The High Pressure Shock Tube research group is based in the Department of Chemical Engineering at the University of Illinois at Chicago and has developed a unique device for studying combustion chemistry.

The group is headed by Prof. Ken Brezinsky and the laboratory and research programs are managed by Dr. Robert S. Tranter.

Laboratory

Ken Brezinsky, Dirk Fulle and Rob Tranter working on the diaphragm section.

The picture below shows the current shock tube laboratory which we moved into in late 1998 (a few pictures of our original lab are shown here as well). The view is from the driver end of the high-pressure shock tube looking towards the driven end and in the foreground the gauges attached to the high-pressure gas storage tanks that are an essential part of the apparatus can be seen. Within our web site you will find information about our shock tube and the research we do. For more detailed information please consult our publications or contact us directly.

The original high-pressure shock tube lab. Just before we started to build the tube.

The assembled shock tube occupied most of the lab making it rather cramped.

Shock tube pieces just back from being electropolished before being assembled

Getting the original lab ready for the shock tube.

The high-pressure shock tube in the new, spacious laboratory