The KAUST low pressure shock tube (LPST) is an 18 m long stainless steel tube with an inner diameter of 14.2 cm. This system is designed to reach reflected shock pressures of 1 - 20 bar and temperatures of 500 – 4000 K. The shock tube can be pre-heated to 200 0C with electrical heating jackets.
The KAUST high pressure shock tube (HPST) is a 14 m long stainless steel tube with an internal diameter of 10 cm. The HPST is designed to reach reflected shock pressures of 1 - 200 bar and temperatures of 600 – 3000 K. The shock tube can be pre-heated to 200 0C with electrical heating jackets.
The KAUST rapid compression machine (RCM) has a dual-opposed piston configuration which gives significantly reduced compression times compared with a single piston arrangement. Characteristic test times of up to 500 ms can be achieved to probe low-temperature chemistry.