat-conducting) gas expanding freely out of a plane, cylindrical or spherical volume are studied within the framework of the continuum model. In the case of expansion into a vacuum, the laws obtained are valid in a certain neighborhood of the plane, axis or center of symmetry for time values at which the gas density (or specific enthalpy) is much smaller than its initial value.