Stability and Behaviors of Methane/Propane and Hydrogen Micro Flames

Science.gov (United States)

Yoshimoto, Takamitsu; Kinoshita, Koichiro; Kitamura, Hideki; Tanigawa, Ryoichi

The flame stability limits essentially define the fundamental operation of the combustion system. Recently the micro diffusion flame has been remarked. The critical conditions of the flame stability limit are highly dependent on nozzle diameter, species of fuel and so on. The micro diffusion flame of Methane/Propane and Hydrogen is formed by using the micro-scale nozzle of which inner diameter is less than 1mm. The configurations and behaviors of the flame are observed directly and visualized by the high speed video camera The criteria of stability limits are proposed for the micro diffusion flame. The objectives of the present study are to get further understanding of lifting/blow-off for the micro diffusion flame. The results obtained are as follows. (1) The behaviors of the flames are classified into some regions for each diffusion flame. (2) The micro diffusion flame of Methane/Propane cannot be sustained, when the nozzle diameter is less than 0.14 mm. (3) The diffusion flame cannot be sustained below the critical fuel flow rate. (4) The minimum flow which is formed does not depends on the average jet velocity, but on the fuel flow rate. (5) the micro flame is laminar. The flame length is decided by fuel flow rate.

Soot Formation in Freely-Propagating Laminar Premixed Flames

Science.gov (United States)

Lin, K.-C.; Hassan, M. I.; Faeth, G. M.

1997-01-01

Soot formation within hydrocarbon-fueled flames is an important unresolved problem of combustion science. Thus, the present study is considering soot formation in freely-propagating laminar premixed flames, exploiting the microgravity environment to simplify measurements at the high-pressure conditions of interest for many practical applications. The findings of the investigation are relevant to reducing emissions of soot and continuum radiation from combustion processes, to improving terrestrial and spacecraft fire safety, and to developing methods of computational combustion, among others. Laminar premixed flames are attractive for studying soot formation because they are simple one-dimensional flows that are computationally tractable for detailed numerical simulations. Nevertheless, studying soot-containing burner-stabilized laminar premixed flames is problematical: spatial resolution and residence times are limited at the pressures of interest for practical applications, flame structure is sensitive to minor burner construction details so that experimental reproducibility is not very good, consistent burner behavior over the lengthy test programs needed to measure soot formation properties is hard to achieve, and burners have poor durability. Fortunately, many of these problems are mitigated for soot-containing, freely-propagating laminar premixed flames. The present investigation seeks to extend work in this laboratory for various soot processes in flames by observing soot formation in freely-propagating laminar premixed flames. Measurements are being made at both Normal Gravity (NG) and MicroGravity (MG), using a short-drop free-fall facility to provide MG conditions.

Effects of Burner Configurations on the Natural Oscillation Characteristics of Laminar Jet Diffusion Flames

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

K. R. V. Manikantachari

2015-09-01

Full Text Available In this work, effects of burner configurations on the natural oscillations of methane laminar diffusion flames under atmospheric pressure and normal gravity conditions have been studied experimentally. Three regimes of laminar diffusion flames, namely, steady, intermittent flickering and continuous flickering have been investigated. Burner configurations such as straight pipe, contoured nozzle and that having an orifice plate at the exit have been considered. All burners have the same area of cross section at the exit and same burner lip thickness. Flame height data has been extracted from direct flame video using MATLAB. Shadowgraph videos have been captured to analyze the plume width characteristics. Results show that, the oscillation characteristics of the orifice burner is significantly different from the other two burners; orifice burner produces a shorter flame and wider thermal plume width in the steady flame regime and the onset of the oscillation/flickering regimes for the orifice burner occurs at a higher fuel flow rate. In the natural flickering regime, the dominating frequency of flame flickering remains within a small range, 12.5 Hz to 15 Hz, for all the burners and for all fuel flow rates. The time-averaged flame length-scale parameters, such as the maximum and the minimum flame heights, increase with respect to the fuel flow rate, however, the difference in the maximum and the minimum flame heights remains almost constant.

Experimental characterization of methane inverse diffusion flame

KAUST Repository

Elbaz, Ayman M.

2014-06-26

This article presents 10-kHz images of OH-PLIF simultaneously with 2-D PIV measurements in an inverse methane diffusion flame. Under a constant fuel flow rate, the central air jet Re was varied, leading to air to fuel velocity ratio, Vr, to vary from 8.3 to 66.5. Starting from Vr = 20.7, the flame is commonly characterized by three distinct zones. The length of the lower fuel entrainment region is inversely proportional to Vr. The flames investigated resemble a string shear layer confining this zone, and converging into the second distinct region, the flame neck zone. The third region is the rest of the flame, which spreads in a jet-like manner. The inverse diffusion flames exhibit varying degrees of partial premixing, depending upon on the velocity ratio Vr, and this region of partial premixing evolves into a well-mixed reaction zone along the flame centerline. The OH distribution correlated with the changes in the mean characteristics of the flow through reduction in the local Reynolds number due to heat release. The existence of a flame suppresses or laminarizes the turbulence at early axial locations and promotes fluctuations at the flame tip for flames with Vr < 49.8. In addition, the flame jet width can be correlated to the OH distribution. In upstream regions of the flames, the breaks in OH are counterbalanced by flame closures and are governed by edge flame propagation. These local extinctions were found to occur at locations where large flow structures were impinging on the flame and are associated with a locally higher strain rate or correlated to the local high strain rates at the flame hole edges without this flow impinging. Another contributor to re-ignition was found to be growing flame kernels. As the flames approach global blow-off, these kernels become the main mechanism for re-ignition further downstream of the flames. At low Vr, laminarization within the early regions of the flame provides an effective shield, preventing the jet flow from

Effect of hydrogen addition on burning rate and surface density of turbulent lean premixed methane-air flames

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Guo, H.; Tayebi, B.; Galizzi, C.; Escudie, D.

2009-01-01

Hydrogen (H 2 ) is a clean burning component, but relatively expensive. Mixing a small amount of hydrogen with other fuels is an effective way to use H 2 . H 2 enriched combustion significantly improves fuel efficiency and reduces pollutant (nitrogen oxide and particulate matter) emissions. This presentation discussed the effect of hydrogen addition on burning rate and surface density of turbulent lean premixed methane-air flames. The presentation discussed flame configuration; the experimental methodology using laser tomography; and results for typical images, burning velocity, ratio of turbulent to laminar burning velocities, flame surface density, curvature, flame brush thickness, and integrated flame surface area. It was concluded that the increase of turbulent burning velocity was faster than that of laminar burning velocity, which contradicted traditional theory. figs.

A Computational and Experimental Study of Coflow Laminar Methane/Air Diffusion Flames: Effects of Fuel Dilution, Inlet Velocity, and Gravity

Science.gov (United States)

Cao, S.; Ma, B.; Bennett, B. A. V.; Giassi, D.; Stocker, D. P.; Takahashi, F.; Long, M. B.; Smooke, M. D.

2014-01-01

The influences of fuel dilution, inlet velocity, and gravity on the shape and structure of laminar coflow CH4-air diffusion flames were investigated computationally and experimentally. A series of nitrogen-diluted flames measured in the Structure and Liftoff in Combustion Experiment (SLICE) on board the International Space Station was assessed numerically under microgravity (mu g) and normal gravity (1g) conditions with CH4 mole fraction ranging from 0.4 to 1.0 and average inlet velocity ranging from 23 to 90 cm/s. Computationally, the MC-Smooth vorticity-velocity formulation was employed to describe the reactive gaseous mixture, and soot evolution was modeled by sectional aerosol equations. The governing equations and boundary conditions were discretized on a two-dimensional computational domain by finite differences, and the resulting set of fully coupled, strongly nonlinear equations was solved simultaneously at all points using a damped, modified Newton's method. Experimentally, flame shape and soot temperature were determined by flame emission images recorded by a digital color camera. Very good agreement between computation and measurement was obtained, and the conclusions were as follows. (1) Buoyant and nonbuoyant luminous flame lengths are proportional to the mass flow rate of the fuel mixture; computed and measured nonbuoyant flames are noticeably longer than their 1g counterparts; the effect of fuel dilution on flame shape (i.e., flame length and flame radius) is negligible when the flame shape is normalized by the methane flow rate. (2) Buoyancy-induced reduction of the flame radius through radially inward convection near the flame front is demonstrated. (3) Buoyant and nonbuoyant flame structure is mainly controlled by the fuel mass flow rate, and the effects from fuel dilution and inlet velocity are secondary.

Laminar Flame Velocity and Temperature Exponent of Diluted DME-Air Mixture

Science.gov (United States)

Naseer Mohammed, Abdul; Anwar, Muzammil; Juhany, Khalid A.; Mohammad, Akram

2017-03-01

In this paper, the laminar flame velocity and temperature exponent diluted dimethyl ether (DME) air mixtures are reported. Laminar premixed mixture of DME-air with volumetric dilutions of carbon dioxides (CO2) and nitrogen (N2) are considered. Experiments were conducted using a preheated mesoscale high aspect-ratio diverging channel with inlet dimensions of 25 mm × 2 mm. In this method, flame velocities are extracted from planar flames that were stabilized near adiabatic conditions inside the channel. The flame velocities are then plotted against the ratio of mixture temperature and the initial reference temperature. A non-linear power law regression is observed suitable. This regression analysis gives the laminar flame velocity at the initial reference temperature and temperature exponent. Decrease in the laminar flame velocity and increase in temperature exponent is observed for CO2 and N2 diluted mixtures. The addition of CO2 has profound influence when compared to N2 addition on both flame velocity and temperature exponent. Numerical prediction of the similar mixture using a detailed reaction mechanism is obtained. The computational mechanism predicts higher magnitudes for laminar flame velocity and smaller magnitudes of temperature exponent compared to experimental data.

Laminar Flame Speeds of Gasoline Surrogates Measured with the Flat Flame Method

KAUST Repository

Liao, Y.-H.

2016-01-27

© 2016 American Chemical Society. The adiabatic, laminar flame speeds of gasoline surrogates at atmospheric pressure over a range of equivalence ratios of = 0.8-1.3 and unburned gas temperatures of 298-400 K are measured with the flat flame method, which produces a one-dimensional flat flame free of stretch. Surrogates used in the current work are the primary reference fuels (PRFs, mixtures of n-heptane and isooctane), the toluene reference fuels (TRFs, mixtures of toluene and PRFs), and the ethanol reference fuels (ERFs, mixtures of ethanol and PRFs). In general, there is good agreement between the present work and the literature data for single-component fuel and PRF mixtures. Surrogates of TRF mixtures are found to exhibit comparable flame speeds to a real gasoline, while there is discrepancy observed between isooctane and gasoline. Moreover, the laminar flame speeds of TRF mixtures with similar fractions of n-heptane are found to be insensitive to the quantity of toluene in the mixture. Mixtures of ERFs exhibit comparable flame speeds to those of TRFs with similar mole fractions of n-heptane and isooctane.

The anchoring mechanism of a bluff-body stabilized laminar premixed flame

KAUST Repository

Kedia, Kushal S.

2014-09-01

The objective of this work is to investigate the mechanism of the laminar premixed flame anchoring near a heat-conducting bluff-body. We use unsteady, fully resolved, two-dimensional simulations with detailed chemical kinetics and species transport for methane-air combustion. No artificial flame anchoring boundary conditions were imposed. Simulations show a shear-layer stabilized flame just downstream of the bluff-body, with a recirculation zone formed by the products of combustion. A steel bluff-body resulted in a slightly larger recirculation zone than a ceramic bluff-body; the size of which grew as the equivalence ratio was decreased. A significant departure from the conventional two-zone flame-structure is shown in the anchoring region. In this region, the reaction zone is associated with a large negative energy convection (directed from products to reactants) resulting in a negative flame-displacement speed. It is shown that the premixed flame anchors at an immediate downstream location near the bluff-body where favorable ignition conditions are established; a region associated with (1) a sufficiently high temperature impacted by the conjugate heat exchange between the heat-conducting bluff-body and the hot reacting flow and (2) a locally maximum stoichiometry characterized by the preferential diffusion effects. © 2014 The Combustion Institute.

Laminar Flame Speeds of Gasoline Surrogates Measured with the Flat Flame Method

KAUST Repository

Liao, Y.-H.; Roberts, William L.

2016-01-01

© 2016 American Chemical Society. The adiabatic, laminar flame speeds of gasoline surrogates at atmospheric pressure over a range of equivalence ratios of = 0.8-1.3 and unburned gas temperatures of 298-400 K are measured with the flat flame method

Impact of flame-wall interaction on premixed flame dynamics and transfer function characteristics

KAUST Repository

Kedia, K.S.; Altay, H.M.; Ghoniem, A.F.

2011-01-01

In this paper, we numerically investigate the response of a perforated-plate stabilized laminar methane-air premixed flame to imposed inlet velocity perturbations. A flame model using detailed chemical kinetics mechanism is applied and heat exchange

Flame propagation and counterflow nonpremixed ignition of mixtures of methane and ethylene

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Liu, W.; Kelley, A.P.; Law, C.K. [Department of Mechanical and Aerospace Engineering, Princeton University, Princeton, NJ 08544 (United States)

2010-05-15

The ignition temperature of nitrogen-diluted mixtures of methane and ethylene counterflowing against heated air was measured up to five atmospheres. In addition, the stretch-corrected laminar flame speeds of mixtures of air, methane and ethylene were determined from outwardly-propagating spherical flames up to 10 atmospheres, for extensive range of the lean-to-rich equivalence ratio. These experimental data, relevant to low- to moderately-high-temperature ignition chemistry and high-temperature flame chemistry, respectively, were subsequently compared with calculations using two detailed kinetic mechanisms. A chemical explosive mode analysis (CEMA) was then conducted to identify the dominant ignition chemistry and the role of ethylene addition in facilitating nonpremixed ignition. Furthermore, the hierarchical structure of the associated oxidation kinetics was examined by comparing the sizes and constituents of the skeletal mechanisms of the pure fuels and their mixtures, derived using the method of directed relation graph (DRG). The skeletal mechanism was further reduced by time-scale analysis, leading to a 24-species reduced mechanism from the detailed mechanism of USC Mech II, validated within the parameter space of the conducted experiments. (author)

A comparative experimental and computational study of methanol, ethanol, and n-butanol flames

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Veloo, Peter S.; Wang, Yang L.; Egolfopoulos, Fokion N. [Department of Aerospace and Mechanical Engineering, University of Southern California, Los Angeles, CA 90089-1453 (United States); Westbrook, Charles K. [Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory, Livermore, CA 94550 (United States)

2010-10-15

Laminar flame speeds and extinction strain rates of premixed methanol, ethanol, and n-butanol flames were determined experimentally in the counterflow configuration at atmospheric pressure and elevated unburned mixture temperatures. Additional measurements were conducted also to determine the laminar flame speeds of their n-alkane/air counterparts, namely methane, ethane, and n-butane in order to compare the effect of alkane and alcohol molecular structures on high-temperature flame kinetics. For both propagation and extinction experiments the flow velocities were determined using the digital particle image velocimetry method. Laminar flame speeds were derived through a non-linear extrapolation approach based on direct numerical simulations of the experiments. Two recently developed detailed kinetics models of n-butanol oxidation were used to simulate the experiments. The experimental results revealed that laminar flame speeds of ethanol/air and n-butanol/air flames are similar to those of their n-alkane/air counterparts, and that methane/air flames have consistently lower laminar flame speeds than methanol/air flames. The laminar flame speeds of methanol/air flames are considerably higher compared to both ethanol/air and n-butanol/air flames under fuel-rich conditions. Numerical simulations of n-butanol/air freely propagating flames, revealed discrepancies between the two kinetic models regarding the consumption pathways of n-butanol and its intermediates. (author)

Influence of thermal radiation on soot production in Laminar axisymmetric diffusion flames

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Demarco, R.; Nmira, F.; Consalvi, J.L.

2013-01-01

The aim of this paper is to study the effect of radiative heat transfer on soot production in laminar axisymmetric diffusion flames. Twenty-four C 1 –C 3 hydrocarbon–air flames, consisting of normal (NDF) and inverse (IDF) diffusion flames at both normal gravity (1 g) and microgravity (0 g), and covering a wide range of conditions affecting radiative heat transfer, were simulated. The numerical model is based on the Steady Laminar Flamelet (SLF) model, a semi-empirical two-equation acetylene/benzene based soot model and the Statistical Narrow Band Correlated K (SNBCK) model coupled to the Finite Volume Method (FVM) to compute thermal radiation. Predictions relative to velocity, temperature, soot volume fraction and radiative losses are on the whole in good agreement with the available experimental data. Model results show that, for all the flames considered, thermal radiation is a crucial process with a view to providing accurate predictions for temperatures and soot concentrations. It becomes increasingly significant from IDFs to NDFs and its influence is much greater as gravity is reduced. The radiative contribution of gas prevails in the weakly-sooting IDFs and in the methane and ethane NDFs, whereas soot radiation dominates in the other flames. However, both contributions are significant in all cases, with the exception of the 1 g IDFs investigated where soot radiation can be ignored. The optically-thin approximation (OTA) was also tested and found to be applicable as long as the optical thickness, based on flame radius and Planck mean absorption coefficient, is less than 0.05. The OTA is reasonable for the IDFs and for most of the 1 g NDFs, but it fails to predict the radiative heat transfer for the 0 g NDFs. The accuracy of radiative-property models was then assessed in the latter cases. Simulations show that the gray approximation can be applied to soot but not to combustion gases. Both the non-gray and gray soot versions of the Full Spectrum Correlated

The blow-off mechanism of a bluff-body stabilized laminar premixed flame

KAUST Repository

Kedia, Kushal S.

2015-04-01

© 2014 The Combustion Institute. The objective of this work is to investigate the dynamics leading to blow-off of a laminar premixed flame stabilized on a confined bluff-body using high fidelity numerical simulations. We used unsteady, fully resolved, two-dimensional simulations with detailed chemical kinetics and species transport for methane-air combustion. The flame-wall interaction between the hot reactants and the heat conducting bluff-body was accurately captured by incorporating the conjugate heat exchange between them. Simulations showed a shear-layer stabilized flame just downstream of the bluff-body, with a recirculation zone formed by the products of combustion. The flame was negatively stretched along its entire length, primarily dominated by the normal component of the strain. Blow-off was approached by decreasing the mixture equivalence ratio, at a fixed Reynolds number, of the incoming flow. A flame is stable (does not undergo blow-off) when (1) flame displacement speed is equal to the flow speed and (2) the gradient of the flame displacement speed normal to its surface is higher than the gradient of the flow speed along the same direction. As the equivalence ratio is reduced, the difference between the former and the latter shrinks until the dynamic stability condition (2) is violated, leading to blow-off. Blow-off initiates at a location where this is first violated along the flame. Our results showed that this location was far downstream from the flame anchoring zone, near the end of the recirculation zone. Blow-off started by flame pinching separating the flame into an upstream moving (carried within the recirculation zone) and a downstream convecting (detached from the recirculation zone) flame piece. Within the range of operating conditions investigated, the conjugate heat exchange with the bluff-body had no impact on the flame blow-off.

Experimental and detailed kinetic modeling study of PAH formation in laminar co-flow methane diffusion flames

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Cuoci, Alberto; Frassoldati, Alessio; Faravelli, Tiziano

2013-01-01

In the present paper, synchrotron VUV photoionization mass spectrometry is used to study the detailed chemistry of co-flow methane diffusion flames with different dilution ratios. The experimental results constitute a comprehensive characterization of species important for PAH and soot formation...

Experimental and numerical study of the accuracy of flame-speed measurements for methane/air combustion in a slot burner

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Selle, L.; Ferret, B. [Universite de Toulouse, INPT, UPS, IMFT, Institut de Mecanique des Fluides de Toulouse (France); CNRS, IMFT, Toulouse (France); Poinsot, T. [Universite de Toulouse, INPT, UPS, IMFT, Institut de Mecanique des Fluides de Toulouse (France); CNRS, IMFT, Toulouse (France); CERFACS, Toulouse (France)

2011-01-15

Measuring the velocities of premixed laminar flames with precision remains a controversial issue in the combustion community. This paper studies the accuracy of such measurements in two-dimensional slot burners and shows that while methane/air flame speeds can be measured with reasonable accuracy, the method may lack precision for other mixtures such as hydrogen/air. Curvature at the flame tip, strain on the flame sides and local quenching at the flame base can modify local flame speeds and require corrections which are studied using two-dimensional DNS. Numerical simulations also provide stretch, displacement and consumption flame speeds along the flame front. For methane/air flames, DNS show that the local stretch remains small so that the local consumption speed is very close to the unstretched premixed flame speed. The only correction needed to correctly predict flame speeds in this case is due to the finite aspect ratio of the slot used to inject the premixed gases which induces a flow acceleration in the measurement region (this correction can be evaluated from velocity measurement in the slot section or from an analytical solution). The method is applied to methane/air flames with and without water addition and results are compared to experimental data found in the literature. The paper then discusses the limitations of the slot-burner method to measure flame speeds for other mixtures and shows that it is not well adapted to mixtures with a Lewis number far from unity, such as hydrogen/air flames. (author)

Quantitative determination of flame color and its determining factor in hydrocarbon/air laminar diffusion flames; Soryu kakusan kaen ni okeru kaenshoku no teiryoka to sono kettei yoin

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Tatsuta, S. [Asahikawa National College of Technology, Hokkaido (Japan); Fujita, O.; Ito, K. [Hokkaido University, Sapporo (Japan)

1998-08-25

The color of laminar diffusion flames burning propane, methane and ethylene was determined by chromaticity coordinates (x, y) defined by the CIE 1931 standard colorimetric system. The differences in flame color attributed to burning condition and fuel types were examined with a colorimeter. Spectroscopic measurement and numerical analysis using a simplified radiation model were also carried out to discuss the determining factors of the flame color. The relation between x and y measured on the central axis of the flames was expressed in the experimental equations. The (x, y) in the luminous region plotted on a chromaticity diagram changed along Planckian locus with the burning conditions. The contribution of the thermal radiation of soot particles and the chemiluminescence to the flame color was successfully evaluated by introducing the concept of additive mixture of color stimuli. The (x, y) profiles from the numerical analysis agreed well with the experimental results. 17 refs., 14 figs., 1 tab.

Turbulent burning rates of methane and methane-hydrogen mixtures

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Fairweather, M. [School of Process, Environmental and Materials Engineering, University of Leeds, Leeds LS2 9JT (United Kingdom); Ormsby, M.P.; Sheppard, C.G.W. [School of Mechanical Engineering, University of Leeds, Leeds LS2 9JT (United Kingdom); Woolley, R. [Department of Mechanical Engineering, University of Sheffield, Sheffield S1 3JD (United Kingdom)

2009-04-15

Methane and methane-hydrogen (10%, 20% and 50% hydrogen by volume) mixtures have been ignited in a fan stirred bomb in turbulence and filmed using high speed cine schlieren imaging. Measurements were performed at 0.1 MPa (absolute) and 360 K. A turbulent burning velocity was determined for a range of turbulence velocities and equivalence ratios. Experimental laminar burning velocities and Markstein numbers were also derived. For all fuels the turbulent burning velocity increased with turbulence velocity. The addition of hydrogen generally resulted in increased turbulent and laminar burning velocity and decreased Markstein number. Those flames that were less sensitive to stretch (lower Markstein number) burned faster under turbulent conditions, especially as the turbulence levels were increased, compared to stretch-sensitive (high Markstein number) flames. (author)

Stability enhancement of ozone-assisted laminar premixed Bunsen flames in nitrogen co-flow

KAUST Repository

Vu, Tran Manh

2014-04-01

Ozone (O3) is known as one of the strongest oxidizers and therefore is widely used in many applications. Typically in the combustion field, a combination of non-thermal plasma and combustion systems have been studied focusing on the effects of ozone on flame propagation speeds and ignition characteristics. Here, we experimentally investigated the effects of ozone on blowoff of premixed methane/air and propane/air flames over a full range of equivalence ratios at room temperature and atmospheric pressure by using a co-flow burner and a dielectric barrier discharge. The results with ozone showed that a nozzle exit jet velocity at the moment of flame blowoff (blowoff velocity) significantly increased, and flammability limits for both fuel-lean and rich mixtures were also extended. Ozone had stronger effects of percent enhancement in the blowoff velocity for off-stoichiometric mixtures, while minimum enhancements could be observed around stoichiometric conditions for both fuels showing linear positive dependence on a tested range of ozone concentration up to 3810ppm. Through chemical kinetic simulations, the experimentally observed trends of the enhancement in blowoff velocity were identified as a result of the modification of the laminar burning velocity. Two ozone decomposition pathways of O3+N2→O+O2+N2 and O3+H→O2+OH were identified as the most controlling steps. These reactions, coupled with fuel consumption characteristics of each fuel determined the degree of promotion in laminar burning velocities, supporting experimental observations on blowoff velocities with ozone addition. © 2013 The Combustion Institute.

Measurements of the laminar burning velocity of hydrogen-air premixed flames

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Pareja, Jhon; Burbano, Hugo J. [Science and Technology of Gases and Rational Use of Energy Group, Faculty of Engineering, University of Antioquia, Calle 67 N 53, 108 Bloque 20, 447 Medellin (Colombia); Ogami, Yasuhiro [Institute of Fluid Science, Tohoku University, 2-1-1 Katahira, Aoba-ku, Sendai, Miyagi 980-8577 (Japan)

2010-02-15

Experimental and numerical studies on laminar burning velocities of hydrogen-air mixtures were performed at standard pressure and room temperature varying the equivalence ratio from 0.8 to 3.0. The flames were generated using a contoured slot-type nozzle burner (4 mm x 10 mm). Measurements of laminar burning velocity were conducted using particle tracking velocimetry (PTV) combined with Schlieren photography. This technique provides the information of instantaneous local burning velocities in the whole region of the flame front, and laminar burning velocities were determined using the mean value of local burning velocities in the region of non-stretch. Additionally, average laminar burning velocities were determined using the angle method and compared with the data obtained with the PTV method. Numerical calculations were also conducted using detailed reaction mechanisms and transport properties. The experimental results from the PTV method are in good agreement with the numerical results at every equivalence ratio of the range of study. Differences between the results obtained with the angle method and those with the PTV method are reasonably small when the effects of flame stretch and curvature are reduced by using a contoured slot-type nozzle. (author)

Influence of thermal radiation on soot production in Laminar axisymmetric diffusion flames

Science.gov (United States)

Demarco, R.; Nmira, F.; Consalvi, J. L.

2013-05-01

The aim of this paper is to study the effect of radiative heat transfer on soot production in laminar axisymmetric diffusion flames. Twenty-four C1-C3 hydrocarbon-air flames, consisting of normal (NDF) and inverse (IDF) diffusion flames at both normal gravity (1 g) and microgravity (0 g), and covering a wide range of conditions affecting radiative heat transfer, were simulated. The numerical model is based on the Steady Laminar Flamelet (SLF) model, a semi-empirical two-equation acetylene/benzene based soot model and the Statistical Narrow Band Correlated K (SNBCK) model coupled to the Finite Volume Method (FVM) to compute thermal radiation. Predictions relative to velocity, temperature, soot volume fraction and radiative losses are on the whole in good agreement with the available experimental data. Model results show that, for all the flames considered, thermal radiation is a crucial process with a view to providing accurate predictions for temperatures and soot concentrations. It becomes increasingly significant from IDFs to NDFs and its influence is much greater as gravity is reduced. The radiative contribution of gas prevails in the weakly-sooting IDFs and in the methane and ethane NDFs, whereas soot radiation dominates in the other flames. However, both contributions are significant in all cases, with the exception of the 1 g IDFs investigated where soot radiation can be ignored. The optically-thin approximation (OTA) was also tested and found to be applicable as long as the optical thickness, based on flame radius and Planck mean absorption coefficient, is less than 0.05. The OTA is reasonable for the IDFs and for most of the 1 g NDFs, but it fails to predict the radiative heat transfer for the 0 g NDFs. The accuracy of radiative-property models was then assessed in the latter cases. Simulations show that the gray approximation can be applied to soot but not to combustion gases. Both the non-gray and gray soot versions of the Full Spectrum Correlated k (FSCK

Ion measurements in premixed methane-oxygen flames

KAUST Repository

Alquaity, Awad

2014-07-25

Ions are formed as a result of chemi-ionization processes in combustion systems. Recently, there has been an increasing interest in understanding flame ion chemistry due to the possible application of external electric fields to reduce emissions and improve combustion efficiency by active control of combustion process. In order to predict the effect of external electric fields on combustion plasma, it is critical to gain a good understanding of the flame ion chemistry. In this work, a Molecular Beam Mass Spectrometer (MBMS) is utilized to measure ion concentration profiles in premixed methane-oxygen-argon burner-stabilized flames. Lean, stoichiometric and rich flames at atmospheric pressure are used to study the dependence of ion chemistry on equivalence ratio of premixed flames. The relative ion concentration profiles are compared qualitatively with previous methane-oxygen studies and show good agreement. The relative ion concentration data obtained in the present study can be used to validate and improve ion chemistry models for methane-oxygen flames.

Comparison of Combustion properties of simulated biogas and methane

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Diaz Gonzalez, Carlos; Arrieta, Andres Amell; Suarez, Jose Luis

2009-01-01

The utilization of new renewable energy sources has been of special interest during the past years, seeking to decrease our dependence on fossil fuels and the corresponding environmental impact derived from their use. The combustion properties of a simulated gas composed of 60% methane and 40% carbon dioxide in volume are determined in this paper by means of calculation algorithms developed by the GASURE team, comparing them to pure methane properties. Furthermore, the effect of these properties on premixed flame characteristic phenomena is demonstrated. These properties were determined by theoretical estimations. The characteristic phenomena (laminar deflagration velocity, flame structure, radiation pattern) are determined experimentally. Results show a high effect of carbon dioxide in the combustion properties and characteristic parameters of a biogas premixed flame such as laminar deflagration velocity, flame structure and gas-methane exchangeability problems. The difference regarding flame structure and combustion properties lead to a difference in radiation pattern of the gases studied.

Comparison of combustion properties of simulated biogas and methane

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Diaz G, Carlos; Amell, Andres; Suarez, Jose

2010-01-01

The utilization of new renewable energy sources has been of special interest during the past years, seeking to decrease our dependence on fossil fuels and the corresponding environmental impact derived from their use. The combustion properties of a simulated gas composed of 60% methane and 40% carbon dioxide in volume are determined in this paper by means of calculation algorithms developed by the GASURE team, comparing them to pure methane properties. Furthermore, the effect of these properties on premixed flame characteristic phenomena is demonstrated. These properties were determined by theoretical estimations. The characteristic phenomena (laminar deflagration velocity, flame structure, radiation pattern) are determined experimentally. Results show a high effect of carbon dioxide in the combustion properties and characteristic parameters of a biogas premixed flame such as laminar deflagration velocity, flame structure and gas-methane exchangeability problems. The difference regarding flame structure and combustion properties lead to a difference in radiation pattern of the gases studied.

Effects of optical diagnostic techniques on the accuracy of laminar flame speeds measured from Bunsen flames: OH* chemiluminescence, OH-PLIF and acetone/kerosene-PLIF

Science.gov (United States)

Wu, Yi; Modica, Vincent; Yu, Xilong; Li, Fei; Grisch, Frédéric

2018-01-01

The effects of optical diagnostic techniques on the accuracy of laminar flame speed measured from Bunsen flames were investigated. Laminar flame speed measurements were conducted for different fuel/air mixtures including CH4/air, acetone/air and kerosene (Jet A-1)/air in applying different optical diagnostic techniques, i.e. OH* chemiluminescence, OH-PLIF and acetone/kerosene-PLIF. It is found that the OH* chemiluminescence imaging technique cannot directly derive the location of the outer edge of the fresh gases and it is necessary to correct the position of the OH* peak to guarantee the accuracy of the measurements. OH-PLIF and acetone/kerosene-PLIF respectively are able to measure the disappearance of the fresh gas contour and the appearance of the reaction zone. It shows that the aromatic-PLIF technique gives similar laminar flame speed values when compared with those obtained from corrected OH* chemiluminescence images. However, discrepancies were observed between the OH-PLIF and the aromatic-PLIF techniques, in that OH-PLIF slightly underestimates laminar flame speeds by up to 5%. The difference between the flame contours obtained from different optical techniques are further analysed and illustrated with 1D flame structure simulation using detailed kinetic mechanisms.

Flow instability in laminar jet flames driven by alternating current electric fields

KAUST Repository

Kim, Gyeong Taek; Park, Daegeun; Cha, Min; Park, Jeong; Chung, Suk-Ho

2016-01-01

The effect of electric fields on the instability of laminar nonpremixed jet flames was investigated experimentally by applying the alternating current (AC) to a jet nozzle. We aimed to elucidate the origin of the occurrence of twin-lifted jet flames

Application of a primitive variable Newton's method for the calculation of an axisymmetric laminar diffusion flame

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Xu, Yuenong; Smooke, M.D.

1993-01-01

In this paper we present a primitive variable Newton-based solution method with a block-line linear equation solver for the calculation of reacting flows. The present approach is compared with the stream function-vorticity Newton's method and the SIMPLER algorithm on the calculation of a system of fully elliptic equations governing an axisymmetric methane-air laminar diffusion flame. The chemical reaction is modeled by the flame sheet approximation. The numerical solution agrees well with experimental data in the major chemical species. The comparison of three sets of numerical results indicates that the stream function-vorticity solution using the approximate boundary conditions reported in the previous calculations predicts a longer flame length and a broader flame shape. With a new set of modified vorticity boundary conditions, we obtain agreement between the primitive variable and stream function-vorticity solutions. The primitive variable Newton's method converges much faster than the other two methods. Because of much less computer memory required for the block-line tridiagonal solver compared to a direct solver, the present approach makes it possible to calculate multidimensional flames with detailed reaction mechanisms. The SIMPLER algorithm shows a slow convergence rate compared to the other two methods in the present calculation

Flame structure of methane inverse diffusion flame

KAUST Repository

Elbaz, Ayman M.; Roberts, William L.

2014-01-01

This paper presents high speed images of OH-PLIF at 10. kHz simultaneously with 2D PIV (particle image velocimetry) measurements collected along the entire length of an inverse diffusion flame with circumferentially arranged methane fuel jets. For a

Measurements of laminar burning velocities and flame stability analysis for dissociated methanol-air-diluent mixtures at elevated temperatures and pressures

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Zhang, Xuan; Huang, Zuohua; Zhang, Zhiyuan; Zheng, Jianjun; Yu, Wu; Jiang, Deming [State Key Laboratory of Multiphase Flow in Power Engineering, Xi' an Jiaotong University, Xi' an 710049 (China)

2009-06-15

The laminar burning velocities and Markstein lengths for the dissociated methanol-air-diluent mixtures were measured at different equivalence ratios, initial temperatures and pressures, diluents (N{sub 2} and CO{sub 2}) and dilution ratios by using the spherically outward expanding flame. The influences of these parameters on the laminar burning velocity and Markstein length were analyzed. The results show that the laminar burning velocity of dissociated methanol-air mixture increases with an increase in initial temperature and decreases with an increase in initial pressure. The peak laminar burning velocity occurs at equivalence ratio of 1.8. The Markstein length decreases with an increase in initial temperature and initial pressure. Cellular flame structures are presented at early flame propagation stage with the decrease of equivalence ratio or dilution ratio. The transition positions can be observed in the curve of flame propagation speed to stretch rate, indicating the occurrence of cellular structure at flame fronts. Mixture diluents (N{sub 2} and CO{sub 2}) will decrease the laminar burning velocities of mixtures and increase the sensitivity of flame front to flame stretch rate. Markstein length increases with an increase in dilution ratio except for very lean mixture (equivalence ratio less than 0.8). CO{sub 2} dilution has a greater impact on laminar flame speed and flame front stability compared to N{sub 2}. It is also demonstrated that the normalized unstretched laminar burning velocity is only related to dilution ratio and is not influenced by equivalence ratio. (author)

Response to acoustic forcing of laminar coflow jet diffusion flames

KAUST Repository

Chrystie, Robin; Chung, Suk-Ho

2014-01-01

Toward the goal of understanding and controlling instability in combustion systems, we present a fundamental characterization of the interaction of the buoyancy-induced instability in flickering flames with forced excitation of fuel supply. Laminar

Investigation of Gas Heating by Nanosecond Repetitively Pulsed Glow Discharges Used for Actuation of a Laminar Methane-Air Flame

KAUST Repository

Lacoste, Deanna

2017-05-24

This paper reports on the quantification of the heating induced by nanosecond repetitively pulsed (NRP) glow discharges on a lean premixed methane-air flame. The flame, obtained at room temperature and atmospheric pressure, has an M-shape morphology. The equivalence ratio is 0.95 and the thermal power released by the flame is 113 W. The NRP glow discharges are produced by high voltage pulses of 10 ns duration, 7 kV amplitude, applied at a repetition frequency of 10 kHz. The average power of the plasma, determined from current and voltage measurements, is 1 W, i.e. about 0.9 % of the thermal power of the flame. Broadband vibrational coherent anti-Stokes Raman spectroscopy of nitrogen is used to determine the temperature of the flame with and without plasma enhancement. The temperature evolution in the flame area shows that the thermal impact of NRP glow discharges is in the uncertainty range of the technique, i.e., +/- 40 K.

Ion measurements in premixed methane-oxygen flames

KAUST Repository

Alquaity, Awad; Hourani, Nadim; Chahine, May; Selim, Hatem; Sarathy, Mani; Farooq, Aamir

2014-01-01

Mass Spectrometer (MBMS) is utilized to measure ion concentration profiles in premixed methane-oxygen-argon burner-stabilized flames. Lean, stoichiometric and rich flames at atmospheric pressure are used to study the dependence of ion chemistry

Development of PIV for Microgravity Diffusion Flames

Science.gov (United States)

Greenberg, Paul S.; Wernet, Mark P.; Yanis, William; Urban, David L.; Sunderland, Peter B.

2003-01-01

Results are presented from the application of Particle Image Velocimetry(PIV) to the overfire region of a laminar gas jet diffusion flame in normal gravity. A methane flame burning in air at 0.98 bar was considered. The apparatus demonstrated here is packaged in a drop rig designed for use in the 2.2 second drop tower.

Predicting Radiative Heat Transfer in Oxy-Methane Flame Simulations: An Examination of Its Sensitivities to Chemistry and Radiative Property Models

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Hassan Abdul-Sater

2015-01-01

Full Text Available Measurements from confined, laminar oxy-methane flames at different O2/CO2 dilution ratios in the oxidizer are first reported with measurements from methane-air flames included for comparison. Simulations of these flames employing appropriate chemistry and radiative property modeling options were performed to garner insights into the experimental trends and assess prediction sensitivities to the choice of modeling options. The chemistry was modeled employing a mixture-fraction based approach, Eddy dissipation concept (EDC, and refined global finite rate (FR models. Radiative properties were estimated employing four weighted-sum-of-gray-gases (WSGG models formulated from different spectroscopic/model databases. The mixture fraction and EDC models correctly predicted the trends in flame length and OH concentration variations, and the O2, CO2, and temperature measurements outside the flames. The refined FR chemistry model predictions of CO2 and O2 deviated from their measured values in the flame with 50% O2 in the oxidizer. Flame radiant power estimates varied by less than 10% between the mixture fraction and EDC models but more than 60% between the different WSGG models. The largest variations were attributed to the postcombustion gases in the temperature range 500 K–800 K in the upper sections of the furnace which also contributed significantly to the overall radiative transfer.

Study on laminar burning velocity of syngas-air premixed flames in various mixing conditions

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Lee, Kee Man; Jeong, Byeong Gyu; Lee, Seung Ro

2015-01-01

The laminar burning velocity of syngas-air premixed flames was measured with various equivalence ratios from 0.5 to 5.0 and a mole fraction of H 2 from 0.05 to 0.75. The laminar burning velocity was experimentally determined using a Bunsen flame according to the cone angle and surface area methods. A premixed code with a USC-II detailed reaction mechanism was used for the numerical calculations to predict the laminar burning velocity and to examine the relationship between the burning velocity enhancement and the hydrogen-related reactions. The results indicate that an appropriate method for the measurement of laminar burning velocity is necessary in the H 2 /CO/air syngas premixed flame. In addition, the burning velocity linearly increased with the increase of the H 2 mole fraction in the syngas mixture, although the burning velocity of H 2 was 10 times larger than that of CO. This result is attributed to the rapid production of H-radicals at the early stage of combustion. Furthermore, the predicted mole fractions of H and OH radicals increased with the increase of H 2 mole fraction for a lean syngas mixture. However, the mole fraction of OH radicals, an indicator of heat release rate, decreased for rich syngas mixture, resulting in a reduction of the laminar burning velocity, even with an increase of the H 2 mole fraction.

Investigations of Sooting Laminar Coflow Diffusion Flames at Elevated Pressures

KAUST Repository

Steinmetz, Scott

2016-01-01

diameters are successfully measured in nitrogen-diluted ethylene-air laminar coflow flames at pressures of 4, 8, 12, and 16 atm. An increase in particle size with pressure is found up to 12 atm, where particle sizes plateau. Particle size in the annulus

Linear Stability Analysis of Laminar Premixed Fuel-Rich Double-Spray Flames

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Noam Weinberg

2014-03-01

Full Text Available This paper considers the stability of a double-spray premixed flame formed when both fuel and oxidizer are initially present in the form of sprays of evaporating liquid droplets. To simplify the inherent complexity that characterizes the analytic solution of multi-phase combustion processes, the analysis is restricted to fuel-rich laminar premixed double-spray flames, and assumes a single-step global chemical reaction mechanism. Steady-state solutions are obtained and the sensitivity of the flame temperature and the flame propagating velocity to the initial liquid fuel and/or oxidizer loads are established. The stability analysis revealed an increased proneness to cellular instability induced by the presence of the two sprays, and for the fuel-rich case considered here the influence of the liquid oxidizer was found to be more pronounced than that of the liquid fuel. Similar effects were noted for the neutral pulsating stability boundaries. The impact of unequal latent heats of vaporization is also investigated and found to be in keeping with the destabilizing influence of heat loss due to droplet evaporation. It should be noted that as far as the authors are aware no experimental evidence is available for (at least validation of the predictions. However, they do concur in a general and reasonable fashion with independent experimental evidence in the literature of the behavior of single fuel spray laminar premixed flames.

Distribution of electric potential in hydrocarbon flames

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Fialkov, B.S.; Shcherbakov, N.D.; Plitsyn, V.T.

1978-01-01

A study was made of the distribution of electrical potential and temperatures in laminar methane and propane--butane flames when the excess air coefficient in the mixture is changed from 0 to 1.2. 7 references, 3 figures.

Effects of preheated combustion air on laminar coflow diffusion flames under normal and microgravity conditions

Science.gov (United States)

Ghaderi Yeganeh, Mohammad

Global energy consumption has been increasing around the world, owing to the rapid growth of industrialization and improvements in the standard of living. As a result, more carbon dioxide and nitrogen oxide are being released into the environment. Therefore, techniques for achieving combustion at reduced carbon dioxide and nitric oxide emission levels have drawn increased attention. Combustion with a highly preheated air and low-oxygen concentration has been shown to provide significant energy savings, reduce pollution and equipment size, and uniform thermal characteristics within the combustion chamber. However, the fundamental understanding of this technique is limited. The motivation of the present study is to identify the effects of preheated combustion air on laminar coflow diffusion flames. Combustion characteristics of laminar coflow diffusion flames are evaluated for the effects of preheated combustion air temperature under normal and low-gravity conditions. Experimental measurements are conducted using direct flame photography, particle image velocimetry (PIV) and optical emission spectroscopy diagnostics. Laminar coflow diffusion flames are examined under four experimental conditions: normal-temperature/normal-gravity (case I), preheated-temperature/normal gravity (case II), normal-temperature/low-gravity (case III), and preheated-temperature/low-gravity (case IV). Comparisons between these four cases yield significant insights. In our studies, increasing the combustion air temperature by 400 K (from 300 K to 700 K), causes a 37.1% reduction in the flame length and about a 25% increase in peak flame temperature. The results also show that a 400 K increase in the preheated air temperature increases CH concentration of the flame by about 83.3% (CH is a marker for the rate of chemical reaction), and also increases the C2 concentration by about 60% (C2 is a marker for the soot precursor). It can therefore be concluded that preheating the combustion air

Numerical simulation of the laminar hydrogen flame in the presence of a quenching mesh

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Kudriakov, S.; Studer, E.; Bin, C.

2011-01-01

Recent studies of J.H. Song et al., and S.Y. Yang et al. have been concentrated on mitigation measures against hydrogen risk. The authors have proposed installation of quenching meshes between compartments or around the essential equipment in order to contain hydrogen flames. Preliminary tests were conducted which demonstrated the possibility of flame extinction using metallic meshes of specific size. Considerable amount of numerical and theoretical work on flame quenching phenomenon has been performed in the second half of the last century and several techniques and models have been proposed to predict the quenching phenomenon of the laminar flame system. Most of these models appreciated the importance of heat loss to the surroundings as a primary cause of extinguishment, in particular, the heat transfer by conduction to the containing wall. The supporting simulations predict flame-quenching structure either between parallel plates (quenching distance) or inside a tube of a certain diameter (quenching diameter). In the present study the flame quenching is investigated assuming the laminar hydrogen flame propagating towards a quenching mesh using two-dimensional configuration and the earlier developed models. It is shown that due to a heat loss to a metallic grid the flame can be quenched numerically. (authors)

Study on laminar burning velocity of syngas-air premixed flames in various mixing conditions

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Lee, Kee Man; Jeong, Byeong Gyu [Sunchon National University, Suncheon (Korea, Republic of); Lee, Seung Ro [Chonbuk National University, Jeonju (Korea, Republic of)

2015-07-15

The laminar burning velocity of syngas-air premixed flames was measured with various equivalence ratios from 0.5 to 5.0 and a mole fraction of H{sub 2} from 0.05 to 0.75. The laminar burning velocity was experimentally determined using a Bunsen flame according to the cone angle and surface area methods. A premixed code with a USC-II detailed reaction mechanism was used for the numerical calculations to predict the laminar burning velocity and to examine the relationship between the burning velocity enhancement and the hydrogen-related reactions. The results indicate that an appropriate method for the measurement of laminar burning velocity is necessary in the H{sub 2}/CO/air syngas premixed flame. In addition, the burning velocity linearly increased with the increase of the H{sub 2} mole fraction in the syngas mixture, although the burning velocity of H{sub 2} was 10 times larger than that of CO. This result is attributed to the rapid production of H-radicals at the early stage of combustion. Furthermore, the predicted mole fractions of H and OH radicals increased with the increase of H{sub 2} mole fraction for a lean syngas mixture. However, the mole fraction of OH radicals, an indicator of heat release rate, decreased for rich syngas mixture, resulting in a reduction of the laminar burning velocity, even with an increase of the H{sub 2} mole fraction.

Flame structure of methane inverse diffusion flame

KAUST Repository

Elbaz, Ayman M.

2014-07-01

This paper presents high speed images of OH-PLIF at 10. kHz simultaneously with 2D PIV (particle image velocimetry) measurements collected along the entire length of an inverse diffusion flame with circumferentially arranged methane fuel jets. For a fixed fuel flow rate, the central air jet Re was varied, leading to four air to fuel velocity ratios, namely Vr = 20.7, 29, 37.4 and 49.8. A double flame structure could be observed composed of a lower fuel entrainment region and an upper mixing and intense combustion region. The entrainment region was enveloped by an early OH layer, and then merged through a very thin OH neck to an annular OH layer located at the shear layer of the air jet. The two branches of this annular OH layer broaden as they moved downstream and eventfully merged together. Three types of events were observed common to all flames: breaks, closures and growing kernels. In upstream regions of the flames, the breaks were counterbalanced by flame closures. These breaks in OH signal were found to occur at locations where locally high velocity flows were impinging on the flame. As the Vr increased to 37.4, the OH layers became discontinuous over the downstream region of the flame, and these regions of low or no OH moved upstream. With further increases in Vr, these OH pockets act as flame kernels, growing as they moved downstream, and became the main mechanism for flame re-ignition. Along the flame length, the direction of the two dimensional principle compressive strain rate axis exhibited a preferred orientation of approximately 45° with respect to the flow direction. Moreover, the OH zones were associated with elongated regions of high vorticity. © 2013 Elsevier Inc.

Characteristics of autoignited laminar lifted flames in heated coflow jets of carbon monoxide/hydrogen mixtures

KAUST Repository

Choi, Byungchul

2012-06-01

The characteristics of autoignited lifted flames in laminar jets of carbon monoxide/hydrogen fuels have been investigated experimentally in heated coflow air. In result, as the jet velocity increased, the blowoff was directly occurred from the nozzle-attached flame without experiencing a stabilized lifted flame, in the non-autoignited regime. In the autoignited regime, the autoignited lifted flame of carbon monoxide diluted by nitrogen was affected by the water vapor content in the compressed air oxidizer, as evidenced by the variation of the ignition delay time estimated by numerical calculation. In particular, in the autoignition regime at low temperatures with added hydrogen, the liftoff height of the autoignited lifted flames decreased and then increased as the jet velocity increased. Based on the mechanism in which the autoignited laminar lifted flame is stabilized by ignition delay time, the liftoff height can be influenced not only by the heat loss, but also by the preferential diffusion between momentum and mass diffusion in fuel jets during the autoignition process. © 2012 The Korean Society of Mechanical Engineers.

Quantitative Measurements of CH* Concentration in Normal Gravity and Microgravity Coflow Laminar Diffusion Flames

Science.gov (United States)

Giassi, D.; Cao, S.; Stocker, D. P.; Takahashi, F.; Bennett, B. A.; Smooke, M. D.; Long, M. B.

2015-01-01

With the conclusion of the SLICE campaign aboard the ISS in 2012, a large amount of data was made available for the analysis of the effect of microgravity on laminar coflow diffusion flames. Previous work focused on the study of sooty flames in microgravity as well as the ability of numerical models to predict its formation in a simplified buoyancy-free environment. The current work shifts the investigation to soot-free flames, putting an emphasis on the chemiluminescence emission from electronically excited CH (CH*). This radical species is of significant interest in combustion studies: it has been shown that the CH* spatial distribution is indicative of the flame front position and, given the relatively simple diagnostic involved with its measurement, several works have been done trying to understand the ability of CH* chemiluminescence to predict the total and local flame heat release rate. In this work, a subset of the SLICE nitrogen-diluted methane flames has been considered, and the effect of fuel and coflow velocity on CH* concentration is discussed and compared with both normal gravity results and numerical simulations. Experimentally, the spectral characterization of the DSLR color camera used to acquire the flame images allowed the signal collected by the blue channel to be considered representative of the CH* emission centered around 431 nm. Due to the axisymmetric flame structure, an Abel deconvolution of the line-of-sight chemiluminescence was used to obtain the radial intensity profile and, thanks to an absolute light intensity calibration, a quantification of the CH* concentration was possible. Results show that, in microgravity, the maximum flame CH* concentration increases with the coflow velocity, but it is weakly dependent on the fuel velocity; normal gravity flames, if not lifted, tend to follow the same trend, albeit with different peak concentrations. Comparisons with numerical simulations display reasonably good agreement between measured and

Numerical and Experimental Investigation of Computed Tomography of Chemiluminescence for Hydrogen-Air Premixed Laminar Flames

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Liang Lv

2016-01-01

Full Text Available Computed tomography of chemiluminescence (CTC is a promising technique for combustion diagnostics, providing instantaneous 3D information of flame structures, especially in harsh circumstance. This work focuses on assessing the feasibility of CTC and investigating structures of hydrogen-air premixed laminar flames using CTC. A numerical phantom study was performed to assess the accuracy of the reconstruction algorithm. A well-designed burner was used to generate stable hydrogen-air premixed laminar flames. The OH⁎ chemiluminescence intensity field reconstructed from 37 views using CTC was compared to the OH⁎ chemiluminescence distributions recorded directly by a single ICCD camera from the side view. The flame structures in different flow velocities and equivalence ratios were analyzed using the reconstructions. The results show that the CTC technique can effectively indicate real distributions of the flame chemiluminescence. The height of the flame becomes larger with increasing flow velocities, whereas it decreases with increasing equivalence ratios (no larger than 1. The increasing flow velocities gradually lift the flame reaction zones. A critical cone angle of 4.76 degrees is obtained to avoid blow-off. These results set up a foundation for next studies and the methods can be further developed to reconstruct 3D structures of flames.

Mensuration of the propagation speed of mixed flames of Methane-air and gas natural, Guajira - air using the method of the angle of the cone

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Benjumea Hernandez, Pedro Nel; Higuita Bedoya Carlos Mario; Cordoba Perez, Camilo Andres

2004-01-01

In this work, the burning velocity of premixed laminar flames of methane-air and Guajira natural gas-air mixtures was measured by the cone's angle method using a cylindrical Bunsen burner. In the development of the experiments, a fuel concentration in the fuel-air mixture ranging from 9% -11% was taken. The maximum value of the burning velocity was obtained for mixtures a little bit richer than the stoichiometric case. For methane, this flame velocity was 44.1 cm/s and for the Guajira natural gas was 43.1 cm/s. From the results, it was possible to see that the Guajira natural gas inert content led to a burning velocity value lesser than the methane's, in spite of the Guajira natural gas having a higher heavy hydrocarbon content. Methane burning velocity values following similar trends to those reported by the literature were obtained. The systematic error found in the results is mainly a consequence of inaccuracies in the method used to measure the fuel-gas mixture velocity at the burner exit

Response to acoustic forcing of laminar coflow jet diffusion flames

KAUST Repository

Chrystie, Robin

2014-04-23

Toward the goal of understanding and controlling instability in combustion systems, we present a fundamental characterization of the interaction of the buoyancy-induced instability in flickering flames with forced excitation of fuel supply. Laminar coflow diffusion flames were acoustically forced, whose frequency responses were recorded as a function of excitation frequency and amplitude. The evolving structure of such flames was also examined through the use of video analysis and particle imaging velocimetry (PIV). For specific combinations of excitation frequency and amplitude, the frequency response of the flames was found to couple to that of the forcing, where the contribution of natural puffing frequency disappears. Such instances of coupling exhibited many harmonics of the excitation frequency, related indirectly to the natural puffing frequency. We showed how such harmonics form, through application of PIV, and furthermore unveiled insight into the physics of how the flame couples to the forcing under certain conditions. Our frequency response characterization provides quantitative results, which are of utility for both modeling studies and active-control strategies. Copyright © Taylor & Francis Group, LLC.

Effect of diluents on soot precursor formation and temperature in ethylene laminar diffusion flames

KAUST Repository

Abhinavam Kailasanathan, Ranjith Kumar

2013-03-01

Soot precursor species concentrations and flame temperature were measured in a diluted laminar co-flow jet diffusion flame at pressures up to eight atmospheres while varying diluent type. The objective of this study was to gain a better understanding of soot production and oxidation mechanisms, which could potentially lead to a reduction in soot emissions from practical combustion devices. Gaseous samples were extracted from the centerline of an ethylene-air laminar diffusion flame, which was diluted individually with four diluents (argon, helium, nitrogen, and carbon dioxide) to manipulate flame temperature and transport properties. The diluted fuel and co-flow exit velocities (top-hat profiles) were matched at all pressures to minimize shear-layer effects, and the mass fluxes were fixed over the pressure range to maintain constant Reynolds number. The flame temperature was measured using a fine gauge R-type thermocouple at pressures up to four atmospheres. Centerline concentration profiles of major non-fuel hydrocarbons collected via extractive sampling with a quartz microprobe and quantification using GC/MS+FID are reported within. The measured hydrocarbon species concentrations are vary dramatically with pressure and diluent, with the helium and carbon dioxide diluted flames yielding the largest and smallest concentrations of soot precursors, respectively. In the case of C2H2 and C6H6, two key soot precursors, helium diluted flames had concentrations more than three times higher compared with the carbon dioxide diluted flame. The peak flame temperature vary with diluents tested, as expected, with carbon dioxide diluted flame being the coolest, with a peak temperature of 1760K at 1atm, and the helium diluted flame being the hottest, with a peak temperature of 2140K. At four atmospheres, the helium diluted flame increased to 2240K, but the CO2 flame temperature increased more, decreasing the difference to approximately 250K. © 2012 The Combustion Institute.

Effect of AC electric fields on the stabilization of premixed bunsen flames

KAUST Repository

Kim, Minkuk; Chung, Suk-Ho; Kim, Hwanho

2011-01-01

The stabilization characteristics of laminar premixed bunsen flames have been investigated experimentally for stoichiometric methane-air mixture by applying AC voltage to the nozzle with the single-electrode configuration. The detachment velocity

Autoignition characteristics of laminar lifted jet flames of pre-vaporized iso-octane in heated coflow air

KAUST Repository

Alnoman, Saeed

2015-12-01

The stabilization characteristics of laminar non-premixed jet flames of pre-vaporized iso-octane, one of the primary reference fuels for octane rating, have been studied experimentally in heated coflow air. Non-autoignited and autoignited lifted flames were analyzed. With the coflow air at relatively low initial temperatures below 940 K, an external ignition source was required to stabilize the flame. These lifted flames had tribrachial edge structures and their liftoff heights correlated well with the jet velocity scaled by stoichiometric laminar burning velocity, indicating the importance of the edge propagation speed on flame stabilization. At high initial temperatures over 940 K, the autoignited flames were stabilized without requiring an external ignition source. These autoignited lifted flames exhibited either tribrachial edge structures or mild combustion behaviors depending on the level of fuel dilution. Two distinct transition behaviors were observed in the autoignition regime from a nozzle-attached flame to a lifted tribrachial-edge flame and then to lifted mild combustion as the jet velocity increased at a certain fuel dilution level. The liftoff data of the autoignited flames with tribrachial edges were analyzed based on calculated ignition delay times. Analysis of the experimental data suggested that ignition delay time may be much less sensitive to initial temperature under atmospheric pressure conditions as compared with predictions. © 2015 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

Stabilization and structure of n-heptane tribrachial flames in axisymmetric laminar jets

KAUST Repository

Bisetti, Fabrizio

2015-01-01

A set of tribrachial flames of n-heptane/air is simulated with finite rate chemistry and detailed transport in a realistic laminar jet configuration for which experimental data are available. The flames differ by the temperature of the unburnt mixture and stabilization height, which controls the mixture fraction gradient ahead of the flame front. The simulations reproduce the lift-off heights in the experiments, showing that the flame stabilizes further downstream as the unburnt temperature decreases. For the lowest unburnt temperature, resulting in a weak mixture fraction gradient at the tribrachial point, positive stretch along the rich premixed wing leads to an increase in the rate of chemical reaction in the whole flame. The tribrachial flame burning velocity exceeds that in the unstretched, one-dimensional flame. For the highest temperature, the flame stabilizes closest to the nozzle. Large flame tilt, large mixture fraction gradient, and small radius of curvature lead to a reduction in the heat release rate and the flame propagates slower than its one-dimensional counterpart. The observed behavior is explained with a detailed analysis of the flame geometry, differential diffusion effects, flame stretch, and transport of heat and mass from the burnt gases to the flame front. © 2014 The Combustion Institute.

Extinction of counterflow premixed laminar flames

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Smooke, M.D.; Giovangigli, V.

1987-01-01

Problems in combustion and heat and mass transfer often depend upon one or more physical/chemical parameters. In many cases the combustion scientist is interested in knowing how the solution will behave if one or more of these parameters is varied. For some parameter regimes the governing equations can produce multiple solutions and the branches of the solution curve are linked via singular points. It is at these singular points, however that the system exhibits special behavior. To be able to predict the solution structure in the neighborhood of these points, the authors employ a phase-space, pseudo arclength, continuation method that utilizes Newton-like iterations and adaptive gridding techniques. The authors apply the method in the solution of counterflow premixed laminar flames

Taylor dispersion in premixed combustion: Questions from turbulent combustion answered for laminar flames

Science.gov (United States)

Daou, Joel; Pearce, Philip; Al-Malki, Faisal

2018-02-01

We present a study of Taylor dispersion in premixed combustion and use it to clarify fundamental issues related to flame propagation in a flow field. In particular, simple analytical formulas are derived for variable density laminar flames with arbitrary Lewis number Le providing clear answers to important questions arising in turbulent combustion, when these questions are posed for the case of one-scale laminar parallel flows. Exploiting, in the context of a laminar Poiseuille flow model, a thick flame distinguished asymptotic limit for which the flow amplitude is large with the Reynolds number Re fixed, three main contributions are made. First, a link is established between Taylor dispersion [G. Taylor, Proc. R. Soc. London Ser. A 219, 186 (1953), 10.1098/rspa.1953.0139] and Damköhler's second hypothesis [G. Damköhler, Ber. Bunsen. Phys. Chem. 46, 601 (1940)] by describing analytically the enhancement of the effective propagation speed UT due to small flow scales. More precisely, it is shown that Damköhler's hypothesis is only partially correct for one-scale parallel laminar flows. Specifically, while the increase in UT due to the flow is shown to be directly associated with the increase in the effective diffusivity as suggested by Damköhler, our results imply that UT˜Re (for Re≫1 ) rather than UT˜√{Re} , as implied by Damköhler's hypothesis. Second, it is demonstrated analytically and confirmed numerically that, when UT is plotted versus the flow amplitude for fixed values of Re, the curve levels off to a constant value depending on Re. We may refer to this effect as the laminar bending effect as it mimics a similar bending effect known in turbulent combustion. Third, somewhat surprising implications associated with the dependence of UT and of the effective Lewis number Leeff on the flow are reported. For example, Leeff is found to vary from Le to Le-1 as Re varies from small to large values. Also, UT is found to be a monotonically increasing function

A parametric study of microjet assisted methane/air turbulent flames

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Chouaieb, Sirine; Kriaa, Wassim; Mhiri, Hatem; Bournot, Philippe

2017-01-01

Highlights: • Microjet assisted methane/air turbulent flames are numerically investigated. • A parametric study concerning the microjet velocity and diameter is carried out. • Previous validation of temperature, mixture fraction and soot is enhanced. • Mixing and soot emission are controlled for higher velocities and lower diameters. • Soot production is reduced by 94% for a microjet velocity equal to 1 m/s. - Abstract: A parametric study of microjet assisted methane/air turbulent flames characteristics is numerically investigated. The Presumed Probability Density Function model and the Discrete Ordinates model are respectively considered for combustion and radiation modeling. The k-epsilon Standard model with Pope Correction is adopted as a turbulence closure model. The two step Tesner model is used to quantify the soot particle production in the flame configuration. Comparison with our previous work using the k-epsilon Realizable model shows that the k-epsilon Standard model with Pope Correction ensures better predictions. The microjet velocity and diameter effects on thermal field, mixing process and soot emission are then discussed. Numerical findings show that the microjet can be used as an efficient tool controlling methane/air turbulent flames. On the one hand, it is shown that the microjet creates an inner flame in the vicinity of the central nozzle exit but does not globally alter the methane/air flame shape. On the other hand, mixing process can be enhanced for high microjet Reynolds number either by increasing the microjet velocity or by decreasing its nozzle diameter for a constant microjet mass flow rate. Soot production can be consequently reduced for low microjet diameter and high velocity values.

Combustion and radiation modeling of laminar premixed flames using OpenFOAM: A numerical investigation of radiative heat transfer in the RADIADE project

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Haider, Sajjad; Pang, Kar Mun; Ivarsson, Anders

2013-01-01

This paper presents the computational fluid dynamics modelling of a laminar premixed flame. A specific solver named ’rareLTSFoam’ is developed using OpenFOAM ® code. The solver is used to simulate experimental stoichiometric and rich laminar premixed flames. The modelling is carried out for thermal...

Response analysis of a laminar premixed M-flame to flow perturbations using a linearized compressible Navier-Stokes solver

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Blanchard, M.; Schuller, T.; Sipp, D.; Schmid, P. J.

2015-01-01

The response of a laminar premixed methane-air flame subjected to flow perturbations around a steady state is examined experimentally and using a linearized compressible Navier-Stokes solver with a one-step chemistry mechanism to describe combustion. The unperturbed flame takes an M-shape stabilized both by a central bluff body and by the external rim of a cylindrical nozzle. This base flow is computed by a nonlinear direct simulation of the steady reacting flow, and the flame topology is shown to qualitatively correspond to experiments conducted under comparable conditions. The flame is then subjected to acoustic disturbances produced at different locations in the numerical domain, and its response is examined using the linearized solver. This linear numerical model then allows the componentwise investigation of the effects of flow disturbances on unsteady combustion and the feedback from the flame on the unsteady flow field. It is shown that a wrinkled reaction layer produces hydrodynamic disturbances in the fresh reactant flow field that superimpose on the acoustic field. This phenomenon, observed in several experiments, is fully interpreted here. The additional perturbations convected by the mean flow stem from the feedback of the perturbed flame sheet dynamics onto the flow field by a mechanism similar to that of a perturbed vortex sheet. The different regimes where this mechanism prevails are investigated by examining the phase and group velocities of flow disturbances along an axis oriented along the main direction of the flow in the fresh reactant flow field. It is shown that this mechanism dominates the low-frequency response of the wrinkled shape taken by the flame and, in particular, that it fully determines the dynamics of the flame tip from where the bulk of noise is radiated

Quantitative Measurements of Electronically Excited CH Concentration in Normal Gravity and Microgravity Coflow Laminar Diffusion Flames

Science.gov (United States)

Giassi, D.; Cao, S.; Stocker, D. P.; Takahashi, F.; Bennett, B. A. V.; Smooke, M. D.; Long, M. B.

2015-01-01

With the conclusion of the SLICE campaign aboard the ISS in 2012, a large amount of data was made available for the analysis of the effect of microgravity on laminar coflow diffusion flames. Previous work focused on the study of sooty flames in microgravity as well as the ability of numerical models to predict its formation in a simplified buoyancy-free environment. The current work shifts the investigation to soot-free flames, putting an emphasis on the chemiluminescence emission from electronically excited CH (CH*). This radical species is of significant interest in combustion studies: it has been shown that the electronically excited CH spatial distribution is indicative of the flame front position and, given the relatively simple diagnostic involved with its measurement, several works have been done trying to understand the ability of electronically excited CH chemiluminescence to predict the total and local flame heat release rate. In this work, a subset of the SLICE nitrogen-diluted methane flames has been considered, and the effect of fuel and coflow velocity on electronically excited CH concentration is discussed and compared with both normal gravity results and numerical simulations. Experimentally, the spectral characterization of the DSLR color camera used to acquire the flame images allowed the signal collected by the blue channel to be considered representative of the electronically excited CH emission centered around 431 nm. Due to the axisymmetric flame structure, an Abel deconvolution of the line-of-sight chemiluminescence was used to obtain the radial intensity profile and, thanks to an absolute light intensity calibration, a quantification of the electronically excited CH concentration was possible. Results show that, in microgravity, the maximum flame electronically excited CH concentration increases with the coflow velocity, but it is weakly dependent on the fuel velocity; normal gravity flames, if not lifted, tend to follow the same trend

Methane Formation by Flame-Generated Hydrogen Atoms in the Flame Ionization Detector

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Holm, Torkil; Madsen, Jørgen Øgaard

1996-01-01

, and conceivably all hydrocarbons are quantitatively converted into methane at temperatures below 600 C, that is, before the proper combustion has started. The splitting of the C-C bonds is preceded by hydrogenation of double and triple bonds and aromatic rings. The reactions, no doubt, are caused by hydrogen...... atoms, which are formed in the burning hydrogen and which diffuse into the inner core of the flame. The quantitative formation of methane appears to explain the "equal per carbon" rule for the detector response of hydrocarbons, since all carbons are "exchanged" for methane molecules....

Analysis of lift-off height and structure of n-heptane tribrachial flames in laminar jet configuration

KAUST Repository

Luca, Stefano

2015-03-30

A set of lifted tribrachial n-heptane flames in a laminar jet configuration are simulated. The simulations are performed using finite rate chemistry and detailed transport, and aim at investigating the propagation of tribrachial flames. Varying the inlet velocity of the fuel, different stabilization heights are obtained, and the dependence of the stabilization height in the inlet velocity is compared with experimental data. A detailed analysis of the flame geometry is performed by comparingthe flame structure to that of unstretched premixed flames. Issues related to differential diffusion effects, flame stretch, and transport of heat and mass from the burnt gases to the flame front are discussed.

Analysis of lift-off height and structure of n-heptane tribrachial flames in laminar jet configuration

KAUST Repository

Luca, Stefano; Bisetti, Fabrizio

2015-01-01

A set of lifted tribrachial n-heptane flames in a laminar jet configuration are simulated. The simulations are performed using finite rate chemistry and detailed transport, and aim at investigating the propagation of tribrachial flames. Varying the inlet velocity of the fuel, different stabilization heights are obtained, and the dependence of the stabilization height in the inlet velocity is compared with experimental data. A detailed analysis of the flame geometry is performed by comparingthe flame structure to that of unstretched premixed flames. Issues related to differential diffusion effects, flame stretch, and transport of heat and mass from the burnt gases to the flame front are discussed.

A LES-CMC formulation for premixed flames including differential diffusion

Science.gov (United States)

Farrace, Daniele; Chung, Kyoungseoun; Bolla, Michele; Wright, Yuri M.; Boulouchos, Konstantinos; Mastorakos, Epaminondas

2018-05-01

A finite volume large eddy simulation-conditional moment closure (LES-CMC) numerical framework for premixed combustion developed in a previous studyhas been extended to account for differential diffusion. The non-unity Lewis number CMC transport equation has an additional convective term in sample space proportional to the conditional diffusion of the progress variable, that in turn accounts for diffusion normal to the flame front and curvature-induced effects. Planar laminar simulations are first performed using a spatially homogeneous non-unity Lewis number CMC formulation and validated against physical-space fully resolved reference solutions. The same CMC formulation is subsequently used to numerically investigate the effects of curvature for laminar flames having different effective Lewis numbers: a lean methane-air flame with Leeff = 0.99 and a lean hydrogen-air flame with Leeff = 0.33. Results suggest that curvature does not affect the conditional heat release if the effective Lewis number tends to unity, so that curvature-induced transport may be neglected. Finally, the effect of turbulence on the flame structure is qualitatively analysed using LES-CMC simulations with and without differential diffusion for a turbulent premixed bluff body methane-air flame exhibiting local extinction behaviour. Overall, both the unity and the non-unity computations predict the characteristic M-shaped flame observed experimentally, although some minor differences are identified. The findings suggest that for the high Karlovitz number (from 1 to 10) flame considered, turbulent mixing within the flame weakens the differential transport contribution by reducing the conditional scalar dissipation rate and accordingly the conditional diffusion of the progress variable.

Modeling of confined and unconfined laminar premixed flames on slit and tube burners

NARCIS (Netherlands)

Mallens, R.M.M.; Lange, de H.C.; Ven, van de C.J.H.; Goey, de L.P.H.

1995-01-01

A model is presented for laminar premixed Bunsen flames on slit and cylindrical burners burning in a surrounding atmosphere. A comparison between modeling and experimental results shows that the model can reproduce the experimental results within 10% accuracy. The influence of a surrounding

Combustion and radiation modeling of laminar premixed flames using OpenFOAM: A numerical investigation of radiative heat transfer in the RADIADE project

OpenAIRE

Haider, Sajjad; Pang, Kar Mun; Ivarsson, Anders; Schramm, Jesper

2013-01-01

This paper presents the computational fluid dynamics modelling of a laminar premixed flame. A specific solver named ’rareLTSFoam’ is developed using OpenFOAM ® code. The solver is used to simulate experimental stoichiometric and rich laminar premixed flames. The modelling is carried out for thermal flow and combusting flow cases. The results show that without including radiation modelling, the predicted flame temperature is higher than the measured values. P1 radiation Model is used with sub-...

Applying flame colors to mixture strength measurement in laminar premixed flames. 2nd Report; Kaenshoku ni yoru soryu yokongo kaen no toryohi keisoku. 2

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Tatsuta, S. [Asahikawa National College of Technology, Hokkaido (Japan); Fujita, O.; Ito, K. [Hokkaido University, Sapporo (Japan). Faculty of Engineering

1998-09-25

The flame color method to measure mixture strength in laminar premixed flames was investigated as a new combustion diagnostic technique. Flame colors were quantitatively determined by chromaticity coordinates (x, y) defined by the CIE 1931 standard colorimetric system. Using 12 types of hydrocarbons, the (x, y) of an inner cone in premixed laminar flames held on a circular tube burner were measured with a colorimeter, and the relationship between the (x, y) and the equivalence ratio {phi} of the mixture was examined in a range of {phi}=0.9 to 1.4. The experimental results indicated that the equivalence ratio could be measured with accuracy of 0.008-0.014 and error due to axial position in the inner cone was less than 0.02-0.05. Humidity of air had almost negligible effects on the accuracy of the measurement. Results also indicated that the effect of back-light could be corrected by introducing the concept of additive mixture of color stimuli. 21 refs., 8 figs., 2 tabs.

Transfer functions of laminar premixed flames subjected to forcing by acoustic waves, AC electric fields, and non-thermal plasma discharges

KAUST Repository

Lacoste, Deanna

2016-06-23

The responses of laminar methane-air flames to forcing by acoustic waves, AC electric fields, and nanosecond repetitively pulsed (NRP) glow discharges are reported here. The experimental setup consists of an axisymmetric burner with a nozzle made from a quartz tube. Three different flame geometries have been studied: conical, M-shaped and V-shaped flames. A central stainless steel rod is used as a cathode for the electric field and plasma excitations. The acoustic forcing is obtained with a loudspeaker located at the bottom part of the burner. For forcing by AC electric fields, a metallic grid is placed above the rod and connected to an AC power supply. Plasma forcing is obtained by applying high-voltage pulses of 10-ns duration applied at 10 kHz, between the rod and an annular stainless steel ring, placed at the outlet of the quartz tube. The chemiluminescence of CH is used to determine the heat release rate fluctuations. For forcing by acoustic waves and plasma, the geometry of the flame plays a key role in the response of the combustion, while the flame shape does not affect the response of the combustion to electric field forcing. The flame response to acoustic forcing of about 10% of the incoming flow is similar to those obtained in the literature. The flames are found to be responsive to an AC electric field across the whole range of frequencies studied. A forcing mechanism, based on the generation of ionic wind, is proposed. The gain of the transfer function obtained for plasma forcing is found to be up to 5 times higher than for acoustic forcing. A possible mechanism of plasma forcing is introduced.

Transfer functions of laminar premixed flames subjected to forcing by acoustic waves, AC electric fields, and non-thermal plasma discharges

KAUST Repository

Lacoste, Deanna; Xiong, Yuan; Moeck, Jonas P.; Chung, Suk-Ho; Roberts, William L.; Cha, Min

2016-01-01

The responses of laminar methane-air flames to forcing by acoustic waves, AC electric fields, and nanosecond repetitively pulsed (NRP) glow discharges are reported here. The experimental setup consists of an axisymmetric burner with a nozzle made from a quartz tube. Three different flame geometries have been studied: conical, M-shaped and V-shaped flames. A central stainless steel rod is used as a cathode for the electric field and plasma excitations. The acoustic forcing is obtained with a loudspeaker located at the bottom part of the burner. For forcing by AC electric fields, a metallic grid is placed above the rod and connected to an AC power supply. Plasma forcing is obtained by applying high-voltage pulses of 10-ns duration applied at 10 kHz, between the rod and an annular stainless steel ring, placed at the outlet of the quartz tube. The chemiluminescence of CH is used to determine the heat release rate fluctuations. For forcing by acoustic waves and plasma, the geometry of the flame plays a key role in the response of the combustion, while the flame shape does not affect the response of the combustion to electric field forcing. The flame response to acoustic forcing of about 10% of the incoming flow is similar to those obtained in the literature. The flames are found to be responsive to an AC electric field across the whole range of frequencies studied. A forcing mechanism, based on the generation of ionic wind, is proposed. The gain of the transfer function obtained for plasma forcing is found to be up to 5 times higher than for acoustic forcing. A possible mechanism of plasma forcing is introduced.

The formation of aromatics and PAH's in laminar flames

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Marinov, N M; Pitz, W J; Westbrook, C K

1999-01-01

The formation of aromatics and PAH's is an important problem in combustion. These compounds are believed to contribute to the formation of soot whose emission from diesel engines is regulated widely throughout the industrial world. Additionally, the United States Environmental Protection Agency regulates the emission of many aromatics and PAH species from stationary industrial burners, under the 1990 Clean Air Act Amendments. The above emission regulations have created much interest in understanding how these species are formed in combustion systems. Much previous work has been done on aromatics and PAH's. The work is too extensive to review here, but is reviewed in Reference 1. A few recent developments are highlighted here. McEnally, Pfefferle and coworkers have studied aromatic, PAH and soot formation in a variety of non-premixed flames with hydrocarbon additives[2-4]. They found additives that contain a C5 ring increase the concentration of aromatics and soot[4]. Howard and coworkers have studied the formation of aromatic and PAH's in low pressure, premixed, laminar hydrocarbon flames. They found the cyclopentadienyl radical to be a key species in naphthalene formation in a fuel-rich, benzene/Ar/O2 flame[5

Experimental characterization of methane inverse diffusion flame

KAUST Repository

Elbaz, Ayman M.; Roberts, William L.

2014-01-01

This article presents 10-kHz images of OH-PLIF simultaneously with 2-D PIV measurements in an inverse methane diffusion flame. Under a constant fuel flow rate, the central air jet Re was varied, leading to air to fuel velocity ratio, Vr, to vary

Investigations of Sooting Laminar Coflow Diffusion Flames at Elevated Pressures

KAUST Repository

Steinmetz, Scott A.

2016-12-01

Soot is a common byproduct of hydrocarbon based combustion systems. It poses a risk to human and environmental health, and can negatively or positively affect combustor performance. As a result, there is significant interest in understanding soot formation in order to better control it. More recently, the need to study soot formation in engine relevant conditions has become apparent. One engine relevant parameter that has had little focus is the ambient pressure. This body of work focuses on the formation of soot in elevated pressure environments, and a number of investigations are carried out with this purpose. Laminar coflow diffusion flames are used as steady, simple soot producers. First, a commonly studied flame configuration is further characterized. Coflow flames are frequently used for fundamental flame studies, particularly at elevated pressures. However, they are more susceptible to buoyancy induced instabilities at elevated pressures. The velocity of the coflow is known to have an effect on flame stability and soot formation, though these have not been characterized at elevated pressures. A series of flames are investigated covering a range of flowrates, pressures, and nozzle diameters. The stability limits of coflow flames in this range is investigated. Additionally, an alternative strategy for scaling these flames to elevated pressures is proposed. Finally, the effect of coflow rate on soot formation is evaluated. Identification of fundamental flames for coordinated research can facilitate our understanding of soot formation. The next study of this work focuses on adding soot concentration and particle size information to an existing fundamental flame dataset for the purpose of numerical model validation. Soot volume fraction and average particle diameters are successfully measured in nitrogen-diluted ethylene-air laminar coflow flames at pressures of 4, 8, 12, and 16 atm. An increase in particle size with pressure is found up to 12 atm, where particle

Electric fields effect on liftoff and blowoff of nonpremixed laminar jet flames in a coflow

KAUST Repository

Kim, Minkuk; Ryu, Seol; Won, Sanghee; Chung, Suk-Ho

2010-01-01

The stabilization characteristics of liftoff and blowoff in nonpremixed laminar jet flames in a coflow have been investigated experimentally for propane fuel by applying AC and DC electric fields to the fuel nozzle with a single

Effect of cylindrical confinement on the determination of laminar flame speeds using outwardly propagating flames

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Burke, Michael P.; Chen, Zheng; Ju, Yiguang; Dryer, Frederick L. [Department of Mechanical and Aerospace Engineering, Princeton University, Princeton, NJ 08544 (United States)

2009-04-15

The effect of nonspherical (i.e. cylindrical) bomb geometry on the evolution of outwardly propagating flames and the determination of laminar flame speeds using the conventional constant-pressure technique is investigated experimentally and theoretically. The cylindrical chamber boundary modifies the propagation rate through the interaction of the wall with the flow induced by thermal expansion across the flame (even with constant pressure), which leads to significant distortion of the flame surface for large flame radii. These departures from the unconfined case, especially the resulting nonzero burned gas velocities, can lead to significant errors in flame speeds calculated using the conventional assumptions, especially for large flame radii. For example, at a flame radius of 0.5 times the wall radius, the flame speed calculated neglecting confinement effects can be low by {proportional_to}15% (even with constant pressure). A methodology to estimate the effect of nonzero burned gas velocities on the measured flame speed in cylindrical chambers is presented. Modeling and experiments indicate that the effect of confinement can be neglected for flame radii less than 0.3 times the wall radius while still achieving acceptable accuracy (within 3%). The methodology is applied to correct the flame speed for nonzero burned gas speeds, in order to extend the range of flame radii useful for flame speed measurements. Under the proposed scaling, the burned gas speed can be well approximated as a function of only flame radius for a given chamber geometry - i.e. the correction function need only be determined once for an apparatus and then it can be used for any mixture. Results indicate that the flow correction can be used to extract flame speeds for flame radii up to 0.5 times the wall radius with somewhat larger, yet still acceptable uncertainties for the cases studied. Flow-corrected burning velocities are measured for hydrogen and syngas mixtures at atmospheric and

Flow instability in laminar jet flames driven by alternating current electric fields

KAUST Repository

Kim, Gyeong Taek

2016-10-13

The effect of electric fields on the instability of laminar nonpremixed jet flames was investigated experimentally by applying the alternating current (AC) to a jet nozzle. We aimed to elucidate the origin of the occurrence of twin-lifted jet flames in laminar jet flow configurations, which occurred when AC electric fields were applied. The results indicated that a twin-lifted jet flame originated from cold jet instability, caused by interactions between negative ions in the jet flow via electron attachment as O +e→O when AC electric fields were applied. This was confirmed by conducting systematic, parametric experiment, which included changing gaseous component in jets and applying different polarity of direct current (DC) to the nozzle. Using two deflection plates installed in parallel with the jet stream, we found that only negative DC on the nozzle could charge oxygen molecules negatively. Meanwhile, the cold jet instability occurred only for oxygen-containing jets. A shedding frequency of jet stream due to AC driven instability showed a good correlation with applied AC frequency exhibiting a frequency doubling. However, for the applied AC frequencies over 80Hz, the jet did not respond to the AC, indicating an existence of a minimum flow induction time in a dynamic response of negative ions to external AC fields. Detailed regime of the instability in terms of jet velocity, AC voltage and frequency was presented and discussed. Hypothesized mechanism to explain the instability was also proposed.

NR4.00002: Response of a laminar M-shaped premixed flame to plasma forcing

KAUST Repository

Lacoste, Deanna A.; Moeck, Jonas P.; Cha, Min; Chung, Suk-Ho

2015-01-01

We report on the response of a lean methane-air flame to non-thermal plasma forcing. The set-up consists of an axisymmetric burner, with a nozzle made of a quartz tube of 7-mm inlet diameter. The equivalence ratio is 0.9 and the flame is stabilized

Numerical Investigation of Laminar Diffusion Flames Established on a Horizontal Flat Plate in a Parallel Air Stream

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

E. D. Gopalakrishnan

2011-06-01

Full Text Available Numerical investigation of laminar diffusion flames established on a flat plate in a parallel air stream is presented. A numerical model with a multi-step chemical kinetics mechanism, variable thermo-physical properties, multi-component species diffusion and a radiation sub-model is employed for this purpose. Both upward and downward injection of fuel has been considered in a normal gravity environment. The thermal and aerodynamic structure of the flame has been explained with the help of temperature and species contours, net reaction rate of fuel and streamlines. Flame characteristics and stability aspects for several air and fuel velocity combinations have been studied. An important characteristic of a laminar boundary layer diffusion flame with upward injection of fuel is the velocity overshoot that occurs near the flame zone. This is not observed when the fuel is injected in the downward direction. The flame standoff distance is slightly higher for the downward injection of fuel due to increase in displacement thickness of boundary layer. Influence of an obstacle, namely the backward facing step, on the flame characteristics and stability aspects is also investigated. Effects of air and fuel velocities, size and location of the step are studied in detail. Based on the air and fuel velocities, different types of flames are predicted. The use of a backward-facing step as a flame holding mechanism for upward injection of fuel, results in increased stability limits due to the formation of a recirculation zone behind the step. The predicted stability limits match with experimentally observed limits. The step location is seen to play a more important role as compared to the step height in influencing the stability aspects of flames.

Leading-Edge Velocities and Lifted Methane Jet Flame Stability

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

W. Wang

2010-01-01

Full Text Available Current interest exists in understanding reaction-zone dynamics and mechanisms with respect to how they counterpropagate against incoming reactants. Images of flame position and flow-field morphology are presented from flame chemiluminescence and particle image velocimetry (PIV measurements. In the present study, PIV experiments were carried out to measure the methane jet lifted-flame flow-field velocities in the vicinity of the flame leading edge. Specifically, velocity fields within the high-temperature zone were examined in detail, which complements previous studies, whose prime focus is the flow-field upstream of the high-temperature boundary. PIV data is used not only to determine the velocities, but, along with chemiluminescence images, to also indicate the approximate location of the reaction zone (further supported by/through the leading-edge flame velocity distributions. The velocity results indirectly support the concept that the flame is anchored primarily through the mechanism of partially premixed flame propagation.

Experimental study of the structure of rich premixed 1,3-butadiene/CH4/O2/Ar flame

OpenAIRE

Gueniche, Hadj-Ali; Glaude, Pierre-Alexandre; Fournet, René; Battin-Leclerc, Frédérique

2007-01-01

The structure of a laminar rich premixed 1,3-C4H6/CH4/O2/Ar flame have been investigated. 1,3-Butadiene, methane, oxygen and argon mole fractions are 0.033; 0.2073; 0.3315, and 0.4280, respectively, for an equivalent ratio of 1.80. The flame has been stabilized on a burner at a pressure of 6.7 kPa (50 Torr). The concentration profiles of stable species were measured by gas chromatography after sampling with a quartz probe. Quantified species included carbon monoxide and dioxide, methane, oxyg...

Autoignition characteristics of laminar lifted jet flames of pre-vaporized iso-octane in heated coflow air

KAUST Repository

Al-Noman, Saeed M.; Choi, Sang Kyu; Chung, Suk-Ho

2015-01-01

The stabilization characteristics of laminar non-premixed jet flames of pre-vaporized iso-octane, one of the primary reference fuels for octane rating, have been studied experimentally in heated coflow air. Non-autoignited and autoignited lifted

Investigation of soot formation and temperature field in laminar diffusion flames of LPG-air mixture

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Shahad, Haroun A.K.; Mohammed, Yassar K.A. [Babylon Univ., Dept. of Mechanical Engineering, Babylon (Israel)

2000-11-01

Soot formation and burnout were studied at atmospheric pressure in co-flowing, axisymmetric buoyant laminar diffusion flames and double flames of liquefied petroleum gases (LPG)-air mixtures. In diffusion flames, two different fuel flow rates were examined. In double flames, three different primary air flow rates were examined. A soot sampling probe and a thermocouple were used to measure the local soot mass concentration and flame temperature, respectively. Flame residence time was predicted using a uniformly accelerated motion model as function of axial distance of the flame. The increase of primary air flow rate was found to suppress the energy transfer from the annular region, at which the soot is produced, to the flame axis. The time required to initiate soot formation at the flame axis becomes longer as the primary air is increased. The trend rate of soot formation was found to be similar along the flame axis in all tested diffusion flames. The increase of primary air by 10% of the stoichiometric air requirement of the fuel results in a 70% reduction in maximum soot concentration. The final exhaust of soot, which is determined by the net effect of soot formation and burnout, is much lower in double flames than that in diffusion flames. (Author)

Impact of co-flow air on buoyant diffusion flames flicker

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Gohari Darabkhani, H., E-mail: h.g.darabkhani@gmail.com [School of Mechanical, Aerospace and Civil Engineering, University of Manchester, Sackville Street, Manchester M13 9PL (United Kingdom); Wang, Q.; Chen, L.; Zhang, Y. [Mechanical Engineering Department, University of Sheffield, Mapping Street, Sheffield S1 3JD (United Kingdom)

2011-08-15

Highlights: {yields} We present the co-flow effects on flickering behaviour of diffusion flames. {yields} Co-flow air is shown to fully suppress the buoyancy driven flame oscillations. {yields} Schlieren and PIV illustrate the shift of outer vortices beyond the flame zone. {yields} Stability controlling parameter as a ratio of air to fuel velocities is presented. {yields} Equation for linear increase in flickering frequency by co-flow air is presented. - Abstract: This paper describes experimental investigation of co-flow air velocity effects on the flickering behaviour of laminar non-lifted methane diffusion flames. Chemiluminescence, high-speed photography, schlieren and Particle Imaging Velocimetry (PIV), have been used to study the changes in the flame/vortex interactions as well as the flame flickering frequency and magnitude by the co-flow air. Four cases of methane flow rates at different co-flow air velocities are investigated. It has been observed that the flame dynamics and stability of co-flow diffusion flames are strongly affected by the co-flow air velocity. When the co-flow velocity has reached a certain value the buoyancy driven flame oscillation was completely suppressed. The schlieren and PIV imaging have revealed that the co-flow of air is able to push the initiation point of the outer toroidal vortices beyond the visible flame to create a very steady laminar flow region in the reaction zone. Then the buoyancy driven instability is only effective in the plume of hot gases above the visible flame. It is observed that a higher co-flow rate is needed in order to suppress the flame flickering at a higher fuel flow rate. Therefore the ratio of the air velocity to the fuel velocity, {gamma}, is a stability controlling parameter. The velocity ratio, {gamma}, was found to be 0.72 for the range of tested flow rates. The dominant flickering frequency was observed to increase linearly with the co-flow rate (a) as; f = 0.33a + 11. The frequency amplitudes

Characteristics of autoignited laminar lifted flames in heated coflow jets of carbon monoxide/hydrogen mixtures

KAUST Repository

Choi, Byungchul; Chung, Suk-Ho

2012-01-01

and then increased as the jet velocity increased. Based on the mechanism in which the autoignited laminar lifted flame is stabilized by ignition delay time, the liftoff height can be influenced not only by the heat loss, but also by the preferential diffusion between

Effects of Buoyancy on Laminar and Turbulent Premixed V-Flame

Science.gov (United States)

Cheng, Robert K.; Bedat, Benoit

1997-01-01

Turbulent combustion occurs naturally in almost all combustion systems and involves complex dynamic coupling of chemical and fluid mechanical processes. It is considered as one of the most challenging combustion research problems today. Though buoyancy has little effect on power generating systems operating under high pressures (e.g., IC engines and turbines), flames in atmospheric burners and the operation of small to medium furnaces and boilers are profoundly affected by buoyancy. Changes in burner orientation impacts on their blow-off, flash-back and extinction limits, and their range of operation, burning rate, heat transfer, and emissions. Theoretically, buoyancy is often neglected in turbulent combustion models. Yet the modeling results are routinely compared with experiments of open laboratory flames that are obviously affected by buoyancy. This inconsistency is an obstacle to reconciling experiments and theories. Consequently, a fundamental understanding of the coupling between turbulent flames and buoyancy is significant to both turbulent combustion science and applications. The overall effect of buoyancy relates to the dynamic interaction between the flame and its surrounding, i.e., the so-called elliptical problem. The overall flame shape, its flowfield, stability, and mean and local burning rates are dictated by both upstream and downstream boundary conditions. In steady propagating premixed flames, buoyancy affects the products region downstream of the flame zone. These effects are manifested upstream through the mean and fluctuating pressure fields to influence flame stretch and flame wrinkling. Intuitively, the effects buoyancy should diminish with increasing flow momentum. This is the justification for excluding buoyancy in turbulent combustion models that treats high Reynolds number flows. The objectives of our experimental research program is to elucidate flame-buoyancy coupling processes in laminar and turbulent premixed flames, and to

Effect of pressure on the transfer functions of premixed methane and propane swirl flames

KAUST Repository

Di Sabatino, Francesco

2018-04-24

This paper reports on the effect of pressure on the response of methane–air and propane–air swirl flames to acoustic excitation of the flow. These effects are analyzed on the basis of the flame transfer function (FTF) formalism, experimentally determined from velocity and global OH* chemiluminescence measurements at pressures up to 5 bar. In parallel, phase-locked images of OH* chemiluminescence are collected and analyzed in order to determine the associated flame dynamics. Flame transfer functions and visual flame dynamics at atmospheric pressure are found to be similar to previous studies with comparable experimental conditions. Regardless of pressure, propane flames exhibit a much larger FTF gain than methane flames. For both fuels, the effect of pressure primarily is to modify the gain response at the local maximum of the FTF, at a Strouhal number around 0.5 (176 Hz). For methane flames, this gain maximum increases monotonically with pressure, while for propane flames it increases from 1 to 3 bar and decreases from 3 to 5 bar. At this frequency and regardless of pressure, the flame motion is driven by flame vortex roll-up, suggesting that pressure affects the FTF by modifying the interaction of the flame with the vortex detached from the injector rim during a forcing period. The complex heat transfer, fluid dynamics, and combustion coupling in this configuration does not allow keeping the vortex properties constant when pressure is increased. However, the different trends of the FTF gain observed for methane and propane fuels with increasing pressure imply that intrinsic flame properties and fuel chemistry, and their variation with pressure, play an important role in controlling the response of these flames to acoustic forcing.

Examination of flame length for burning pulverized coal in laminar flow reactor

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Kim, Jae Dong; Kim, Gyu Bo; Chang, Young June; Song, Ju Hun; Jeon, Chung Hwan [Pusan National University, Busan (Korea, Republic of)

2010-12-15

Because there has been a recent increase in the use of low calorific coal compared to standard coal, it is crucial to control the char flame length governing the burning life-time of coal in a coal-fired utility boiler. The main objective of this study is to develop a simplified model that can theoretically predict the flame length for burning coal in a laboratory-scale entrained laminar flow reactor (LFR) system. The char burning behavior was experimentally observed when sub-bituminous pulverized coal was fed into the LFR under burning conditions similar to those in a real boiler: a heating rate of 1000 K/s, an oxygen molar fraction of 7.7 %, and reacting flue gas temperatures ranging from 1500 to 2000 K. By using the theoretical model developed in this study, the effect of particle size on the coal flame length was exclusively addressed. In this model, the effect of particle mass was eliminated to compare with the experimental result performed under a constant mass feeding of coal. Overall, the computed results for the coal flame length were in good agreement with the experimental data, particularly when the external oxygen diffusion effect was considered in the model

Examination of flame length for burning pulverized coal in laminar flow reactor

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Kim, Jae Dong; Kim, Gyu Bo; Chang, Young June; Song, Ju Hun; Jeon, Chung Hwan

2010-01-01

Because there has been a recent increase in the use of low calorific coal compared to standard coal, it is crucial to control the char flame length governing the burning life-time of coal in a coal-fired utility boiler. The main objective of this study is to develop a simplified model that can theoretically predict the flame length for burning coal in a laboratory-scale entrained laminar flow reactor (LFR) system. The char burning behavior was experimentally observed when sub-bituminous pulverized coal was fed into the LFR under burning conditions similar to those in a real boiler: a heating rate of 1000 K/s, an oxygen molar fraction of 7.7 %, and reacting flue gas temperatures ranging from 1500 to 2000 K. By using the theoretical model developed in this study, the effect of particle size on the coal flame length was exclusively addressed. In this model, the effect of particle mass was eliminated to compare with the experimental result performed under a constant mass feeding of coal. Overall, the computed results for the coal flame length were in good agreement with the experimental data, particularly when the external oxygen diffusion effect was considered in the model

Effect of pressure on high Karlovitz number lean turbulent premixed hydrogen-enriched methane-air flames using LES

Science.gov (United States)

Cicoria, David; Chan, C. K.

2017-07-01

Large eddy simulation (LES) is employed to investigate the effect of pressure on lean CH4-H2-air turbulent premixed flames at high Karlovitz number for mixtures up to 60% of hydrogen in volume. The subfilter combustion term representing the interaction between turbulence and chemistry is modelled using the PaSR model, along with complex chemistry using a skeletal mechanism based on GRI-MECH3.0. The influence of pressure at high turbulence levels is studied by means of the local flame structure, and the assessment of species formation inside the flame. Results show that the ratio of turbulent flame thickness to laminar flame thickness δt/δu increases faster with pressure, and increases with the fraction of hydrogen in the mixture, leading to higher ratio of turbulent to laminar flame speed. The flame displays smaller structures and higher degree of wrinkling at higher pressure. Final species of CO2 and H2O formation is almost independent of pressure. For intermediate species CO and OH, an increase in pressure at constant volume fraction of hydrogen β leads to a decrease of emission of these species.

Effects of soot formation on shape of a nonpremixed laminar flame established in a shear boundary layer in microgravity

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Wang, H Y; Merino, J L Florenciano; Dagaut, P

2011-01-01

A numerical study was performed to give a quantitative description of a heavily sooting, nonpremixed laminar flame established in a shear boundary layer in microgravity. Controlling mechanisms of three dimensional flow, combustion, soot and radiation are coupled. Soot volume fraction were predicted by using three approaches, referred respectively to as the fuel, acetylene and PAH inception models. It is found that the PAH inception model, which is based on the formation of two and three-ringed aromatic species, reproduces correctly the experimental data from a laminar ethylene diffusion flame. The PAH inception model serves later to better understand flame quenching, flame stand-off distance and soot formation as a function of the dimensionless volume coefficient, defined as C q = V F /V ox where V F is the fuel injection velocity, and V ox air stream velocity. The present experiments showed that a blue unstable flame, negligible radiative feedback, may change to a yellow stable flame, significant radiative loss with an increase of C q ; this experimental trend was numerically reproduced. The flame quenching occurs at the trailing edge due to radiative heat loss which is significantly amplified by increasing V F or decreasing V ox , favouring soot formation. Along a semi-infinite fuel zone, the ratio, d f /d b , where d f is the flame standoff distance, and d b the boundary layer thickness, converges towards a constant value of 1.2, while soot resides always within the boundary layer far away from the flame sheet.

Investigation of flame structure in plasma-assisted turbulent premixed methane-air flame

Science.gov (United States)

Hualei, ZHANG; Liming, HE; Jinlu, YU; Wentao, QI; Gaocheng, CHEN

2018-02-01

The mechanism of plasma-assisted combustion at increasing discharge voltage is investigated in detail at two distinctive system schemes (pretreatment of reactants and direct in situ discharge). OH-planar laser-induced fluorescence (PLIF) technique is used to diagnose the turbulent structure methane-air flame, and the experimental apparatus consists of dump burner, plasma-generating system, gas supply system and OH-PLIF system. Results have shown that the effect of pretreatment of reactants on flame can be categorized into three regimes: regime I for voltage lower than 6.6 kV; regime II for voltage between 6.6 and 11.1 kV; and regime III for voltage between 11.1 and 12.5 kV. In regime I, aerodynamic effect and slower oxidation of higher hydrocarbons generated around the inner electrode tip plays a dominate role, while in regime III, the temperature rising effect will probably superimpose on the chemical effect and amplify it. For wire-cylinder dielectric barrier discharge reactor with spatially uneven electric field, the amount of radicals and hydrocarbons are decreased monotonically in radial direction which affects the flame shape. With regard to in situ plasma discharge in flames, the discharge pattern changes from streamer type to glow type. Compared with the case of reactants pretreatment, the flame propagates further in the upstream direction. In the discharge region, the OH intensity is highest for in situ plasma assisted combustion, indicating that the plasma energy is coupled into flame reaction zone.

Response of a laminar premixed flame to flow oscillations: A kinematic model and thermoacoustic instability results

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Fleifil, M.; Annaswamy, A.M.; Ghoneim, A.F. [Massachusetts Inst. of Technology, Cambridge, MA (United States); Ghoneim, Z.A. [Ain Shams Univ., Abassia (Egypt)

1996-09-01

Combustion instability is a resonance phenomenon that arises due to the coupling between the system acoustics and the unsteady heat release. The constructive feedback between the two processes, which is known to occur as a certain phase relationship between the pressure and the unsteady heat release rate is satisfied, depends on many parameters among which is the acoustic mode, the flame holder characteristics, and the dominant burning pattern. In this paper, the authors construct an analytical model to describe the dynamic response of a laminar premixed flame stabilized on the rim of a tube to velocity oscillation. They consider uniform and nonuniform velocity perturbations superimposed on a pipe flow velocity profile. The model results show that the magnitude of heat release perturbation and its phase with respect to the dynamic perturbation dependent primarily on the flame Strohal number, representing the ratio of the dominant frequency times the tube radius to the laminar burning velocity. In terms of this number, high-frequency perturbations pass through the flame while low frequencies lead to a strong response. The phase with respect to the velocity perturbation behaves in the opposite way. Results of this model are shown to agree with experimental observations and to be useful in determining how the combustion excited model is selected among all the acoustic unstable modes. The model is then used to obtain a time-domain differential equation describing the relationship between the velocity perturbation and the heat release response over the entire frequency range.

A multi-probe thermophoretic soot sampling system for high-pressure diffusion flames

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Vargas, Alex M.; Gülder, Ömer L. [Institute for Aerospace Studies, University of Toronto, Toronto, Ontario M3H 5T6 (Canada)

2016-05-15

Optical diagnostics and physical probing of the soot processes in high pressure combustion pose challenges that are not faced in atmospheric flames. One of the preferred methods of studying soot in atmospheric flames is in situ thermophoretic sampling followed by transmission electron microscopy imaging and analysis for soot sizing and morphology. The application of this method of sampling to high pressures has been held back by various operational and mechanical problems. In this work, we describe a rotating disk multi-probe thermophoretic soot sampling system, driven by a microstepping stepper motor, fitted into a high-pressure chamber capable of producing sooting laminar diffusion flames up to 100 atm. Innovative aspects of the sampling system design include an easy and precise control of the sampling time down to 2.6 ms, avoidance of the drawbacks of the pneumatic drivers used in conventional thermophoretic sampling systems, and the capability to collect ten consecutive samples in a single experimental run. Proof of principle experiments were performed using this system in a laminar diffusion flame of methane, and primary soot diameter distributions at various pressures up to 10 atm were determined. High-speed images of the flame during thermophoretic sampling were recorded to assess the influence of probe intrusion on the flow field of the flame.

Impact of flame-wall interaction on premixed flame dynamics and transfer function characteristics

KAUST Repository

Kedia, K.S.

2011-01-01

In this paper, we numerically investigate the response of a perforated-plate stabilized laminar methane-air premixed flame to imposed inlet velocity perturbations. A flame model using detailed chemical kinetics mechanism is applied and heat exchange between the burner plate and the gas mixture is incorporated. Linear transfer functions, for low mean inlet velocity oscillations, are analyzed for different equivalence ratio, mean inlet velocity, plate thermal conductivity and distance between adjacent holes. The oscillations of the heat exchange rate at the top of the burner surface plays a critical role in driving the growth of the perturbations over a wide range of conditions, including resonance. The flame response to the perturbations at its base takes the form of consumption speed oscillations in this region. Flame stand-off distance increases/decreases when the flame-wall interaction strengthens/weakens, impacting the overall dynamics of the heat release. The convective lag between the perturbations and the flame base response govern the phase of heat release rate oscillations. There is an additional convective lag between the perturbations at the flame base and the flame tip which has a weaker impact on the heat release rate oscillations. At higher frequencies, the flame-wall interaction is weaker and the heat release oscillations are driven by the flame area oscillations. The response of the flame to higher amplitude oscillations are used to gain further insight into the mechanisms. © 2010 Published by Elsevier Inc. on behalf of The Combustion Institute. All rights reserved.

Effects of Driving Frequency on Propagation Characteristics of Methane - Air Premixed Flame Influenced by Ultrasonic Standing Wave

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Bae, Dae Seok; Kim, Jeong Soo [Pukyong National University, Busan (Korea, Republic of); Seo, Hang Seok [Hanwha Corporation, DaeJeon (Korea, Republic of)

2015-02-15

An experimental study was conducted to scrutinize the influence of the frequency of an ultrasonic standing wave on the variation in the behavior of a methane-air premixed flame. The evolutionary features of the propagating flame were captured by a high-speed camera, and the macroscopic flame behavior, including the flame structure and local velocities, was investigated in detail using a post-processing analysis of the high-speed images. It was found that a structural variation and propagation-velocity augmentation of the methane-air premixed flame were caused by the intervention of the ultrasonic standing wave, which enhanced the combustion reaction. Conclusive evidence for the dependency of the flame behaviors on the driving frequency of the ultrasonic standing wave and equivalence ratio of the reactants is presented.

Premixed CH4-Air Flame Structure Characteristic and Flow Behavior Induced by Obstacle in an Open Duct

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

DengKe Li

2015-01-01

Full Text Available To study the fuel gas combustion hazards, the methane/air flame structure and flow characteristic in an open duct influenced by a rectangular obstacle were explored by experiment and realizable k-∊ model (RKE. In the test, the high-speed schlieren photography technology and dynamic detection technology were applied to record the flame propagation behavior. Meanwhile, the interaction between flame front and flame flow field induced by the obstacle was disclosed. In addition, the laminar-turbulence transition was also taken into consideration. The RKE and eddy dissipation concept (EDC premixed combustion model were applied to obtain an insight into the phenomenon of flow change and wrinkle appearing, which potently explained the experimental observations. As a result, the obstacle blocked the laminar flame propagation velocity and increased pressure a little in an open duct. Some small-scale vortices began to appear near the obstacle, mainly due to Kelvin-Helmholtz instability (KHI, and gradually grew into large-scale vortices, which led to laminar-turbulent transition directly. The vortices thickened the reaction area and hastened the reaction rate; reversely, the higher reaction rate induced larger vortices. The RKE model result fitted the test data well and explained the wrinkle forming mechanism of two special vortices in the case.

Analysis of Flame Extinguishment and Height in Low Frequency Acoustically Excited Methane Jet Diffusion Flame

Science.gov (United States)

Zong, Ruowen; Kang, Ruxue; Liu, Chen; Zhang, Zhiyang; Zhi, Youran

2018-01-01

The exploration of microgravity conditions in space is increasing and existing fire extinguishing technology is often inadequate for fire safety in this special environment. As a result, improving the efficiency of portable extinguishers is of growing importance. In this work, a visual study of the effects on methane jet diffusion flames by low frequency sound waves is conducted to assess the extinguishing ability of sound waves. With a small-scale sound wave extinguishing bench, the extinguishing ability of certain frequencies of sound waves are identified, and the response of the flame height is observed and analyzed. Results show that the flame structure changes with disturbance due to low frequency sound waves of 60-100 Hz, and quenches at effective frequencies in the range of 60-90 Hz. In this range, 60 Hz is considered to be the quick extinguishing frequency, while 70-90 Hz is the stable extinguishing frequency range. For a fixed frequency, the flame height decreases with sound pressure level (SPL). The flame height exhibits the greatest sensitivity to the 60 Hz acoustic waves, and the least to the 100 Hz acoustic waves. The flame height decreases almost identically with disturbance by 70-90 Hz acoustic waves.

Temperature measurement of plasma-assisted flames: comparison between optical emission spectroscopy and 2-color laser induced fluorescence techniques

KAUST Repository

Lacoste, Deanna A.

2015-03-30

Accurate thermometry of highly reactive environments, such as plasma-assisted combustion, is challenging. With the help of conical laminar premixed methane-air flames, this study compares two thermometry techniques for the temperature determination in a combustion front enhanced by nanosecond repetitively pulsed (NRP) plasma discharges. Based on emission spectroscopic analysis, the results show that the rotational temperature of CH(A) gives a reasonable estimate for the adiabatic flame temperature, only for lean and stoichiometric conditions. The rotational temperature of N2(C) is found to significantly underestimate the flame temperature. The 2-color OH-PLIF technique gives correct values of the flame temperature.

Temperature measurement of plasma-assisted flames: comparison between optical emission spectroscopy and 2-color laser induced fluorescence techniques

KAUST Repository

Lacoste, Deanna A.; Heitz, Sylvain A.; Moeck, Jonas P.

2015-01-01

Accurate thermometry of highly reactive environments, such as plasma-assisted combustion, is challenging. With the help of conical laminar premixed methane-air flames, this study compares two thermometry techniques for the temperature determination in a combustion front enhanced by nanosecond repetitively pulsed (NRP) plasma discharges. Based on emission spectroscopic analysis, the results show that the rotational temperature of CH(A) gives a reasonable estimate for the adiabatic flame temperature, only for lean and stoichiometric conditions. The rotational temperature of N2(C) is found to significantly underestimate the flame temperature. The 2-color OH-PLIF technique gives correct values of the flame temperature.

Experimental study of flame stability in biogas premix system

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Diaz G, Carlos A; Amell A Andres; Cardona Luis F

2008-01-01

Utilization of new renewable energy sources have had a special interest in last years looking for decrease the dependence of fossil fuels and the environmental impact generated for them. This work studies experimentally the flame stability of a simulated biogas with a volumetric composition of 60% methane and 40% carbon dioxide. The objective of this study is to obtain information about design and interchangeability of gases in premixed combustion systems that operate with different fuel gases. The critical velocity gradient was the stability criteria used. Utilization of this criteria and the experimental method followed, using a partial premixed burner, stability flame diagram of biogas studied had been obtained. Presence of carbon dioxide has a negative effect in flame stability, decreasing significantly the laminar flame speed and consequently, the stability range of biogas burners because of apparition of blow off.

Experimental study and kinetic modeling of the thermal degradation of aromatic volatile organic compounds (benzene, toluene and xylene-para) in methane flames; Etude experimentale et modelisation cinetique de la degradation thermique des composes organiques volatils aromatiques benzenes, toluene et para-xylene dans des flammes de methane

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Dupont, L.

2001-02-01

This study treats of the thermal degradation of a family of aromatic volatile organic compounds (VOCs) in laminar premixed methane flames at low pressure. The experimental influence of benzene, toluene and xylene-para on the structure of a reference methane flame has been studied. The molar fraction profiles of the stable and reactive, aliphatic, aromatic and cyclic species have been established by the coupling of the molecular beam sampling/mass spectroscopy technique with the gas chromatography/mass spectroscopy technique. Temperature profiles have been measured using a covered thermocouple. A detailed kinetic mechanism of oxidation of these compounds in flame conditions has been developed. Different available sub-mechanisms have been used as references: the GDF-Kin 1.0 model for the oxidation of methane and the models of Tan and Franck (1996) and of Lindstedt and Maurice (1996) in the case of benzene and toluene. In the case of para-xylene, a model has been developed because no mechanisms was available in the literature. These different mechanisms have been refined, completed or adjusted by comparing the experimental results with those obtained by kinetic modeling. The complete kinetic mechanism, comprising 156 chemical species involved in 1072 reactions allows to reproduce all the experimental observations in a satisfactory manner. The kinetic analysis of reactions velocity has permitted to determine oxidation kinetic schemes for benzene, toluene, xylene-para and for the cyclopentadienyl radical, main species at the origin of the rupture of the aromatic cycle. Reactions of recombination with the methyl radicals formed during methane oxidation, of the different aromatic or aliphatic radicals created during the oxidation of aromatics, play an important role and lead to the formation of several aromatic pollutants (ethyl-benzene for instance) or aliphatic pollutants (butadiene or penta-diene for instance) in flames. (J.S.)

NO formation in the burnout region of a partially premixed methane-air flame with upstream heat loss

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Mokhov, A.V.; Levinsky, H.B.

1999-09-01

Measurements of temperature and NO concentration in laminar, partially premixed methane-air flames stabilized on a ceramic burner in coflow are reported. The NO concentration and temperature were determined by laser-induced fluorescence (LIF) and coherent anti-Stokes Raman scattering (CARS), respectively. Upstream heat loss to the burner was varied by changing the exit velocity of the fuel-air mixture at a constant equivalence ratio of 1,3; this alters the structure of the flame from an axisymmetric Bunsen-type to a strongly stabilized flat flame. To facilitate analysis of the results, a method is derived for separating the effects of dilution from those of chemical reaction based on the relation between the measured temperature and the local mixture fraction, including the effects of upstream heat loss. Using this method, the amount of NO formed during burnout of the hot, fuel-rich combustion products can be ascertained. In the Bunsen-type flame, it is seen that {approximately}40 ppm of NO are produced in this burnout region, at temperatures between {approximately}2,100 K and {approximately}1,900 K, probably via the Zeldovich mechanism. Reducing the exit velocity of 12 cm/s reduces the flame temperature substantially, and effectively eliminates this contribution. At velocities of 12 and 8 cm/s, {approximately}10 ppm of NO are formed in the burnout region, even though the gas temperatures are too low for Zeldovich NO to be significant. Although the mechanism responsible for these observations is as yet unclear, the results are consistent with the idea that the low temperatures in the fuel-rich gases caused by upstream heat loss retard the conversion of HCN (formed via the Fenimore mechanism) to NO, with this residual HCN then being converted to NO during burnout.

Effects of N2 gas on preheated laminar LPG jet diffusion flame

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Mishra, D.P.; Kumar, P.

2010-01-01

This paper presents an experimental investigation of the inert gas effect on flame length, NO x and soot free length fraction (SFLF) in a laminar LPG diffusion flame. Besides this, flame radiant fraction and temperature are also measured to explain observed NO x emission and SFLF. The inert is added to both air and fuel stream at each base line condition by maintaining a constant mass flow rate in each stream. Results indicate that inert addition leads to a significant enhancement in flame length for air-diluted stream than fuel-diluted stream. However, the flame length is observed to reduce with increasing reactant temperature. It is also observed that the SFLF increases with addition of N 2 for fuel-diluted stream. In contrast, SFLF remains almost constant when N 2 is added to air stream. The decrease in fuel concentration and gas temperature caused by inert addition leads to reduction in soot volume fraction and hence enhances SFLF. Interestingly, the SFLF reduces with increasing reactant temperature, due to reduction in induction period of soot formation caused by enhanced flame temperature. Besides this, the reduction in NO x emission level with inert addition is also observed. For all the three cases, the air dilution proved to be much efficient in reducing NO x emission level as compared to fuel dilution. This can be attributed to the differences in reduced gas temperature and residence time between air and fuel-diluted streams. On the contrary, NO x emission level enhances significantly with increasing reactant temperature as a result of increase in thermal NO x through Zeldovich mechanism.

Large-eddy simulation of a turbulent piloted methane/air diffusion flame (Sandia flame D)

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Pitsch, H.; Steiner, H.

2000-01-01

The Lagrangian Flamelet Model is formulated as a combustion model for large-eddy simulations of turbulent jet diffusion flames. The model is applied in a large-eddy simulation of a piloted partially premixed methane/air diffusion flame (Sandia flame D). The results of the simulation are compared to experimental data of the mean and RMS of the axial velocity and the mixture fraction and the unconditional and conditional averages of temperature and various species mass fractions, including CO and NO. All quantities are in good agreement with the experiments. The results indicate in accordance with experimental findings that regions of high strain appear in layer like structures, which are directed inwards and tend to align with the reaction zone, where the turbulence is fully developed. The analysis of the conditional temperature and mass fractions reveals a strong influence of the partial premixing of the fuel. (c) 2000 American Institute of Physics

Extinction of laminar partially premixed flames

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Aggarwal, Suresh K. [Department of Mechanical and Industrial Engineering, University of Illinois at Chicago, 842 W. Taylor Street, Room 2039, MC-251, Chicago, IL 60607-7022 (United States)

2009-12-15

Flame extinction represents one of the classical phenomena in combustion science. It is important to a variety of combustion systems in transportation and power generation applications. Flame extinguishment studies are also motivated from the consideration of fire safety and suppression. Such studies have generally considered non-premixed and premixed flames, although fires can often originate in a partially premixed mode, i.e., fuel and oxidizer are partially premixed as they are transported to the reaction zone. Several recent investigations have considered this scenario and focused on the extinction of partially premixed flames (PPFs). Such flames have been described as hybrid flames possessing characteristics of both premixed and non-premixed flames. This paper provides a review of studies dealing with the extinction of PPFs, which represent a broad family of flames, including double, triple (tribrachial), and edge flames. Theoretical, numerical and experimental studies dealing with the extinction of such flames in coflow and counterflow configurations are discussed. Since these flames contain both premixed and non-premixed burning zones, a brief review of the dilution-induced extinction of premixed and non-premixed flames is also provided. For the coflow configuration, processes associated with flame liftoff and blowout are described. Since lifted non-premixed jet flames often contain a partially premixed or an edge-flame structure prior to blowout, the review also considers such flames. While the perspective of this review is broad focusing on the fundamental aspects of flame extinction and blowout, results mostly consider flame extinction caused by the addition of a flame suppressant, with relevance to fire suppression on earth and in space environment. With respect to the latter, the effect of gravity on the extinction of PPFs is discussed. Future research needs are identified. (author)

AC electric field induced vortex in laminar coflow diffusion flames

KAUST Repository

Xiong, Yuan

2014-09-22

Experiments were performed by applying sub-critical high-voltage alternating current (AC) to the nozzle of laminar propane coflow diffusion flames. Light scattering, laser-induced incandescence and laser-induced fluorescence techniques were used to identify the soot zone, and the structures of OH and polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (PAHs). Particle image velocimetry was adopted to quantify the velocity field. Under certain AC conditions of applied voltage and frequency, the distribution of PAHs and the flow field near the nozzle exit were drastically altered, leading to the formation of toroidal vortices. Increased residence time and heat recirculation inside the vortex resulted in appreciable formation of PAHs and soot near the nozzle exit. Decreased residence time along the jet axis through flow acceleration by the vortex led to a reduction in the soot volume fraction in the downstream sooting zone. Electromagnetic force generated by AC was proposed as a viable mechanism for the formation of the toroidal vortex. The onset conditions for the vortex formation supported the role of an electromagnetic force acting on charged particles in the flame zone. (C) 2014 The Combustion Institute. Published by Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

AC electric field induced vortex in laminar coflow diffusion flames

KAUST Repository

Xiong, Yuan; Cha, Min; Chung, Suk-Ho

2014-01-01

Experiments were performed by applying sub-critical high-voltage alternating current (AC) to the nozzle of laminar propane coflow diffusion flames. Light scattering, laser-induced incandescence and laser-induced fluorescence techniques were used to identify the soot zone, and the structures of OH and polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (PAHs). Particle image velocimetry was adopted to quantify the velocity field. Under certain AC conditions of applied voltage and frequency, the distribution of PAHs and the flow field near the nozzle exit were drastically altered, leading to the formation of toroidal vortices. Increased residence time and heat recirculation inside the vortex resulted in appreciable formation of PAHs and soot near the nozzle exit. Decreased residence time along the jet axis through flow acceleration by the vortex led to a reduction in the soot volume fraction in the downstream sooting zone. Electromagnetic force generated by AC was proposed as a viable mechanism for the formation of the toroidal vortex. The onset conditions for the vortex formation supported the role of an electromagnetic force acting on charged particles in the flame zone. (C) 2014 The Combustion Institute. Published by Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

Experimental study of adiabatic cellular premixed flames of methane (ethane, propane) + oxygen + carbon dioxide mixtures

NARCIS (Netherlands)

Konnov, A.A.; Dyakov, I.V.

2007-01-01

Experimental studies of adiabatic cellular flames of CH4 + O2 + CO2, C2H6 + O2 + CO2, and C3H8 + O2 + CO2 are presented. Visual and photographic observations of the flames were performed to quantify their cellular structure. Non-stretched flames of methane and propane were stabilized at atmospheric

Effect of Electric Field on Outwardly Propagating Spherical Flame

KAUST Repository

Mannaa, Ossama

2012-06-01

The thesis comprises effects of electric fields on a fundamental study of spheri­cal premixed flame propagation.Outwardly-propagating spherical laminar premixed flames have been investigated in a constant volume combustion vessel by applying au uni-directional electric potential.Direct photography and schlieren techniques have been adopted and captured images were analyzed through image processing. Unstretched laminar burning velocities under the influence of electric fields and their associated Markstein length scales have been determined from outwardly prop­agating spherical flame at a constant pressure. Methane and propane fuels have been tested to assess the effect of electric fields on the differential diffusion of the two fuels.The effects of varying equivalence ratios and applied voltages have been in­vestigated, while the frequency of AC was fixed at 1 KHz. Directional propagating characteristics were analyzed to identify the electric filed effect. The flame morphology varied appreciably under the influence of electric fields which in turn affected the burning rate of mixtures.The flame front was found to propagate much faster toward to the electrode at which the electric fields were supplied while the flame speeds in the other direction were minimally influenced. When the voltage was above 7 KV the combustion is markedly enhanced in the downward direction since intense turbulence is generated and as a result the mixing process or rather the heat and mass transfer within the flame front will be enhanced.The com­bustion pressure for the cases with electric fields increased rapidly during the initial stage of combustion and was relatively higher since the flame front was lengthened in the downward direction.

Experiment and Simulation of Autoignition in Jet Flames and its Relevance to Flame Stabilization and Structure

KAUST Repository

Al-Noman, Saeed M.

2016-06-01

mainly between the fuel nozzle and the lifted flame edge. On the other hand, they were formed just prior to the flame edge for the non-autoignited lifted flames. The effect of fuel pyrolysis and partial oxidation were found to be important in explaining autoignited liftoff heights, especially in the Mild combustion regime. Flame structures of autoignited flames were investigated numerically for syngas (CO/H2) and methane fuels. The simulations of syngas fuel accounting for the differential diffusion have been performed by adopting several kinetic mechanisms to test the models ability in predicting the flame behaviors observed previously. The results agreed well with the observed nozzle-attached flame characteristics in case of non-autoignited flames. For autoignited lifted flames in high temperature regime, a unique autoignition behavior can be predicted having HO2 and H2O2 radicals in a broad region between the nozzle and stabilized lifted flame edge. Autoignition characteristics of laminar nonpremixed methane jet flames in high- temperature coflow air were studied numerically. Several flame configurations were investigated by varying the initial temperature and fuel mole fraction. Characteristics of chemical kinetics structures for autoignited lifted flames were discussed based on the kinetic structures of homogeneous autoignition and flame propagation of premixed mixtures. Results showed that for autoignited lifted flame with tribrachial structure, a transition from autoignition to flame propagation modes occurs for reasonably stoichiometric mixtures. Characteristics of Mild combustion can be treated as an autoignited lean premixed lifted flame. Transition behavior from Mild combustion to a nozzle-attached flame was also investigated by increasing the fuel mole fraction.

Analysis of the step responses of laminar premixed flames to forcing by non-thermal plasma

KAUST Repository

Lacoste, Deanna; Moeck, Jonas P.; Roberts, William L.; Chung, Suk-Ho; Cha, Min

2016-01-01

The step responses of lean methane-air flames to non-thermal plasma forcing is reported. The experimental setup consists of an axisymmetric burner, with a nozzle made of a quartz tube. The equivalence ratio is 0.95, allowing stabilization

Experimental Methodology for Estimation of Local Heat Fluxes and Burning Rates in Steady Laminar Boundary Layer Diffusion Flames.

Science.gov (United States)

Singh, Ajay V; Gollner, Michael J

2016-06-01

Modeling the realistic burning behavior of condensed-phase fuels has remained out of reach, in part because of an inability to resolve the complex interactions occurring at the interface between gas-phase flames and condensed-phase fuels. The current research provides a technique to explore the dynamic relationship between a combustible condensed fuel surface and gas-phase flames in laminar boundary layers. Experiments have previously been conducted in both forced and free convective environments over both solid and liquid fuels. A unique methodology, based on the Reynolds Analogy, was used to estimate local mass burning rates and flame heat fluxes for these laminar boundary layer diffusion flames utilizing local temperature gradients at the fuel surface. Local mass burning rates and convective and radiative heat feedback from the flames were measured in both the pyrolysis and plume regions by using temperature gradients mapped near the wall by a two-axis traverse system. These experiments are time-consuming and can be challenging to design as the condensed fuel surface burns steadily for only a limited period of time following ignition. The temperature profiles near the fuel surface need to be mapped during steady burning of a condensed fuel surface at a very high spatial resolution in order to capture reasonable estimates of local temperature gradients. Careful corrections for radiative heat losses from the thermocouples are also essential for accurate measurements. For these reasons, the whole experimental setup needs to be automated with a computer-controlled traverse mechanism, eliminating most errors due to positioning of a micro-thermocouple. An outline of steps to reproducibly capture near-wall temperature gradients and use them to assess local burning rates and heat fluxes is provided.

A parametric study of AC electric field-induced toroidal vortex formation in laminar nonpremixed coflow flames

KAUST Repository

Xiong, Yuan

2017-05-02

This study presents an experimental work investigating the controlling parameters on the formation of an electrically-induced inner toroidal vortex (ITV) near a nozzle rim in small, laminar nonpremixed coflow flames, when an alternating current is applied to the nozzle. A systematic parametric study was conducted by varying the flow parameters of the fuel and coflowing-air velocities, and the nozzle diameter. The fuels tested were methane, ethylene, ethane, propane, n-butane, and i-butane, each representing different ion-generation characteristics and sooting tendencies. The results showed that the fluid dynamic effects on ITV formation were weak, causing only mild variation when altering flow velocities. However, increased fuel velocity resulted in increased polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbon (PAH) formation, which promoted ITV formation. When judging the ITV-formation tendency based on critical applied voltage and frequency, it was qualitatively well correlated with the PAH concentration and the relative location of PAHs to the nozzle rim. The sooting tendency of the fuels did not affect the results much. A change in the nozzle diameter highlighted the importance of the relative distance between the PAH zone and the nozzle rim, indicating the role of local electric-field intensity on ITV formation. Detailed onset conditions, characteristics of near-nozzle flow patterns, and PAH distributions are also discussed.

Effects of N{sub 2} gas on preheated laminar LPG jet diffusion flame

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Mishra, D.P.; Kumar, P. [Department of Aerospace Engineering, Indian Institute of Technology, Kanpur 208 016 (India)

2010-11-15

This paper presents an experimental investigation of the inert gas effect on flame length, NO{sub x} and soot free length fraction (SFLF) in a laminar LPG diffusion flame. Besides this, flame radiant fraction and temperature are also measured to explain observed NO{sub x} emission and SFLF. The inert is added to both air and fuel stream at each base line condition by maintaining a constant mass flow rate in each stream. Results indicate that inert addition leads to a significant enhancement in flame length for air-diluted stream than fuel-diluted stream. However, the flame length is observed to reduce with increasing reactant temperature. It is also observed that the SFLF increases with addition of N{sub 2} for fuel-diluted stream. In contrast, SFLF remains almost constant when N{sub 2} is added to air stream. The decrease in fuel concentration and gas temperature caused by inert addition leads to reduction in soot volume fraction and hence enhances SFLF. Interestingly, the SFLF reduces with increasing reactant temperature, due to reduction in induction period of soot formation caused by enhanced flame temperature. Besides this, the reduction in NO{sub x} emission level with inert addition is also observed. For all the three cases, the air dilution proved to be much efficient in reducing NO{sub x} emission level as compared to fuel dilution. This can be attributed to the differences in reduced gas temperature and residence time between air and fuel-diluted streams. On the contrary, NO{sub x} emission level enhances significantly with increasing reactant temperature as a result of increase in thermal NO{sub x} through Zeldovich mechanism. (author)

Comprehensive Validation of Skeletal Mechanism for Turbulent Premixed Methane–Air Flame Simulations

KAUST Repository

Luca, Stefano

2017-08-01

A new skeletal mechanism, consisting of 16 species and 72 reactions, has been developed for lean methane–air premixed combustion from the GRI-Mech 3.0. The skeletal mechanism is validated for elevated unburnt temperatures (800 K) and pressures up to 4 atm, thereby addressing realistic gas turbine conditions. The skeletal mechanism is obtained by applying the directed relation graph method and performing sensitivity analysis on the detailed mechanism. The mechanism has been validated for flame speed and flame structure in a wide range of conditions and configurations. A good agreement between the skeletal mechanism and GRI-3.0 was obtained. The configurations considered include one-dimension laminar premixed flames, laminar non-premixed counterflow burners, and two- and three-dimensional unsteady configurations with variations of temperature, pressure, and composition. The skeletal mechanism allows for the inclusion of accurate finite rate chemistry in large-scale direct numerical simulations of lean turbulent premixed flames. In a large-scale direct numerical simulation, the use of the skeletal mechanism reduces the memory requirements by more than a factor of 3 and accelerates the simulation by a factor of 7 compared with the detailed mechanism. The skeletal mechanism is suitable for unsteady three-dimensional simulations of methane turbulent premixed, non-premixed, and globally lean partially premixed flames and is available as supplementary material.

Measurements of Positively Charged Ions in Premixed Methane-Oxygen Atmospheric Flames

KAUST Repository

Alquaity, Awad

2016-08-22

Cations and anions are formed as a result of chemi-ionization processes in combustion systems. Electric fields can be applied to reduce emissions and improve combustion efficiency by active control of the combustion process. Detailed flame ion chemistry models are needed to understand and predict the effect of external electric fields on combustion plasmas. In this work, a molecular beam mass spectrometer (MBMS) is utilized to measure ion concentration profiles in premixed methane–oxygen argon burner-stabilized atmospheric flames. Lean and stoichiometric flames are considered to assess the dependence of ion chemistry on flame stoichiometry. Relative ion concentration profiles are compared with numerical simulations using various temperature profiles, and good qualitative agreement was observed for the stoichiometric flame. However, for the lean flame, numerical simulations misrepresent the spatial distribution of selected ions greatly. Three modifications are suggested to enhance the ion mechanism and improve the agreement between experiments and simulations. The first two modifications comprise the addition of anion detachment reactions to increase anion recombination at low temperatures. The third modification involves restoring a detachment reaction to its original irreversible form. To our knowledge, this work presents the first detailed measurements of cations and flame temperature in canonical methane–oxygen-argon atmospheric flat flames. The positive ion profiles reported here may be useful to validate and improve ion chemistry models for methane-oxygen flames.

Effect of hydrogen on hydrogen-methane turbulent non-premixed flame under MILD condition

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Mardani, Amir; Tabejamaat, Sadegh [Department of Aerospace engineering, Amirkabir university of technology (Tehran polytechnic), Hafez Ave., PO. Box: 15875-4413, Tehran (Iran)

2010-10-15

Energy crises and the preservation of the global environment are placed man in a dilemma. To deal with these problems, finding new sources of fuel and developing efficient and environmentally friendly energy utilization technologies are essential. Hydrogen containing fuels and combustion under condition of the moderate or intense low-oxygen dilution (MILD) are good choices to replace the traditional ones. In this numerical study, the turbulent non-premixed CH{sub 4}+H{sub 2} jet flame issuing into a hot and diluted co-flow air is considered to emulate the combustion of hydrogen containing fuels under MILD conditions. This flame is related to the experimental condition of Dally et al. [Proc. Combust. Inst. 29 (2002) 1147-1154]. In general, the modelling is carried out using the EDC model, to describe turbulence-chemistry interaction, and the DRM-22 reduced mechanism and the GRI2.11 full mechanism to represent the chemical reactions of H{sub 2}/methane jet flame. The effect of hydrogen content of fuel on flame structure for two co-flow oxygen levels is studied by considering three fuel mixtures, 5%H{sub 2}+95%CH{sub 4}, 10%H{sub 2}+90%CH{sub 4} and 20% H{sub 2}+80%CH{sub 4}(by mass). In this study, distribution of species concentrations, mixture fraction, strain rate, flame entrainment, turbulent kinetic energy decay and temperature are investigated. Results show that the hydrogen addition to methane leads to improve mixing, increase in turbulent kinetic energy decay along the flame axis, increase in flame entrainment, higher reaction intensities and increase in mixture ignitability and rate of heat release. (author)

Two-dimensional temperature and carbon dioxide concentration profiles in atmospheric laminar diffusion flames measured by mid-infrared direct absorption spectroscopy at 4.2 μm

Science.gov (United States)

Liu, Xunchen; Zhang, Guoyong; Huang, Yan; Wang, Yizun; Qi, Fei

2018-04-01

We present a multi-line flame thermometry technique based on mid-infrared direct absorption spectroscopy of carbon dioxide at its v_3 fundamental around 4.2 μm that is particularly suitable for sooting flames. Temperature and concentration profiles of gas phase molecules in a flame are important characteristics to understand its flame structure and combustion chemistry. One of the standard laboratory flames to analyze polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (PAH) and soot formation is laminar non-premixed co-flow flame, but PAH and soot introduce artifact to most non-contact optical measurements. Here we report an accurate diagnostic method of the temperature and concentration profiles of CO2 in ethylene diffusion flames by measuring its v_3 vibrational fundamental. An interband cascade laser was used to probe the R-branch bandhead at 4.2 μm, which is highly sensitive to temperature change, free from soot interference and ambient background. Calibration measurement was carried out both in a low-pressure Herriott cell and an atmospheric pressure tube furnace up to 1550 K to obtain spectroscopic parameters for high-temperature spectra. In our co-flow flame measurement, two-dimensional line-of-sight optical depth of an ethylene/N2 laminar sooting flame was recorded by dual-beam absorption scheme. The axially symmetrical attenuation coefficient profile of CO2 in the co-flow flame was reconstructed from the optical depth by Abel inversion. Spatially resolved flame temperature and in situ CO2 volume fraction profiles were derived from the calibrated CO2 spectroscopic parameters and compared with temperature profiles measured by two-line atomic fluorescence.

Conical quarl swirl stabilized non-premixed flames: flame and flow field interaction

KAUST Repository

Elbaz, Ayman M.; Roberts, William L.

2017-01-01

The flame-flow field interaction is studied in non-premixed methane swirl flames stabilized in quartz quarl via simultaneous measurements of the flow field using a stereo PIV and OH-PLIF at 5 KHz repetition rate. Under the same swirl intensity, two flames with different fuel jet velocity were investigated. The time-averaged flow field shows a unique flow pattern at the quarl exit, where two recirculation vortices are formed; a strong recirculation zone formed far from the quarl exit and a larger recirculation zone extending inside the quarl. However, the instantaneous images show that, the flow pattern near the quarl exit plays a vital role in the spatial location and structure of the reaction zone. In the low fuel jet velocity flame, a pair of vortical structures, located precisely at the corners of the quarl exit, cause the flame to roll up into the central region of low speed flow, where the flame sheet then tracks the axial velocity fluctuations. The vorticity field reveals a vortical structure surrounding the reaction zones, which reside on a layer of low compressive strain adjacent to that vortical structure. In the high fuel jet velocity flame, initially a laminar flame sheet resides at the inner shear layer of the main jet, along the interface between incoming fresh gas and high temperature recirculating gas. Further downstream, vortex breakdown alters the flame sheet path toward the central flame region. The lower reaction zones show good correlation to the regions of maximum vorticity and track the regions of low compressive strain associated with the inner shear layer of the jet flow. In both flames the reactions zones conform the passage of the large structure while remaining inside the low speed regions or at the inner shear layer.

Conical quarl swirl stabilized non-premixed flames: flame and flow field interaction

KAUST Repository

Elbaz, Ayman M.

2017-09-19

The flame-flow field interaction is studied in non-premixed methane swirl flames stabilized in quartz quarl via simultaneous measurements of the flow field using a stereo PIV and OH-PLIF at 5 KHz repetition rate. Under the same swirl intensity, two flames with different fuel jet velocity were investigated. The time-averaged flow field shows a unique flow pattern at the quarl exit, where two recirculation vortices are formed; a strong recirculation zone formed far from the quarl exit and a larger recirculation zone extending inside the quarl. However, the instantaneous images show that, the flow pattern near the quarl exit plays a vital role in the spatial location and structure of the reaction zone. In the low fuel jet velocity flame, a pair of vortical structures, located precisely at the corners of the quarl exit, cause the flame to roll up into the central region of low speed flow, where the flame sheet then tracks the axial velocity fluctuations. The vorticity field reveals a vortical structure surrounding the reaction zones, which reside on a layer of low compressive strain adjacent to that vortical structure. In the high fuel jet velocity flame, initially a laminar flame sheet resides at the inner shear layer of the main jet, along the interface between incoming fresh gas and high temperature recirculating gas. Further downstream, vortex breakdown alters the flame sheet path toward the central flame region. The lower reaction zones show good correlation to the regions of maximum vorticity and track the regions of low compressive strain associated with the inner shear layer of the jet flow. In both flames the reactions zones conform the passage of the large structure while remaining inside the low speed regions or at the inner shear layer.

Chemical kinetic study of a novel lignocellulosic biofuel: Di-n-butyl ether oxidation in a laminar flow reactor and flames

KAUST Repository

Cai, Liming; Sudholt, Alena; Lee, Dongjoon; Egolfopoulos, Fokion N.; Pitsch, Heinz G.; Westbrook, Charles K.; Sarathy, Mani

2014-01-01

The combustion characteristics of promising alternative fuels have been studied extensively in the recent years. Nevertheless, the pyrolysis and oxidation kinetics for many oxygenated fuels are not well characterized compared to those of hydrocarbons. In the present investigation, the first chemical kinetic study of a long-chain linear symmetric ether, di-n-butyl ether (DBE), is presented and a detailed reaction model is developed. DBE has been identified recently as a candidate biofuel produced from lignocellulosic biomass. The model includes both high temperature and low temperature reaction pathways with reaction rates generated using appropriate rate rules. In addition, experimental studies on fundamental combustion characteristics, such as ignition delay times and laminar flame speeds have been performed. A laminar flow reactor was used to determine the ignition delay times of lean and stoichiometric DBE/air mixtures. The laminar flame speeds of DBE/air mixtures were measured in the stagnation flame configuration for a wide rage of equivalence ratios at atmospheric pressure and an unburned reactant temperature of 373. K. All experimental data were modeled using the present kinetic model. The agreement between measured and computed results is satisfactory, and the model was used to elucidate the oxidation pathways of DBE. The dissociation of keto-hydroperoxides, leading to radical chain branching was found to dominate the ignition of DBE in the low temperature regime. The results of the present numerical and experimental study of the oxidation of di-n-butyl ether provide a good basis for further investigation of long chain linear and branched ethers. © 2013 The Combustion Institute.

Chemical kinetic study of a novel lignocellulosic biofuel: Di-n-butyl ether oxidation in a laminar flow reactor and flames

KAUST Repository

Cai, Liming

2014-03-01

The combustion characteristics of promising alternative fuels have been studied extensively in the recent years. Nevertheless, the pyrolysis and oxidation kinetics for many oxygenated fuels are not well characterized compared to those of hydrocarbons. In the present investigation, the first chemical kinetic study of a long-chain linear symmetric ether, di-n-butyl ether (DBE), is presented and a detailed reaction model is developed. DBE has been identified recently as a candidate biofuel produced from lignocellulosic biomass. The model includes both high temperature and low temperature reaction pathways with reaction rates generated using appropriate rate rules. In addition, experimental studies on fundamental combustion characteristics, such as ignition delay times and laminar flame speeds have been performed. A laminar flow reactor was used to determine the ignition delay times of lean and stoichiometric DBE/air mixtures. The laminar flame speeds of DBE/air mixtures were measured in the stagnation flame configuration for a wide rage of equivalence ratios at atmospheric pressure and an unburned reactant temperature of 373. K. All experimental data were modeled using the present kinetic model. The agreement between measured and computed results is satisfactory, and the model was used to elucidate the oxidation pathways of DBE. The dissociation of keto-hydroperoxides, leading to radical chain branching was found to dominate the ignition of DBE in the low temperature regime. The results of the present numerical and experimental study of the oxidation of di-n-butyl ether provide a good basis for further investigation of long chain linear and branched ethers. © 2013 The Combustion Institute.

Role of Fluid-Dynamics in Soot Formation and Microstructure in Acetylene-Air Laminar Diffusion Flames

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Praveen Pandey

2015-03-01

Full Text Available Residence time and thermo-chemical environment are important factors in the soot-formation process in flames. Studies have revealed that flow-dynamics plays a dominant role in soot formation process. For understanding the effect of flow dynamics on soot formation and physical structure of the soot formed in different combustion environments two types of laminar diffusion flames of Acetylene and air, a normal diffusion flame (NDF and an inverse diffusion flame (IDF have been investigated. The fuel and air supply in the reaction zone in two flame types were kept constant but the interchange of relative position of fuel and air altered the burner exit Reynolds and Froude numbers of gases, fuel/air velocity ratio and flame shape. Soot samples were collected using thermophoretic sampling on transmission electron microscope (TEM grids at different flame heights and were analyzed off-line in a Transmission Electron Microscope. Soot primary particle size, soot aggregate size and soot volume fraction were measured using an image analysis software. In NDF the maximum flame temperature was about 1525 K and 1230 K for IDF. The soot primary particles are distinctly smaller in size in IDF (between 19 – 26 nm compared to NDF (between 29–34 nm. Both NDF and IDF show chainlike branched structure of soot agglomerate with soot particles of a nearly spherical shape. The average number of soot primary particles per aggregate in NDF was in the range of 24 to 40 and in IDF it varied between 16 to 24. Soot volume fraction was between 0.6 to 1.5 ppm in NDF where as it was less than 0.2 ppm in IDF. The change in sooting characteristics of the two flame types is attributed to changed fuel/air velocity ratio, entrainment of gas molecules and thermophoresis on soot particles.

An experimental study on turbulent lifted flames of methane in coflow jets at elevated temperatures

KAUST Repository

Choi, Byungchul

2013-01-01

An experimental study was conducted on the effects of initial temperature variation on the stabilization characteristics of turbulent nonpremixed flames in coflow jets of methane fuel diluted by nitrogen. The typical behavior seen in the study showed that the liftoff height increased linearly with the jet velocity regardless of the initial temperature in the turbulent regime. Two models were investigated for predicting liftoff heights in the methane jets: the premixed flame model and the large-scale mixing model. For the premixed flame model, the liftoff heights in the methane jets were accurately predicted using the thermal diffusivity of the unburned gas temperature αst,0, instead of that of the burned gas temperature αst,b. For the large-scale mixing model, however, the prediction of liftoff heights differed slightly for the various fuel mole fractions. However, when considering the initial fuel mass fraction YF,0, the liftoff heights were successfully predicted. This result implies that the characteristics of the unburned fuel-air mixture play a crucial role for flame stabilization in coflow jets for a variety of initial conditions. In the turbulent regime, the blowout velocity and the liftoff height at blowout could be accurately predicted by the two models based on a consideration of the physical properties and the buoyancy effect of the initial temperature variation. © 2012 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

Electric fields effect on liftoff and blowoff of nonpremixed laminar jet flames in a coflow

KAUST Repository

Kim, Minkuk

2010-01-01

The stabilization characteristics of liftoff and blowoff in nonpremixed laminar jet flames in a coflow have been investigated experimentally for propane fuel by applying AC and DC electric fields to the fuel nozzle with a single-electrode configuration. The liftoff and blowoff velocities have been measured by varying the applied voltage and frequency of AC and the voltage and the polarity of DC. The result showed that the AC electric fields extended the stabilization regime of nozzle-attached flame in terms of jet velocity. As the applied AC voltage increased, the nozzle-attached flame was maintained even over the blowout velocity without having electric fields. In such a case, a blowoff occurred directly without experiencing a lifted flame. While for the DC cases, the influence on liftoff was minimal. There existed three different regimes depending on the applied AC voltage. In the low voltage regime, the nozzle-detachment velocity of either liftoff or blowoff increased linearly with the applied voltage, while nonlinearly with the AC frequency. In the intermediate voltage regime, the detachment velocity decreased with the applied voltage and reasonably independent of the AC frequency. At the high voltage regime, the detachment was significantly influenced by the generation of discharges. © 2009 The Combustion Institute.

On the Experimental and Theoretical Investigations of Lean Partially Premixed Combustion, Burning Speed, Flame Instability and Plasma Formation of Alternative Fuels at High Temperatures and Pressures

Science.gov (United States)

Askari, Omid

This dissertation investigates the combustion and injection fundamental characteristics of different alternative fuels both experimentally and theoretically. The subjects such as lean partially premixed combustion of methane/hydrogen/air/diluent, methane high pressure direct-injection, thermal plasma formation, thermodynamic properties of hydrocarbon/air mixtures at high temperatures, laminar flames and flame morphology of synthetic gas (syngas) and Gas-to-Liquid (GTL) fuels were extensively studied in this work. These subjects will be summarized in three following paragraphs. The fundamentals of spray and partially premixed combustion characteristics of directly injected methane in a constant volume combustion chamber have been experimentally studied. The injected fuel jet generates turbulence in the vessel and forms a turbulent heterogeneous fuel-air mixture in the vessel, similar to that in a Compressed Natural Gas (CNG) Direct-Injection (DI) engines. The effect of different characteristics parameters such as spark delay time, stratification ratio, turbulence intensity, fuel injection pressure, chamber pressure, chamber temperature, Exhaust Gas recirculation (EGR) addition, hydrogen addition and equivalence ratio on flame propagation and emission concentrations were analyzed. As a part of this work and for the purpose of control and calibration of high pressure injector, spray development and characteristics including spray tip penetration, spray cone angle and overall equivalence ratio were evaluated under a wide range of fuel injection pressures of 30 to 90 atm and different chamber pressures of 1 to 5 atm. Thermodynamic properties of hydrocarbon/air plasma mixtures at ultra-high temperatures must be precisely calculated due to important influence on the flame kernel formation and propagation in combusting flows and spark discharge applications. A new algorithm based on the statistical thermodynamics was developed to calculate the ultra-high temperature plasma

Experimental study of a laminar premixed LFG/air flame in a slot burner using Mach-Zehnder interferometry

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Najafian Ashrafi Zabihollah

2016-01-01

Full Text Available An experimental study was conducted to investigate the influence of Reynolds number and equivalence ratio on flame temperature field and thermal flame height of laminar premixed LFG fuel. Mach-Zehnder interferometry technique is used to obtain an insight to the overall temperature field. The slot burner with large aspect ratio (L/W, length of L=60 mm and width of W=6 mm was used to eliminate the three- dimensional effect of temperature field. Two kinds of mixed fuels, LFG70 (70%CH4- 30%CO2 on volume basis and LFG50 (50%CH4- 50%CO2 were used to investigate flame characteristics under the test conditions of 100 ≤ Re ≤ 600 and 0.7 ≤ φ ≤ 1.3. The present measurement reveals that the variation of maximum flame temperature with increment of Reynolds number is mainly due to heat transfer effects and is negligible. On the other hand, the equivalence ratio and fuel composition have a noticeable effect on flame temperature. In addition, the results show that the LFG flames compared to the CH4 ones have a lower flame temperature. With increment of CO2 volume fraction at lean combustion, thermal flame height is augmented while at stoichiometric and rich combustion, its value reduced. Thermal flame height augments linearly by Reynolds number increase, while its increment at rich mixture is higher and the effect of Reynolds number at lean mixtures is insignificant. For validation of experimental results from Mach-Zehnder Interferometry, K-type thermocouples are used at peripherally low and moderate isotherm lines.

Methane Bubble Flame Tower--A Spectacularly Engaging Way to Teach Density

Science.gov (United States)

Sandoval, Christopher

2012-01-01

This article presents a demonstration using methane bubble flame tower that offers a fun and relatively cheap way of demonstrating what happens when there is a density difference. Teachers can do this as a predict-observe-explain demonstration after the students have learned about density to extend their learning and get into some higher order…

Modelling thermal radiation and soot formation in buoyant diffusion flames

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Demarco Bull, R.A.

2012-01-01

The radiative heat transfer plays an important role in fire problems since it is the dominant mode of heat transfer between flames and surroundings. It controls the pyrolysis, and therefore the heat release rate, and the growth rate of the fire. In the present work a numerical study of buoyant diffusion flames is carried out, with the main objective of modelling the thermal radiative transfer and the soot formation/destruction processes. In a first step, different radiative property models were tested in benchmark configurations. It was found that the FSCK coupled with the Modest and Riazzi mixing scheme was the best compromise in terms of accuracy and computational requirements, and was a good candidate to be implemented in CFD codes dealing with fire problems. In a second step, a semi-empirical soot model, considering acetylene and benzene as precursor species for soot nucleation, was validated in laminar co flow diffusion flames over a wide range of hydrocarbons (C1-C3) and conditions. In addition, the optically-thin approximation was found to produce large discrepancies in the upper part of these small laminar flames. Reliable predictions of soot volume fractions require the use of an advanced radiation model. Then the FSCK and the semi-empirical soot model were applied to simulate laboratory-scale and intermediate-scale pool fires of methane and propane. Predicted flame structures as well as the radiant heat flux transferred to the surroundings were found to be in good agreement with the available experimental data. Finally, the interaction between radiation and turbulence was quantified. (author)

Autoignited laminar lifted flames of methane, ethylene, ethane, and n-butane jets in coflow air with elevated temperature

KAUST Repository

Choi, Byungchul; Chung, Suk-Ho

2010-01-01

regimes depending on the initial temperature and fuel mole fraction: (1) non-autoignited lifted flame, (2) autoignited lifted flame with tribrachial (or triple) edge, and (3) autoignited lifted flame with mild combustion. For the non-autoignited lifted

Study on Characteristics of Co-firing Ammonia/Methane Fuels under Oxygen Enriched Combustion Conditions

Science.gov (United States)

Xiao, Hua; Wang, Zhaolin; Valera-Medina, Agustin; Bowen, Philip J.

2018-06-01

Having a background of utilising ammonia as an alternative fuel for power generation, exploring the feasibility of co-firing ammonia with methane is proposed to use ammonia to substitute conventional natural gas. However, improvement of the combustion of such fuels can be achieved using conditions that enable an increase of oxygenation, thus fomenting the combustion process of a slower reactive molecule as ammonia. Therefore, the present study looks at oxygen enriched combustion technologies, a proposed concept to improve the performance of ammonia/methane combustion. To investigate the characteristics of ammonia/methane combustion under oxygen enriched conditions, adiabatic burning velocity and burner stabilized laminar flame emissions were studied. Simulation results show that the oxygen enriched method can help to significantly enhance the propagation of ammonia/methane combustion without changing the emission level, which would be quite promising for the design of systems using this fuel for practical applications. Furthermore, to produce low computational-cost flame chemistry for detailed numerical analyses for future combustion studies, three reduced combustion mechanisms of the well-known Konnov's mechanism were compared in ammonia/methane flame simulations under practical gas turbine combustor conditions. Results show that the reduced reaction mechanisms can provide good results for further analyses of oxygen enriched combustion of ammonia/methane. The results obtained in this study also allow gas turbine designers and modellers to choose the most suitable mechanism for further combustion studies and development.

On flame kernel formation and propagation in premixed gases

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Eisazadeh-Far, Kian; Metghalchi, Hameed [Northeastern University, Mechanical and Industrial Engineering Department, Boston, MA 02115 (United States); Parsinejad, Farzan [Chevron Oronite Company LLC, Richmond, CA 94801 (United States); Keck, James C. [Massachusetts Institute of Technology, Cambridge, MA 02139 (United States)

2010-12-15

Flame kernel formation and propagation in premixed gases have been studied experimentally and theoretically. The experiments have been carried out at constant pressure and temperature in a constant volume vessel located in a high speed shadowgraph system. The formation and propagation of the hot plasma kernel has been simulated for inert gas mixtures using a thermodynamic model. The effects of various parameters including the discharge energy, radiation losses, initial temperature and initial volume of the plasma have been studied in detail. The experiments have been extended to flame kernel formation and propagation of methane/air mixtures. The effect of energy terms including spark energy, chemical energy and energy losses on flame kernel formation and propagation have been investigated. The inputs for this model are the initial conditions of the mixture and experimental data for flame radii. It is concluded that these are the most important parameters effecting plasma kernel growth. The results of laminar burning speeds have been compared with previously published results and are in good agreement. (author)

Experimental study of the structure of rich premixed 1,3-butadiene/CH4/O2/Ar flame.

OpenAIRE

Gueniche , Hadj-Ali; Glaude , Pierre-Alexandre; Fournet , René; Battin-Leclerc , Frédérique

2006-01-01

traduit de Fizika Goreniya I Vzryva, 2006, 42, 89-95.; The structure of a laminar rich premixed 1,3-C4H6/CH4/O2/Ar flame have been investigated. 1,3-Butadiene, methane, oxygen and argon mole fractions are 0.033; 0.2073; 0.3315, and 0.4280, respectively, for an equivalent ratio of 1.80. The flame has been stabilized on a burner at a pressure of 6.7 kPa (50 Torr). The concentration profiles of stable species were measured by gas chromatography after sampling with a quartz probe. Quantified spec...

Flow Field Measurements of Methane-Oxygen Turbulent Nonpremixed Flames at High Pressure

Science.gov (United States)

Iino, Kimio; Kikkawa, Hoshitaka; Akamatsu, Fumiteru; Katsuki, Masashi

We carried out the flow field measurement of methane-oxygen turbulent nonpremixed flame in non-combusting and combusting situations at high pressures using LDV. The main objectives are to study the influences of combustion on the turbulence structure at high pressures and to provide detailed data on which numerical predictions on such flows can rely. Direct observation and CH* chemiluminescence detection are conducted at high pressures up to 1.0MPa. It was found that the flame length at elevated pressures became constant. From flow field measurements, the following features of flames at elevated pressure were found: (1) the existence of flame suppressed turbulence in the upstream region of the jet and enhanced it in the downstream region with increasing pressure; (2) Turbulence in the flame was more anisotropic than in the corresponding cold jet in all regions of the flow with increasing pressure; (3) Reynolds shear stresses did not change at elevated pressure; (4) Combustion processes had a marked influence on the turbulence macroscale under high pressures, however, the turbulence macroscale was not changed even with the increase in pressure.

Characterization of physical, thermal and chemical contributions of sodium bicarbonate particles in extinguishing counterflow nonpremixed flames

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Chelliah, H.K.; Krauss, R.H.; Zhou, H.; Lentati, A.M.

1999-07-01

Based on laminar, nonpremixed methane-air flames established in a counterflow field, the flame extinction effectiveness of sodium bicarbonate particles is investigated here, both experimentally and numerically. In experiments, particles are separated into varying sizes (with the range of each size group approximately 10 {micro}m), and are introduced with the air stream. Flame extinction strain rates estimated using the measured nozzle exit velocities and separation distance are reported, as well as limited comparisons with LDV data (latter are mainly for calibration of the system). Numerical flame extinction results are also reported using a hybrid Eulerian-Lagrangian model previously developed for characterization of the flame extinction mechanism of fine-water droplets in a counterflow field. Comparison of the experimental and numerical results indicates a similar trend with particular size variation, but uncertainties in the particle decomposition model employed precludes any absolute comparisons at this time.

Turbulent Flame Propagation Characteristics of High Hydrogen Content Fuels

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Seitzman, Jerry [Georgia Inst. of Technology, Atlanta, GA (United States); Lieuwen, Timothy [Georgia Inst. of Technology, Atlanta, GA (United States)

2014-09-30

This final report describes the results of an effort to better understand turbulent flame propagation, especially at conditions relevant to gas turbines employing fuels with syngas or hydrogen mixtures. Turbulent flame speeds were measured for a variety of hydrogen/carbon monoxide (H2/CO) and hydrogen/methane (H2/CH4) fuel mixtures with air as the oxidizer. The measurements include global consumption speeds (ST,GC) acquired in a turbulent jet flame at pressures of 1-10 atm and local displacement speeds (ST,LD) acquired in a low-swirl burner at atmospheric pressure. The results verify the importance of fuel composition in determining turbulent flame speeds. For example, different fuel-air mixtures having the same unstretched laminar flame speed (SL,0) but different fuel compositions resulted in significantly different ST,GC for the same turbulence levels (u'). This demonstrates the weakness of turbulent flame speed correlations based simply on u'/SL,0. The results were analyzed using a steady-steady leading points concept to explain the sensitivity of turbulent burning rates to fuel (and oxidizer) composition. Leading point theories suggest that the premixed turbulent flame speed is controlled by the flame front characteristics at the flame brush leading edge, or, in other words, by the flamelets that advance farthest into the unburned mixture (the so-called leading points). For negative Markstein length mixtures, this is assumed to be close to the maximum stretched laminar flame speed (SL,max) for the given fuel-oxidizer mixture. For the ST,GC measurements, the data at a given pressure were well-correlated with an SL,max scaling. However the variation with pressure was not captured, which may be due to non-quasi-steady effects that are not included in the current model. For the ST,LD data, the leading points model again faithfully captured the variation of turbulent flame speed over a wide range of fuel-compositions and turbulence intensities. These

Enhancement of flame development by microwave-assisted spark ignition in constant volume combustion chamber

KAUST Repository

Wolk, Benjamin

2013-07-01

The enhancement of laminar flame development using microwave-assisted spark ignition has been investigated for methane-air mixtures at a range of initial pressures and equivalence ratios in a 1.45. l constant volume combustion chamber. Microwave enhancement was evaluated on the basis of several parameters including flame development time (FDT) (time for 0-10% of total net heat release), flame rise time (FRT) (time for 10-90% of total net heat release), total net heat release, flame kernel growth rate, flame kernel size, and ignitability limit extension. Compared to a capacitive discharge spark, microwave-assisted spark ignition extended the lean and rich ignition limits at all pressures investigated (1.08-7.22. bar). The addition of microwaves to a capacitive discharge spark reduced FDT and increased the flame kernel size for all equivalence ratios tested and resulted in increases in the spatial flame speed for sufficiently lean flames. Flame enhancement is believed to be caused by (1) a non-thermal chemical kinetic enhancement from energy deposition to free electrons in the flame front and (2) induced flame wrinkling from excitation of flame (plasma) instability. The enhancement of flame development by microwaves diminishes as the initial pressure of the mixture increases, with negligible flame enhancement observed above 3. bar. © 2013 The Combustion Institute.

Behavioral Characteristics of the Non-Premixed Methane-Air Flame Oppositely Injected in a Narrow Channel

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Yun, Young Min; Lee, Min Jung; Cho, Sang Moon; Kim, Nam Il

2009-01-01

Characteristics of a counter flowing diffusion flame, which is formulated by an oppositely-injected methane-jet flow in a narrow channel of a uniform air flow. The location of the flame fronts and the flame lengths were compared by changing the flow rates of fuel. To distinguish the effects of the narrow channel on the diffusion flame, a numerical simulation for an ideal two-dimensional flame was conducted. Overall trends of the flame behavior were similar in both numerical and experimental results. With the increase of the ratio of jet velocity to air velocity flame front moved farther upstream. It is thought that the flow re-direction in the channel suppresses fuel momentum more significantly due to the higher temperature and increased viscosity of burned gas. Actual flames in a narrow channel suffer heat loss to the ambient and it has finite length of diffusion flame in contrast to the numerical results of infinite flame length. Thus a convective heat loss was additionally employed in numerical simulation and closer results were obtained. These results can be used as basic data in development of a small combustor of a nonpremixed flame

Behavioral Characteristics of the Non-Premixed Methane-Air Flame Oppositely Injected in a Narrow Channel

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Yun, Young Min; Lee, Min Jung; Cho, Sang Moon; Kim, Nam Il [Chungang University, Seoul (Korea, Republic of)

2009-04-15

Characteristics of a counter flowing diffusion flame, which is formulated by an oppositely-injected methane-jet flow in a narrow channel of a uniform air flow. The location of the flame fronts and the flame lengths were compared by changing the flow rates of fuel. To distinguish the effects of the narrow channel on the diffusion flame, a numerical simulation for an ideal two-dimensional flame was conducted. Overall trends of the flame behavior were similar in both numerical and experimental results. With the increase of the ratio of jet velocity to air velocity flame front moved farther upstream. It is thought that the flow re-direction in the channel suppresses fuel momentum more significantly due to the higher temperature and increased viscosity of burned gas. Actual flames in a narrow channel suffer heat loss to the ambient and it has finite length of diffusion flame in contrast to the numerical results of infinite flame length. Thus a convective heat loss was additionally employed in numerical simulation and closer results were obtained. These results can be used as basic data in development of a small combustor of a nonpremixed flame.

Laminar oxy-fuel diffusion flame supported by an oxygen-permeable-ion-transport membrane

KAUST Repository

Hong, Jongsup

2013-03-01

A numerical model with detailed gas-phase chemistry and transport was used to predict homogeneous fuel conversion processes and to capture the important features (e.g., the location, temperature, thickness and structure of a flame) of laminar oxy-fuel diffusion flames stabilized on the sweep side of an oxygen permeable ion transport membrane (ITM). We assume that the membrane surface is not catalytic to hydrocarbon or syngas oxidation. It has been demonstrated that an ITM can be used for hydrocarbon conversion with enhanced reaction selectivity such as oxy-fuel combustion for carbon capture technologies and syngas production. Within an ITM unit, the oxidizer flow rate, i.e., the oxygen permeation flux, is not a pre-determined quantity, since it depends on the oxygen partial pressures on the feed and sweep sides and the membrane temperature. Instead, it is influenced by the oxidation reactions that are also dependent on the oxygen permeation rate, the initial conditions of the sweep gas, i.e., the fuel concentration, flow rate and temperature, and the diluent. In oxy-fuel combustion applications, the sweep side is fuel-diluted with CO2, and the entire unit is preheated to achieve a high oxygen permeation flux. This study focuses on the flame structure under these conditions and specifically on the chemical effect of CO2 dilution. Results show that, when the fuel diluent is CO2, a diffusion flame with a lower temperature and a larger thickness is established in the vicinity of the membrane, in comparison with the case in which N2 is used as a diluent. Enhanced OH-driven reactions and suppressed H radical chemistry result in the formation of products with larger CO and H2O and smaller H2 concentrations. Moreover, radical concentrations are reduced due to the high CO2 fraction in the sweep gas. CO2 dilution reduces CH3 formation and slows down the formation of soot precursors, C2H2 and C2H4. The flame location impacts the species diffusion and heat transfer from the

A laminar flame investigation of 2-butanone, and the combustion-related intermediates formed through its oxidation

KAUST Repository

Hemken, Christian

2016-06-28

2-Butanone (methyl ethyl ketone) is a high-octane next-generation biofuel candidate synthesized through microbiological pathways from biomass. The flame structure and species formed in 2-butanone combustion are of interest when further considering this compound for use as a fuel. Thus species profiles within a fuel-rich laminar premixed flat flame of 2-butanone were measured. Two experiments which used different facilities and measurement techniques were combined i.e. the first using electron ionization molecular-beam mass spectrometry (MBMS) and the second relied on synchrotron-generated vacuum UV photoionization MBMS. Very good agreement between both measurements was obtained. The experiments identified the formation of a number of toxic oxygenated intermediates such as methyl vinyl ketone (MVK) acetaldehyde and formaldehyde. 2- Butanone showed the lowest overall concentrations for species that could contribute to potentially hazardous volatile emissions underlining its attraction as a fuel also from this perspective.

A laminar flame investigation of 2-butanone, and the combustion-related intermediates formed through its oxidation

KAUST Repository

Hemken, Christian; Burke, Ultan; Graf, Isabelle; Ruwe, Lena; Park, Sungwoo; Sarathy, Mani; Heufer, K. Alexander; Kohse-Hö inghaus, Katharina

2016-01-01

2-Butanone (methyl ethyl ketone) is a high-octane next-generation biofuel candidate synthesized through microbiological pathways from biomass. The flame structure and species formed in 2-butanone combustion are of interest when further considering this compound for use as a fuel. Thus species profiles within a fuel-rich laminar premixed flat flame of 2-butanone were measured. Two experiments which used different facilities and measurement techniques were combined i.e. the first using electron ionization molecular-beam mass spectrometry (MBMS) and the second relied on synchrotron-generated vacuum UV photoionization MBMS. Very good agreement between both measurements was obtained. The experiments identified the formation of a number of toxic oxygenated intermediates such as methyl vinyl ketone (MVK) acetaldehyde and formaldehyde. 2- Butanone showed the lowest overall concentrations for species that could contribute to potentially hazardous volatile emissions underlining its attraction as a fuel also from this perspective.

Analysis of the step responses of laminar premixed flames to forcing by non-thermal plasma

KAUST Repository

Lacoste, Deanna A.

2016-07-16

The step responses of lean methane-air flames to non-thermal plasma forcing is reported. The experimental setup consists of an axisymmetric burner, with a nozzle made of a quartz tube. The equivalence ratio is 0.95, allowing stabilization of the flame in a V-shape or an M-shape geometry, over a central stainless steel rod. The plasma is produced by short pulses of 10-ns duration, 8-kV maximum voltage amplitude, applied at 10 kHz. The central rod is used as a cathode, while the anode is a stainless steel ring, fixed on the outer surface of the quartz tube. Plasma forcing is produced by positive or negative steps of plasma. The step response of the flame is investigated through heat release rate (HRR) fluctuations, to facilitate comparisons with flame response to acoustic perturbations. The chemiluminescence of CH* between two consecutive pulses was recorded using an intensified camera equipped with an optical filter to estimate the HRR fluctuations. First, the results show that the flame does not respond to each single plasma pulse, but is affected only by the average plasma power, confirming the step nature of the forcing. The temporal evolutions of HRR are analyzed and the flame transfer functions are determined. A forcing mechanism, as a local increase in the reactivity of the fluid close to the rod, is proposed and compared with numerical simulations. Experiments and numerical simulations are in good qualitative agreement. © 2016.

An experimental study on turbulent lifted flames of methane in coflow jets at elevated temperatures

KAUST Repository

Choi, Byungchul; Chung, Suk-Ho

2013-01-01

An experimental study was conducted on the effects of initial temperature variation on the stabilization characteristics of turbulent nonpremixed flames in coflow jets of methane fuel diluted by nitrogen. The typical behavior seen in the study

Experimental study of the inverse diffusion flame using high repetition rate OH/acetone PLIF and PIV

KAUST Repository

Elbaz, Ayman M.; Roberts, William L.

2015-01-01

Most previous work on inverse diffusion flames (IDFs) has focused on laminar IDF emissions and the soot formation characteristics. Here, we investigate the characteristics and structure of methane IDFs using high speed planar laser-induced fluorescence (PLIF) images of OH, particle image velocimetry (PIV), and acetone PLIF imaging for non-reacting cases. First, the flame appearance was investigated with fixed methane loading (mass flux) but with varying airflow rates, yielding a central air jet Reynolds number (Re) of 1,000 to 6,000 (when blow-off occurs). Next, it was investigated a fixed central air jet Re of 4500, but with varied methane mass flux such that the global equivalence ratio spanned 0.5 to 4. It was observed that at Re smaller than 2000, the inner air jet promotes the establishment of an inverse diffusion flame surrounded by a normal diffusion flame. However, when the Re was increased to 2500, two distinct zones became apparent in the flame, a lower entrainment zone and an upper mixing and combustion zone. 10 kHz OH-PLIF images, and 2D PIV allow the identification of the fate and spatial flame structure. Many flame features were identified and further analyzed using simple but effective image processing methods, where three types of structure in all the flames investigated here: flame holes or breaks; closures; and growing kernels. Insights about the rate of evolution of these features, the dynamics of local extinction, and the sequence of events that lead to re-ignition are reported here. In the lower entrainment zone, the occurrence of the flame break events is counterbalanced by closure events, and the edge propagation appears to control the rate at which the flame holes and closures propagate. The rate of propagation of holes was found to be statistically faster than the rate of closure. As the flames approach blow-off, flame kernels become the main mechanism for flame re-ignition further downstream. The simultaneous OH-PLIF/Stereo PIV

Experimental study of the inverse diffusion flame using high repetition rate OH/acetone PLIF and PIV

KAUST Repository

Elbaz, Ayman M.

2015-10-29

Most previous work on inverse diffusion flames (IDFs) has focused on laminar IDF emissions and the soot formation characteristics. Here, we investigate the characteristics and structure of methane IDFs using high speed planar laser-induced fluorescence (PLIF) images of OH, particle image velocimetry (PIV), and acetone PLIF imaging for non-reacting cases. First, the flame appearance was investigated with fixed methane loading (mass flux) but with varying airflow rates, yielding a central air jet Reynolds number (Re) of 1,000 to 6,000 (when blow-off occurs). Next, it was investigated a fixed central air jet Re of 4500, but with varied methane mass flux such that the global equivalence ratio spanned 0.5 to 4. It was observed that at Re smaller than 2000, the inner air jet promotes the establishment of an inverse diffusion flame surrounded by a normal diffusion flame. However, when the Re was increased to 2500, two distinct zones became apparent in the flame, a lower entrainment zone and an upper mixing and combustion zone. 10 kHz OH-PLIF images, and 2D PIV allow the identification of the fate and spatial flame structure. Many flame features were identified and further analyzed using simple but effective image processing methods, where three types of structure in all the flames investigated here: flame holes or breaks; closures; and growing kernels. Insights about the rate of evolution of these features, the dynamics of local extinction, and the sequence of events that lead to re-ignition are reported here. In the lower entrainment zone, the occurrence of the flame break events is counterbalanced by closure events, and the edge propagation appears to control the rate at which the flame holes and closures propagate. The rate of propagation of holes was found to be statistically faster than the rate of closure. As the flames approach blow-off, flame kernels become the main mechanism for flame re-ignition further downstream. The simultaneous OH-PLIF/Stereo PIV

Flame stability and heat transfer analysis of methane-air mixtures in catalytic micro-combustors

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Chen, Junjie; Song, Wenya; Xu, Deguang

2017-01-01

Highlights: • The mechanisms of heat and mass transfer for loss of stability were elucidated. • Stability diagrams were constructed and design recommendations were made. • Flame characteristics were examined to determine extinction and blowout limits. • Heat loss greatly affects extinction whereas wall materials greatly affect blowout. • Radiation causes the flame to shift downstream. - Abstract: The flame stability and heat transfer characteristics of methane-air mixtures in catalytic micro-combustors were studied, using a two-dimensional computational fluid dynamics (CFD) model with detailed chemistry and transport. The effects of wall thermal conductivity, surface emissivity, fuel, flow velocity, and equivalence ratio were explored to provide guidelines for optimal design. Furthermore, the underlying mechanisms of heat and mass transfer for loss of flame stability were elucidated. Finally, stability diagrams were constructed and design recommendations were made. It was found that the heat loss strongly affects extinction, whereas the wall thermal conductivity greatly affects blowout. The presence of homogeneous chemistry extends blowout limits, especially for inlet velocities higher than 6 m/s. Increasing transverse heat transfer rate reduces stability, whereas increasing transverse mass transfer rate improves stability. Surface radiation behaves similarly to the heat conduction within the walls, but opposite trends are observed. High emissivity causes the flame to shift downstream. Methane exhibits much broader blowout limits. For a combustor with gap size of 0.8 mm, a residence time higher than 3 ms is required to prevent breakthrough, and inlet velocities lower than 0.8 m/s are the most desirable operation regime. Further increase of the wall thermal conductivity beyond 80 W/(m·K) could not yield an additional increase in stability.

The Effect of Nitrogen and Argon Dilution on Methane Oxidation in Laminar Flames

Czech Academy of Sciences Publication Activity Database

Kozubková, M.; Kozubek, E.; Nevrlý, V.; Bitala, P.; Štěpánek, O.; Dlabka, J.; Vašinek, M.; Bojko, M.; Zelinger, Zdeněk; Kubát, Pavel; Grigorová, E.

2012-01-01

Roč. 42, č. 0 (2012), s. 1826-1839 E-ISSN 1877-7058. [International Congress of Chemical and Process Engineering CHISA 2012 /20./. Prague, 25.08.2012-29.08.2012] R&D Projects: GA MŠk LD12020 Institutional support: RVO:61388955 Keywords : dilution * methane oxidation * global chemistry Subject RIV: CF - Physical ; Theoretical Chemistry

Visualization of ionic wind in laminar jet flames

KAUST Repository

Park, Daegeun

2017-07-03

Electric field, when it is applied to hydrocarbon flames, generates ionic wind due to the electric body force on charge carrying species. Ionic wind has been shown to influence soot emission, propagation speed, and stability of flames; however, a detailed behavior of ionic wind and its effects on flames is still not clear. Here, we investigated the dynamic behaviors of flames and ionic wind in the presence of direct current (DC) and alternating current (AC) electric fields in nonpremixed and premixed jet flames with a jet nozzle placed between two parallel electrodes. We observed a skewed flame toward a lower potential electrode with DC and lower frequency AC (e.g., 10Hz) and a steady flame with higher frequencies AC (1000Hz), while we found that the ionic wind blew toward both the anode and cathode regardless of flame type (nonpremixed or premixed) or the source of the electric field (DC and AC).

Fuel density effect on near nozzle flow field in small laminar coflow diffusion flames

KAUST Repository

Xiong, Yuan

2015-01-01

Flow characteristics in small coflow diffusion flames were investigated with a particular focus on the near-nozzle region and on the buoyancy force exerted on fuels with densities lighter and heavier than air (methane, ethylene, propane, and n-butane). The flow-fields were visualized through the trajectories of seed particles. The particle image velocimetry technique was also adopted for quantitative velocity field measurements. The results showed that the buoyancy force exerted on the fuel as well as on burnt gas significantly distorted the near-nozzle flow-fields. In the fuels with densities heavier than air, recirculation zones were formed very close to the nozzle, emphasizing the importance of the relative density of the fuel to that of the air on the flow-field. Nozzle heating influenced the near-nozzle flow-field particularly among lighter fuels (methane and ethylene). Numerical simulations were also conducted, focusing specifically on the effect of specifying inlet boundary conditions for fuel. The results showed that a fuel inlet boundary with a fully developed velocity profile for cases with long tubes should be specified inside the fuel tube to permit satisfactory prediction of the flow-field. The calculated temperature fields also indicated the importance of the selection of the location of the inlet boundary, especially in testing various combustion models that include soot in small coflow diffusion flames. © 2014 The Combustion Institute.

Supplementary Material for: Measurements of Positively Charged Ions in Premixed Methane-Oxygen Atmospheric Flames

KAUST Repository

Alquaity, Awad B. S.

2017-01-01

Cations and anions are formed as a result of chemi-ionization processes in combustion systems. Electric fields can be applied to reduce emissions and improve combustion efficiency by active control of the combustion process. Detailed flame ion chemistry models are needed to understand and predict the effect of external electric fields on combustion plasmas. In this work, a molecular beam mass spectrometer (MBMS) is utilized to measure ion concentration profiles in premixed methane–oxygen argon burner-stabilized atmospheric flames. Lean and stoichiometric flames are considered to assess the dependence of ion chemistry on flame stoichiometry. Relative ion concentration profiles are compared with numerical simulations using various temperature profiles, and good qualitative agreement was observed for the stoichiometric flame. However, for the lean flame, numerical simulations misrepresent the spatial distribution of selected ions greatly. Three modifications are suggested to enhance the ion mechanism and improve the agreement between experiments and simulations. The first two modifications comprise the addition of anion detachment reactions to increase anion recombination at low temperatures. The third modification involves restoring a detachment reaction to its original irreversible form. To our knowledge, this work presents the first detailed measurements of cations and flame temperature in canonical methane–oxygen-argon atmospheric flat flames. The positive ion profiles reported here may be useful to validate and improve ion chemistry models for methane-oxygen flames.

Premixed Flames Under Microgravity and Normal Gravity Conditions

Science.gov (United States)

Krikunova, Anastasia I.; Son, Eduard E.

2018-03-01

Premixed conical CH4-air flames were studied experimentally and numerically under normal straight, reversed gravity conditions and microgravity. Low-gravity experiments were performed in Drop tower. Classical Bunsen-type burner was used to find out features of gravity influence on the combustion processes. Mixture equivalence ratio was varied from 0.8 to 1.3. Wide range of flow velocity allows to study both laminar and weakly turbulized flames. High-speed flame chemoluminescence video-recording was used as diagnostic. The investigations were performed at atmospheric pressure. As results normalized flame height, laminar flame speed were measured, also features of flame instabilities were shown. Low- and high-frequency flame-instabilities (oscillations) have a various nature as velocity fluctuations, preferential diffusion instability, hydrodynamic and Rayleigh-Taylor ones etc., that was explored and demonstrated.

Flame Structure and Dynamics for an Array of Premixed Methane-Air Jets

Science.gov (United States)

Nigam, Siddharth P.; Lapointe, Caelan; Christopher, Jason D.; Wimer, Nicholas T.; Hayden, Torrey R. S.; Rieker, Gregory B.; Hamlington, Peter E.

2017-11-01

Premixed flames have been studied extensively, both experimentally and computationally, and their properties are reasonably well characterized for a range of conditions and configurations. However, the premixed combustion process is potentially much more difficult to predict when many such flames are arranged in a closely spaced array. These arrays must be better understood, in particular, for the design of industrial burners used in chemical and heat treatment processes. Here, the effects of geometric array parameters (e.g., angle and diameter of jet inlets, number of inlets and their respective orientation) and operating conditions (e.g., jet velocities, fuel-air ratio) on flame structure and dynamics are studied using large eddy simulations (LES). The simulations are performed in OpenFOAM using multi-step chemistry for a methane-air mixture, and temperature and chemical composition fields are characterized for a variety of configurations as functions of height above the array. Implications of these results for the design and operation of industrial burners are outlined.

NR4.00002: Response of a laminar M-shaped premixed flame to plasma forcing

KAUST Repository

Lacoste, Deanna A.

2015-07-27

We report on the response of a lean methane-air flame to non-thermal plasma forcing. The set-up consists of an axisymmetric burner, with a nozzle made of a quartz tube of 7-mm inlet diameter. The equivalence ratio is 0.9 and the flame is stabilized in an M-shape morphology over a central stainless steel rod and the quartz tube. The plasma is produced by nanosecond pulses of 10 kV maximum voltage amplitude, applied at 10 kHz. The central rod is used as a cathode, while the anode is a stainless steel ring, fixed on the outer surface of the quartz tube. The plasma forcing is produced by bursts of plasma pulses of 1 s duration. The response of the flame is investigated through the heat release rate (HRR) fluctuations. The chemiluminescence of CH* between two consecutive pulses was recorded using an intensified camera with an optical filter to estimate the HRR fluctuations. The results show that, even though the plasma is located in the combustion area, the flame is not responding to each single plasma pulse, but is affected by the discharge burst. The plasma forcing can then be considered as a step of forcing: the beginning of a positive step corresponding to the first plasma pulse, and the beginning of a negative step corresponding to the end of the last pulse of the burst. The effects of both positive and negative steps were investigated. The response of the flame is then analyzed and viable mechanisms are discussed.

Effect of oxygen atoms dissociated by non-equilibrium plasma on flame of methane oxygen and argon pre-mixture gas

Science.gov (United States)

Akashi, Haruaki; Yoshinaga, Tomokazu; Sasaki, Koichi

2014-10-01

For more efficient way of combustion, plasma-assisted combustion has been investigated by many researchers. But it is very difficult to clarify the effect of plasma even on the flame of methane. Because there are many complex chemical reactions in combustion system. Sasaki et al. has reported that the flame length of methane and air premixed burner shortened by irradiating microwave power. They also measured emission from Second Positive Band System of nitrogen during the irradiation. The emission indicates existence of high energy electrons which are accelerated by the microwave. The high energy electrons also dissociate oxygen molecules easily and oxygen atom would have some effects on the flame. But the dissociation ratio of oxygen molecules by the non-equilibrium plasma is significantly low, compared to that in the combustion reaction. To clarify the effect of dissociated oxygen atoms on the flame, dependence of dissociation ratio of oxygen on the flame has been examined using CHEMKIN. It is found that in the case of low dissociation ratio of 10-6, the ignition of the flame becomes slightly earlier. It is also found that in the case of high dissociation ratio of 10-3, the ignition time becomes significantly earlier by almost half. This work was supported by KAKENHI (22340170).

The ignition delay, laminar flame speed and adiabatic temperature characteristics of n-pentane, n-hexane and n-heptane under O{sub 2}/CO{sub 2} atmosphere

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Zhao, Ran [Huazhong Univ. of Science and Technology, Wuhan (China). State Key Lab. of Coal Combustion; Wuhan Textile Univ. (China). School of Environment and Urban Construction; Liu, Hao; Zhong, Xiaojiao; Wang, Zijian; Jin, Ziqin; Qiu, Jianrong [Huazhong Univ. of Science and Technology, Wuhan (China). State Key Lab. of Coal Combustion; Chen, Yingming [Wuhan Textile Univ. (China). School of Environment and Urban Construction

2013-07-01

Oxy-fuel (O{sub 2}/CO{sub 2}) combustion is one of the several promising new technologies which can realize the integrated control of CO{sub 2}, SO{sub 2}, NO{sub X} and other pollutants. However, when fuels are burned in the high CO{sub 2} concentration environment, the combustion characteristics can be very different from conventional air-fired combustion. Such changes imply that the high CO{sub 2} concentration atmosphere has impacts on the combustion processes. In this paper, the ignition time, laminar flame speed and adiabatic temperature property of C{sub 5} {proportional_to} C{sub 7} n-alkane fuels were studied under both ordinary air atmosphere and O{sub 2}/CO{sub 2} atmospheres over a wide range of CO{sub 2} concentration in the combustion systems. A new unified detailed chemical kinetic model was validated and used to simulate the three liquid hydrocarbon fuel's flame characteristics. Based on the verified model, the influences of various parameters (atmosphere, excess oxygen ratio, O{sub 2} concentration, CO{sub 2} concentration, and alkane type) on the C{sub 5} {proportional_to} C{sub 7} n-alkane's flame characteristics were systematically investigated. It can be concluded that high CO{sub 2} concentration atmosphere has negative effect on n-pentane, n-hexane and n-heptane flame's ignition, laminar flame speed and adiabatic temperature. Besides, this work confirms that high CO{sub 2} concentration atmosphere's chemical effects play a pronounced role on the flame characteristics, especially for the ignition time property.

Impact of Vitiation on a Swirl-Stabilized and Premixed Methane Flame

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Mao Li

2017-10-01

Full Text Available Vitiation refers to the condition where the oxygen concentration in the air is reduced due to the mix of dilution gas. The vitiation effects on a premixed methane flame were investigated on a swirl-stabilized gas turbine model combustor under atmospheric pressure. The main purpose is to analyze the combustion stability and CO emission performance in vitiated air and compare the results with the flame without vitiation. The N2, CO2, and H2O (steam were used as the dilution gas. Measurements were conducted in a combustor inlet temperature of 384 K and 484 K. The equivalence ratio was varied from stoichiometric conditions to the LBO (Lean Blowout limits where the flame was physically blown out from the combustor. The chemical kinetics calculation was performed with Chemkin software to analyze the vitiation effects on the flame reaction zone. Based on the calculation results, the changes in the temperature gradient, CO concentration, and active radicals across the flame reaction zone were identified. The time-averaged CH chemiluminescence images were recorded and the results indicated the features of the flame shape and location. The CH signal intensity provided the information about the heat-release zone in the combustor. The combustion LBO limits were measured and the vitiation of CO2 and H2O were found to have a stronger impact to elevate the LBO limits than N2. Near the LBO limits, the instability of the flame reaction was revealed by the high-speed chemiluminescence imaging and the results were analyzed by FFT (Fast Fourier Transfer. CO emission was measured with a water-cooled probe which is located at the exit of the combustor. The combustion vitiation has been found to have the compression effect on the operation range for low CO emission. However, this compression effect could be compensated by improving the combustor inlet temperature.

Experimental Study of Hydrogen Addition Effects on a Swirl-Stabilized Methane-Air Flame

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Mao Li

2017-11-01

Full Text Available The effects of H2 addition on a premixed methane-air flame was studied experimentally with a swirl-stabilized gas turbine model combustor. Experiments with 0%, 25%, and 50% H2 molar fraction in the fuel mixture were conducted under atmospheric pressure. The primary objectives are to study the impacts of H2 addition on flame lean blowout (LBO limits, flame shapes and anchored locations, flow field characteristics, precessing vortex core (PVC instability, as well as the CO emission performance. The flame LBO limits were identified by gradually reducing the equivalence ratio until the condition where the flame physically disappeared. The time-averaged CH chemiluminescence was used to reveal the characteristics of flame stabilization, e.g., flame structure and stabilized locations. In addition, the inverse Abel transform was applied to the time-averaged CH results so that the distribution of CH signal on the symmetric plane of the flame was obtained. The particle image velocimetry (PIV was used to detect the characteristics of the flow field with a frequency of 2 kHz. The snapshot method of POD (proper orthogonal decomposition and fast Fourier transform (FFT were adopted to capture the most prominent coherent structures in the turbulent flow field. CO emission was monitored with an exhaust probe that was installed close to the combustor exit. The experimental results indicated that the H2 addition extended the flame LBO limits and the operation range of low CO emission. The influence of H2 addition on the flame shape, location, and flow field was observed. With the assistance of POD and FFT, the combustion suppression impacts on PVC was found.

An Experimental Measurement on Laminar Burning Velocities and Markstein Length of Iso-Butane-Air Mixtures at Ambient Conditions

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Yousif Alaeldeen Altag

2016-01-01

Full Text Available In the present work, experimental investigation on laminar combustion of iso-butane-air mixtures was conducted in constant volume explosion vessel. The experiments were conducted at wide range of equivalence ratios ranging between Ф = 0.6 and 1.4 and atmospheric pressure of 0.1 MPa and ambient temperature of 303K. Using spherically expanding flame method, flame parameters including stretched, unstretched flame propagation speeds, laminar burning velocities and Markstein length were calculated. For laminar burning velocities the method of error bars of 95% confidence level was applied. In addition, values of Markstein lengths were measured in wide range of equivalence ratios to study the influence of stretch rate on flame instability and burning velocity. It was found that the stretched flame speed and laminar burning velocities increased with equivalence ratios and the peak value was obtained at equivalence ratio of Ф = 1.1. The Markstein length decreased with the increases in equivalence ratios, which indicates that the diffusion thermal flame instability increased at high equivalence ratios in richer mixture side. However, the total deviations in the laminar burning velocities have discrepancies of 1.2-2.9% for all investigated mixtures.

A Detailed Chemical Kinetic Reaction Mechanism for Oxidation of Four Small Alkyl Esters in Laminar Premixed Flames

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Westbrook, C K; Pitz, W J; Westmoreland, P R; Dryer, F L; Chaos, M; Osswald, P; Kohse-Hoinghaus, K; Cool, T A; Wang, J; Yang, B; Hansen, N; Kasper, T

2008-02-08

A detailed chemical kinetic reaction mechanism has been developed for a group of four small alkyl ester fuels, consisting of methyl formate, methyl acetate, ethyl formate and ethyl acetate. This mechanism is validated by comparisons between computed results and recently measured intermediate species mole fractions in fuel-rich, low pressure, premixed laminar flames. The model development employs a principle of similarity of functional groups in constraining the H atom abstraction and unimolecular decomposition reactions in each of these fuels. As a result, the reaction mechanism and formalism for mechanism development are suitable for extension to larger oxygenated hydrocarbon fuels, together with an improved kinetic understanding of the structure and chemical kinetics of alkyl ester fuels that can be extended to biodiesel fuels. Variations in concentrations of intermediate species levels in these flames are traced to differences in the molecular structure of the fuel molecules.

Dynamic-Stability Characteristics of Premixed Methane Oxy-Combustion

KAUST Repository

Shroll, Andrew P.

2012-01-01

This work explores the dynamic stability characteristics of premixed CH 4/O 2/CO 2 mixtures in a 50 kW swirl stabilized combustor. In all cases, the methane-oxygen mixture is stoichiometric, with different dilution levels of carbon dioxide used to control the flame temperature (T ad). For the highest T ad\\'s, the combustor is unstable at the first harmonic of the combustor\\'s natural frequency. As the temperature is reduced, the combustor jumps to fundamental mode and then to a low-frequency mode whose value is well below the combustor\\'s natural frequency, before eventually reaching blowoff. Similar to the case of CH 4/air mixtures, the transition from one mode to another is predominantly a function of the T ad of the reactive mixture, despite significant differences in laminar burning velocity and/or strained flame consumption speed between air and oxy-fuel mixtures for a given T ad. High speed images support this finding by revealing similar vortex breakdown modes and thus similar turbulent flame geometries that change as a function of flame temperature. Copyright © 2012 American Society of Mechanical Engineers.

Investigation of flame structure and burning intensity of partially premixed methane enrichment of syngas using OH-PLIF and kinetic simulation

Science.gov (United States)

Pu, Ge; Huang, Beibei; Zhang, Xun; Du, Jiantai; Zhu, Tuanhui; Chen, Bei

2018-05-01

Various experiments were conducted to study the combustion characteristics of partially premixed methane enrichment of syngas by using the OH-PLIF technique. Experiments were conducted on a co-flow burner, and the methane concentration (XCH4 = CH4/(H2+CO+CH4)) was varied from 0 to 20%, the overall equivalence ratio was varied from 0.4 to 1.2 and the inner equivalence ratio was varied from 1.5 to 3.5. Kinetic simulation was conducted by using OPPDIF module of CHEMKIN-Pro software. Results show that an increase in XCH4 and ϕoverall weakens the OH signal intensity. Adding methane into the fuel greatly increases the height of the inner flame front, and the increase of methane concentration has a negative effect on flame propagation speed. Meanwhile, simulation results remain consistent with the experiments. The main OH radical production reaction changes from R46: H+HO2 = 2OH to R38: H+O2 = O+OH when methane concentration contained in the fuel mixture increases. Sensitivity analysis also indicates that reaction which plays a dominant effect on temperature changes with the increase of methane concentration.

Direct Numerical Simulations of NOx formation in spatially developing turbulent premixed Bunsen flames with mixture inhomogeneity

KAUST Repository

Luca, Stefano

2017-01-05

Direct Numerical Simulation of three-dimensional spatially developing turbulent methane/air flames are performed. Four flames are simulated; they differ for the level of premixing of the fuel inlet: one has a fully premixed inlet, the other three have a partially premixed inlet that mimic a common injection strategy in stationary gas turbines. The jet consist of a methane/air mixture with global equivalence ratio ɸ = 0.7 and temperature of 800 K. The simulations are performed at 4 atm. The inlet velocity field and the fuel/air fields were extracted from a fully developed turbulent channel simulation. Chemistry is treated with a new skeletal chemical mechanism consisting of 33 species developed specifically for the DNS. The data are analyzed to study possible influences of partial premixing on the flame structure and the combustion efficiency. The results show that increasing the level of partial premixing, the fluctuations of heat release rate increase, due to the richer and leaner pockets of mixture in the flame, while the conditional mean decreases. Increasing the level of partial premixing, the peak of NO and the range of NO values for a given temperature increase. An analysis of NO production is performed categorizing the different initiation steps in the Ndecomposition through four pathways: thermal, prompt, NNH and NO. Different behaviour with respect to laminar flames is found for the NNH pathway suggesting that turbulence influences this pathway of formation of NO.

Effect of electric fields on the stabilization of premixed laminar bunsen flames at low AC frequency: Bi-ionic wind effect

KAUST Repository

Kim, Minkuk

2012-03-01

The stabilization characteristics of laminar premixed bunsen flames have been investigated experimentally by applying AC electric fields at low frequency below 60. Hz together with DC in the single electrode configuration. The blowoff velocity has been measured for varying AC voltage and frequency. A transition frequency between low and high frequency regimes has been identified near 40-50. Hz, where AC electric fields have minimal effect on flame stabilization. In the low frequency regime, the blowoff velocity decreased linearly with AC voltage such that the flames became less stable. This was consistent with the DC result, implying the influence of the ionic wind effect. The variation of blowoff velocity with AC frequency showed a non-monotonic behavior in that the velocity decreased and then increased, exhibiting minimum blowoff velocity near 6-8. Hz. Based on the molecular kinetic theory, the developing degree of ionic wind was derived. By considering the ionic wind effects arising from both positive and negative ions in a flame zone, the bi-ionic wind effect successfully explained the non-monotonic behavior of blowoff velocity with AC frequency in the low frequency regime. © 2011 The Combustion Institute.

Two-dimensional simulations of steady perforated-plate stabilized premixed flames

KAUST Repository

Altay, H. Murat

2010-03-17

The objective of this work is to examine the impact of the operating conditions and the perforated-plate design on the steady, lean premixed flame characteristics. We perform two-dimensional simulations of laminar flames using a reduced chemical kinetics mechanism for methane-air combustion, consisting of 20 species and 79 reactions. We solve the heat conduction problem within the plate, allowing heat exchange between the gas mixture and the solid plate. The physical model is based on a zero-Mach-number formulation of the axisymmetric compressible conservation equations. The results suggest that the flame consumption speed, the flame structure, and the flame surface area depend significantly on the equivalence ratio, mean inlet velocity, the distance between the perforated-plate holes and the plate thermal conductivity. In the case of an adiabatic plate, a conical flame is formed, anchored near the corner of the hole. When the heat exchange between themixture and the plate is finite, the flame acquires a Gaussian shape stabilizing at a stand-off distance, that grows with the plate conductivity. The flame tip is negatively curved; i.e. concave with respect to the reactants. Downstream of the plate, the flame base is positively curved; i.e. convex with respect to the reactants, stabilizing above a stagnation region established between neighboring holes. As the plate\\'s thermal conductivity increases, the heat flux to the plate decreases, lowering its top surface temperature. As the equivalence ratio increases, the flame moves closer to the plate, raising its temperature, and lowering the flame stand-off distance. As the mean inlet velocity increases, the flame stabilizes further downstream, the flame tip becomes sharper, hence raising the burning rate at that location. The curvature of the flame base depends on the distance between the neighboring holes; and the flame there is characterized by high concentration of intermediates, like carbon monoxide. © 2010 Taylor

Investigation of Gas Heating by Nanosecond Repetitively Pulsed Glow Discharges Used for Actuation of a Laminar Methane-Air Flame

KAUST Repository

Lacoste, Deanna; Lee, Byeong Jun; Satija, Aman; Krishna, S.; Steinmetz, Scott; Al Khesho, Issam; Hazzaa, Omar; Lucht, Robert P.; Cha, Min; Roberts, William L.

2017-01-01

, determined from current and voltage measurements, is 1 W, i.e. about 0.9 % of the thermal power of the flame. Broadband vibrational coherent anti-Stokes Raman spectroscopy of nitrogen is used to determine the temperature of the flame with and without plasma

Effects of platinum stagnation surface on the lean extinction limits of premixed methane/air flames at moderate surface temperatures

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Wiswall, J.T.; Li, J.; Wooldridge, M.S.; Im, H.G. [Department of Mechanical Engineering, University of Michigan, Ann Arbor, MI (United States)

2011-01-15

A stagnation flow reactor was used to study the effects of platinum on the lean flammability limits of atmospheric pressure premixed methane/air flames at moderate stagnation surface temperatures. Experimental and computational methods were used to quantify the equivalence ratio at the lean extinction limit ({phi}{sub ext}) and the corresponding stagnation surface temperature (T{sub s}). A range of flow rates (57-90 cm/s) and corresponding strain rates were considered. The results indicate that the gas-phase methane/air flames are sufficiently strong relative to the heterogeneous chemistry for T{sub s} conditions less than 750 K that the platinum does not affect {phi}{sub ext}. The computational results are in good agreement with the experimentally observed trends and further indicate that higher reactant flow rates (>139 cm/s) and levels of dilution (>{proportional_to}10% N{sub 2}) are required to weaken the gas-phase flame sufficiently for surface reaction to play a positive role on extending the lean flammability limits. (author)

Polydisperse effects in jet spray flames

Science.gov (United States)

Weinberg, Noam; Greenberg, J. Barry

2018-01-01

A laminar jet polydisperse spray diffusion flame is analysed mathematically for the first time using an extension of classical similarity solutions for gaseous jet flames. The analysis enables a comparison to be drawn between conditions for flame stability or flame blow-out for purely gaseous flames and for spray flames. It is found that, in contrast to the Schmidt number criteria relevant to gas flames, droplet size and initial spray polydispersity play a critical role in determining potential flame scenarios. Some qualitative agreement for lift-off height is found when comparing predictions of the theory and sparse independent experimental evidence from the literature.

Liftoff characteristics of partially premixed flames under normal and microgravity conditions

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Lock, Andrew J.; Briones, Alejandro M.; Aggarwal, Suresh K. [Department of Mechanical and Industrial Engineering, University of Illinois at Chicago, Chicago, IL 60607 (United States); Qin, Xiao [Department of Mechanical & amp; Aerospace Engineering, Princeton University, Princeton, NJ 08544 (United States); Puri, Ishwar K. [Department of Engineering Science and Mechanics, Virginia Polytechnic Institute and State University, Blacksburg, VA 24061 (United States); Hegde, Uday [National Center for Microgravity Research, Cleveland, OH 44135 (United States)

2005-11-01

An experimental and computational investigation on the liftoff characteristics of laminar partially premixed flames (PPFs) under normal (1-g) and microgravity ({mu}-g) conditions is presented. Lifted methane-air PPFs were established in axisymmetric coflowing jets using nitrogen dilution and various levels of partial premixing. The {mu}-g experiments were conducted in the 2.2-s drop tower at the NASA Glenn Research Center. A time-accurate, implicit algorithm that uses a detailed description of the chemistry and includes radiation effects is used for the simulations. The predictions are validated through a comparison of the flame reaction zone topologies, liftoff heights, lengths, and oscillation frequencies. The effects of equivalence ratio, gravity, jet velocity, and radiation on flame topology, liftoff height, flame length, base structure, and oscillation frequency are characterized. Both the simulations and measurements indicate that under identical conditions, a lifted {mu}-g PPF is stabilized closer to the burner compared with the 1-g flame, and that the liftoff heights of both 1-g and {mu}-g flames decrease with increasing equivalence ratio and approach their respective nonpremixed flame limits. The liftoff height also increases as the jet velocity is increased. In addition, the flame base structure transitions from a triple- to a double-flame structure as the flame liftoff height decreases. A modified flame index is developed to distinguish between the rich premixed, lean premixed, and nonpremixed reaction zones near the flame base. The 1-g lifted flames exhibit well-organized oscillations due to buoyancy-induced instability, while the corresponding {mu}-g flames exhibit steady-state behavior. The effect of thermal radiation is to slightly decrease the liftoff heights of both 1-g and {mu}-g flames under coflow conditions.

Effect of CH4–Air Ratios on Gas Explosion Flame Microstructure and Propagation Behaviors

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Ying Zhang

2012-10-01

Full Text Available To reveal the inner mechanism of gas explosion dynamic behavior affected by gas equivalent concentration, a high speed Schlieren image system and flow field measurement technology was applied to record the gas explosion flame propagation and flame structure transition. The results show that a flame front structure transition occurs, followed by a flame accelerating propagation process. The laminar to turbulence transition was the essential cause of the flame structure changes. The laminar flame propagation behavior was influenced mainly by gas expansion and fore-compressive wave effect, while the turbulent flame speed mostly depended on turbulence intensity, which also played an important role in peak value of the explosive pressure and flame speed. On the condition that the laminar-turbulent transition was easier to form, the conclusion was drawn that, the lowest CH4 concentration for maximum overpressure can be obtained, which was the essential reason why the ideal explosive concentration differs under different test conditions.

Calculation and analysis of the mobility and diffusion coefficient of thermal electrons in methane/air premixed flames

KAUST Repository

Bisetti, Fabrizio

2012-12-01

Simulations of ion and electron transport in flames routinely adopt plasma fluid models, which require transport coefficients to compute the mass flux of charged species. In this work, the mobility and diffusion coefficient of thermal electrons in atmospheric premixed methane/air flames are calculated and analyzed. The electron mobility is highest in the unburnt region, decreasing more than threefold across the flame due to mixture composition effects related to the presence of water vapor. Mobility is found to be largely independent of equivalence ratio and approximately equal to 0.4m 2V -1s -1 in the reaction zone and burnt region. The methodology and results presented enable accurate and computationally inexpensive calculations of transport properties of thermal electrons for use in numerical simulations of charged species transport in flames. © 2012 The Combustion Institute.

Formation of polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons and soot in fuel-rich oxidation of methane in a laminar flow reactor

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Skjøth-Rasmussen, Martin Skov; Glarborg, Peter; Østberg, M.

2004-01-01

Conversion of methane to higher hydrocarbons, polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (PAHs), and soot was investigated under fuel-rich conditions in a laminar flow reactor. The effects of stoichiometry, dilution, and water vapor addition were studied at temperatures between 1073 and 1823 K. A chemical...... kinetic mechanism was established for methane oxidation, with emphasis on formation of higher hydrocarbons and PAH. A submodel for soot formation was adopted from the work of Frenklach and co-workers without changes. Modeling predictions showed good agreement with experimental results. Reactants, stable...... decrease with increasing addition of water vapor. The effect is described qualitatively by the reaction mechanism. The enhanced oxidation of acetylene is attributed to higher levels of hydroxyl radicals, formed from the reaction between the water vapor and hydrogen atoms....

Flame structure of methane/oxygen shear coaxial jet with velocity ratio using high-speed imaging and OH*, CH* chemiluminescence

Science.gov (United States)

Shim, Myungbo; Noh, Kwanyoung; Yoon, Woongsup

2018-06-01

In this study, the effects of gaseous methane/oxygen injection velocity ratio on the shear coaxial jet flame structure are analyzed using high-speed imaging along with OH* and CH* chemiluminescence. The images show that, as the velocity ratio is increased, the visual flame length increases and wrinkles of the flame front are developed further downstream. The region near the equivalence ratio 1 condition in the flame could be identified by the maximum OH* position, and this region is located further downstream as the velocity ratio is increased. The dominant CH* chemiluminescence is found in the near-injector region. As the velocity ratio is decreased, the signal intensity is higher at the same downstream distance in each flame. From the results, as the velocity ratio is decreased, there is increased entrainment of the external jet, the mixing of the two jets is enhanced, the region near the stoichiometric mixture condition is located further upstream, and consequently, the flame length decreases.

Study on the Enhancement Effect of Dielectric Barrier Discharge on the Premixed Methane/Oxygen/Helium Flame Velocity

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Mu Haibao; Yu Lin; Li Ping; Zhang Guanjun; Tang Chenglong; Wang Jinhua

2015-01-01

Recently, plasma-assisted combustion has become a potentially applicable technology in many combustion scenarios. In this paper, a dielectric barrier discharge (DBD) plasma generator is designed to explore the effect of plasma on the CH4 oxidation process, and several properties of combustion are considered. First, in the presence or absence of plasma discharge, physical appearance of the flame is examined and analyzed. Second, the flame propagation velocity is calculated by the flame front extracted from the imaging data with the Bunsen burner method. Finally, the main molecular components and their intensity variation in the flame and the plasma zones are identified with an emission spectrograph to analyze the effect of active species on the combustion process. We also discuss the possible kinetic regime of plasma-assisted combustion. Experimental results imply that plasma discharge applied to the premixed CH4/O2/He mixture significantly raises the flame speed with equivalence ratios ranging from 0.85 to 1.10, with the flame speed improved by 17% to 35%. It can be seen that plasma can improve methane oxidation efficiency in the premixed fuel/oxidizer, especially at a low equivalence ratio. (paper)

Effects of elliptical burner geometry on partially premixed gas jet flames in quiescent surroundings

Science.gov (United States)

Baird, Benjamin

This study is the investigation of the effect of elliptical nozzle burner geometry and partial premixing, both 'passive control' methods, on a hydrogen/hydrocarbon flame. Both laminar and turbulent flames for circular, 3:1, and 4:1 aspect ratio (AR) elliptical burners are considered. The amount of air mixed with the fuel is varied from fuel-lean premixed flames to fuel-rich partially premixed flames. The work includes measurements of flame stability, global pollutant emissions, flame radiation, and flame structure for the differing burner types and fuel conditions. Special emphasis is placed on the near-burner region. Experimentally, both conventional (IR absorption, chemiluminecent, and polarographic emission analysis,) and advanced (laser induced fluorescence, planar laser induced fluorescence, Laser Doppler Velocimetry (LDV), Rayleigh scattering) diagnostic techniques are used. Numerically, simulations of 3-dimensional laminar and turbulent reacting flow are conducted. These simulations are run with reduced chemical kinetics and with a Reynolds Stress Model (RSM) for the turbulence modeling. It was found that the laminar flames were similar in appearance and overall flame length for the 3:1 AR elliptical and the circular burner. The laminar 4:1 AR elliptical burner flame split into two sub-flames along the burner major axis. This splitting had the effect of greatly shortening the 4:1 AR elliptical burner flame to have an overall flame length about half of that of the circular and 3:1 AR elliptical burner flames. The length of all three burners flames increased with increasing burner exit equivalence ratio. The blowout velocity for the three burners increased with increase in hydrogen mass fraction of the hydrogen/propane fuel mixture. For the rich premixed flames, the circular burner was the most stable, the 3:1 AR elliptical burner, was the least stable, and the 4:1 AR elliptical burner was intermediate to the two other burners. This order of stability was due

Turbulent Flame Speeds and NOx Kinetics of HHC Fuels with Contaminants and High Dilution Levels

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Peterson, Eric [Texas A & M Univ., College Station, TX (United States); Krejci, Michael [Texas A & M Univ., College Station, TX (United States); Mathieu, Olivier [Texas A & M Univ., College Station, TX (United States); Vissotski, Andrew [Texas A & M Univ., College Station, TX (United States); Ravi, Sankat [Texas A & M Univ., College Station, TX (United States); Plichta, Drew [Texas A & M Univ., College Station, TX (United States); Sikes, Travis [Texas A & M Univ., College Station, TX (United States); Levacque, Anthony [Texas A & M Univ., College Station, TX (United States); Camou, Alejandro [Texas A & M Univ., College Station, TX (United States); Aul, Christopher [Texas A & M Univ., College Station, TX (United States)

2014-01-24

This final report documents the technical results of the 3-year project entitled, “Turbulent Flame Speeds and NOx Kinetics of HHC Fuels with Contaminants and High Dilution Levels,” funded under the NETL of DOE. The research was conducted under six main tasks: 1) program management and planning; 2) turbulent flame speed measurements of syngas mixtures; 3) laminar flame speed measurements with diluents; 4) NOx mechanism validation experiments; 5) fundamental NOx kinetics; and 6) the effect of impurities on NOx kinetics. Experiments were performed using primary constant-volume vessels for laminar and turbulent flame speeds and shock tubes for ignition delay times and species concentrations. In addition to the existing shock- tube and flame speed facilities, a new capability in measuring turbulent flame speeds was developed under this grant. Other highlights include an improved NOx kinetics mechanism; a database on syngas blends for real fuel mixtures with and without impurities; an improved hydrogen sulfide mechanism; an improved ammonia kintics mechanism; laminar flame speed data at high pressures with water addition; and the development of an inexpensive absorption spectroscopy diagnostic for shock-tube measurements of OH time histories. The Project Results for this work can be divided into 13 major sections, which form the basis of this report. These 13 topics are divided into the five areas: 1) laminar flame speeds; 2) Nitrogen Oxide and Ammonia chemical kinetics; 3) syngas impurities chemical kinetics; 4) turbulent flame speeds; and 5) OH absorption measurements for chemical kinetics.

Laminar burning velocities at elevated pressures for gasoline and gasoline surrogates associated with RON

KAUST Repository

Mannaa, Ossama

2015-06-01

The development and validation of a new gasoline surrogate using laminar flame speed as a target parameter is presented. Laminar burning velocities were measured using a constant-volume spherical vessel with ignition at the center of the vessel. Tested fuels included iso-octane, n-heptane, toluene, various mixtures of primary reference fuels (PRFs) and toluene reference fuels (TRFs) and three gasoline fuels of 70, 85 and 95 RON (FACE J, C and F) at the initial temperature of 358K and pressures up to 0.6MPa in the equivalence ratio ranging from 0.8 to 1.6. Normalized laminar burning velocity data were mapped into a tri-component mixture space at different experimental conditions to allocate different gasoline surrogates for different gasoline fuels, having RON of 70, 85 and 95. The surrogates of TRF-70-4 (17.94% iso-C8H18 +42.06% n-C7H16 +40% C7H8), TRF-85-1 (77.4% iso-C8H18 +17.6% n-C7H16 +5% C7H8), and TRF-95-1 (88.47% iso-C8H18 +6.53% n-C7H16 +5% C7H8) of RON 70, 85 and 95, respectively, are shown to successfully emulate the burning rate characteristics of the gasoline fuels associated with these RONs under the various experimental conditions investigated. An empirical correlation was derived to obtain laminar burning velocities at pressures that are experimentally unattainable as high as 3.0MPa. Laminar burning velocities were comparable to the simulated values for lean and stoichiometric flames but they were relatively higher than the simulated values for rich flames. A flame instability assessment was conducted by determining Markstein length, critical Pecklet number, and critical Karlovitz number at the onset of flame instability.

ESR studies of Bunsen-type methane-air flames. II. The effects of the addition of halogenated compounds to the secondary air on the hydrogen atoms in the flame

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Noda, S; Fujimoto, S; Claesson, O; Yoshida, H

1983-09-01

Hydrogen atoms in a methane-air Bunsen-type flame were detected by the flame-in-cavity ESR method. The addition of a halogenated compound to the secondary air reduced the H-atom concentration linearly with an increase in additive concentration. These 8 halogenated compounds examined showed increased effectiveness in scavenging H atoms in this order: hydrochloric acid < dichlorodifluoromethane < chloroform < methyl chloride < methylene chloride < trichlorofluoromethane < carbon tetrachlorie < methyl bromide. The chemical effects of these additives on the combustion reactions agree well with the inhibitor indices for these compounds. 14 references, 3 figures.

Laminar burning velocities of acetone in air at room and elevated temperatures

NARCIS (Netherlands)

Nilsson, E.J.K.; Goey, de L.P.H.; Konnov, A.

2013-01-01

Laminar burning velocities of acetone + air mixtures at initial gas mixture temperatures of 298, 318, 338 and 358 K are reported. Non-stretched flames were stabilized on a perforated plate burner at 1 atm, and laminar burning velocities were determined using the heat flux method, at conditions where

Measurement of laminar burning velocities and Markstein lengths of diluted hydrogen-enriched natural gas

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Miao, Haiyan; Jiao, Qi; Huang, Zuohua; Jiang, Deming [State Key Laboratory of Multiphase Flow in Power Engineering, School of Energy and Power Eng., Xi' an Jiaotong University (China)

2009-01-15

The laminar flame characteristics of natural gas-hydrogen-air-diluent gas (nitrogen/CO{sub 2}) mixtures were studied in a constant volume combustion bomb at various diluent ratios, hydrogen fractions and equivalence ratios. Both unstretched laminar burning velocity and Markstein length were obtained. The results showed that hydrogen fraction, diluent ratio and equivalence ratio have combined influence on laminar burning velocity and flame instability. The unstretched laminar burning velocity is reduced at a rate that is increased with the increase of the diluent ratio. The reduction effect of CO{sub 2} diluent gas is stronger than that of nitrogen diluent gas. Hydrogen-enriched natural gas with high hydrogen fraction can tolerate more diluent gas than that with low hydrogen fraction. Markstein length can either increase or decrease with the increase of the diluent ratio, depending on the hydrogen fraction of the fuel. (author)

Flame Structure and Chemiluminescence Emissions of Inverse Diffusion Flames under Sinusoidally Driven Plasma Discharges

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Maria Grazia De Giorgi

2017-03-01

Full Text Available Reduction of nitric oxides (NOx in aircraft engines and in gas turbines by lean combustion is of great interest in the design of novel combustion systems. However, the stabilization of the flame under lean conditions is a main issue. In this context, the present work investigates the effects of sinusoidal dielectric barrier discharge (DBD on a lean inverse diffusive methane/air flame in a Bunsen-type burner under different actuation conditions. The flame appearance was investigated with fixed methane loading (mass flux, but with varying inner airflow rate. High-speed flame imaging was done by using an intensified (charge-coupled device CCD camera equipped with different optical filters in order to selectively record signals from the chemiluminescent species OH*, CH*, or CO2* to evaluate the flame behavior in presence of plasma actuation. The electrical power consumption was less than 33 W. It was evident that the plasma flame enhancement was significantly influenced by the plasma discharges, particularly at high inner airflow rates. The flame structure changes drastically when the dissipated plasma power increases. The flame area decreases due to the enhancement of mixing and chemical reactions that lead to a more anchored flame on the quartz exit with a reduction of the flame length.

CFD predictions of wake-stabilised jet flames in a cross-flow

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Lawal, Mohammed S.; Fairweather, Michael; Gogolek, Peter; Ingham, Derek B.; Ma, Lin; Pourkashanian, Mohamed; Williams, Alan

2013-01-01

This study describes an investigation into predicting the major flow properties in wake-stabilised jet flames in a cross flow of air using first- and second-order turbulence models, applied within a RANS (Reynolds-averaged Navier–Stokes) modelling framework. Standard and RNG (re-normalisation group) versions of the k-ε turbulence model were employed at the first-order level and the results compared with a second-moment closure, or RSM (Reynolds stress model). The combustion process was modelled using the laminar flamelet approach together with a thermal radiation model using the discrete ordinate method. The ability of the various turbulence models to reproduce experimentally established flame appearance, profiles of velocity and turbulence intensity, as well as the combustion efficiency of such flames is reported. The results show that all the turbulence models predict similar velocity profiles over the majority of the flow domain considered, except in the wake region, where the predictions of the RSM and RNG k-ε models are in closer agreement with experimental data. In contrast, the standard k-ε model over-predicts the peak turbulence intensity. Also, it is found that the RSM provides superior predictions of the planar recirculation and flame zones attached to the release pipe in the wake region. - Highlights: ► We investigated the prediction of the major properties in wake-stabilised methane jet flames in a cross flow. ► The ability of the various turbulence models to reproduce experimentally established flame parameters is reported. ► All the turbulence models considered predict similar velocity profiles, except in the wake region

Unsteady Extinction of Opposed Jet Ethylene/Methane HIFiRE Surrogate Fuel Mixtures vs Air

Science.gov (United States)

Vaden, Sarah N.; Debes, Rachel L.; Lash, E. Lara; Burk, Rachel S.; Boyd, C. Merritt; Wilson, Lloyd G.; Pellett, Gerald L.

2009-01-01

A unique idealized study of the subject fuel vs. air systems was conducted using an Oscillatory-input Opposed Jet Burner (OOJB) system and a newly refined analysis. Extensive dynamic-extinction measurements were obtained on unanchored (free-floating) laminar Counter Flow Diffusion Flames (CFDFs) at 1-atm, stabilized by steady input velocities (e.g., U(sub air)) and perturbed by superimposed in-phase sinusoidal velocity inputs at fuel and air nozzle exits. Ethylene (C2H4) and methane (CH4), and intermediate 64/36 and 15/85 molar percent mixtures were studied. The latter gaseous surrogates were chosen earlier to mimic ignition and respective steady Flame Strengths (FS = U(sub air)) of vaporized and cracked, and un-cracked, JP-7 "like" kerosene for a Hypersonic International Flight Research Experimentation (HIFiRE) scramjet. For steady idealized flameholding, the 100% C2H4 flame is respectively approx. 1.3 and approx.2.7 times stronger than a 64/36 mix and CH4; but is still 12.0 times weaker than a 100% H2-air flame. Limited Hot-Wire (HW) measurements of velocity oscillations at convergent-nozzle exits, and more extensive Probe Microphone (PM) measurements of acoustic pressures, were used to normalize Dynamic FSs, which decayed linearly with pk/pk U(sub air) (velocity magnitude, HW), and also pk/pk P (pressure magnitude, PM). Thus Dynamic Flame Weakening (DFW) is defined as % decrease in FS per Pascal of pk/pk P oscillation, namely, DFW = -100 d(U(sub air)/U(sub air),0Hz)/d(pkpk P). Key findings are: (1) Ethylene flames are uniquely strong and resilient to extinction by oscillating inflows below 150 Hz; (2) Methane flames are uniquely weak; (3) Ethylene / methane surrogate flames are disproportionately strong with respect to ethylene content; and (4) Flame weakening is consistent with limited published results on forced unsteady CFDFs. Thus from 0 to approx. 10 Hz and slightly higher, lagging diffusive responses of key species led to progressive phase lags (relative

Combustion instabilities in sudden expansion oxy-fuel flames

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Ditaranto, Mario; Hals, Joergen [Department of Energy Processes, SINTEF Energy Research, 7465 Trondheim (Norway)

2006-08-15

An experimental study on combustion instability is presented with focus on oxy-fuel type combustion. Oxidants composed of CO{sub 2}/O{sub 2} and methane are the reactants flowing through a premixer-combustor system. The reaction starts downstream a symmetric sudden expansion and is at the origin of different instability patterns depending on oxygen concentration and Reynolds number. The analysis has been conducted through measurement of pressure, CH* chemiluminescence, and velocity. As far as stability is concerned, oxy-fuel combustion with oxygen concentration similar to that found in air combustion cannot be sustained, but requires at least 30% oxygen to perform in a comparable manner. Under these conditions and for the sudden expansion configuration used in this study, the instability is at low frequency and low amplitude, controlled by the flame length inside the combustion chamber. Above a threshold concentration in oxygen dependent on equivalence ratio, the flame becomes organized and concentrated in the near field. Strong thermoacoustic instability is then triggered at characteristic acoustic modes of the system. Different modes can be triggered depending on the ratio of flame speed to inlet velocity, but for all types of instability encountered, the heat release and pressure fluctuations are linked by a variation in mass-flow rate. An acoustic model of the system coupled with a time-lag-based flame model made it possible to elucidate the acoustic mode selection in the system as a function of laminar flame speed and Reynolds number. The overall work brings elements of reflection concerning the potential risk of strong pressure oscillations in future gas turbine combustors for oxy-fuel gas cycles. (author)

A computational study of the effects of DC electric fields on non-premixed counterflow methane-air flames

KAUST Repository

Belhi, Memdouh

2017-10-19

Two-dimensional axisymmetric simulations for counterflow nonpremixed methane-air flames were undertaken as an attempt to reproduce the experimentally observed electro-hydrodynamic effect, also known as the ionic wind effect, on flames. Incompressible fluid dynamic solver was implemented with a skeletal chemical kinetic mechanism and transport property evaluations. The simulation successfully reproduced the key characteristics of the flames subjected to DC bias voltages at different intensity and polarity. Most notably, the simulation predicted the flame positions and showed good qualitative agreement with experimental data for the current-voltage curve. The flame response to the electric field with positive and negative polarity exhibited qualitatively different characteristics. In the negative polarity of the configuration considered, a non-monotonic variation of the current with the voltage was observed along with the existence of an unstable regime at an intermediate voltage level. With positive polarity, a typical monotonic current-voltage curve was obtained. This behavior was attributed to the asymmetry in the distribution of the positive and negative ions resulting from ionization processes. The present study demonstrated that the mathematical and computational models for the ion chemistry, transport, and fluid dynamics were able to describe the key processes responsible for the flame-electric field interaction.

The dilution effect on the extinction of wall diffusion flame

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Ghiti Nadjib

2014-12-01

Full Text Available The dynamic process of the interaction between a turbulent jet diffusion methane flame and a lateral wall was experimentally studied. The evolution of the flame temperature field with the Nitrogen dilution of the methane jet flame was examined. The interaction between the diffusion flame and the lateral wall was investigated for different distance between the wall and the central axes of the jet flame. The dilution is found to play the central role in the flame extinction process. The flame response as the lateral wall approaches from infinity and the increasing of the dilution rate make the flame extinction more rapid than the flame without dilution, when the nitrogen dilution rate increase the flame temperature decrease.

Liftoff and blowoff of a diffusion flame between parallel streams of fuel and air

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Fernandez-Tarrazo, Eduardo [I.N.T.A. Area de Propulsion-Edificio R02, Ctra. Ajalvir, km 4, 28850 Torrejon de Ardoz, Madrid (Spain); Vera, Marcos [Area de Mecanica de Fluidos, Universidad Carlos III de Madrid, 28911 Leganes (Spain); Linan, Amable [Departamento de Motopropulsion y Termofluidodinamica, Universidad Politecnica de Madrid, Pza. Cardenal Cisneros 3, 28040 Madrid (Spain)

2006-01-01

A numerical analysis is presented to describe the liftoff and blowoff of a diffusion flame in the mixing layer between two parallel streams of fuel (mainly methane diluted with nitrogen) and air emerging from porous walls. The analysis, which takes into account the effects of thermal expansion, assumes a one-step overall Arrhenius reaction, where the activation energy E is allowed to vary to reproduce the variations of the planar flame propagation velocity with the equivalence ratio. First, we describe the steady flame-front structure when stabilized close to the porous wall (attached flame regime). Then, we analyze the case where the flame front is located far away from the porous wall, at a distance x{sub f}' such that, upstream of the flame front, the mixing layer has a self-similar structure (lifted flame regime). For steady lifted flames, the results, given here in the case when the fuel and air streams are injected with the same velocity, relate U{sub f}'/S{sub L}, the front velocity (relative to the upstream flow) measured with the planar stoichiometric flame velocity, with the Damkohler number D{sub m}=({delta}{sub m}/{delta}{sub L}){sup 2}, based on the thickness, {delta}{sub m}, of the nonreacting mixing layer at the flame-front position and the laminar flame thickness, {delta}{sub L}. For large values of D{sub m}, the results, presented here for a wide range of dilutions of the fuel stream, provide values of the front propagation velocity that are in good agreement with previous experimental results, yielding well-defined conditions for blowoff. The calculated flame-front velocity can also be used to describe the transient flame-front dynamics after ignition by an external energy source.

Experimental study and modeling of CH{sub 4}/O{sub 2}/Ar and C{sub 2}H{sub 6}/O{sub 2}/Ar pre-mixing laminar flames; Etude experimentale et modelisation de flammes laminaires de premelange CH{sub 4}/O{sub 2}/Ar et C{sub 2}H{sub 6}/O{sub 2}/Ar

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Crunelle, B.; Desgroux, P.; Pauwels, J.F. [Lille-1 Univ., 59 - Villeneuve-d`Ascq (France). Laboratoire de Cinetique et Chimie de la Combustion URA-CNRS

1996-12-31

New studies are always needed to better determine the physico-chemical processes involved in the combustion of natural gas. The understanding of the reaction mechanisms that lead to the formation of nitrogen oxides or volatile organic compounds requires to identify the inner mechanisms which take place during combustion and in particular the mechanisms of formation of intermediate products. The aim of this study is to analyze the thermal degradation of methane and ethane in low pressure pre-mixed stabilized laminar flames condition, because both of these compounds represent the major part of natural gas composition. The main chemical reaction ways identified in the studied flames and responsible for combustion have been identified after a comparison between experimental results and the computerized simulation performed using an a-priori postulated chemical mechanism. This study stresses on the transfer reaction schemes between the different C1, C2 and C3 oxidation ways which play an important role in the formation of intermediate hydrocarbons. (J.S.) 13 refs.

Strained flamelets for turbulent premixed flames II: Laboratory flame results

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Kolla, H.; Swaminathan, N. [Department of Engineering, Cambridge University, Cambridge CB2 1PZ (United Kingdom)

2010-07-15

The predictive ability of strained flamelets model for turbulent premixed flames is assessed using Reynolds Averaged Navier Stokes (RANS) calculations of laboratory flames covering a wide range of conditions. Reactant-to-product (RtP) opposed flow laminar flames parametrised using the scalar dissipation rate of reaction progress variable are used as strained flamelets. Two turbulent flames: a rod stabilised V-flame studied by Robin et al. [Combust. Flame 153 (2008) 288-315] and a set of pilot stabilised Bunsen flames studied by Chen et al. [Combust. Flame 107 (1996) 223-244] are calculated using a single set of model parameters. The V-flame corresponds to the corrugated flamelets regime. The strained flamelet model and an unstrained flamelet model yield similar predictions which are in good agreement with experimental measurements for this flame. On the other hand, for the Bunsen flames which are in the thin reaction zones regime, the unstrained flamelet model predicts a smaller flame brush compared to experiment. The predictions of the strained flamelets model allowing for fluid-dynamics stretch induced attenuation of the chemical reaction are in good agreement with the experimental data. This model predictions of major and minor species are also in good agreement with experimental data. The results demonstrate that the strained flamelets model using the scalar dissipation rate can be used across the combustion regimes. (author)

Effect of AC electric fields on the stabilization of premixed bunsen flames

KAUST Repository

Kim, Minkuk

2011-01-01

The stabilization characteristics of laminar premixed bunsen flames have been investigated experimentally for stoichiometric methane-air mixture by applying AC voltage to the nozzle with the single-electrode configuration. The detachment velocity either at blowoff or partial-detachment has been measured by varying the applied voltage and frequency of AC. The result showed that the detachment velocity increased with the applied AC electric fields, such that the flame could be nozzle-attached even over five times of the blowoff velocity without having electric fields. There existed four distinct regimes depending on applied AC voltage and frequency. In the low voltage regime, the threshold condition of AC electric fields was identified, below which the effect of electric fields on the detachment velocity is minimal. In the moderate voltage regime, the flame base oscillated with the frequency synchronized to AC frequency and the detachment velocity increased linearly with the applied AC voltage and nonlinearly with the frequency. In the high voltage regime, two different sub-regimes depending on AC frequency were observed. For relatively low frequency, the flame base oscillated with the applied AC frequency together with the half frequency and the variation of the detachment velocity was insensitive to the applied voltage. For relatively high frequency, the stabilization of the flame was significantly affected by the generation of streamers and the detachment velocity decreased with the applied voltage. © 2010 Published by Elsevier Inc. on behalf of The Combustion Institute. All rights reserved.

Validation of a mixture-averaged thermal diffusion model for premixed lean hydrogen flames

Science.gov (United States)

Schlup, Jason; Blanquart, Guillaume

2018-03-01

The mixture-averaged thermal diffusion model originally proposed by Chapman and Cowling is validated using multiple flame configurations. Simulations using detailed hydrogen chemistry are done on one-, two-, and three-dimensional flames. The analysis spans flat and stretched, steady and unsteady, and laminar and turbulent flames. Quantitative and qualitative results using the thermal diffusion model compare very well with the more complex multicomponent diffusion model. Comparisons are made using flame speeds, surface areas, species profiles, and chemical source terms. Once validated, this model is applied to three-dimensional laminar and turbulent flames. For these cases, thermal diffusion causes an increase in the propagation speed of the flames as well as increased product chemical source terms in regions of high positive curvature. The results illustrate the necessity for including thermal diffusion, and the accuracy and computational efficiency of the mixture-averaged thermal diffusion model.

On the dynamics of flame edges in diffusion-flame/vortex interactions

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Hermanns, Miguel; Linan, Amable [Departamento de Motopropulsion y Termofluidodinamica, Universidad Politecnica de Madrid, Pza. Cardenal Cisneros 3, 28040 Madrid (Spain); Vera, Marcos [Area de Mecanica de Fluidos, Universidad Carlos III de Madrid, 28911 Leganes (Spain)

2007-04-15

We analyze the local flame extinction and reignition of a counterflow diffusion flame perturbed by a laminar vortex ring. Local flame extinction leads to the appearance of flame edges separating the burning and extinguished regions of the distorted mixing layer. The dynamics of these edges is modeled based on previous numerical results, with heat release effects fully taken into account, which provide the propagation velocity of triple and edge flames in terms of the upstream unperturbed value of the scalar dissipation. The temporal evolution of the mixing layer is determined using the classical mixture fraction approach, with both unsteady and curvature effects taken into account. Although variable density effects play an important role in exothermic reacting mixing layers, in this paper the description of the mixing layer is carried out using the constant density approximation, leading to a simplified analytical description of the flow field. The mathematical model reveals the relevant nondimensional parameters governing diffusion-flame/vortex interactions and provides the parameter range for the more relevant regime of local flame extinction followed by reignition via flame edges. Despite the simplicity of the model, the results show very good agreement with previously published experimental results. (author)

Effect of burner geometry on swirl stabilized methane/air flames: A joint LES/OH-PLIF/PIV study

KAUST Repository

Liu, X.

2017-07-04

Large eddy simulation (LES) using a transported PDF model and OH-PLIF/PIV experiments were carried out to investigate the quarl effects on the structures of swirl stabilized methane/air flames. Two different quarls were investigated, one straight cylindrical quarl and one diverging conical quarl. The experiments show that the flames are significantly different with the two quarls. With the straight cylindrical quarl a compact blue flame is observed while with the diverging conical quarl the flame appears to be long and yellow indicating a sooty flame structure. The PIV results show the formation of a stronger flow recirculation inside the diverging conical quarl than that in the straight quarl. LES results reveal further details of the flow and mixing process inside the quarl. The results show that with the diverging quarl vortex breakdown occurs much earlier towards the upstream of the quarl. As a result the fuel is convected into the air flow tube and a diffusion flame is stabilized inside the air flow tube upstream the quarl. With the straight quarl, vortex breakdown occurs at a downstream location in the quarl. The scalar dissipation rate in the shear layer of the fuel jet is high, which prevents the stabilization of a diffusion flame in the proximity of the fuel nozzle; instead, a compact partially premixed flame with two distinct heat release layers is stablized in a downstream region in the quarl, which allows for the fuel and air to mix in the quarl before combustion and a lower formation rate of soot. The results showed that the Eulerian Stochastic Fields transported PDF method can well predict the details of the swirl flame dynamics.

Effect of burner geometry on swirl stabilized methane/air flames: A joint LES/OH-PLIF/PIV study

KAUST Repository

Liu, X.; Elbaz, Ayman M.; Gong, C.; Bai, X.S.; Zheng, H.T.; Roberts, William L.

2017-01-01

Large eddy simulation (LES) using a transported PDF model and OH-PLIF/PIV experiments were carried out to investigate the quarl effects on the structures of swirl stabilized methane/air flames. Two different quarls were investigated, one straight cylindrical quarl and one diverging conical quarl. The experiments show that the flames are significantly different with the two quarls. With the straight cylindrical quarl a compact blue flame is observed while with the diverging conical quarl the flame appears to be long and yellow indicating a sooty flame structure. The PIV results show the formation of a stronger flow recirculation inside the diverging conical quarl than that in the straight quarl. LES results reveal further details of the flow and mixing process inside the quarl. The results show that with the diverging quarl vortex breakdown occurs much earlier towards the upstream of the quarl. As a result the fuel is convected into the air flow tube and a diffusion flame is stabilized inside the air flow tube upstream the quarl. With the straight quarl, vortex breakdown occurs at a downstream location in the quarl. The scalar dissipation rate in the shear layer of the fuel jet is high, which prevents the stabilization of a diffusion flame in the proximity of the fuel nozzle; instead, a compact partially premixed flame with two distinct heat release layers is stablized in a downstream region in the quarl, which allows for the fuel and air to mix in the quarl before combustion and a lower formation rate of soot. The results showed that the Eulerian Stochastic Fields transported PDF method can well predict the details of the swirl flame dynamics.

Underresolved absorption spectroscopy of OH radicals in flames using broadband UV LEDs

Science.gov (United States)

White, Logan; Gamba, Mirko

2018-04-01

A broadband absorption spectroscopy diagnostic based on underresolution of the spectral absorption lines is evaluated for the inference of species mole fraction and temperature in combustion systems from spectral fitting. The approach uses spectrally broadband UV light emitting diodes and leverages low resolution, small form factor spectrometers. Through this combination, the method can be used to develop high precision measurement sensors. The challenges of underresolved spectroscopy are explored and addressed using spectral derivative fitting, which is found to generate measurements with high precision and accuracy. The diagnostic is demonstrated with experimental measurements of gas temperature and OH mole fraction in atmospheric air/methane premixed laminar flat flames. Measurements exhibit high precision, good agreement with 1-D flame simulations, and high repeatability. A newly developed model of uncertainty in underresolved spectroscopy is applied to estimate two-dimensional confidence regions for the measurements. The results of the uncertainty analysis indicate that the errors in the outputs of the spectral fitting procedure are correlated. The implications of the correlation between uncertainties for measurement interpretation are discussed.

Role of soot in the transport of chlorine in hydrocarbon-air diffusion flames

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Venkatesh, S.; Saito, K.; Stencel, J.M.; Majidi, V.; Owens, M.

1991-01-01

Soot is an inevitable product of incomplete combustion in many practical combustion systems such as automobiles, incinerators and furnaces. Recent studies on chlorinated hydrocarbon combustion have shown that soot and other praticulates (eg. fly ash) play an important role in secondary reactions leading to the formation of chlorine substituted polyaromatic hydrocarbons (PAHs). In order to attain very high destruction efficiencies the fundamental chemical and physical processes that are associated with combustion, and post-combustion cleanup must be well understood. In order to understand the effect of chlorine on the soot formed in a combustion system, fundamental studies using a coflow laminar hydrocarbon-air diffusion flame have been carried out. Phenomenological studies have revealed the effect of chlorine on the visible structure of the flame. Soot inception activation energies were estimated for methane, ethane and ethylene diffusion flames for the case of with and without chlorine addition. No significant difference in the activation energy was estimated for either case. The effect of chlorine on the soot escape rate of an acetylene diffusion flame was estimated. The soot formed in these diffusion flames was analyzed for chlorine using scanning electron microscopy with energy dispersive spectroscopy (SEM/EDS) and by laser induced plasma spectroscopy (LIPS). REsults from these techniques indicate the presence of chlorine in the soot formed. In this paper a chemical scheme to explain the chlorine found in the soot is proposed based on known theories of soot formation

Effects of AC Electric Field on Small Laminar Nonpremixed Flames

KAUST Repository

Xiong, Yuan

2015-04-01

Electric field can be a viable method in controlling various combustion properties. Comparing to traditional actuators, an application of electric field requires very small power consumption. Especially, alternating current (AC) has received attention recently, since it could modulate flames appreciably even for the cases when direct current (DC) has minimal effects. In this study, the effect of AC electric fields on small coflow diffusion flames is focused with applications of various laser diagnostic techniques. Flow characteristics of baseline diffusion flames, which corresponds to stationary small coflow diffusion flames when electric field is not applied, were firstly investigated with a particular focus on the flow field in near-nozzle region with the buoyancy force exerted on fuels due to density differences among fuel, ambient air, and burnt gas. The result showed that the buoyancy force exerted on the fuel as well as on burnt gas significantly distorted the near-nozzle flow-fields. In the fuels with densities heavier than air, recirculation zones were formed very close to the nozzle exit. Nozzle heating effect influenced this near-nozzle flow-field particularly among lighter fuels. Numerical simulations were also conducted and the results showed that a fuel inlet boundary condition with a fully developed velocity profile for cases with long fuel tubes should be specified inside the fuel tube to obtain satisfactory agreement in both the flow and temperature fields with those from experiment. With sub-critical AC applied to the baseline flames, particle image velocimetry (PIV), light scattering, laser-induced incandescence (LII), and laser-induced fluores- cence (LIF) techniques were adopted to identify the flow field and the structures of OH, polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (PAHs), soot zone. Under certain AC condi- tions of applied voltage and frequency, the distribution of PAHs and the flow field near the nozzle exit were drastically altered from the

The origin and structure of streak-like instabilities in laminar boundary layer flames

Science.gov (United States)

Gollner, Michael; Miller, Colin; Tang, Wei; Finney, Mark

2017-11-01

Streamwise streaks are consistently observed in wildland fires, at the base of pool fires, and in other heated flows within a boundary layer. This study examines both the origin of these structures and their role in influencing some of the macroscopic properties of the flow. Streaks were reproduced and characterized via experiments on stationary heated strips and liquid and gas-fueled burners in laminar boundary layer flows, providing a framework to develop theory based on both observed and measured physical phenomena. The incoming boundary layer was established as the controlling mechanism in forming streaks, which are generated by pre-existing coherent structures, while the amplification of streaks was determined to be compatible with quadratic growth of Rayleigh-Taylor Instabilities, providing credence to the idea that the downstream growth of streaks is strongly tied to buoyancy. These local instabilities were also found to affect macroscopic properties of the flow, including heat transfer to the surface, indicating that a two-dimensional assumption may fail to adequately describe heat and mass transfer during flame spread and other reacting boundary layer flows. This work was supported by NSF (CBET-1554026) and the USDA-FS (13-CS-11221637-124).

The combustion chemistry of a fuel tracer: Measured flame speeds and ignition delays and a detailed chemical kinetic model for the oxidation of acetone

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Pichon, S.; Black, G.; Simmie, J.M.; Curran, H.J. [Combustion Chemistry Centre, National University of Ireland, Galway (Ireland); Chaumeix, N.; Yahyaoui, M. [Institut de Combustion Aerothermique Reactivite et Environnement, CNRS, Orleans (France); Donohue, R. [Information Technology, National University of Ireland, Galway (Ireland)

2009-02-15

Acetone ignition delay and stretch-free laminar flame speed measurements have been carried out and a kinetic model has been developed to simulate these and literature data for acetone and for ketene, which was found to be an important intermediate in its oxidation. The mechanism has been based on one originally devised for dimethyl ether and modified through validation of the hydrogen, carbon monoxide and methane sub-mechanisms. Acetone oxidation in argon was studied behind reflected shock waves in the temperature range 1340-1930 K, at 1 atm and at equivalence ratios of 0.5, 1 and 2; it is also shown that the addition of up to 15% acetone to a stoichiometric n-heptane mixture has no effect on the measured ignition delay times. Flame speeds at 298 K and 1 atm of pure acetone in air were measured in a spherical bomb; a maximum flame speed of {proportional_to}35 cm s{sup -1} at {phi}=1.15 is indicated. (author)

Edge flame instability in low-strain-rate counterflow diffusion flames

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Park, June Sung; Hwang, Dong Jin; Park, Jeong; Kim, Jeong Soo; Kim, Sungcho [School of Mechanical and Aerospace Engineering, Sunchon National University, 315 Maegok-dong, Suncheon, Jeonnam 540-742 (Korea, Republic of); Keel, Sang In [Environment & amp; Energy Research Division, Korea Institute of Machinery and Materials, P.O. Box 101, Yusung-gu, Taejon 305-343 (Korea, Republic of); Kim, Tae Kwon [School of Mechanical & amp; Automotive Engineering, Keimyung University, 1000 Sindang-dong, Dalseo-gu, Daegu 704-701 (Korea, Republic of); Noh, Dong Soon [Energy System Research Department, Korea Institute of Energy Research, 71-2 Jang-dong, Yusung-gu, Taejon 305-343 (Korea, Republic of)

2006-09-15

Experiments in low-strain-rate methane-air counterflow diffusion flames diluted with nitrogen have been conducted to study flame extinction behavior and edge flame oscillation in which flame length is less than the burner diameter and thus lateral conductive heat loss, in addition to radiative loss, could be high at low global strain rates. The critical mole fraction at flame extinction is examined in terms of velocity ratio and global strain rate. Onset conditions of the edge flame oscillation and the relevant modes are also provided with global strain rate and nitrogen mole fraction in the fuel stream or in terms of fuel Lewis number. It is observed that flame length is intimately relevant to lateral heat loss, and this affects flame extinction and edge flame oscillation considerably. Lateral heat loss causes flame oscillation even at fuel Lewis number less than unity. Edge flame oscillations, which result from the advancing and retreating edge flame motion of the outer flame edge of low-strain-rate flames, are categorized into three modes: a growing, a decaying, and a harmonic-oscillation mode. A flame stability map based on the flame oscillation modes is also provided for low-strain-rate flames. The important contribution of lateral heat loss even to edge flame oscillation is clarified finally. (author)

Effects of diluents on cellular instabilities in outwardly propagating spherical syngas-air premixed flames

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Vu, Tran Manh; Park, Jeong; Kwon, Oh Boong; Bae, Dae Seok [School of Mechanical Engineering, Pukyong National University, San 100, Yongdang-dong, Nam-gu, Busan 608-739 (Korea); Yun, Jin Han; Keel, Sang In [Environment and Energy Research Division, Korea Institute of Machinery and Materials, 171 Jang-dong, Yuseong-gu, Daejeon 305-343 (Korea)

2010-04-15

Experiments were conducted in a constant pressure combustion chamber using schlieren system to investigate the effects of carbon dioxide-nitrogen-helium diluents on cellular instabilities of syngas-air premixed flames at room temperature and elevated pressures. The cellular instabilities for the diluted syngas-air flames were interpreted and evaluated in the viewpoint of the hydrodynamic and diffusional-thermal instabilities. Laminar burning velocities and Markstein lengths were calculated by analyzing high-speed schlieren images at various diluent concentrations and equivalence ratios. The measured unstretched laminar burning velocities were compared with the predicted results computed using the PREMIX code with the kinetic mechanism developed by Sun et al. Also, experimentally measured Peclet numbers were compared with the predicted results for fuel-lean flames. Experimental results showed substantial reduction of the laminar burning velocities and of the Markstein lengths with the diluent additions in the fuel blends. Effective Lewis numbers of helium-diluted syngas-air flames increased but those of carbon dioxide- and nitrogen-diluted syngas-air flames decreased in increase of diluents in the reactant mixtures. With helium diluent, the propensity for cells formation was significantly diminished, whereas the cellular instabilities for carbon dioxide- and nitrogen-diluted syngas-air flames were not suppressed. (author)

Properties of plasma flames sustained by microwaves and burning hydrocarbon fuels

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Hong, Yong Cheol; Uhm, Han Sup

2006-01-01

Plasma flames made of atmospheric microwave plasma and a fuel-burning flame were presented and their properties were investigated experimentally. The plasma flame generator consists of a fuel injector and a plasma flame exit connected in series to a microwave plasma torch. The plasma flames are sustained by injecting hydrocarbon fuels into a microwave plasma torch in air discharge. The microwave plasma torch in the plasma flame system can burn a hydrocarbon fuel by high-temperature plasma and high atomic oxygen density, decomposing the hydrogen and carbon containing fuel. We present the visual observations of the sustained plasma flames and measure the gas temperature using a thermocouple device in terms of the gas-fuel mixture and flow rate. The plasma flame volume of the hydrocarbon fuel burners was more than approximately 30-50 times that of the torch plasma. While the temperature of the torch plasma flame was only 868 K at a measurement point, that of the diesel microwave plasma flame with the addition of 0.019 lpm diesel and 30 lpm oxygen increased drastically to about 2280 K. Preliminary experiments for methane plasma flame were also carried out, measuring the temperature profiles of flames along the radial and axial directions. Finally, we investigated the influence of the microwave plasma on combustion flame by observing and comparing OH molecular spectra for the methane plasma flame and methane flame only

Modelling thermal radiation in buoyant turbulent diffusion flames

Science.gov (United States)

Consalvi, J. L.; Demarco, R.; Fuentes, A.

2012-10-01

This work focuses on the numerical modelling of radiative heat transfer in laboratory-scale buoyant turbulent diffusion flames. Spectral gas and soot radiation is modelled by using the Full-Spectrum Correlated-k (FSCK) method. Turbulence-Radiation Interactions (TRI) are taken into account by considering the Optically-Thin Fluctuation Approximation (OTFA), the resulting time-averaged Radiative Transfer Equation (RTE) being solved by the Finite Volume Method (FVM). Emission TRIs and the mean absorption coefficient are then closed by using a presumed probability density function (pdf) of the mixture fraction. The mean gas flow field is modelled by the Favre-averaged Navier-Stokes (FANS) equation set closed by a buoyancy-modified k-ɛ model with algebraic stress/flux models (ASM/AFM), the Steady Laminar Flamelet (SLF) model coupled with a presumed pdf approach to account for Turbulence-Chemistry Interactions, and an acetylene-based semi-empirical two-equation soot model. Two sets of experimental pool fire data are used for validation: propane pool fires 0.3 m in diameter with Heat Release Rates (HRR) of 15, 22 and 37 kW and methane pool fires 0.38 m in diameter with HRRs of 34 and 176 kW. Predicted flame structures, radiant fractions, and radiative heat fluxes on surrounding surfaces are found in satisfactory agreement with available experimental data across all the flames. In addition further computations indicate that, for the present flames, the gray approximation can be applied for soot with a minor influence on the results, resulting in a substantial gain in Computer Processing Unit (CPU) time when the FSCK is used to treat gas radiation.

EFFECTS OF SIMPLIFIED CHEMICAL KINETIC MODEL ON THE MICRO-FLAME STRUCTURE AND TEMPERATURE OF THE LEAN PREMIXED METHANE-AIR MIXTURES

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

JUNJIE CHEN

2015-07-01

Full Text Available The effect of simplified chemical kinetic model on the micro-flame structure, central axis and wall temperatures were investigated with different one-step global chemical kinetic mechanisms following Mantel, Duterque and Fernández-Tarrazo models. Numerical investigations of the premixed methane-air flame in the micro-channel and lean conditions were carried out to compare and analyze the effect of the comprehensive chemical kinetic mechanisms. The results indicate that one-step global chemical kinetic mechanism affects both the micro-flame shape and the combustion temperature. Among three simulation models, Mantel model allows a stable micro-flame with a bamboo shoot form, which anchor at the inlet. Duterque model gives a stable elongated micro-flame with a considerable ignition delay, and a dead zone with fluid accumulation is observed at the entrance, which may explain the very high combustion temperature and the fast reaction rate obtained, despite the micro-flame development presents a very hot spot and causes a broadening of the combustion zone. Fernández-Tarrazo model results in a rapid extinction and doesn't seem to take all the kinetic behavior into account for the appropriate micro-combustion simulations.

Mechanisms of stabilization and blowoff of a premixed flame downstream of a heat-conducting perforated plate

KAUST Repository

Kedia, Kushal S.

2012-03-01

The objective of this work is to investigate the flame stabilization mechanism and the conditions leading to the blowoff of a laminar premixed flame anchored downstream of a heat-conducting perforated-plate/multi-hole burner, with overall nearly adiabatic conditions. We use unsteady, fully resolved, two-dimensional simulations with detailed chemical kinetics and species transport for methane-air combustion. Results show a bell-shaped flame stabilizing above the burner plate hole, with a U-shaped section anchored between neighboring holes. The base of the positively curved U-shaped section of the flame is positioned near the stagnation point, at a location where the flame displacement speed is equal to the flow speed. This location is determined by the combined effect of heat loss and flame stretch on the flame displacement speed. As the mass flow rate of the reactants is increased, the flame displacement speed at this location varies non-monotonically. As the inlet velocity is increased, the recirculation zone grows slowly, the flame moves downstream, and the heat loss to the burner decreases, strengthening the flame and increasing its displacement speed. As the inlet velocity is raised, the stagnation point moves downstream, and the flame length grows to accommodate the reactants mass flow. Concomitantly, the radius of curvature of the flame base decreases until it reaches an almost constant value, comparable to the flame thickness. While the heat loss decreases, the higher flame curvature dominates thereby reducing the displacement speed of the flame base. For a stable flame, the gradient of the flame base displacement speed normal to the flame is higher than the gradient of the flow speed along the same direction, leading to dynamic stability. As inlet velocity is raised further, the former decreases while the latter increases until the stability condition is violated, leading to blowoff. The flame speed during blow off is determined by the feedback between the

Experimental apparatus with full optical access for combustion experiments with laminar flames from a single circular nozzle at elevated pressures.

Science.gov (United States)

Joo, Peter H; Gao, Jinlong; Li, Zhongshan; Aldén, Marcus

2015-03-01

The design and features of a high pressure chamber and burner that is suitable for combustion experiments at elevated pressures are presented. The high pressure combustion apparatus utilizes a high pressure burner that is comprised of a chamber burner module and an easily accessible interchangeable burner module to add to its flexibility. The burner is well suited to study both premixed and non-premixed flames. The optical access to the chamber is provided through four viewports for direct visual observations and optical-based diagnostic techniques. Auxiliary features include numerous access ports and electrical connections and as a result, the combustion apparatus is also suitable to work with plasmas and liquid fuels. Images of methane flames at elevated pressures up to 25 atm and preliminary results of optical-based measurements demonstrate the suitability of the high pressure experimental apparatus for combustion experiments.

A priori tests of combustion models based on a CH{sub 4}/H{sub 2} Triple Flame

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Dombard, J.; Naud, B.; Jimenez Sanchez, C.

2008-07-01

This document reproduces the final project of Jerome Dombard, presented on June 25, 2008, for the obtention of the Master degree MIMSE (Master Ingenierie Mathematique, Statistique et Economique) of Bordeaux University (Universite Bordeaux 1). We make an a priori study of FPI/FGM-type turbulent combustion models using a 2D DNS of a triple flame. A reduced chemical scheme of 16 species and 12 reactions is used (ARM1, proposed by J.-Y. Chen at Berkeley University). The fuel (CH4/H2 mixture) and oxidizer (air) correspond to the inlet composition of the Sydney bluff-body stabilised flame experiments (flames HM1-3). First, we compute 1D laminar premixed flames. The purpose of those calculations is twofold: 1. check the differences between different computer programs and different treatments of molecular diffusion, and 2. calibrate the 2D-DNS of the laminar triple flame (mainly decide on the grid resolution). Then, the solution of the 2D laminar triple flame is used to test a priori FPI/FGM tables. Finally, preliminary considerations on sub-grid scale modelling in the context of Large Eddy Simulation are made. (Author) 14 refs.

Probe sampling measurements and modeling of nitric oxide formation in ethane + air flames

NARCIS (Netherlands)

Dyakov, I.V.; Ruyck, de J.; Konnov, A.A.

2007-01-01

Burning velocity and probe sampling measurements of the concentrations of O2, CO2, CO and NO in the post-flame zone of ethane + air flames are reported. The heat flux method was used for stabilization of laminar, premixed, non-stretched flames on a perforated plate burner at 1 atm. Axial profiles of

Experimental and numerical investigations on flame stability of methane/air mixtures in mesoscale combustors filled with fibrous porous media

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Liu, Yi; Ning, Daoguan; Fan, Aiwu; Yao, Hong

2016-01-01

Highlights: • Flame stability in mesoscale channels with fibrous porous media was investigated. • Standing combustion waves were observed in the channels of 6-mm and 5-mm diameter. • The standing combustion wave was not observed in the channel with a diameter of 4 mm. • Flame velocity was inversely proportional to equivalence ratio and channel diameter. • A sharp drop in the efficiency was seen for the 4-mm channel due to wall quenching. - Abstract: Flame stability of methane/air mixtures in mesoscale channels with different diameters (6 mm, 5 mm and 4 mm) filled with fibrous porous media was experimentally investigated. Standing combustion waves (namely, stationary flame) are observed under low inlet velocity and high equivalence ratio conditions. Moreover, the standing wave regime becomes narrower as the channel diameter is reduced from 6 mm to 5 mm and vanishes for the 4-mm channel. For a fixed equivalence ratio, the flame length becomes shorter at a smaller channel or a less inlet velocity. Regarding the downstream propagating wave, its propagation velocity increases with the decrease of channel diameter. Splitting flame appears at large inlet velocities. Besides, at low equivalence ratios, the downstream propagating flames grow into small flame balls and can survive until the channel exit. Numerical results demonstrate that for a smaller channel, although the total heat loss rate is reduced, its heat loss ratio is increased, which leads to a lower wall temperature level and the flame is quenched out near the wall. The combustion efficiency is decreased significantly for the 4-mm channel due to fuel leakage from the near-wall “dead space”.

Numerical modeling of turbulent jet diffusion flames in the atmospheric surface layer

NARCIS (Netherlands)

Hernández, J.; Crespo, A.; Duijm, N.J.

1995-01-01

The evolution of turbulent jet diffusion flames of natural gas in air is predicted using a finite-volume procedure for solving the flow equations. The model is three dimensional, elliptic and based on the conserved-scalar approach and the laminar flamelet concept. A laminar flamelet prescription for

Laser-Induced Photofragmentation Fluorescence Imaging of Alkali Compounds in Flames.

Science.gov (United States)

Leffler, Tomas; Brackmann, Christian; Aldén, Marcus; Li, Zhongshan

2017-06-01

Laser-induced photofragmentation fluorescence has been investigated for the imaging of alkali compounds in premixed laminar methane-air flames. An ArF excimer laser, providing pulses of wavelength 193 nm, was used to photodissociate KCl, KOH, and NaCl molecules in the post-flame region and fluorescence from the excited atomic alkali fragment was detected. Fluorescence emission spectra showed distinct lines of the alkali atoms allowing for efficient background filtering. Temperature data from Rayleigh scattering measurements together with simulations of potassium chemistry presented in literature allowed for conclusions on the relative contributions of potassium species KOH and KCl to the detected signal. Experimental approaches for separate measurements of these components are discussed. Signal power dependence and calculated fractions of dissociated molecules indicate the saturation of the photolysis process, independent on absorption cross-section, under the experimental conditions. Quantitative KCl concentrations up to 30 parts per million (ppm) were evaluated from the fluorescence data and showed good agreement with results from ultraviolet absorption measurements. Detection limits for KCl photofragmentation fluorescence imaging of 0.5 and 1.0 ppm were determined for averaged and single-shot data, respectively. Moreover, simultaneous imaging of KCl and NaCl was demonstrated using a stereoscope with filters. The results indicate that the photofragmentation method can be employed for detailed studies of alkali chemistry in laboratory flames for validation of chemical kinetic mechanisms crucial for efficient biomass fuel utilization.

Laminar burning velocities of near-flammability-limit H2-air-steam mixtures

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Loesel Sitar, J.V.; Chan, C.K.; Torchia, F.; Guerrero, A.

1995-01-01

Laminar burning velocities of lean H 2 -air-steam mixtures near the flammability limit were measured by using the pressure-time history of an expanding flame kernel. Although flames in these mixtures are inherently unstable, this difficulty was avoided by using the early pressure rise of the burn. A comparison of results from that method with burning velocities determined from schlieren photographs of the expanding flame kernel gave good agreement. Despite the difficulties, it is believed that the pressure trace method gives results that are useful in modelling reactor accident scenarios. 8 refs., 4 figs

Effect of Low Frequency Burner Vibrations on the Characteristics of Jet Diffusion Flames

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

C. Kanthasamy

2012-03-01

Full Text Available Mechanical vibrations introduced in diffusion flame burners significantly affect the flame characteristics. In this experimental study, the effects of axial vibrations on the characteristics of laminar diffusion flames are investigated systematically. The effect of the frequency and amplitude of the vibrations on the flame height oscillations and flame stability is brought out. The amplitude of flame height oscillations is found to increase with increase in both frequency and amplitude of burner vibrations. Vibrations are shown to enhance stability of diffusion flames. Although flame lifts-off sooner with vibrations, stability of the flame increases.

The blow-off mechanism of a bluff-body stabilized laminar premixed flame

KAUST Repository

Kedia, Kushal S.; Ghoniem, Ahmed F.

2015-01-01

the end of the recirculation zone. Blow-off started by flame pinching separating the flame into an upstream moving (carried within the recirculation zone) and a downstream convecting (detached from the recirculation zone) flame piece. Within the range

A two-dimensional analytical model of laminar flame in lycopodium dust particles

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Rahbari, Alireza [Shahid Rajaee Teacher Training University, Tehran (Iran, Islamic Republic of); Shakibi, Ashkan [Iran University of Science and Technology, Tehran (Iran, Islamic Republic of); Bidabadi, Mehdi [Combustion Research Laboratory, Narmak, Tehran (Iran, Islamic Republic of)

2015-09-15

A two-dimensional analytical model is presented to determine the flame speed and temperature distribution of micro-sized lycopodium dust particles. This model is based on the assumptions that the particle burning rate in the flame front is controlled by the process of oxygen diffusion and the flame structure consists of preheat, reaction and post flame zones. In the first step, the energy conservation equations for fuel-lean condition are expressed in two dimensions, and then these differential equations are solved using the required boundary condition and matching the temperature and heat flux at the interfacial boundaries. Consequently, the obtained flame temperature and flame speed distributions in terms of different particle diameters and equivalence ratio for lean mixture are compared with the corresponding experimental data for lycopodium dust particles. Consequently, it is shown that this two-dimensional model demonstrates better agreement with the experimental results compared to the previous models.

A two-dimensional analytical model of laminar flame in lycopodium dust particles

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Rahbari, Alireza; Shakibi, Ashkan; Bidabadi, Mehdi

2015-01-01

A two-dimensional analytical model is presented to determine the flame speed and temperature distribution of micro-sized lycopodium dust particles. This model is based on the assumptions that the particle burning rate in the flame front is controlled by the process of oxygen diffusion and the flame structure consists of preheat, reaction and post flame zones. In the first step, the energy conservation equations for fuel-lean condition are expressed in two dimensions, and then these differential equations are solved using the required boundary condition and matching the temperature and heat flux at the interfacial boundaries. Consequently, the obtained flame temperature and flame speed distributions in terms of different particle diameters and equivalence ratio for lean mixture are compared with the corresponding experimental data for lycopodium dust particles. Consequently, it is shown that this two-dimensional model demonstrates better agreement with the experimental results compared to the previous models.

Flame kernel generation and propagation in turbulent partially premixed hydrocarbon jet

KAUST Repository

Mansour, Mohy S.

2014-04-23

Flame development, propagation, stability, combustion efficiency, pollution formation, and overall system efficiency are affected by the early stage of flame generation defined as flame kernel. Studying the effects of turbulence and chemistry on the flame kernel propagation is the main aim of this work for natural gas (NG) and liquid petroleum gas (LPG). In addition the minimum ignition laser energy (MILE) has been investigated for both fuels. Moreover, the flame stability maps for both fuels are also investigated and analyzed. The flame kernels are generated using Nd:YAG pulsed laser and propagated in a partially premixed turbulent jet. The flow field is measured using 2-D PIV technique. Five cases have been selected for each fuel covering different values of Reynolds number within a range of 6100-14400, at a mean equivalence ratio of 2 and a certain level of partial premixing. The MILE increases by increasing the equivalence ratio. Near stoichiometric the energy density is independent on the jet velocity while in rich conditions it increases by increasing the jet velocity. The stability curves show four distinct regions as lifted, attached, blowout, and a fourth region either an attached flame if ignition occurs near the nozzle or lifted if ignition occurs downstream. LPG flames are more stable than NG flames. This is consistent with the higher values of the laminar flame speed of LPG. The flame kernel propagation speed is affected by both turbulence and chemistry. However, at low turbulence level chemistry effects are more pronounced while at high turbulence level the turbulence becomes dominant. LPG flame kernels propagate faster than those for NG flame. In addition, flame kernel extinguished faster in LPG fuel as compared to NG fuel. The propagation speed is likely to be consistent with the local mean equivalence ratio and its corresponding laminar flame speed. Copyright © Taylor & Francis Group, LLC.

Study on nitrogen diluted propane-air premixed flames at elevated pressures and temperatures

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Tang Chenglong; Zheng Jianjun [State Key Laboratory of Multiphase Flow in Power Engineering, Xi' an Jiaotong University, Xi' an 710049 (China); Huang Zuohua, E-mail: zhhuang@mail.xjtu.edu.c [State Key Laboratory of Multiphase Flow in Power Engineering, Xi' an Jiaotong University, Xi' an 710049 (China); Wang Jinhua [State Key Laboratory of Multiphase Flow in Power Engineering, Xi' an Jiaotong University, Xi' an 710049 (China)

2010-02-15

Using a high pressure constant volume combustion vessel, the propagation and morphology of spark-ignited outwardly expanding nitrogen diluted propane-air flames were imaged and recorded by schlieren photography and high-speed digital camera. The unstretched laminar burning velocities and Markstein lengths were subsequently determined over wide range of initial temperatures, initial pressures and nitrogen dilution ratios. Two recently developed mechanisms were used to predict the reference laminar burning velocity. The results show that the measured unstretched laminar burning velocities agree well with those in the literature and the computationally predicted results. The flame images show that the diffusional-thermal instability is promoted as the mixture becomes richer, and the hydrodynamic instability is increased with the increase of the initial pressure and it is decreased with the increase of dilution ratio. The normalized laminar burning velocities show a linear correlation with respect to the dilution ratio, indicating that the effect of nitrogen dilution is more obvious at higher pressures.

Simulation of Electron and Ion Transport in Methane-Air Counterflow Diffusion Flames

Science.gov (United States)

Choi, Sangkyu; Bisetti, Fabrizio; Chung, Suk Ho

2010-11-01

The spatial distribution of charged species in a methane-air counterflow diffusion flame is simulated with a detailed ion chemistry. The electric field induced by the distribution of charged species is calculated and compared to that obtained invoking the ambipolar diffusion assumption. The two calculations showed identical profiles for charged species and electric field. The profiles of ion mole fractions show two peaks: one near the maximum temperature and a second peak on the oxidizer side. The major ions near the maximum temperature are electron, C2H3O+ and H3O+. CHO3- and H3O+ contribute to the second peak. These profiles are quite different from those adopting a simplified three-step mechanism based solely on E-, CHO+ and H3O+, which shows only a single peak. Reaction pathway analyses showed that near the flame region, the proton is transferred by the path of CHO+ -> H3O+ -> C2H3O+ -> CHO+ in a circulating manner. In the second peak, CHO3- is produced though the pathway of E- -> O- -> OH- -> CHO3-. The sensitivity of the charged species profiles to transport properties is investigated, and it is found that the variation of charged species profiles near peak temperature is relatively small, while on the oxidizer side, it is quite sensitive to transport properties.

REDUCTION OF NO FORMATION BY THERMAL EFFECT OF A TURBULNENT DIFFUSION FLAME H2/AIR MODELED BY THE CONCEPT OF LAMINAR FLAMELET

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

HADEF AMAR

2016-03-01

Full Text Available Highly exothermic reactions are responsible for the formation of harmful polluting chemical species to humans and the biosphere. In this context, nitrogen oxides (NOx are pollutants that are the subject of special attention on the part of regulators. In this work we studied the impact of a co-flow swirl on the internal structure of a turbulent diffusion flame H2-N2/Air and its role in reducing the formation of NO, which is modeled by the concept of laminar flamelet, while the flow field is modeled by the standard model k-ε, with a correction term for round jets.The results show good agreement with data from the experimental data.

Effects of H2O, CO2, and N2 Air Contaminants on Critical Airside Strain Rates for Extinction of Hydrogen-Air Counterflow Diffusion Flames

Science.gov (United States)

Pellett, G. L.; Wilson, L. G.; Northam, G. B.; Guerra, Rosemary

1989-01-01

Coaxial tubular opposed jet burners (OJB) were used to form dish shaped counterflow diffusion flames (CFDF), centered by opposing laminar jets of H2, N2 and both clean and contaminated air (O2/N2 mixtures) in an argon bath at 1 atm. Jet velocities for flame extinction and restoration limits are shown versus wide ranges of contaminant and O2 concentrations in the air jet, and also input H2 concentration. Blowoff, a sudden breaking of CFDF to a stable ring shape, occurs in highly stretched stagnation flows and is generally believed to measure kinetically limited flame reactivity. Restore, a sudden restoration of central flame, is a relatively new phenomenon which exhibits a H2 dependent hysteresis from Blowoff. For 25 percent O2 air mixtures, mole for mole replacement of 25 percent N2 contaminant by steam increased U(air) or flame strength at Blowoff by about 5 percent. This result is consistent with laminar burning velocity results from analogous substitution of steam for N2 in a premixed stoichiometric H2-O2-N2 (or steam) flame, shown by Koroll and Mulpuru to promote a 10 percent increase in experimental and calculated laminar burning velocity, due to enhanced third body efficiency of water in: H + O2 + M yields HO2 + M. When the OJB results were compared with Liu and MacFarlane's experimental laminar burning velocity of premixed stoichiometric H2 + air + steam, a crossover occurred, i.e., steam enhanced OJB flame strength at extinction relative to laminar burning velocity.

Simulations of Flame Acceleration and DDT in Mixture Composition Gradients

Science.gov (United States)

Zheng, Weilin; Kaplan, Carolyn; Houim, Ryan; Oran, Elaine

2017-11-01

Unsteady, multidimensional, fully compressible numerical simulations of methane-air in an obstructed channel with spatial gradients in equivalence ratios have been carried to determine the effects of the gradients on flame acceleration and transition to detonation. Results for gradients perpendicular to the propagation direction were considered here. A calibrated, optimized chemical-diffusive model that reproduces correct flame and detonation properties for methane-air over a range of equivalence ratios was derived from a combination of a genetic algorithm with a Nelder-Mead optimization scheme. Inhomogeneous mixtures of methane-air resulted in slower flame acceleration and longer distance to DDT. Detonations were more likely to decouple into a flame and a shock under sharper concentration gradients. Detailed analyses of temperature and equivalence ratio illustrated that vertical gradients can greatly affect the formation of hot spots that initiate detonation by changing the strength of leading shock wave and local equivalence ratio near the base of obstacles. This work is supported by the Alpha Foundation (Grant No. AFC215-20).

Dynamics and structure of stretched flames

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Law, C.K. [Princeton Univ., NJ (United States)

1993-12-01

This program aims to gain fundamental understanding on the structure, geometry, and dynamics of laminar premixed flames, and relate these understanding to the practical issues of flame extinction and stabilization. The underlying fundamental interest here is the recent recognition that the response of premixed flames can be profoundly affected by flame stretch, as manifested by flow nonuniformity, flame curvature, and flame/flow unsteadiness. As such, many of the existing understanding on the behavior of premixed flames need to be qualitatively revised. The research program consists of three major thrusts: (1) detailed experimental and computational mapping of the structure of aerodynamically-strained planar flames, with emphasis on the effects of heat loss, nonequidiffusion, and finite residence time on the flame thickness, extent of incomplete reaction, and the state of extinction. (2) Analytical study of the geometry and dynamics of stretch-affected wrinkled flame sheets in simple configurations, as exemplified by the Bunsen flame and the spatially-periodic flame, with emphasis on the effects of nonlinear stretch, the phenomena of flame cusping, smoothing, and tip opening, and their implications on the structure and burning rate of turbulent flames. (3) Stabilization and blowoff of two-dimensional inverted premixed and stabilization and determining the criteria governing flame blowoff. The research is synergistically conducted through the use of laser-based diagnostics, computational simulation of the flame structure with detailed chemistry and transport, and mathematical analysis of the flame dynamics.

The Effect of Hydrogen Addition on the Combustion Characteristics of RP-3 Kerosene/Air Premixed Flames

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Wen Zeng

2017-07-01

Full Text Available Experimental studies have been performed to investigate the effects of hydrogen addition on the combustion characteristics of Chinese No.3 jet fuel (RP-3 kerosene/air premixed flames. Experiments were carried out in a constant volume chamber and the influences of the initial temperatures of 390 and 420 K, initial pressures of 0.1 and 0.3 MPa, equivalence ratios of 0.6–1.6 and hydrogen additions of 0.0–0.5 on the laminar burning velocities, and Markstein numbers of Hydrogen (H2/RP-3/air mixtures were investigated. The results show that the flame front surfaces of RP-3/air mixtures remain smooth throughout the entire flame propagation process at a temperature of 390 K, pressure of 0.3 MPa, equivalence ratio of 1.3 and without hydrogen addition, but when the hydrogen addition increases from 0.0 to 0.5 under the same conditions, flaws and protuberances occur at the flame surfaces. It was also found that with the increase of the equivalence ratio from 0.9 to 1.5, the laminar burning velocities of the mixtures increase at first and then decrease, and the highest laminar burning velocity was measured at an equivalence ratio of 1.2. Meanwhile, with the increase of hydrogen addition, laminar burning velocities of H2/RP-3/air mixtures increase. However, the Markstein numbers of H2/RP-3/air mixtures decrease with the increase of hydrogen addition, which means that the flames of H2/RP-3/air mixtures become unstable with the increase of hydrogen addition.

Strained flamelets for turbulent premixed flames, I: Formulation and planar flame results

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Kolla, H.; Swaminathan, N. [Department of Engineering, Cambridge University, Cambridge CB2 1PZ (United Kingdom)

2010-05-15

A strained flamelet model is proposed for turbulent premixed flames using scalar dissipation rate as a parameter. The scalar dissipation rate of reaction progress variable is a suitable quantity to describe the flamelet structure since it is governed by convection-diffusion-reaction balance and it is defined at every location in the flamelets, which are represented by laminar flames in reactant-to-product opposed flow configuration. The mean reaction rate is obtained by using the flamelets reaction rate and the joint pdf of the progress variable and its dissipation rate. The marginal pdf of the progress variable is presumed to be {beta}-pdf and the pdf of the conditional dissipation rate is taken to be log-normal. The conditional mean dissipation rate is obtained from modelled mean dissipation rate. This reaction rate closure is assessed using RANS calculations of statistically planar flames in the corrugated flamelets and thin reaction zones regimes. The flame speeds calculated using this closure are close to the experimental data of Abdel-Gayed et al. (1987) for flames in both the regimes. Comparisons with other reaction rate closures showed the benefits of the strained flamelets approach. (author)

Stability of diffusion flame formed in a laminar flat plate boundary layer. Effect of fuel dilution; Soryu heiban kyokai sonai ni keiseisareru kakusan kaen no anteisei. Nenryo kishaku no eikyo

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Takeuchi, M [National Institute for Resources and Environment, Tsukuba (Japan); Ueda, T; Mizumoto, M [Keio University, Tokyo (Japan). Faculty of Science and Technology; Amari, T [Keio University, Tokyo (Japan)

1998-10-25

A stability limit of the diffusion flame with fuel injection from a porous wall in a laminar flat plate boundary layer is measured as functions of fuel (CH4) concentration of CH4/N2 injectant mixture ({chi}) and its injection velocity (v). The free stream velocity (U{infinity}) is set as 0.6 m/s. The thermal condition at the wall is controlled by setting temperature at the upstream end of the porous wall as a reference temperature. When v >20 mm/s, the flame becomes unstable with the separation of leading flame edge with decreasing {chi}. The value of {chi} at the stability limit is constant without regard to v as long as the wall temperature is kept constant. As the wall temperature is decreased the value of {chi} increases. The separation is supposed to take place as a result of the limit of the reaction rate. When v <20 mm/s, the flame becomes unstable with the oscillation. The value of {chi} at the stability limit increases drastically with decreasing v. The oscillation takes place mainly due to the repeat of the extinction due to heat loss to the wall and the flame propagation in the combustible layer. 10 refs., 8 figs., 1 tab.

The impact of reactants composition and temperature on the flow structure in a wake stabilized laminar lean premixed CH4/H2/air flames; mechanism and scaling

KAUST Repository

Michaels, D.

2016-11-11

In this paper we investigate the role of reactants composition and temperature in defining the steady flow structure in bluff body stabilized premixed flames. The study was motivated by experiments which showed that the flow structure and stability map for different fuels and inlet conditions collapse using the extinction strain rate as the chemical time scale. The investigation is conducted using a laminar lean premixed flame stabilized on a heat conducting bluff-body. Calculations are performed for a wide range of mixtures of CH4/H2/air (0.35 ≤ ϕ ≤ 0.75, 0 ≤ %H2 ≤ 40, 300 ≤ Tin [K] ≤ 500) in order to systematically vary the burning velocity (2.0–35.6 cm/s), dilatation ratio (2.7–6.4), and extinction strain rate (106–2924 1/s). The model is based on a fully resolved unsteady two-dimensional flow with detailed chemistry and species transport, and with no artificial flame anchoring boundary conditions. Calculations reveal that the recirculation zone length correlates with a chemical time scale based on the flame extinction strain rate corresponding to the inlet fuel composition, stoichiometry, pressure and temperature; and are consistent with experimental data in literature. It was found that in the wake region the flame is highly stretched and its location and interaction with the flow is governed by the reactants combustion characteristics under high strain.

Effect of Oxygen Enrichment in Propane Laminar Diffusion Flames under Microgravity and Earth Gravity Conditions

Science.gov (United States)

Bhatia, Pramod; Singh, Ravinder

2017-06-01

Diffusion flames are the most common type of flame which we see in our daily life such as candle flame and match-stick flame. Also, they are the most used flames in practical combustion system such as industrial burner (coal fired, gas fired or oil fired), diesel engines, gas turbines, and solid fuel rockets. In the present study, steady-state global chemistry calculations for 24 different flames were performed using an axisymmetric computational fluid dynamics code (UNICORN). Computation involved simulations of inverse and normal diffusion flames of propane in earth and microgravity condition with varying oxidizer compositions (21, 30, 50, 100 % O2, by mole, in N2). 2 cases were compared with the experimental result for validating the computational model. These flames were stabilized on a 5.5 mm diameter burner with 10 mm of burner length. The effect of oxygen enrichment and variation in gravity (earth gravity and microgravity) on shape and size of diffusion flames, flame temperature, flame velocity have been studied from the computational result obtained. Oxygen enrichment resulted in significant increase in flame temperature for both types of diffusion flames. Also, oxygen enrichment and gravity variation have significant effect on the flame configuration of normal diffusion flames in comparison with inverse diffusion flames. Microgravity normal diffusion flames are spherical in shape and much wider in comparison to earth gravity normal diffusion flames. In inverse diffusion flames, microgravity flames were wider than earth gravity flames. However, microgravity inverse flames were not spherical in shape.

Numerical simulation of premixed turbulent methane combustion

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Bell, John B.; Day, Marcus S.; Grcar, Joseph F.

2001-01-01

In this paper we study the behavior of a premixed turbulent methane flame in three dimensions using numerical simulation. The simulations are performed using an adaptive time-dependent low Mach number combustion algorithm based on a second-order projection formulation that conserves both species mass and total enthalpy. The species and enthalpy equations are treated using an operator-split approach that incorporates stiff integration techniques for modeling detailed chemical kinetics. The methodology also incorporates a mixture model for differential diffusion. For the simulations presented here, methane chemistry and transport are modeled using the DRM-19 (19-species, 84-reaction) mechanism derived from the GRIMech-1.2 mechanism along with its associated thermodynamics and transport databases. We consider a lean flame with equivalence ratio 0.8 for two different levels of turbulent intensity. For each case we examine the basic structure of the flame including turbulent flame speed and flame surface area. The results indicate that flame wrinkling is the dominant factor leading to the increased turbulent flame speed. Joint probability distributions are computed to establish a correlation between heat release and curvature. We also investigate the effect of turbulent flame interaction on the flame chemistry. We identify specific flame intermediates that are sensitive to turbulence and explore various correlations between these species and local flame curvature. We identify different mechanisms by which turbulence modulates the chemistry of the flame

Modeling of the flame propagation in coal-dust- methane air mixture in an enclosed sphere volume

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Krainov, A Yu; Moiseeva, K M

2016-01-01

The results of the numerical simulation of the flame front propagation in coal-dust- methane-air mixture in an enclosed volume with the ignition source in the center of the volume are presented. The mathematical model is based on a dual-velocity two-phase model of the reacting gas-dispersion medium. The system of equations includes the mass-conversation equation, the impulse-conversation equation, the total energy-conversation equation of the gas and particles taking into account the thermal conductivity and chemical reactions in the gas and on the particle surface, mass-conversation equation of the mixture gas components considering the diffusion and the burn-out and the particle burn-out equation. The influence of the coal particle mass on the pressure in the volume after the mixture burn out and on the burn-out time has been investigated. It has been shown that the burning rate of the coal-dust methane air mixtures depends on the coal particle size. (paper)

A spray flamelet/progress variable approach combined with a transported joint PDF model for turbulent spray flames

Science.gov (United States)

Hu, Yong; Olguin, Hernan; Gutheil, Eva

2017-05-01

A spray flamelet/progress variable approach is developed for use in spray combustion with partly pre-vaporised liquid fuel, where a laminar spray flamelet library accounts for evaporation within the laminar flame structures. For this purpose, the standard spray flamelet formulation for pure evaporating liquid fuel and oxidiser is extended by a chemical reaction progress variable in both the turbulent spray flame model and the laminar spray flame structures, in order to account for the effect of pre-vaporised liquid fuel for instance through use of a pilot flame. This new approach is combined with a transported joint probability density function (PDF) method for the simulation of a turbulent piloted ethanol/air spray flame, and the extension requires the formulation of a joint three-variate PDF depending on the gas phase mixture fraction, the chemical reaction progress variable, and gas enthalpy. The molecular mixing is modelled with the extended interaction-by-exchange-with-the-mean (IEM) model, where source terms account for spray evaporation and heat exchange due to evaporation as well as the chemical reaction rate for the chemical reaction progress variable. This is the first formulation using a spray flamelet model considering both evaporation and partly pre-vaporised liquid fuel within the laminar spray flamelets. Results with this new formulation show good agreement with the experimental data provided by A.R. Masri, Sydney, Australia. The analysis of the Lagrangian statistics of the gas temperature and the OH mass fraction indicates that partially premixed combustion prevails near the nozzle exit of the spray, whereas further downstream, the non-premixed flame is promoted towards the inner rich-side of the spray jet since the pilot flame heats up the premixed inner spray zone. In summary, the simulation with the new formulation considering the reaction progress variable shows good performance, greatly improving the standard formulation, and it provides new

The Characteristics of Methane Combustion Suppression by Water Mist and Its Engineering Applications

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Rongkun Pan

2017-10-01

Full Text Available To safely mine coal, engineers must prevent gas combustion and explosions, as well as seek feasible and reasonable techniques to control for these types of incidents. This paper analyzes the causes and characteristics of methane combustion and explosions. Water mist is proposed to prevent and control methane combustion in an underground confined space. We constructed an experiment platform to investigate the suppression of methane combustion using water mist for different conditions. The experimental results showed that water mist is highly effective for methane flame inhibition. The flame was extinguished with water mist endothermic cooling. However, the annular regions of water vapor around the fire played a vital role in flame extinction. Water from the evaporating mist replaces the oxygen available to the fuel. Additionally, the time required for fuel ignition is prolonged. For these reasons, the water particle action to flame surface is reinforced and the fuel’s reaction with air is delayed. As a result, flame stretching and disturbances occur, which serve to extinguish the flame. Engineering application tests were carried out in the goaf, drill hole and upper-corner to investigate the prevention and control of methane gas combustion, with the results showing a good application effect.

Mechanisms of stabilization and blowoff of a premixed flame downstream of a heat-conducting perforated plate

KAUST Repository

Kedia, Kushal S.; Ghoniem, Ahmed F.

2012-01-01

The objective of this work is to investigate the flame stabilization mechanism and the conditions leading to the blowoff of a laminar premixed flame anchored downstream of a heat-conducting perforated-plate/multi-hole burner, with overall nearly

Laminar burning velocities of near-flammability-limit H{sub 2}-air-steam mixtures

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Loesel Sitar, J V; Chan, C K; Torchia, F; Guerrero, A

1996-12-31

Laminar burning velocities of lean H{sub 2}-air-steam mixtures near the flammability limit were measured by using the pressure-time history of an expanding flame kernel. Although flames in these mixtures are inherently unstable, this difficulty was avoided by using the early pressure rise of the burn. A comparison of results from that method with burning velocities determined from schlieren photographs of the expanding flame kernel gave good agreement. Despite the difficulties, it is believed that the pressure trace method gives results that are useful in modelling reactor accident scenarios. 8 refs., 4 figs.

Manifold methods for methane combustion

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Yang, B.; Pope, S.B. [Cornell Univ., Ithaca, NY (United States)

1995-10-01

Great progresses have been made in combustion research, especially, the computation of laminar flames and the probability density function (PDF) method in turbulent combustion. For one-dimensional laminar flames, by considering the transport mechanism, the detailed chemical kinetic mechanism and the interactions between these two basic processes, today it is a routine matter to calculate flame velocities, extinction, ignition, temperature, and species distributions from the governing equations. Results are in good agreement with those obtained for experiments. However, for turbulent combustion, because of the complexities of turbulent flow, chemical reactions, and the interaction between them, in the foreseeable future, it is impossible to calculate the combustion flow field by directly integrating the basic governing equations. So averaging and modeling are necessary in turbulent combustion studies. Averaging, on one hand, simplifies turbulent combustion calculations, on the other hand, it introduces the infamous closure problems, especially the closure problem with chemical reaction terms. Since in PDF calculations of turbulent combustion, the averages of the chemical reaction terms can be calculated, PDF methods overcome the closure problem with the reaction terms. It has been shown that the PDF method is a most promising method to calculate turbulent combustion. PDF methods have been successfully employed to calculate laboratory turbulent flames: they can predict phenomena such as super equilibrium radical levels, and local extinction. Because of these advantages, PDF methods are becoming used increasingly in industry combustor codes.

Spatial distributions of H, CN, and C2 in a diamond growing oxyacetylene flame

NARCIS (Netherlands)

Klein-Douwel, R.J.H.; Meulen, ter J.J.

1998-01-01

Two-dimensional laser-induced fluorescence (2D-LIF) measurements are applied to the chemical vapor deposition (CVD) of diamond by an oxyacetylene flame to visualize the distributions of atomic hydrogen, C2, and CN in the gas phase during diamond growth. Experiments are carried out in laminar flames

Autoignited and non-autoignited lifted flames of pre-vaporized n-heptane in coflow jets at elevated temperatures

KAUST Repository

Choi, Sangkyu

2013-09-01

The characteristics of laminar lifted flames of pre-vaporized n-heptane in coflow jets were investigated under both non-autoignited and autoignited conditions by varying the initial temperature. The fuel tested was n-heptane considering the importance as a primary reference fuel for gasoline and its low temperature ignition behavior at relatively low pressure. The results showed that the lifted flame edge in the non-autoignited regime had a tribrachial structure with lean and rich premixed flame wings together with a trailing diffusion flame. The liftoff heights correlated reasonably well with the fuel jet velocity scaled by the stoichiometric laminar burning velocity regardless of the initial temperature and the nitrogen dilution. The liftoff velocity multiplied by the buoyancy-induced velocity and the blowout velocity scaled by the mole fraction of the fuel correlated well with the stoichiometric laminar burning velocity. When the initial temperature was above 900. K, flames were autoignited without any external ignition source. Autoignited lifted flames with both tribrachial edges and mild combustion characteristics were observed. The correlation of the liftoff height with the calculated adiabatic ignition delay time was weak, unlike in cases with gaseous fuels of C1-C4 hydrocarbons in which the liftoff height of the autoignited flames correlated well with the square of the adiabatic ignition delay time. When the mole fraction of the fuel was small, mild combustion behaviors were exhibited with edge flames without distinct tribrachial structures. The liftoff height was correlated with the fuel jet velocity scaled by the initial fuel mass fraction, while the dependence on the ignition delay time was weak when compared with the gaseous fuels. © 2013 The Combustion Institute.

Flame acceleration in the early stages of burning in tubes

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Bychkov, Vitaly; Fru, Gordon; Petchenko, Arkady [Institute of Physics, Umeaa University, S-901 87 Umeaa (Sweden); Akkerman, V' yacheslav [Institute of Physics, Umeaa University, S-901 87 Umeaa (Sweden); Nuclear Safety Institute (IBRAE) of Russian Academy of Sciences, B. Tulskaya 52, 115191 Moscow (Russian Federation); Eriksson, Lars-Erik [Department of Applied Mechanics, Chalmers University of Technology, 412 96 Goeteborg (Sweden)

2007-09-15

Acceleration of premixed laminar flames in the early stages of burning in long tubes is considered. The acceleration mechanism was suggested earlier by Clanet and Searby [Combust. Flame 105 (1996) 225]. Acceleration happens due to the initial ignition geometry at the tube axis when a flame develops to a finger-shaped front, with surface area growing exponentially in time. Flame surface area grows quite fast but only for a short time. The analytical theory of flame acceleration is developed, which determines the growth rate, the total acceleration time, and the maximal increase of the flame surface area. Direct numerical simulations of the process are performed for the complete set of combustion equations. The simulations results and the theory are in good agreement with the previous experiments. The numerical simulations also demonstrate flame deceleration, which follows acceleration, and the so-called ''tulip flames''. (author)

Observation of multi-scale oscillation of laminar lifted flames with low-frequency AC electric fields

KAUST Repository

Ryu, Seol

2010-01-01

The oscillation behavior of laminar lifted flames under the influence of low-frequency AC has been investigated experimentally in coflow jets. Various oscillation modes were existed depending on jet velocity and the voltage and frequency of AC, especially when the AC frequency was typically smaller than 30 Hz. Three different oscillation modes were observed: (1) large-scale oscillation with the oscillation frequency of about 0.1 Hz, which was independent of the applied AC frequency, (2) small-scale oscillation synchronized to the applied AC frequency, and (3) doubly-periodic oscillation with small-scale oscillation embedded in large-scale oscillation. As the AC frequency decreased from 30 Hz, the oscillation modes were in the order of the large-scale oscillation, doubly-periodic oscillation, and small-scale oscillation. The onset of the oscillation for the AC frequency smaller than 30 Hz was in close agreement with the delay time scale for the ionic wind effect to occur, that is, the collision response time. Frequency-doubling behavior for the small-scale oscillation has also been observed. Possible mechanisms for the large-scale oscillation and the frequency-doubling behavior have been discussed, although the detailed understanding of the underlying mechanisms will be a future study. © 2009 The Combustion Institute.

Control of confined nonpremixed flames using a microjet

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Sinha, Ashok; Ganguly, Ranjan; Puri, Ishwar K.

2005-01-01

Industrial burners, such as those used in materials processing furnaces, require precise control over the flame length, width, overall shape and other physical flame attributes. The mechanism used to control the flame topology should be relatively simple, safe, and devoid of an emissions penalty. We have explored the feasibility of hydrodynamic control of confined nonpremixed flames by injecting air through a high-momentum microjet. An innovative strategy for the control of flame shape and luminosity is demonstrated based on a high-momentum coaxial microjet injected along the center of a confined nonpremixed flame burning in a coflowing oxidizer stream. The introduction of the microjet shortens a nonpremixed flame and reduces the amplitude of the buoyancy-induced flickering. For a microjet-assisted flame, the flame length is more sensitive to the fuel flowrate than for laminar or turbulent nonpremixed flames. This provides greater flexibility for the dynamic control of their flame lengths. Measurements of NO x and CO emissions show that the method is robust. Effective flame control without an emissions penalty is possible over a large range of microjet velocities that significantly alter the flame shape. Since the influence of the microjet is primarily of a hydrodynamic nature, inert microjet fluids like recirculated exhaust gas can also be used in practical devices

Control of confined nonpremixed flames using a microjet

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Sinha, A.; Puri, I.K. [Virginia Polytechnic Inst. and State Univ., Blacksburg, VA (United States). Dept. of Engineering Science and Mechanics; Ganguly, R. [Virginia Polytechnic Inst. and State Univ., Blacksburg, VA (United States). Dept. of Engineering Science and Mechanics; Jadavpur Univ., Calcutta (India). Dept. of Power Engineering

2005-06-01

Industrial burners, such as those used in materials processing furnaces, require precise control over the flame length, width, overall shape and other physical flame attributes. The mechanism used to control the flame topology should be relatively simple, safe, and devoid of an emissions penalty. We have explored the feasibility of hydrodynamic control of confined nonpremixed flames by injecting air through a high-momentum microjet. An innovative strategy for the control of flame shape and luminosity is demonstrated based on a high-momentum coaxial microjet injected along the center of a confined nonpremixed flame burning in a coflowing oxidizer stream. The introduction of the microjet shortens a nonpremixed flame and reduces the amplitude of the buoyancy-induced flickering. For a microjet-assisted flame, the flame length is more sensitive to the fuel flowrate than for laminar or turbulent nonpremixed flames. This provides greater flexibility for the dynamic control of their flame lengths. Measurements of NO{sub x} and CO emissions show that the method is robust. Effective flame control without an emissions penalty is possible over a large range of microjet velocities that significantly alter the flame shape. Since the influence of the microjet is primarily of a hydrodynamic nature, inert microjet fluids like recirculated exhaust gas can also be used in practical devices. (Author)

Flame Quenching Dynamics of High Velocity Flames in Rectangular Cross-section Channels

KAUST Repository

Mahuthannan, Ariff Magdoom; Lacoste, Deanna; Damazo, Jason; Kwon, Eddie; Roberts, William L.

2017-01-01

Understanding flame quenching for different conditions is necessary to develop safety devices like flame arrestors. In practical applications, the speed of a deflagration in the lab-fixed reference frame will be a strong function of the geometry through which the deflagration propagates. This study reports on the effect of the flame speed, at the entrance of a quenching section, on the quenching distance. A 2D rectangular channel joining two main spherical vessels is considered for studying this effect. Two different velocity regimes are investigated and referred to as configurations A, and B. For configuration A, the velocity of the flame is 20 m/s, while it is about 100 m/s for configuration B. Methane-air stoichiometric mixtures at 1 bar and 298 K are used. Simultaneous dynamic pressure measurements along with schlieren imaging are used to analyze the quenching of the flame. Risk assessment of re-ignition is also reported and analyzed.

Flame Quenching Dynamics of High Velocity Flames in Rectangular Cross-section Channels

KAUST Repository

Mahuthannan, Ariff Magdoom

2017-01-05

Understanding flame quenching for different conditions is necessary to develop safety devices like flame arrestors. In practical applications, the speed of a deflagration in the lab-fixed reference frame will be a strong function of the geometry through which the deflagration propagates. This study reports on the effect of the flame speed, at the entrance of a quenching section, on the quenching distance. A 2D rectangular channel joining two main spherical vessels is considered for studying this effect. Two different velocity regimes are investigated and referred to as configurations A, and B. For configuration A, the velocity of the flame is 20 m/s, while it is about 100 m/s for configuration B. Methane-air stoichiometric mixtures at 1 bar and 298 K are used. Simultaneous dynamic pressure measurements along with schlieren imaging are used to analyze the quenching of the flame. Risk assessment of re-ignition is also reported and analyzed.

Understanding and predicting soot generation in turbulent non-premixed jet flames.

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Wang, Hai (University of Southern California, Los Angeles, CA); Kook, Sanghoon; Doom, Jeffrey; Oefelein, Joseph Charles; Zhang, Jiayao; Shaddix, Christopher R.; Schefer, Robert W.; Pickett, Lyle M.

2010-10-01

This report documents the results of a project funded by DoD's Strategic Environmental Research and Development Program (SERDP) on the science behind development of predictive models for soot emission from gas turbine engines. Measurements of soot formation were performed in laminar flat premixed flames and turbulent non-premixed jet flames at 1 atm pressure and in turbulent liquid spray flames under representative conditions for takeoff in a gas turbine engine. The laminar flames and open jet flames used both ethylene and a prevaporized JP-8 surrogate fuel composed of n-dodecane and m-xylene. The pressurized turbulent jet flame measurements used the JP-8 surrogate fuel and compared its combustion and sooting characteristics to a world-average JP-8 fuel sample. The pressurized jet flame measurements demonstrated that the surrogate was representative of JP-8, with a somewhat higher tendency to soot formation. The premixed flame measurements revealed that flame temperature has a strong impact on the rate of soot nucleation and particle coagulation, but little sensitivity in the overall trends was found with different fuels. An extensive array of non-intrusive optical and laser-based measurements was performed in turbulent non-premixed jet flames established on specially designed piloted burners. Soot concentration data was collected throughout the flames, together with instantaneous images showing the relationship between soot and the OH radical and soot and PAH. A detailed chemical kinetic mechanism for ethylene combustion, including fuel-rich chemistry and benzene formation steps, was compiled, validated, and reduced. The reduced ethylene mechanism was incorporated into a high-fidelity LES code, together with a moment-based soot model and models for thermal radiation, to evaluate the ability of the chemistry and soot models to predict soot formation in the jet diffusion flame. The LES results highlight the importance of including an optically-thick radiation

Experimental and modelling study of the effect of elevated pressure on ethane and propane flames

NARCIS (Netherlands)

Goswami, M.; Bastiaans, R.J.M.; de Goey, L.P.H.; Konnov, A.A.

2016-01-01

Laminar burning velocities, SL, of ethane + air and propane + air flames within an equivalence ratio range between 0.8 and 1.3 were determined at atmospheric and elevated pressures up to 4 atm. Measurements were performed in non-stretched flames, stabilized on a perforated plate burner at adiabatic

New insights into methane-oxygen ion chemistry

KAUST Repository

Alquaity, Awad B.S.; Chen, Bingjie; Han, Jie; Selim, Hatem; Belhi, Memdouh; Karakaya, Yasin; Kasper, Tina; Sarathy, Mani; Bisetti, Fabrizio; Farooq, Aamir

2016-01-01

External electric fields may reduce emissions and improve combustion efficiency by active control of combustion processes. In-depth, quantitative understanding of ion chemistry in flames enables predictive models to describe the effect of external electric fields on combustion plasma. This study presents detailed cation profile measurements in low-pressure, burner-stabilized, methane/oxygen/argon flames. A quadrupole molecular beam mass spectrometer (MBMS) coupled to a low-pressure (P =30Torr) combustion chamber was utilized to measure ion signals as a function of height above the burner. Lean, stoichiometric and rich flames were examined to evaluate the dependence of ion chemistry on flame stoichiometry. Additionally, for the first time, cataloging of flame cations is performed using a high mass resolution time-of-flight mass spectrometer (TOF-MS) to distinguish ions with the same nominal mass. In the lean and stoichiometric flames, the dominant ions were HO, CHO , CHO, CHO and CHO, whereas large signals were measured for HO, CH and CHO in the rich flame. The spatial distribution of cations was compared with results from numerical simulations constrained by thermocouple-measured flame temperatures. Across all flames, the predicted HO decay rate was noticeably faster than observed experimentally. Sensitivity analysis showed that the mole fraction of HO is most sensitive to the rate of chemi-ionization CH+O↔CHO +E. To our knowledge, this work represents the first detailed measurements of positive ions in canonical low-pressure methane flames.

New insights into methane-oxygen ion chemistry

KAUST Repository

Alquaity, Awad B.S.

2016-06-15

External electric fields may reduce emissions and improve combustion efficiency by active control of combustion processes. In-depth, quantitative understanding of ion chemistry in flames enables predictive models to describe the effect of external electric fields on combustion plasma. This study presents detailed cation profile measurements in low-pressure, burner-stabilized, methane/oxygen/argon flames. A quadrupole molecular beam mass spectrometer (MBMS) coupled to a low-pressure (P =30Torr) combustion chamber was utilized to measure ion signals as a function of height above the burner. Lean, stoichiometric and rich flames were examined to evaluate the dependence of ion chemistry on flame stoichiometry. Additionally, for the first time, cataloging of flame cations is performed using a high mass resolution time-of-flight mass spectrometer (TOF-MS) to distinguish ions with the same nominal mass. In the lean and stoichiometric flames, the dominant ions were HO, CHO , CHO, CHO and CHO, whereas large signals were measured for HO, CH and CHO in the rich flame. The spatial distribution of cations was compared with results from numerical simulations constrained by thermocouple-measured flame temperatures. Across all flames, the predicted HO decay rate was noticeably faster than observed experimentally. Sensitivity analysis showed that the mole fraction of HO is most sensitive to the rate of chemi-ionization CH+O↔CHO +E. To our knowledge, this work represents the first detailed measurements of positive ions in canonical low-pressure methane flames.

Prediction of autoignition in a lifted methane/air flame using an unsteady flamelet/progress variable model

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Ihme, Matthias; See, Yee Chee [Department of Aerospace Engineering, University of Michigan, Ann Arbor, MI 48109 (United States)

2010-10-15

An unsteady flamelet/progress variable (UFPV) model has been developed for the prediction of autoignition in turbulent lifted flames. The model is a consistent extension to the steady flamelet/progress variable (SFPV) approach, and employs an unsteady flamelet formulation to describe the transient evolution of all thermochemical quantities during the flame ignition process. In this UFPV model, all thermochemical quantities are parameterized by mixture fraction, reaction progress parameter, and stoichiometric scalar dissipation rate, eliminating the explicit dependence on a flamelet time scale. An a priori study is performed to analyze critical modeling assumptions that are associated with the population of the flamelet state space. For application to LES, the UFPV model is combined with a presumed PDF closure to account for subgrid contributions of mixture fraction and reaction progress variable. The model was applied in LES of a lifted methane/air flame. Additional calculations were performed to quantify the interaction between turbulence and chemistry a posteriori. Simulation results obtained from these calculations are compared with experimental data. Compared to the SFPV results, the unsteady flamelet/progress variable model captures the autoignition process, and good agreement with measurements is obtained for mixture fraction, temperature, and species mass fractions. From the analysis of scatter data and mixture fraction-conditional results it is shown that the turbulence/chemistry interaction delays the ignition process towards lower values of scalar dissipation rate, and a significantly larger region in the flamelet state space is occupied during the ignition process. (author)

Laser-Induced Breakdown Spectroscopy (LIBS) for the Measurement of Spatial Structures and Fuel Distribution in Flames.

Science.gov (United States)

Kotzagianni, Maria; Kakkava, Eirini; Couris, Stelios

2016-04-01

Laser-induced breakdown spectroscopy (LIBS) is used for the mapping of local structures (i.e., reactants and products zones) and for the determination of fuel distribution by means of the local equivalence ratio ϕ in laminar, premixed air-hydrocarbon flames. The determination of laser threshold energy to induce breakdown in the different zones of flames is employed for the identification and demarcation of the local structures of a premixed laminar flame, while complementary results about fuel concentration were obtained from measurements of the cyanogen (CN) band Β(2)Σ(+)--Χ(2)Σ(+), (Δυ = 0) at 388.3 nm and the ratio of the atomic lines of hydrogen (Hα) and oxygen (O(I)), Hα/O. The combination of these LIBS-based methods provides a relatively simple to use, rapid, and accurate tool for online and in situ combustion diagnostics, providing valuable information about the fuel distribution and the spatial variations of the local structures of a flame. © The Author(s) 2016.

Flame oscillations in tubes with nonslip at the walls

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Akkerman, V' yacheslav; Bychkov, Vitaly; Petchenko, Arkady [Institute of Physics, Umeaa University, SE-901 87 Umeaa (Sweden); Eriksson, Lars-Erik [Department of Applied Mechanics, Chalmers University of Technology, 412 96 Goeteborg (Sweden)

2006-06-15

A laminar premixed flame front propagating in a two-dimensional tube is considered with nonslip at the walls and with both ends open. The problem of flame propagation is solved using direct numerical simulations of the complete set of hydrodynamic equations including thermal conduction, diffusion, viscosity, and chemical kinetics. As a result, it is shown that flame interaction with the walls leads to the oscillating regime of burning. The oscillations involve variations of the curved flame shape and the velocity of flame propagation. The oscillation parameters depend on the characteristic tube width, which controls the Reynolds number of the flow. In narrow tubes the oscillations are rather weak, while in wider tubes they become stronger with well-pronounced nonlinear effects. The period of oscillations increases for wider tubes, while the average flame length scaled by the tube diameter decreases only slightly with increasing tube width. The average flame length calculated in the present work is in agreement with that obtained in the experiments. Numerical results reduce the gap between the theory of turbulent flames and the experiments on turbulent combustion in tubes. (author)

Mechanism of the flame ionization detector. II. Isotope effects and heteroatom effects

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Holm, Torkil

1997-01-01

The relative molar flame ionization detecton (FID) response (RMR) for a hydrocarbon does not change when deuterium is substituted for hydrogen. The exception is methane for which an inverse deuterium effect of 3..5% is observed for tetradeuteriomethane. [13C]Methane shows an inverse isotope effect...... of 2%. The reason for the small or non-existent isotope effects is that H/2H exchange takes place in the pre-combustion hydrogenolysis in the flame. This was shown by taking samples from the lower part of the flame by means of a fused silica capillary probe. By the same technique the hydrogenolytic...

Stretch rate effects and flame surface densities in premixed turbulent combustion up to 1.25 MPa

KAUST Repository

Bagdanavicius, Audrius

2015-11-01

Independent research at two centres using a burner and an explosion bomb has revealed important aspects of turbulent premixed flame structure. Measurements at pressures and temperatures up to 1.25MPa and 673K in the two rigs were aimed at quantifying the influences of flame stretch rate and strain rate Markstein number, Masr , on both turbulent burning velocity and flame surface density. That on burning velocity is expressed through the stretch rate factor, Io , or probability of burning, Pb 0.5. These depend on Masr , but they grow in importance as the Karlovitz stretch factor, K, increases, and are evaluated from the associated burning velocity data. Planar laser tomography was employed to identify contours of reaction progress variable in both rigs. These enabled both an appropriate flame front for the measurement of the turbulent burning velocity to be identified, and flame surface densities, with the associated factors, to be evaluated. In the explosion measurements, these parameters were derived also from the flame surface area, the derived Pb 0.5 factor and the measured turbulent burning velocities. In the burner measurement they were calculated directly from the flame surface density, which was derived from the flame contours.A new overall correlation is derived for the Pb 0.5 factor, in terms of Masr at different K and this is discussed in the light of previous theoretical studies. The wrinkled flame surface area normalised by the area associated with the turbulent burning velocity measurement, and the ratio of turbulent to laminar burning velocity, ut /ul , are also evaluated. The higher the value of Pb0.5, the more effective is an increased flame wrinkling in increasing ut /ul A correlation of the product of k and the laminar flame thickness with Karlovitz stretch factor and Markstein number is explored using the present data and those of other workers. Some generality is revealed, enabling the wave length associated with the spatial change in mean

Stretch rate effects and flame surface densities in premixed turbulent combustion up to 1.25 MPa

KAUST Repository

Bagdanavicius, Audrius; Bowen, Phil J.; Bradley, Derek; Lawes, Malcolm; Mansour, Morkous S.

2015-01-01

Independent research at two centres using a burner and an explosion bomb has revealed important aspects of turbulent premixed flame structure. Measurements at pressures and temperatures up to 1.25MPa and 673K in the two rigs were aimed at quantifying the influences of flame stretch rate and strain rate Markstein number, Masr , on both turbulent burning velocity and flame surface density. That on burning velocity is expressed through the stretch rate factor, Io , or probability of burning, Pb 0.5. These depend on Masr , but they grow in importance as the Karlovitz stretch factor, K, increases, and are evaluated from the associated burning velocity data. Planar laser tomography was employed to identify contours of reaction progress variable in both rigs. These enabled both an appropriate flame front for the measurement of the turbulent burning velocity to be identified, and flame surface densities, with the associated factors, to be evaluated. In the explosion measurements, these parameters were derived also from the flame surface area, the derived Pb 0.5 factor and the measured turbulent burning velocities. In the burner measurement they were calculated directly from the flame surface density, which was derived from the flame contours.A new overall correlation is derived for the Pb 0.5 factor, in terms of Masr at different K and this is discussed in the light of previous theoretical studies. The wrinkled flame surface area normalised by the area associated with the turbulent burning velocity measurement, and the ratio of turbulent to laminar burning velocity, ut /ul , are also evaluated. The higher the value of Pb0.5, the more effective is an increased flame wrinkling in increasing ut /ul A correlation of the product of k and the laminar flame thickness with Karlovitz stretch factor and Markstein number is explored using the present data and those of other workers. Some generality is revealed, enabling the wave length associated with the spatial change in mean

Influence of Pilot Flame Parameters on the Stability of Turbulent Jet Flames

KAUST Repository

Guiberti, Thibault F.

2016-11-08

This paper presents a comprehensive study of the effects of pilot parameters on flame stability in a turbulent jet flame. The Sydney inhomogeneous piloted burner is employed as the experimental platform with two main fuels, namely, compressed natural gas and liquefied petroleum gas. Various concentrations of five gases are used in the pilot stream, hydrogen, acetylene, oxygen, nitrogen, and argon, to enable a sufficient range in exploring the following parameters: pilot heat release, temperature, burnt gas velocity, equivalence ratio, and H/C ratio. The experimental results are mainly presented in the form of blow-off limits and supported by simple calculations, which simulate various conditions of the pilot–mixture interface. It is found that increasing the pilot adiabatic flame temperature benefits the flame stability and has an even greater influence than the heat release, which is also known to enhance the blow-off limits. Conversely, increasing the pilot burnt gas velocity reduces the blow-off velocity, except for the limiting case when the jet is fully non-premixed. The H/C ratio has negligible effects, while resorting to lean pilots significantly increases the stability of globally rich partially premixed and premixed jets. Such findings are consistent with trends obtained from laminar flame calculations for rich fuel/air mixtures issuing against hot combustion products to simulate the pilot stream.

Hydrodynamic model of hydrogen-flame propagation in reactor vessels

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Baer, M.R.; Ratzel, A.C.

1982-01-01

A hydrodynamic model for hydrogen flame propagation in reactor geometries is presented. This model is consistent with the theory of slow combustion in which the gasdynamic field equations are treated in the limit of small Mach numbers. To the lowest order, pressure is spatially uniform. The flame is treated as a density and entropy discontinuity which propagates at prescribed burning velocities, corresponding to laminar or turbulent flames. Radiation cooling of the burned combustion gases and possible preheating of the unburned gases during propagation of the flame is included using a molecular gas-band thermal radiation model. Application of this model has been developed for 1-D variable area flame propagation. Multidimensional effects induced by hydrodynamics and buoyancy are introduced as a correction to the burn velocity (which reflects a modification of planar flame surface to a distorted surface) using experimentally measured pressure-rise time data for hydrogen/air deflagrations in cylindrical vessels

Two different approaches for creating a prescribed opposed-flow velocity field for flame spread experiments

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Carmignani Luca

2015-01-01

Full Text Available Opposed-flow flame spread over solid fuels is a fundamental area of research in fire science. Typically combustion wind tunnels are used to generate the opposing flow of oxidizer against which a laminar flame spread occurs along the fuel samples. The spreading flame is generally embedded in a laminar boundary layer, which interacts with the strong buoyancy-induced flow to affect the mechanism of flame spread. In this work, two different approaches for creating the opposed-flow are compared. In the first approach, a vertical combustion tunnel is used where a thin fuel sample, thin acrylic or ashless filter paper, is held vertically along the axis of the test-section with the airflow controlled by controlling the duty cycles of four fans. As the sample is ignited, a flame spreads downward in a steady manner along a developing boundary layer. In the second approach, the sample is held in a movable cart placed in an eight-meter tall vertical chamber filled with air. As the sample is ignited, the cart is moved downward (through a remote-controlled mechanism at a prescribed velocity. The results from the two approaches are compared to establish the boundary layer effect on flame spread over thin fuels.

An experimental investigation on self-acceleration of cellular spherical flames

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Wu, Fujia; Jomaas, Grunde; Law, Chung K.

2013-01-01

, whether it could also be self-turbulizing. Extensive experiments at elevated pressures and thereby reduced laminar flame thicknesses and enhanced propensity to exhibit Darrieus-Landau instability were conducted for hydrogen/air mixtures over an extensive range of equivalence ratios. The results...

Turbulent combustion modelization via a tabulation method of detailed kinetic chemistry coupled to Probability Density Function. Application to aeronautical engines; Modelisation de la combustion turbulente via une methode tabulation de la cinetique chimique detaillee couplee a des fonctions densites de probabilite. Application aux foyers aeronautiques

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Rullaud, M

2004-06-01

A new modelization of turbulent combustion is proposed with detailed chemistry and probability density functions (PDFs). The objective is to capture temperature and species concentrations, mainly the CO. The PCM-FTC model, Presumed Conditional Moment - Flame Tabulated Chemistry, is based on the tabulation of laminar premixed and diffusion flames to capture partial pre-mixing present in aeronautical engines. The presumed PDFs is introduced to predict averaged values. The tabulation method is based on the analysis of the chemical structure of laminar premixed and diffusion flames. Hypothesis are presented, tested and validated with Sandia experimental data jet flames. Then, the model is introduced in a turbulent flow simulation software. Three configurations are retained to quantify the level of prediction of this formulation: the D and F-Flames of Sandia and lifted jet flames of methane/air of Stanford. A good agreement is observed between experiments and simulations. The validity of this method is then demonstrated. (author)

Mechanism of the flame ionization detector. II. Isotope effects and heteroatom effects

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Holm, Torkil

1997-01-01

reactions in the hydrogen flame of compounds added to the hydrogen gas in low concentrations were followed. Alcohols, ethers, ketones, and esters all produced methane and carbon monoxide, while amines produced methane and hydrogen cyanide, halogen compounds methane and hydrogen halide, etc. The FID response...

Variations in non-thermal NO formation pathways in alcohol flames

KAUST Repository

Bohon, Myles; Guiberti, Thibault F.; Sarathy, Mani; Roberts, William L.

2016-01-01

This work investigates the formation of NO in a range of laminar, premixed, burner-stabilized C1 to C3 alcohol and alkane flames, in the equivalence ratio between 0.8 and 1.2. Measurements of temperature and NO concentration were conducted

Temperature measurements in a wall stabilized steady flame using CARS

KAUST Repository

Sesha Giri, Krishna

2017-01-05

Flame quenching by heat loss to a surface continues to be an active area of combustion research. Close wall temperature measurements in an isothermal wall-stabilized flame are reported in this work. Conventional N-vibrational Coherent Anti-Stokes Raman Scattering (CARS) thermometry as close as 275 μm to a convex wall cooled with water has been carried out. The standard deviation of mean temperatures is observed to be ~6.5% for high temperatures (>2000K) and ~14% in the lower range (<500K). Methane/air and ethylene/air stoichiometric flames for various global strain rates based on exit bulk velocities are plotted and compared. CH* chemiluminescence is employed to determine the flame location relative to the wall. Flame locations are shown to move closer to the wall with increasing strain rates in addition to higher near-wall temperatures. Peak temperatures for ethylene are considerably higher (~250-300K) than peak temperatures for methane. Preheat zone profiles are similar for different strain rates across fuels. This work demonstrates close wall precise temperature measurments using CARS.

30 CFR 75.1106-1 - Test for methane.

Science.gov (United States)

2010-07-01

... 30 Mineral Resources 1 2010-07-01 2010-07-01 false Test for methane. 75.1106-1 Section 75.1106-1... MANDATORY SAFETY STANDARDS-UNDERGROUND COAL MINES Fire Protection § 75.1106-1 Test for methane. Until December 31, 1970, a permissible flame safety lamp may be used to make tests for methane required by the...

Dual-resolution Raman spectroscopy for measurements of temperature and twelve species in hydrocarbon–air flames

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Magnotti, Gaetano; Barlow, Robert S.

2016-07-12

This study introduces dual-resolution Raman spectroscopy as a novel diagnostics approach for measurements of temperature and species in flames where multiple hydrocarbons are present. Simultaneous measurement of multiple hydrocarbons is challenging because their vibrational Raman spectra in the C–H stretch region are closely overlapped and are not well known over the range of temperature encountered in flames. Overlap between the hydrocarbon spectra is mitigated by adding a second spectrometer, with a higher dispersion grating, to collect the Raman spectra in the C–H stretch region. A dual-resolution Raman spectroscopy instrument has been developed and optimized for measurements of major species (N₂, O₂, H₂O, CO₂, CO, H₂, DME) and major combustion intermediates (CH₄, CH₂O, C₂H₂, C₂H₄ and C₂H₆) in DME–air flames. The temperature dependences of the hydrocarbon Raman spectra over fixed spectral regions have been determined through a series of measurements in laminar Bunsen-burner flames, and have been used to extend a library of previously acquired Raman spectra up to flame temperature. The paper presents the first Raman measurements of up to twelve species in hydrocarbon flames, and the first quantitative Raman measurements of formaldehyde in flames. Lastly, the accuracy and precision of the instrument are determined from measurements in laminar flames and the applicability of the instrument to turbulent DME–air flames is discussed.

Turbulent Jet Flames Into a Vitiated Coflow. PhD Thesis awarded Spring 2003

Science.gov (United States)

Holdeman, James D. (Technical Monitor); Cabra, Ricardo

2004-01-01

Examined is the vitiated coflow flame, an experimental condition that decouples the combustion processes of flows found in practical combustors from the associated recirculating fluid mechanics. The configuration consists of a 4.57 mm diameter fuel jet into a coaxial flow of hot combustion products from a lean premixed flame. The 210 mm diameter coflow isolates the jet flame from the cool ambient, providing a hot environment similar to the operating conditions of advanced combustors; this important high temperature element is lacking in the traditional laboratory experiments of jet flames into cool (room) air. A family of flows of increasing complexity is presented: 1) nonreacting flow, 2) all hydrogen flame (fuel jet and premixed coflow), and 3) set of methane flames. This sequence of experiments provides a convenient ordering of validation data for combustion models. Laser Raman-Rayleigh-LIF diagnostics at the Turbulent Diffusion Flame laboratory of Sandia National Laboratories produced instantaneous multiscalar point measurements. These results attest to the attractive features of the vitiated coflow burner and the well-defined boundary conditions provided by the coflow. The coflow is uniform and steady, isolating the jet flame from the laboratory air for a downstream distance ranging from z/d = 50-70. The statistical results show that differential diffusion effects in this highly turbulent flow are negligible. Complementing the comprehensive set of multiscalar measurements is a parametric study of lifted methane flames that was conducted to analyze flame sensitivity to jet and coflow velocity, as well as coflow temperature. The linear relationship found between the lift-off height and the jet velocity is consistent with previous experiments. New linear sensitivities were found correlating the lift-off height to coflow velocity and temperature. A blow-off study revealed that the methane flame blows off at a common coflow temperature (1260 K), regardless of

A two-step chemical scheme for kerosene-air premixed flames

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Franzelli, B.; Riber, E.; Sanjose, M. [CERFACS, CFD Team, 42 Avenue G. Coriolis, 31057 Toulouse Cedex 01 (France); Poinsot, T. [IMFT-UMR 5502, allee du Professeur Camille Soula, 31400 Toulouse (France)

2010-07-15

A reduced two-step scheme (called 2S-KERO-BFER) for kerosene-air premixed flames is presented in the context of Large Eddy Simulation of reacting turbulent flows in industrial applications. The chemical mechanism is composed of two reactions corresponding to the fuel oxidation into CO and H{sub 2}O, and the CO - CO{sub 2} equilibrium. To ensure the validity of the scheme for rich combustion, the pre-exponential constants of the two reactions are tabulated versus the local equivalence ratio. The fuel and oxidizer exponents are chosen to guarantee the correct dependence of laminar flame speed with pressure. Due to a lack of experimental results, the detailed mechanism of Dagaut composed of 209 species and 1673 reactions, and the skeletal mechanism of Luche composed of 91 species and 991 reactions have been used to validate the reduced scheme. Computations of one-dimensional laminar flames have been performed with the 2S{sub K}ERO{sub B}FER scheme using the CANTERA and COSILAB softwares for a wide range of pressure ([1; 12] atm), fresh gas temperature ([300; 700] K), and equivalence ratio ([0.6; 2.0]). Results show that the flame speed is correctly predicted for the whole range of parameters, showing a maximum for stoichiometric flames, a decrease for rich combustion and a satisfactory pressure dependence. The burnt gas temperature and the dilution by Exhaust Gas Recirculation are also well reproduced. Moreover, the results for ignition delay time are in good agreement with the experiments. (author)

Augmenting the Structures in a Swirling Flame via Diffusive Injection

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Jonathan Lewis

2014-01-01

Full Text Available Small scale experimentation using particle image velocimetry investigated the effect of the diffusive injection of methane, air, and carbon dioxide on the coherent structures in a swirling flame. The interaction between the high momentum flow region (HMFR and central recirculation zone (CRZ of the flame is a potential cause of combustion induced vortex breakdown (CIVB and occurs when the HMFR squeezes the CRZ, resulting in upstream propagation. The diffusive introduction of methane or carbon dioxide through a central injector increased the size and velocity of the CRZ relative to the HMFR whilst maintaining flame stability, reducing the likelihood of CIVB occurring. The diffusive injection of air had an opposing effect, reducing the size and velocity of the CRZ prior to eradicating it completely. This would also prevent combustion induced vortex breakdown CIVB occurring as a CRZ is fundamental to the process; however, without recirculation it would create an inherently unstable flame.

Experimental investigation of laminar LPG-H{sub 2} jet diffusion flame with preheated reactants

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

D.P. Mishra; P. Kumar [Indian Institute of Technology, Kanpur (India). Combustion Laboratory, Department of Aerospace Engineering

2008-10-15

This paper presents an experimental investigation of the effect of H{sub 2} addition on flame length, soot free length fraction (SFLF), flame radiant fraction, gas temperature and emission level in LPG-H{sub 2} composite fuel jet diffusion flame for two preheated cases namely, (i) preheated air and (ii) preheated air and fuel. Results show that the H{sub 2} addition leads to a reduction in flame length which may be caused due to an increased gas temperature. Besides this, the flame length is also observed to be reduced with increasing reactants temperature. The soot free length fraction (SFLF) increases as H{sub 2} is added to fuel stream. This might have been caused by decrease in the C/H ratio in the flame and is favorable to attenuate PAH formation rate. Interestingly, the SFLF is observed to be reduced with increasing reactants temperature that may be due to reduction in induction period of soot formation caused by enhanced flame temperature. Moreover, the decreased radiant heat fraction with hydrogen addition is pertinent with the reduction in soot concentration level. The reduction in NOx emission level with H{sub 2} addition to the fuel stream is also observed. On the contrary, NOx emission level is found to be enhanced significantly with reactant temperature that can be attributed to the increase in thermal NOx through Zeldovich mechanism. 31 refs., 4 figs., 2 tabs.

Analysis of energy efficiency of methane and hydrogen-methane blends in a PFI/DI SI research engine

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Catapano, F.; Di Iorio, S.; Sementa, P.; Vaglieco, B.M.

2016-01-01

In the last years, even more attention was paid to the alternative fuels that allow both reducing the fossil fuel consumption and the pollutant emissions. Gaseous fuels like methane and hydrogen are the most interesting in terms of engine application. This paper reports a comparison between methane and different methane/hydrogen mixtures in a single-cylinder Port Fuel/Direct Injection spark ignition (PFI/DI SI) engine operating under steady state conditions. It is representative of the gasoline engine for automotive application. Engine performance and exhaust emissions were evaluated. Moreover, 2D-digital cycle resolved imaging was performed with high spatial and temporal resolution in the combustion chamber. In particular, it allows characterizing the combustion by means of the flame propagation in terms of mean radius and velocity. Moreover, the interaction of turbulence with the local flame was evaluated. For both the engine configurations, it was observed that the addition of hydrogen results in a more efficient combustion, even though the engine configuration plays an important role. In PFI mode, the lower density of hydrogen causes a lower energy input. In DI mode, instead, the larger hydrogen diffusivity counteracts the charge stratification especially for larger hydrogen content. - Highlights: • The effect of hydrogen on methane combustion was investigated in an optical PFI/DI SI engine. • The effect of hydrogen addition for PFI and DI configurations was evaluated on the same engine. • The flame front propagation was characterized by means of 2-D digital imaging.

Instability and electrical response of small laminar coflow diffusion flames under AC electric fields: Toroidal vortex formation and oscillating and spinning flames

KAUST Repository

Xiong, Yuan; Chung, Suk-Ho; Cha, Min

2016-01-01

Dynamical and electrical responses of a small coflow diffusion flame were investigated by applying a high-voltage alternating current (AC), to a fuel jet nozzle. High-speed imaging and electrical diagnostics were adopted to capture flame dynamics and electrical signals, such as voltage (V ), frequency (f ) and current (I ). In the V -f domain of 0-5kV and 0-5kHz, AC-driven instabilities, resulting in various flame modes such as an oscillation, pinch-off and spinning of flames were identified. Characteristic frequency of each mode was determined and a visualization of near-nozzle flow structures suggested a close causality of initial counter-rotating vortices (inner and outer toroidal vortices - ITV and OTV), to the other observed flame. An axisymmetric ITV shedding was identified within oscillating and pinch-off modes, while asymmetric ITV shedding was identified with the spinning mode. Integrated electric power over several AC periods correlated well with variation in the flame surface area for these instabilities, demonstrating that measured electric power is a potential indicator of combustion instabilities in electric-field-assisted combustion.

Instability and electrical response of small laminar coflow diffusion flames under AC electric fields: Toroidal vortex formation and oscillating and spinning flames

KAUST Repository

Xiong, Yuan

2016-06-24

Dynamical and electrical responses of a small coflow diffusion flame were investigated by applying a high-voltage alternating current (AC), to a fuel jet nozzle. High-speed imaging and electrical diagnostics were adopted to capture flame dynamics and electrical signals, such as voltage (V ), frequency (f ) and current (I ). In the V -f domain of 0-5kV and 0-5kHz, AC-driven instabilities, resulting in various flame modes such as an oscillation, pinch-off and spinning of flames were identified. Characteristic frequency of each mode was determined and a visualization of near-nozzle flow structures suggested a close causality of initial counter-rotating vortices (inner and outer toroidal vortices - ITV and OTV), to the other observed flame. An axisymmetric ITV shedding was identified within oscillating and pinch-off modes, while asymmetric ITV shedding was identified with the spinning mode. Integrated electric power over several AC periods correlated well with variation in the flame surface area for these instabilities, demonstrating that measured electric power is a potential indicator of combustion instabilities in electric-field-assisted combustion.

Analysis of flame acceleration in open or vented obstructed pipes

Science.gov (United States)

Bychkov, Vitaly; Sadek, Jad; Akkerman, V'yacheslav

2017-01-01

While flame propagation through obstacles is often associated with turbulence and/or shocks, Bychkov et al. [V. Bychkov et al., Phys. Rev. Lett. 101, 164501 (2008), 10.1103/PhysRevLett.101.164501] have revealed a shockless, conceptually laminar mechanism of extremely fast flame acceleration in semiopen obstructed pipes (one end of a pipe is closed; a flame is ignited at the closed end and propagates towards the open one). The acceleration is devoted to a powerful jet flow produced by delayed combustion in the spaces between the obstacles, with turbulence playing only a supplementary role in this process. In the present work, this formulation is extended to pipes with both ends open in order to describe the recent experiments and modeling by Yanez et al. [J. Yanez et al., arXiv:1208.6453] as well as the simulations by Middha and Hansen [P. Middha and O. R. Hansen, Process Safety Prog. 27, 192 (2008) 10.1002/prs.10242]. It is demonstrated that flames accelerate strongly in open or vented obstructed pipes and the acceleration mechanism is similar to that in semiopen ones (shockless and laminar), although acceleration is weaker in open pipes. Starting with an inviscid approximation, we subsequently incorporate hydraulic resistance (viscous forces) into the analysis for the sake of comparing its role to that of a jet flow driving acceleration. It is shown that hydraulic resistance is actually not required to drive flame acceleration. In contrast, this is a supplementary effect, which moderates acceleration. On the other hand, viscous forces are nevertheless an important effect because they are responsible for the initial delay occurring before the flame acceleration onset, which is observed in the experiments and simulations. Accounting for this effect provides good agreement between the experiments, modeling, and the present theory.

Fundamental Flame Velocities of Pure Hydrocarbons I : Alkanes, Alkenes, Alkynes Benzene, and Cyclohexane

Science.gov (United States)

Gerstein, Melvin; Levine, Oscar; Wong, Edgar L

1950-01-01

The flame velocities of 37 pure hydrocarbons including normal and branched alkanes, alkenes, and alkynes; as well as benzene and cyclohexane, together with the experimental technique employed are presented. The normal alkanes have about the same flame velocity from ethane through heptane with methane being about 16 percent lower. Unsaturation increases the flame velocity in the order of alkanes, alkenes, and alkynes. Branching reduces the flame velocity.

High-pressure oxidation of methane

NARCIS (Netherlands)

Hashemi, Hamid; Christensen, Jakob M.; Gersen, Sander; Levinsky, Howard; Klippenstein, Stephen J.; Glarborg, Peter

2016-01-01

Methane oxidation at high pressures and intermediate temperatures was investigated in a laminar flow reactor and in a rapid compression machine (RCM). The flow-reactor experiments were conducted at 700–900 K and 100 bar for fuel-air equivalence ratios (Φ) ranging from 0.06 to 19.7, all highly

On the formation and early evolution of soot in turbulent nonpremixed flames

KAUST Repository

Bisetti, Fabrizio; Blanquart, Guillaume; Mü eller, Michael E.; Pitsch, Heinz G.

2012-01-01

(2009) 1143-1155], which allows for an accurate state-of-the-art description of soot number density, volume fraction, and morphology of the aggregates. In agreement with previous experimental studies in laminar flames, Damköhler number effects are found

Characteristics of diffusion flames with accelerated motion

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Lou Bo

2016-01-01

Full Text Available The aim of this work is to present an experiment to study the characteristics of a laminar diffusion flame under acceleration. A Bunsen burner (nozzle diameter 8 mm, using liquefied petroleum gas as its fuel, was ignited under acceleration. The temperature field and the diffusion flame angle of inclination were visualised with the assistance of the visual display technology incorporated in MATLAB™. Results show that the 2-d temperature field under different accelerations matched the variation in average temperatures: they both experience three variations at different time and velocity stages. The greater acceleration has a faster change in average temperature with time, due to the accumulation of combustion heat: the smaller acceleration has a higher average temperature at the same speed. No matter what acceleration was used, in time, the flame angle of inclination increased, but the growth rate decreased until an angle of 90°: this could be explained by analysis of the force distribution within the flame. It is also found that, initially, the growth rate of angle with velocity under the greater acceleration was always smaller than that at lower accelerations; it was also different in flames with uniform velocity fire conditions.

PIV Measurements in Weakly Buoyant Gas Jet Flames

Science.gov (United States)

Sunderland, Peter B.; Greenbberg, Paul S.; Urban, David L.; Wernet, Mark P.; Yanis, William

2001-01-01

Despite numerous experimental investigations, the characterization of microgravity laminar jet diffusion flames remains incomplete. Measurements to date have included shapes, temperatures, soot properties, radiative emissions and compositions, but full-field quantitative measurements of velocity are lacking. Since the differences between normal-gravity and microgravity diffusion flames are fundamentally influenced by changes in velocities, it is imperative that the associated velocity fields be measured in microgravity flames. Velocity measurements in nonbuoyant flames will be helpful both in validating numerical models and in interpreting past microgravity combustion experiments. Pointwise velocity techniques are inadequate for full-field velocity measurements in microgravity facilities. In contrast, Particle Image Velocimetry (PIV) can capture the entire flow field in less than 1% of the time required with Laser Doppler Velocimetry (LDV). Although PIV is a mature diagnostic for normal-gravity flames , restrictions on size, power and data storage complicate these measurements in microgravity. Results from the application of PIV to gas jet flames in normal gravity are presented here. Ethane flames burning at 13, 25 and 50 kPa are considered. These results are presented in more detail in Wernet et al. (2000). The PIV system developed for these measurements recently has been adapted for on-rig use in the NASA Glenn 2.2-second drop tower.

Laminar Burning Velocities of Fuels for Advanced Combustion Engines (FACE) Gasoline and Gasoline Surrogates with and without Ethanol Blending Associated with Octane Rating

KAUST Repository

Mannaa, Ossama

2016-05-04

Laminar burning velocities of fuels for advanced combustion engines (FACE) C gasoline and of several blends of surrogate toluene reference fuels (TRFs) (n-heptane, iso-octane, and toluene mixtures) of the same research octane number are presented. Effects of ethanol addition on laminar flame speed of FACE-C and its surrogate are addressed. Measurements were conducted using a constant volume spherical combustion vessel in the constant pressure, stable flame regime at an initial temperature of 358 K and initial pressures up to 0.6 MPa with the equivalence ratios ranging from 0.8 to 1.6. Comparable values in the laminar burning velocities were measured for the FACE-C gasoline and the proposed surrogate fuel (17.60% n-heptane + 77.40% iso-octane + 5% toluene) over the range of experimental conditions. Sensitivity of flame propagation to total stretch rate effects and thermo-diffusive instability was quantified by determining Markstein length. Two percentages of an oxygenated fuel of ethanol as an additive, namely, 60 vol% and 85 vol% were investigated. The addition of ethanol to FACE-C and its surrogate TRF-1 (17.60% n-heptane + 77.40% iso-octane + 5% toluene) resulted in a relatively similar increase in the laminar burning velocities. The high-pressure measured values of Markstein length for the studied fuels blended with ethanol showed minimal influence of ethanol addition on the flame’s response to stretch rate and thermo-diffusive instability. © 2016 Taylor & Francis.

Laminar Burning Velocities of Fuels for Advanced Combustion Engines (FACE) Gasoline and Gasoline Surrogates with and without Ethanol Blending Associated with Octane Rating

KAUST Repository

Mannaa, Ossama; Mansour, Morkous S.; Roberts, William L.; Chung, Suk-Ho

2016-01-01

Laminar burning velocities of fuels for advanced combustion engines (FACE) C gasoline and of several blends of surrogate toluene reference fuels (TRFs) (n-heptane, iso-octane, and toluene mixtures) of the same research octane number are presented. Effects of ethanol addition on laminar flame speed of FACE-C and its surrogate are addressed. Measurements were conducted using a constant volume spherical combustion vessel in the constant pressure, stable flame regime at an initial temperature of 358 K and initial pressures up to 0.6 MPa with the equivalence ratios ranging from 0.8 to 1.6. Comparable values in the laminar burning velocities were measured for the FACE-C gasoline and the proposed surrogate fuel (17.60% n-heptane + 77.40% iso-octane + 5% toluene) over the range of experimental conditions. Sensitivity of flame propagation to total stretch rate effects and thermo-diffusive instability was quantified by determining Markstein length. Two percentages of an oxygenated fuel of ethanol as an additive, namely, 60 vol% and 85 vol% were investigated. The addition of ethanol to FACE-C and its surrogate TRF-1 (17.60% n-heptane + 77.40% iso-octane + 5% toluene) resulted in a relatively similar increase in the laminar burning velocities. The high-pressure measured values of Markstein length for the studied fuels blended with ethanol showed minimal influence of ethanol addition on the flame’s response to stretch rate and thermo-diffusive instability. © 2016 Taylor & Francis.

Experimental studies of flame stability limits of biogas flame

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Dai Wanneng; Qin Chaokui; Chen Zhiguang; Tong Chao; Liu Pengjun

2012-01-01

Highlights: ► Premixed biogas flame stability for RTBs was studied on different conditions. ► An unusual “float off” phenomenon was observed. ► Decrease of port diameter or gas temperature or methane content motivates lifting. ► Increase of methane content or gas temperature or port diameter motivates yellow tipping. ► Lifting curves become straight lines when semi-logarithmic graph paper is applied. - Abstract: Flame stability of premixed biogas flame for Reference Test Burner (RTB) was investigated. In this study, six kinds of test gases were used to simulate biogas in which CO 2 volume fraction varied from 30% to 45%. A series of experiments were conducted on two RTBs with different port diameters and at different outlet unburned mixture temperatures. It was found that the lifting and yellow tipping limits show similar trends regardless of the biogas components, port diameters and mixture temperatures. A “float off” phenomenon could be observed at low gas flow rate and low primary air ratio. Low mixture temperature, small ports and high CO 2 concentration in biogas can lead to the unstable condition of “float off”. The lifting limits are enhanced with an increase of port diameter or mixture temperature and with a decrease of CO 2 concentration. The yellow tipping limits are extended with an increase of CO 2 concentration and with a decrease of mixture temperature or port diameter. In addition, the lifting limit curve becomes a straight line when semi-logarithmic graph paper is applied. The intercept increases with a decrease of the CO 2 concentration in biogas and with an increase of port diameter or gas temperature.

Soot reduction under DC electric fields in counterflow non-premixed laminar ethylene flames

KAUST Repository

Park, Daegeun

2014-04-23

The effects of DC electric fields on non-premixed ethylene flames in a counterflow burner were studied experimentally with a focus on the reduction of soot particles. The experiment was conducted by connecting a high voltage terminal and a ground terminal to a lower (fuel) and upper (oxidizer) nozzle, respectively. We applied direct current (DC) potentials in a range of -5 kV < Vdc < 5 kV. Uniform electric fields were then generated in the gap between the two nozzles. The experimental conditions were selected to cover both soot formation (SF) and soot formation oxidation (SFO) flames. The flames subjected to the negative electric fields moved toward the fuel nozzle because of an ionic wind due to the Lorentz force acting on the positive ions in the flames. In addition, the yellow luminosity significantly decreased, indicating changes in the sooting characteristics. To analyze the sooting characteristics under the electric fields, planar laser induced incandescence (PLII) and fluorescence (PLIF) techniques were used to visualize the soot, polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (PAHs), and OH radicals. The sooting limits in terms of the fuel and oxygen mole fractions were measured. No substantial soot formation due to the effects of the DC electric fields for the tested range of voltages and reactant mole fractions could be identified. The detailed flame behaviors and sooting characteristics under the DC electric fields are discussed. Copyright © Taylor & Francis Group, LLC.

Simplified hydrodynamic model of hydrogen-flame propagation in reactor vessels

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Baer, M.R.; Ratzel, A.C.

1983-01-01

The model is consistent with the theory of slow combustion in which the gasdynamic field equations are treated in the limit of small Mach numbers. To the lowest order, pressure is spatially uniform. The flame is treated as a density and entropy discontinuity which propagates at prescribed burning velocities, corresponding to laminar or turbulent flames. Radiation cooling of the burned combustion gases and possible preheating of the unburned gases during propagation of the flame is included using a molecular gas-band thermal radiation model. Application of this model has been developed for 1-D variable-area flame propagation. Multidimensional effects induced by hydrodynamics and buoyancy are corrected for. This model of flame propagation reduces to differential equations which describes the temporal variations of vessel pressure, burned volume and gas entropy. The thermodynamic state of the burned gas immediately following the flame is determined using an isobaric Hugoniot relation. At other locations the burned-gas thermodynamic states are determined using a Lagrangian particle tracking method. Results of a computer code using the method are presented. 11 figures

Numerical study of the behavior of methane-hydrogen/air pre-mixed flame in a micro reactor equipped with catalytic segmented bluff body

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Baigmohammadi, Mohammadreza; Tabejamaat, Sadegh; Zarvandi, Jalal

2015-01-01

In this work, combustion characteristics of premixed methane-hydrogen/air in a micro reactor equipped with a catalytic bluff body is investigated numerically. In this regard, the detailed chemistry schemes for gas phase (homogeneous) and the catalyst surface (heterogeneous) are used. The applied catalytic bluff body is coated with a thin layer of platinum (Pt) on its surface. Also, the lean reactive mixture is entered to the reactor with equivalence ratio 0.9. The results of this study showed that the use of catalytic bluff body in the center of a micro reactor can significantly increase the flame stability, especially at high velocities. Moreover, it is found that a catalytic bluff body with several cavities on its surface and also high thermal conductivity improves the flame stability more than a catalytic bluff body without cavities and low thermal conductivity. Finally, it is maintained that the most advantage of using the catalytic bluff body is its easy manufacturing process as compared to the catalytic wall. This matter seems to be more prevalent when we want to create several cavities with various sizes on the bluff-body. - Highlights: • Presence of a bluff body in a micro reactor can move the flame towards the upstream. • Catalytic bluff body can significantly increase flame stability at high velocities. • Creating non-catalytic cavities on the bluff body promotes homogeneous reactions. • Segmented catalytic bluff body improves the flame stability more than a simple one. • Creating the segments on a bluff body is easier compared to a wall

Cellular structure of lean hydrogen flames in microgravity

Science.gov (United States)

Patnaik, G.; Kailasanath, K.

1990-01-01

Detailed, time-dependent, two-dimensional numerical simulations of premixed laminar flames have been used to study the initiation and subsequent development of cellular structures in lean hydrogen-air flames. The model includes detailed hydrogen-oxygen combustion with 24 elementary reactions of eight reactive species and a nitrogen diluent, molecular diffusion of all species, thermal conduction, viscosity, and convection. This model has been used to study the nonlinear evolution of cellular flame structure and shows that cell splitting, as observed in experiments, can be predicted numerically for sufficiently reactive mixtures. The structures that evolved also resembled the cellular structures observed in experiments. The present study shows that the 'cell-split limit' postulated from experimental observations is an intrinsic property of the mixture and that external factors such as heat losses are not necessary to cause this limit.

Investigation of the effects of quarl and initial conditions on swirling non-premixed methane flames: Flow field, temperature, and species distributions

KAUST Repository

Elbaz, Ayman M.

2015-12-19

Detailed measurements are presented of the turbulent flow field, gas species concentrations and temperature field in a non-premixed methane swirl flame. Attention is given to the effect of the quarl geometry on the flame structure and emission characteristics due to its importance in gas turbine and industrial burner applications. Two different quarls were fitted to the burner exit, one a straight quarl and the other a diverging quarl of 15° half cone angle. Stereoscopic Particle Image Velocimetry (SPIV) was applied to obtain the three components of the instantaneous velocity on a vertical plane immediately downstream of the quarl exit. Temperature and gaseous species measurements were made both inside and downstream of the quarls, using a fine wire thermocouple and sampling probe, respectively. This work provides experimental verification by complementary techniques. The results showed that although the main flame structures were governed by the swirl motion imparted to the air stream, the quarl geometry, fuel loading and air loading also had a significant effect on the flow pattern, turbulence intensity, mixture formation, temperature distribution, emissions and flame stabilization. Particularly, in the case of the straight quarl flame, the flow pattern leads to strong, rapid mixing and reduces the residence time for NO formation within the internal recirculation zone (IRZ). However, for the diverging quarl flames, the recirculation zone is shifted radially outward, and the turbulent interaction between the central fuel jet and the internal recirculation zone IRZ induces another small vortex between these two flow features. Less mixing near the diverging quarl exit is observed, with a higher concentration of NO and CO in the post-combustion zone. The instantaneous flow field for both flames showed the existence of small scale vortical structure near the shear layers which were not apparent in the time averaged flow field. These structures, along with high levels

Chemiluminescence-based multivariate sensing of local equivalence ratios in premixed atmospheric methane-air flames

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Tripathi, Markandey M.; Krishnan, Sundar R.; Srinivasan, Kalyan K.; Yueh, Fang-Yu; Singh, Jagdish P.

2011-09-07

Chemiluminescence emissions from OH*, CH*, C2, and CO2 formed within the reaction zone of premixed flames depend upon the fuel-air equivalence ratio in the burning mixture. In the present paper, a new partial least square regression (PLS-R) based multivariate sensing methodology is investigated and compared with an OH*/CH* intensity ratio-based calibration model for sensing equivalence ratio in atmospheric methane-air premixed flames. Five replications of spectral data at nine different equivalence ratios ranging from 0.73 to 1.48 were used in the calibration of both models. During model development, the PLS-R model was initially validated with the calibration data set using the leave-one-out cross validation technique. Since the PLS-R model used the entire raw spectral intensities, it did not need the nonlinear background subtraction of CO2 emission that is required for typical OH*/CH* intensity ratio calibrations. An unbiased spectral data set (not used in the PLS-R model development), for 28 different equivalence ratio conditions ranging from 0.71 to 1.67, was used to predict equivalence ratios using the PLS-R and the intensity ratio calibration models. It was found that the equivalence ratios predicted with the PLS-R based multivariate calibration model matched the experimentally measured equivalence ratios within 7%; whereas, the OH*/CH* intensity ratio calibration grossly underpredicted equivalence ratios in comparison to measured equivalence ratios, especially under rich conditions ( > 1.2). The practical implications of the chemiluminescence-based multivariate equivalence ratio sensing methodology are also discussed.

Asymptotic analysis, direct numerical simulation and modeling of premixed turbulent flame-wall interaction; Etude asymptotique, simulation numerique directe et modelisation de l`interaction flamme turbulente premelangee-paroi

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Bruneaux, G.

1996-05-20

Premixed turbulent flame-wall interaction is studied using theoretical and numerical analysis. Laminar interactions are first investigated through a literature review. This gives a characterization of the different configurations of interaction and justifies the use of simplified kinetic schemes to study the interaction. Calculations are then performed using Direct Numerical Simulation with a one-step chemistry model, and are compared with good agreements to asymptotic analysis. Flame-wall distances and wall heat fluxes obtained are compared successfully with those of the literature. Heat losses decrease the consumption rate, leading to extinction at the maximum of wall heat flux. It is followed by a flame retreat, when the fuel diffuses into the reaction zone, resulting in low unburnt hydrocarbon levels. Then, turbulent regime is investigated, using two types of Direct Numerical Simulations: 2D variable density and 3D constant density. Similar results are obtained: the local turbulent flame behavior is identical to a laminar interaction, and tongues of fresh gases are expelled from the wall region, near zones of quenching. In the 2D simulations, minimal flame-wall distances and maximum wall heat fluxes are similar to laminar values. However, the structure of the turbulence in the 3D calculations induces smaller flame-wall distances and higher wall heat fluxes. Finally, a flame-wall interaction model is built and validated. It uses the flamelet approach, where the flame is described in terms of consumption speed and flame surface density. This model is simplified to produce a law of the wall, which is then included in a averaged CFD code (Kiva2-MB). It is validated in an engine calculation. (author) 36 refs.

A numerical study of a premixed flame on a slit burner

NARCIS (Netherlands)

Somers, L.M.T.; Goey, de L.P.H.

1995-01-01

A numerical study of a premixed methane/air flame on a 4 mm slit burner is presented. A local grid refinement technique is used to deal with large gradients and curvature of all variables encountered in the flame, keeping the number of grid points within reasonable bounds. The method used here leads

Flat-flame burner studies of pulverized-coal combustion. Experimental results on char reactivity

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Peck, R.E.; Shi, L.

1996-12-01

Structure of laminar, premixed pulverized-coal flames in a 1-D reactor has been studied with emphasis on char reactivity. A 1.1-meter-long tube furnace accommodated high-temperature environments and long residence times for the laminar flames produced by a flat-flame, coal-dust burner. Experiments were conducted at different operating conditions (fuel type/size, fuel-air ratio). Measurements included solid sample composition, major gas species and hydrocarbon species concentrations, and gas- and particle-phase line-of-sight temperatures at different axial locations in flames. Degree of char burnout increased with coal volatiles content and decreased with coal particle size. Combustion in furnace was in oxidizer-deficient environment and higher burnout was achieved as the fuel-air ratio neared stoichiometric. For 0-45 {mu}m particles most of the fixed carbon mass loss occurred within 5 cm of the furnace inlet, and char reaction was slow downstream due to low oxidizer concentrations. Fixed carbon consumption of the 45-90 {mu}m particles generally was slower than for the small particles. About 40%-80% of the fixed carbon was oxidized in the furnace. Primary volatiles mass loss occurred within the first 4.5 cm, and more than 90% of the volatiles were consumed in the flames. The flames stabilized in the furnace produced less CH{sub 4} and H{sub 2} in the burnt gas than similar unconfined flames. NO concentrations were found to decrease along the furnace and to increase with decreasing fuel/air ratio. Temperature measurement results showed that gas-phase temperatures were higher than solid-phase temperatures. Temperatures generally decreased with decreasing volatiles content and increased as the equivalence ratio approached one. The results can be used to interpret thermochemical processes occurring in pulverized-coal combustion. (au) 15 refs.

Strain rate effect on sooting characteristics in laminar counterflow diffusion flames

KAUST Repository

Wang, Yu; Chung, Suk-Ho

2016-01-01

The effects of strain rate, oxygen enrichment and fuel type on the sooting characteristics of counterflow diffusion flames were studied. The sooting structures and relative PAH concentrations were measured with laser diagnostics. Detailed soot

Structure of H2/O2/N2 flames at atmospheric pressure studied by molecular beam mass spectrometry and modeling

NARCIS (Netherlands)

Knyazkov, D.A.; Korobeinichev, O.P.; Shmakov, A.G.; Rybitskaya, I.V.; Bolshova, T.A.; Chernov, D.A.; Konnov, A.A.

2009-01-01

Structure of laminar premixed flat H2/O2/N2 flames with different equivalence ratios at atmospheric pressure isinvestigated experimentally and by numerical modeling. Concentration profiles of stable species (H2, O2, H2O) as well as of H atoms and OH radicals in the flames were measured using

NO concentration imaging in turbulent nonpremixed flames

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Schefer, R.W. [Sandia National Laboratories, Livermore, CA (United States)

1993-12-01

The importance of NO as a pollutant species is well known. An understanding of the formation characteristics of NO in turbulent hydrocarbon flames is important to both the desired reduction of pollutant emissions and the validation of proposed models for turbulent reacting flows. Of particular interest is the relationship between NO formation and the local flame zone, in which the fuel is oxidized and primary heat release occurs. Planar imaging of NO provides the multipoint statistics needed to relate NO formation to the both the flame zone and the local turbulence characteristics. Planar imaging of NO has been demonstrated in turbulent flames where NO was seeded into the flow at high concentrations (2000 ppm) to determine the gas temperature distribution. The NO concentrations in these experiments were significantly higher than those expected in typical hydrocarbon-air flames, which require a much lower detectability limit for NO measurements. An imaging technique based on laser-induced fluorescence with sufficient sensitivity to study the NO formation mechanism in the stabilization region of turbulent lifted-jet methane flames.

Simulation and analysis of the soot particle size distribution in a turbulent nonpremixed flame

KAUST Repository

Lucchesi, Marco

2017-02-05

A modeling framework based on Direct Simulation Monte Carlo (DSMC) is employed to simulate the evolution of the soot particle size distribution in turbulent sooting flames. The stochastic reactor describes the evolution of soot in fluid parcels following Lagrangian trajectories in a turbulent flow field. The trajectories are sampled from a Direct Numerical Simulation (DNS) of a n-heptane turbulent nonpremixed flame. The DSMC method is validated against experimentally measured size distributions in laminar premixed flames and found to reproduce quantitatively the experimental results, including the appearance of the second mode at large aggregate sizes and the presence of a trough at mobility diameters in the range 3–8 nm. The model is then applied to the simulation of soot formation and growth in simplified configurations featuring a constant concentration of soot precursors and the evolution of the size distribution in time is found to depend on the intensity of the nucleation rate. Higher nucleation rates lead to a higher peak in number density and to the size distribution attaining its second mode sooner. The ensemble-averaged PSDF in the turbulent flame is computed from individual samples of the PSDF from large sets of Lagrangian trajectories. This statistical measure is equivalent to time-averaged, scanning mobility particle size (SMPS) measurements in turbulent flames. Although individual trajectories display strong bimodality as in laminar flames, the ensemble-average PSDF possesses only one mode and a long, broad tail, which implies significant polydispersity induced by turbulence. Our results agree very well with SMPS measurements available in the literature. Conditioning on key features of the trajectory, such as mixture fraction or radial locations does not reduce the scatter in the size distributions and the ensemble-averaged PSDF remains broad. The results highlight and explain the important role of turbulence in broadening the size distribution of

Flame acceleration of hydrogen - air - diluent mixtures at middle scale using ENACCEF: experiments and modelling

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Fabrice Malet; Nathalie Lamoureux; Nabiha Djebaili-Chaumeix; Claude-Etienne Paillard; Pierre Pailhories; Jean-Pierre L'heriteau; Bernard Chaumont; Ahmed Bentaib

2005-01-01

homogeneous concentration flame propagation and influence of geometry on the flow dynamics are now mastered for fast propagating flames, current work aims at a more accurate local combustion modeling. The evolution of the laminar flame velocity as a function of pressure, temperature and mixture composition has been recently investigated, a correlation that links the laminar flame velocity to these parameters is proposed. This correlation will improve the slow flame modeling. The final model will be validated with ENACCEF experiments. (authors)

Comparison of Laminar and Linear Eddy Model Closures for Combustion Instability Simulations

Science.gov (United States)

2015-07-01

methane at 300 K. The remainder of the combustor is filled with a mix of H2O and CO2 at 1500 K, which allows the methane to auto - ignite rapidly. Prior work...phenomena such as flame blowout, ignition , extinction, acoustic interaction, and transient events can occur. Many of these models have fundamental...profile, the profile is compressed to one third of the length, copied twice with the middle section reversed to conserve mass and energy. The size

An experimental and numerical study of nitrogen oxide formation mechanisms in ammonia-hydrogen-air flames

Science.gov (United States)

Kumar, Praveen

The demand for sustainable alternative fuels is ever-increasing in the power generation, transportation, and energy sectors due to the inherent non-sustainable characteristics and political constraints of current energy resources. A number of alternative fuels derived from cellulosic biomass, algae, or waste are being considered, along with the conversion of electricity to non-carbon fuels such as hydrogen or ammonia (NH3). The latter is receiving attention recently because it is a non-carbon fuel that is readily produced in large quantities, stored and transported with current infrastructure, and is often a byproduct of biomass or waste conversion processes. However, pure or anhydrous ammonia combustion is severely challenging due to its high auto-ignition temperature (650 °C), low reactivity, and tendency to promote NOx formation. As such, the present study focuses on two major aspects of the ammonia combustion. The first is an applied investigation of the potential to achieve pure NH3 combustion with low levels of emissions in flames of practical interest. In this study, a swirl-stabilized flame typically used in fuel-oil home-heating systems is optimized for NH3 combustion, and measurements of NO and NH3 are collected for a wide range of operating conditions. The second major focus of this work is on fundamental investigation of NO x formation mechanisms in flames with high levels of NH3 in H2. For laminar premixed and diffusion jet flames, experimental measurements of flame speeds, exhaust-gas sampling, and in-situ NO measurements (NO PLIF) are compared with numerically predicted flames using complex chemical kinetics within CHEMKIN and reacting CFD codes i.e., UNICORN. From the preliminary testing of the NOx formation mechanisms, (1) Tian (2) Konnov and (3) GRI-Mech3.0 in laminar premixed H2/NH 3 flames, the Tian and Konnov mechanisms are found to capture the reduction in measured flame speeds with increasing NH3 in the fuel mixture, both qualitatively and

Transient combustion modeling of an oscillating lean premixed methane/air flam

NARCIS (Netherlands)

Withag, J.A.M.; Kok, Jacobus B.W.; Syed, Khawar

2009-01-01

The main objective of the present study is to demonstrate accurate low frequency transient turbulent combustion modeling. For accurate flame dynamics some improvements were made to the standard TFC combustion model for lean premixed combustion. With use of a 1D laminar flamelet code, predictions

Optimization and analysis of large chemical kinetic mechanisms using the solution mapping method - Combustion of methane

Science.gov (United States)

Frenklach, Michael; Wang, Hai; Rabinowitz, Martin J.

1992-01-01

A method of systematic optimization, solution mapping, as applied to a large-scale dynamic model is presented. The basis of the technique is parameterization of model responses in terms of model parameters by simple algebraic expressions. These expressions are obtained by computer experiments arranged in a factorial design. The developed parameterized responses are then used in a joint multiparameter multidata-set optimization. A brief review of the mathematical background of the technique is given. The concept of active parameters is discussed. The technique is applied to determine an optimum set of parameters for a methane combustion mechanism. Five independent responses - comprising ignition delay times, pre-ignition methyl radical concentration profiles, and laminar premixed flame velocities - were optimized with respect to thirteen reaction rate parameters. The numerical predictions of the optimized model are compared to those computed with several recent literature mechanisms. The utility of the solution mapping technique in situations where the optimum is not unique is also demonstrated.

Strain rate effect on sooting characteristics in laminar counterflow diffusion flames

KAUST Repository

Wang, Yu

2016-01-20

The effects of strain rate, oxygen enrichment and fuel type on the sooting characteristics of counterflow diffusion flames were studied. The sooting structures and relative PAH concentrations were measured with laser diagnostics. Detailed soot modeling using recently developed PAH chemistry and surface reaction mechanism was performed and the results were compared with experimental data for ethylene flames, focusing on the effects of strain rates. The results showed that increase in strain rate reduced soot volume fraction, average size and peak number density. Increase in oxygen mole fraction increased soot loading and decreased its sensitivity on strain rate. The soot volume fractions of ethane, propene and propane flames were also measured as a function of global strain rate. The sensitivity of soot volume fraction to strain rate was observed to be fuel dependent at a fixed oxygen mole fraction, with the sensitivity being higher for more sooting fuels. However, when the soot loadings were matched at a reference strain rate for different fuels by adjusting oxygen mole fraction, the dependence of soot loading on strain rate became comparable among the tested fuels. PAH concentrations were shown to decrease with increase in strain rate and the dependence on strain rate is more pronounced for larger PAHs. Soot modeling was performed using detailed PAH growth chemistry with molecular growth up to coronene. A qualitative agreement was obtained between experimental and simulation results, which was then used to explain the experimentally observed strain rate effect on soot growth. However, quantitatively, the simulation result exhibits higher sensitivity to strain rate, especially for large PAHs and soot volume fractions.

Experimental study on a comparison of typical premixed combustible gas-air flame propagation in a horizontal rectangular closed duct.

Science.gov (United States)

Jin, Kaiqiang; Duan, Qiangling; Liew, K M; Peng, Zhongjing; Gong, Liang; Sun, Jinhua

2017-04-05

Research surrounding premixed flame propagation in ducts has a history of more than one hundred years. Most previous studies focus on the tulip flame formation and flame acceleration in pure gas fuel-air flame. However, the premixed natural gas-air flame may show different behaviors and pressure dynamics due to its unique composition. Natural gas, methane and acetylene are chosen here to conduct a comparison study on different flame behaviors and pressure dynamics, and to explore the influence of different compositions on premixed flame dynamics. The characteristics of flame front and pressure dynamics are recorded using high-speed schlieren photography and a pressure transducer, respectively. The results indicate that the compositions of the gas mixture greatly influence flame behaviors and pressure. Acetylene has the fastest flame tip speed and the highest pressure, while natural gas has a faster flame tip speed and higher pressure than methane. The Bychkov theory for predicting the flame skirt motion is verified, and the results indicate that the experimental data coincide well with theory in the case of equivalence ratios close to 1.00. Moreover, the Bychkov theory is able to predict flame skirt motion for acetylene, even outside of the best suitable expansion ratio range of 6

Unsteady Flame Embedding (UFE) Subgrid Model for Turbulent Premixed Combustion Simulations

KAUST Repository

El-Asrag, Hossam

2010-01-04

We present a formulation for an unsteady subgrid model for premixed combustion in the flamelet regime. Since chemistry occurs at the unresolvable scales, it is necessary to introduce a subgrid model that accounts for the multi-scale nature of the problem using the information available on the resolved scales. Most of the current models are based on the laminar flamelet concept, and often neglect the unsteady effects. The proposed model\\'s primary objective is to encompass many of the flame/turbulence interactions unsteady features and history effects. In addition it provides a dynamic and accurate approach for computing the subgrid flame propagation velocity. The unsteady flame embedding approach (UFE) treats the flame as an ensemble of locally one-dimensional flames. A set of elemental one dimensional flames is used to describe the turbulent flame structure at the subgrid level. The stretched flame calculations are performed on the stagnation line of a strained flame using the unsteady filtered strain rate computed from the resolved- grid. The flame iso-surface is tracked using an accurate high-order level set formulation to propagate the flame interface at the coarse resolution with minimum numerical diffusion. In this paper the solver and the model components are introduced and used to investigate two unsteady flames with different Lewis numbers in the thin reaction zone regime. The results show that the UFE model captures the unsteady flame-turbulence interactions and the flame propagation speed reasonably well. Higher propagation speed is observed for the lower than unity Lewis number flame because of the impact of differential diffusion.

Numerical Modelling of Soot Formation in Laminar Axisymmetric Ethylene-Air Coflow Flames at Atmospheric and Elevated Pressures

KAUST Repository

Rakha, Ihsan Allah

2015-01-01

The steady coflow diffusion flame is a widely used configuration for studying combustion kinetics, flame dynamics, and pollutant formation. In the current work, a set of diluted ethylene-air coflow flames are simulated to study the formation, growth

CFD studies of soot production in a coflow laminar diffusion flame under conditions of micro-gravity in fire safety

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Arnaud Mbainguebem

2017-07-01

Full Text Available This work which is in the fire safety framework is focused on a numerical study of the production of soot in a laminar diffusion flame, under different conditions of micro-gravity in unsteady regime. It is intended to evaluate the temperature and rate at which the production of soot is predominant, to quantify their concentrations and volume fraction in dispersion. It has been accomplished by modification of the ReactingFOAM application source code of the OpenFOAM-2.3.0 by introducing for the first time, the equations of concentration transport and of volume fractions of soot. The results of the different values of gravity obtained are compared with the normal value of gravity and we ascertain that the results obtained were satisfactory and show the ability of the code to predict the speed and temperature of the formation of soot, their concentrations and their volume fractions. The maximum peak of the volume fraction varies from 7 × 10−8 to 4.5 × 10−6. The maximum temperature, which was 2423 K before changing the code, is about 2410 K after implementation of our modifications due to the taking into account of the numerical model.

Measurements and Modeling of SiCl(4) Combustion in a Low-Pressure H2/O2 Flame

National Research Council Canada - National Science Library

Moore, T; Brady, B; Martin, L. R

2006-01-01

.... A gas-phase chemical kinetics mechanism for the combustion of SiCl in an H2/O2/Ar flame was proposed, and experimental results were compared with predictions for a premixed, one-dimensional laminar...

In situ measurements of soot formation in simple flames using small angle X-ray scattering

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Gardner, C. [Institute of Mathematical and Physical Sciences, University of Wales, Aberystwyth SY23 3BZ (United Kingdom); Greaves, G.N. [Institute of Mathematical and Physical Sciences, University of Wales, Aberystwyth SY23 3BZ (United Kingdom)]. E-mail: gng@aber.ac.uk; Hargrave, G.K. [Wolfson School of Mechanical and Manufacturing Engineering, Loughborough University, Loughborough LE11 3TU (United Kingdom); Jarvis, S. [Wolfson School of Mechanical and Manufacturing Engineering, Loughborough University, Loughborough LE11 3TU (United Kingdom); Wildman, P. [Wolfson School of Mechanical and Manufacturing Engineering, Loughborough University, Loughborough LE11 3TU (United Kingdom); Meneau, F. [Institute of Mathematical and Physical Sciences, University of Wales, Aberystwyth SY23 3BZ (United Kingdom); Netherlands Organisation for Scientific Research (NWO), DUBBLE CRG/ESRF, P.O. Box 220, F38043 Grenoble Cedex (France); Bras, W. [Netherlands Organisation for Scientific Research (NWO), DUBBLE CRG/ESRF, P.O. Box 220, F38043 Grenoble Cedex (France); Thomas, G. [Institute of Mathematical and Physical Sciences, University of Wales, Aberystwyth SY23 3BZ (United Kingdom)

2005-08-15

Direct SAXS measurements of soot formation from ethylene have been made using laminar pre-mixed flames for the first time. The slot burner was configured to maximise the signal from particulates. The geometry also enabled the thermal background from the surrounding hot gasses to be accurately removed. With cold flame speeds of 40 cm s{sup -1} we have been able to identify particle sizes and densities from moderately sooty to rich flame conditions. By adjusting the height of the burner in the beam, the development of particles as a function of position above the flame tip and therefore as a function of time from ignition have been obtained. These reveal evidence for bimodal particle nucleation and growth at different stages in the continuous combustion of ethylene.

In situ measurements of soot formation in simple flames using small angle X-ray scattering

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Gardner, C.; Greaves, G.N.; Hargrave, G.K.; Jarvis, S.; Wildman, P.; Meneau, F.; Bras, W.; Thomas, G.

2005-01-01

Direct SAXS measurements of soot formation from ethylene have been made using laminar pre-mixed flames for the first time. The slot burner was configured to maximise the signal from particulates. The geometry also enabled the thermal background from the surrounding hot gasses to be accurately removed. With cold flame speeds of 40 cm s -1 we have been able to identify particle sizes and densities from moderately sooty to rich flame conditions. By adjusting the height of the burner in the beam, the development of particles as a function of position above the flame tip and therefore as a function of time from ignition have been obtained. These reveal evidence for bimodal particle nucleation and growth at different stages in the continuous combustion of ethylene

In situ measurements of soot formation in simple flames using small angle X-ray scattering

Science.gov (United States)

Gardner, C.; Greaves, G. N.; Hargrave, G. K.; Jarvis, S.; Wildman, P.; Meneau, F.; Bras, W.; Thomas, G.

2005-08-01

Direct SAXS measurements of soot formation from ethylene have been made using laminar pre-mixed flames for the first time. The slot burner was configured to maximise the signal from particulates. The geometry also enabled the thermal background from the surrounding hot gasses to be accurately removed. With cold flame speeds of 40 cm s-1 we have been able to identify particle sizes and densities from moderately sooty to rich flame conditions. By adjusting the height of the burner in the beam, the development of particles as a function of position above the flame tip and therefore as a function of time from ignition have been obtained. These reveal evidence for bimodal particle nucleation and growth at different stages in the continuous combustion of ethylene.

Variations in non-thermal NO formation pathways in alcohol flames

KAUST Repository

Bohon, Myles

2016-07-04

This work investigates the formation of NO in a range of laminar, premixed, burner-stabilized C1 to C3 alcohol and alkane flames, in the equivalence ratio between 0.8 and 1.2. Measurements of temperature and NO concentration were conducted, and simulations utilizing the measured temperature profile allowed for the comparison of predicted NO with experiment, as well as a detailed investigation of the contributions from a number of NO formation pathways. In the alcohol flames, reduced contributions to Prompt NO were observed along with reduced consumption of NO through the NO-HCN Reburn mechanism, demonstrating the importance of hydrocarbon radicals (CH, CH2, CH3, and HCCO) to NO formation. Additionally, significant contributions to NO through the combined NNH and N2O mechanism were observed, representing a greater proportion of the NO produced in the alcohol flames. © 2016.

High-Pressure Turbulent Flame Speeds and Chemical Kinetics of Syngas Blends with and without Impurities

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Peterson, Eric; Mathieu, Olivier; Morones, Anibal; Ravi, Sankar; Keesee, Charles; Hargis, Joshua; Vivanco, Jose

2014-12-01

This Topical Report documents the first year of the project, from October 1, 2013 through September 30, 2014. Efforts for this project included experiments to characterize the atmospheric-pressure turbulent flame speed vessel over a range of operating conditions (fan speeds and turbulent length scales). To this end, a new LDV system was acquired and set up for the detailed characterization of the turbulence field. Much progress was made in the area of impurity kinetics, which included a numerical study of the effect of impurities such as NO2, NO, H2S, and NH3 on ignition delay times and laminar flame speeds of syngas blends at engine conditions. Experiments included a series of laminar flame speed measurements for syngas (CO/H2) blends with various levels of CH4 and C2H6 addition, and the results were compared to the chemical kinetics model of NUI Galway. Also, a final NOx kinetics mechanism including ammonia was assembled, and a journal paper was written and is now in press. Overall, three journal papers and six conference papers related to this project were published this year. Finally, much progress was made on the design of the new high-pressure turbulent flame speed facility. An overall design that includes a venting system was decided upon, and the detailed design is in progress.

Numerical Investigation of Soot Formation in Non-premixed Flames

KAUST Repository

Abdelgadir, Ahmed Gamaleldin

2017-05-01

Soot is a carbon particulate formed as a result of the combustion of fossil fuels. Due to the health hazard posed by the carbon particulate, government agencies have applied strict regulations to control soot emissions from road vehicles, airplanes, and industrial plants. Thus, understanding soot formation and evolution is critical. Practical combustion devices operate at high pressure and in the turbulent regime. Elevated pressures and turbulence on soot formation significantly and fundamental understanding of these complex interactions is still poor. In this study, the effects of pressure and turbulence on soot formation and growth are investigated numerically. As the first step, the evolution of the particle size distribution function (PSDF) and soot particles morphology are investigated in turbulent non-premixed flames. A Direct Simulation Monte Carlo (DSMC) code is developed and used. The stochastic reactor describes the evolution of soot in fluid parcels following Lagrangian trajectories in a turbulent flow field. The trajectories are sampled from a Direct Numerical Simulation (DNS) of an n-heptane turbulent non-premixed flame. Although individual trajectories display strong bimodality as in laminar flames, the ensemble-average PSDF possesses only one mode and a broad tail, which implies significant polydispersity induced by turbulence. Secondly, the effect of the flow and mixing fields on soot formation at atmospheric and elevated pressures is investigated in coflow laminar diffusion flames. The experimental observation and the numerical prediction of the spatial distribution are in good agreement. Based on the common scaling methodology of the flames (keeping the Reynolds number constant), the scalar dissipation rate decreases as pressure increases, promoting the formation of PAH species and soot. The decrease of the scalar dissipation rate significantly contributes to soot formation occurring closer to the nozzle and outward on the flames wings as pressure

Effects of diluents on soot surface temperature and volume fraction in diluted ethylene diffusion flames at pressure

KAUST Repository

Kailasanathan, Ranjith Kumar Abhinavam; Zhang, Ji; Fang, Tiegang; Roberts, William L.

2014-01-01

Soot surface temperature and volume fraction are measured in ethylene/air coflowing laminar diffusion flames at high pressures, diluted with one of four diluents (argon, helium, nitrogen, and carbon dioxide) using a two-color technique. Both

A NEW DOUBLE-SLIT CURVED WALL-JET (CWJ) BURNER FOR STABILIZING TURBULENT PREMIXED AND NON-PREMIXED FLAMES

KAUST Repository

Mansour, Morkous S.

2015-06-30

A novel double-slit curved wall-jet (CWJ) burner was proposed and employed, which utilizes the Coanda effect by supplying fuel and air as annular-inward jets over a curved surface. We investigated the stabilization characteristics and structure of methane/air, and propane/air turbulent premixed and non-premixed flames with varying global equivalence ratio, , and Reynolds number, Re. Simultaneous time-resolved measurements of particle image velocimetry and planar laser-induced fluorescence of OH radicals were conducted. The burner showed potential for stable operation for methane flames with relatively large fuel loading and overall rich conditions. These have a non-sooting nature. However, propane flames exhibit stable mode for a wider range of equivalence ratio and Re. Mixing characteristics in the cold flow of non-premixed cases were first examined using acetone fluorescence technique, indicating substantial transport between the fuel and air by exhibiting appreciable premixing conditions.PIV measurements revealed that velocity gradients in the shear layers at the boundaries of the annularjets generate the turbulence, enhanced with the collisions in the interaction jet, IJ,region. Turbulent mean and rms velocities were influenced significantly by Re and high rms turbulent velocities are generated within the recirculation zone improving the flame stabilization in this burner.Premixed and non-premixed flames with high equivalence ratio were found to be more resistant to local extinction and exhibited a more corrugated and folded nature, particularly at high Re. For flames with low equivalence ratio, the processes of local quenching at IJ region and of re-ignition within merged jet region maintained these flames further downstream particularly for non-premixed methane flame, revealing a strong intermittency.

Influence of ethanol and EGR on laminar burning behaviors of FACE-C gasoline and its surrogate

KAUST Repository

Mannaa, Ossama Abde El Hamid; Mansour, Morkous; Roberts, William L.; Chung, Suk-Ho

2017-01-01

Laminar burning velocities of FACE-C gasoline and a surrogate comprised of toluene primary reference fuels (TPRFs) were investigated under the effects of EGR dilution and ethanol blending. Measurements were conducted in a spherical constant volume combustion chamber for a range of equivalence ratios from 0.8 to 1.6 at initial temperatures and pressures up to 383 K and 0.6 MPa, respectively. These measurements highlighted the effects of real combustion residuals at mole fractions up to 0.3 and various volumetric percentages of ethanol blending. For both studied fuels, significant reductions in stretched and un-stretched flame speeds were observed for mixtures laden with real combustion residuals. Blends with less than 50% ethanol showed a minimal enhancement in the flame speed. By combining both EGR and ethanol blending, the flame speed reduction by EGR can be compensated for with ethanol addition. For example, up to 10% of EGR requires 60% ethanol blending to maintain the same flame speed. Flame stability enhancement by EGR addition was also quantified through the determination of the Markstein length.

Influence of ethanol and EGR on laminar burning behaviors of FACE-C gasoline and its surrogate

KAUST Repository

Mannaa, Ossama Abde El Hamid

2017-10-31

Laminar burning velocities of FACE-C gasoline and a surrogate comprised of toluene primary reference fuels (TPRFs) were investigated under the effects of EGR dilution and ethanol blending. Measurements were conducted in a spherical constant volume combustion chamber for a range of equivalence ratios from 0.8 to 1.6 at initial temperatures and pressures up to 383 K and 0.6 MPa, respectively. These measurements highlighted the effects of real combustion residuals at mole fractions up to 0.3 and various volumetric percentages of ethanol blending. For both studied fuels, significant reductions in stretched and un-stretched flame speeds were observed for mixtures laden with real combustion residuals. Blends with less than 50% ethanol showed a minimal enhancement in the flame speed. By combining both EGR and ethanol blending, the flame speed reduction by EGR can be compensated for with ethanol addition. For example, up to 10% of EGR requires 60% ethanol blending to maintain the same flame speed. Flame stability enhancement by EGR addition was also quantified through the determination of the Markstein length.

Quantitative characterization of steady and time-varying, sooting, laminar diffusion flames using optical techniques

Science.gov (United States)

Connelly, Blair C.

In order to reduce the emission of pollutants such as soot and NO x from combustion systems, a detailed understanding of pollutant formation is required. In addition to environmental concerns, this is important for a fundamental understanding of flame behavior as significant quantities of soot lower local flame temperatures, increase overall flame length and affect the formation of such temperature-dependent species as NOx. This problem is investigated by carrying out coupled computational and experimental studies of steady and time-varying sooting, coflow diffusion flames. Optical diagnostic techniques are a powerful tool for characterizing combustion systems, as they provide a noninvasive method of probing the environment. Laser diagnostic techniques have added advantages, as systems can be probed with high spectral, temporal and spatial resolution, and with species selectivity. Experimental soot volume fractions were determined by using two-dimensional laser-induced incandescence (LII), calibrated with an on-line extinction measurement, and soot pyrometry. Measurements of soot particle size distributions are made using time-resolved LII (TR-LII). Laser-induced fluorescence measurements are made of NO and formaldehyde. These experimental measurements, and others, are compared with computational results in an effort to understand and model soot formation and to examine the coupled relationship of soot and NO x formation.

High methane natural gas/air explosion characteristics in confined vessel.

Science.gov (United States)

Tang, Chenglong; Zhang, Shuang; Si, Zhanbo; Huang, Zuohua; Zhang, Kongming; Jin, Zebing

2014-08-15

The explosion characteristics of high methane fraction natural gas were investigated in a constant volume combustion vessel at different initial conditions. Results show that with the increase of initial pressure, the peak explosion pressure, the maximum rate of pressure rise increase due to a higher amount (mass) of flammable mixture, which delivers an increased amount of heat. The increased total flame duration and flame development time result as a consequence of the higher amount of flammable mixture. With the increase of the initial temperature, the peak explosion pressures decrease, but the pressure increase during combustion is accelerated, which indicates a faster flame speed and heat release rate. The maximum value of the explosion pressure, the maximum rate of pressure rise, the minimum total combustion duration and the minimum flame development time is observed when the equivalence ratio of the mixture is 1.1. Additionally, for higher methane fraction natural gas, the explosion pressure and the maximum rate of pressure rise are slightly decreased, while the combustion duration is postponed. The combustion phasing is empirically correlated with the experimental parameters with good fitting performance. Furthermore, the addition of dilute gas significantly reduces the explosion pressure, the maximum rate of pressure rise and postpones the flame development and this flame retarding effect of carbon dioxide is stronger than that of nitrogen. Copyright © 2014 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.

Soot particle size measurements in ethylene diffusion flames at elevated pressures

KAUST Repository

Steinmetz, Scott

2016-05-07

Soot particle size is investigated in laminar nitrogen-diluted ethylene coflow diffusion flames at 4, 8, 12 and 16 atm. Line of sight attenuation and scattering are used to measure two-dimensional soot volume fraction and particle size fields for the first time at elevated pressures. Soot volume fraction dependence on pressure is consistent with the observations of similar studies, scaling approximately with the square of pressure. Scattering intensity is analyzed through Rayleigh and Rayleigh-Debye-Gans polydisperse fractal aggregate theories to provide two estimates of particle size. An increase in overall particle sizes with pressure is found, consistent with similar one-dimensional studies. Particle diameters in the annulus of the flame increase faster with pressure than those on centerline. Contrary to previous studies, the dependence of particle size on pressure was found to taper off between 8 and 12 atm, with little observed growth beyond 12 atm. The measurements provide additional data for one of the International Sooting Flame (ISF) workshop\\'s target pressurized flames.

Pulsed Current-Voltage-Induced Perturbations of a Premixed Propane/Air Flame

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Jacob. B. Schmidt

2011-01-01

Full Text Available The effect of millisecond wide sub-breakdown pulsed voltage-current induced flow perturbation has been measured in premixed laminar atmospheric pressure propane/air flame. The flame equivalence ratios were varied from 0.8 to 1.2 with the flow speeds near 1.1 meter/second. Spatio-temporal flame structure changes were observed through collection of CH (A-X and OH (A-X chemiluminescence and simultaneous spontaneous Raman scattering from N2. This optical collection scheme allows us to obtain a strong correlation between the measured gas temperature and the chemiluminescence intensity, verifying that chemiluminescence images provide accurate measurements of flame reaction zone structure modifications. The experimental results suggest that the flame perturbation is caused by ionic wind originating only from the radial positive space-charge distribution in/near the cathode fall. A net momentum transfer acts along the annular space discharge distribution in the reaction zone at or near the cathode fall which modifies the flow field near the cathodic burner head. This radially inward directed body force appears to enhance mixing similar to a swirl induced modification of the flame structure. The flame fluidic response exhibit a strong dependence on the voltage pulse width ≤10 millisecond.

A computational study of radiation and gravity effect on temperature and soot formation in a methane air co-flow diffusion flame

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Bhowal, Arup Jyoti, E-mail: arupjyoti.bhowal@heritageit.edu [Department of Mechanical Engineering, Heritage Institute of Technology, Chowbaga Road, Anandapur, Kolkata-700 107, West Bengal (India); Mandal, Bijan Kumar, E-mail: bkm375@yahoo.co.in [Department of Mechanical Engineering, Indian Institute of Engineering Science and Technology, Shibpur, Howrah – 711103, West Bengal (India)

2016-07-12

An effort has been made for a quantitative assessment of the soot formed under steady state in a methane air co flow diffusion flame by a numerical simulation at normal gravity and at lower gravity levels of 0.5 G, 0.1 G and 0.0001 G (microgravity). The peak temperature at microgravity is reduced by about 50 K than that at normal gravity level. There is an augmentation of soot formation at lower gravity levels. Peak value at microgravity multiplies by a factor of ∼7 of that at normal gravity. However, if radiation is not considered, soot formation is found to be much more.

Autoignited lifted flames of dimethyl ether in heated coflow air

KAUST Repository

Al-Noman, Saeed M.

2018-05-16

Autoignited lifted flames of dimethyl ether (DME) in laminar nonpremixed jets with high-temperature coflow air have been studied experimentally. When the initial temperature was elevated to over 860 K, an autoignition occurred without requiring an external ignition source. A planar laser-induced fluorescence (PLIF) technique for formaldehyde (CH2O) visualized qualitatively the zone of low temperature kinetics in a premixed flame. Two flame configurations were investigated; (1) autoignited lifted flames with tribrachial edge having three distinct branches of a lean and a rich premixed flame wings with a trailing diffusion flame and (2) autoignited lifted flames with mild combustion when the fuel was highly diluted. For the autoignited tribrachial edge flames at critical autoignition conditions, exhibiting repetitive extinction and re-ignition phenomena near a blowout condition, the characteristic flow time (liftoff height scaled with jet velocity) was correlated with the square of the ignition delay time of the stoichiometric mixture. The liftoff heights were also correlated as a function of jet velocity times the square of ignition delay time. Formaldehydes were observed between the fuel nozzle and the lifted flame edge, emphasizing a low-temperature kinetics for autoignited lifted flames, while for a non-autoignited lifted flame, formaldehydes were observed near a thin luminous flame zone.For the autoignited lifted flames with mild combustion, especially at a high temperature, a unique non-monotonic liftoff height behavior was observed; decreasing and then increasing liftoff height with jet velocity. This behavior was similar to the binary mixture fuels of CH4/H2 and CO/H2 observed previously. A transient homogeneous autoignition analysis suggested that such decreasing behavior with jet velocity can be attributed to partial oxidation characteristics of DME in producing appreciable amounts of CH4/CO/H2 ahead of the edge flame region.

Autoignited lifted flames of dimethyl ether in heated coflow air

KAUST Repository

Al-Noman, Saeed M.; Choi, Byung Chul; Chung, Suk-Ho

2018-01-01

Autoignited lifted flames of dimethyl ether (DME) in laminar nonpremixed jets with high-temperature coflow air have been studied experimentally. When the initial temperature was elevated to over 860 K, an autoignition occurred without requiring an external ignition source. A planar laser-induced fluorescence (PLIF) technique for formaldehyde (CH2O) visualized qualitatively the zone of low temperature kinetics in a premixed flame. Two flame configurations were investigated; (1) autoignited lifted flames with tribrachial edge having three distinct branches of a lean and a rich premixed flame wings with a trailing diffusion flame and (2) autoignited lifted flames with mild combustion when the fuel was highly diluted. For the autoignited tribrachial edge flames at critical autoignition conditions, exhibiting repetitive extinction and re-ignition phenomena near a blowout condition, the characteristic flow time (liftoff height scaled with jet velocity) was correlated with the square of the ignition delay time of the stoichiometric mixture. The liftoff heights were also correlated as a function of jet velocity times the square of ignition delay time. Formaldehydes were observed between the fuel nozzle and the lifted flame edge, emphasizing a low-temperature kinetics for autoignited lifted flames, while for a non-autoignited lifted flame, formaldehydes were observed near a thin luminous flame zone.For the autoignited lifted flames with mild combustion, especially at a high temperature, a unique non-monotonic liftoff height behavior was observed; decreasing and then increasing liftoff height with jet velocity. This behavior was similar to the binary mixture fuels of CH4/H2 and CO/H2 observed previously. A transient homogeneous autoignition analysis suggested that such decreasing behavior with jet velocity can be attributed to partial oxidation characteristics of DME in producing appreciable amounts of CH4/CO/H2 ahead of the edge flame region.

Effect of ac electric fields on counterflow diffusion flame of methane

KAUST Repository

Chul Choi, Byung

2012-08-01

The effect of electric fields on the response of diffusion flames in a counterflow has been investigated experimentally by varying the AC voltage and frequency. The result showed that the flame was stationary with high AC frequency above the threshold frequency, and it increased with the applied voltage and then leveled off at 35 Hz. Below the threshold frequency, however, the flame oscillated with a frequency that was synchronized with the applied AC frequency. This oscillation can be attributed to the ionic wind effect due to the generation of bulk flow, which arises from the momentum transfer by molecular collisions between neutral molecules and ions, where the ions in the reaction zone were accelerated by the Lorentz force. © 2012 The Korean Society of Mechanical Engineers.

Effect of ac electric fields on counterflow diffusion flame of methane

KAUST Repository

Chul Choi, Byung; Kuk Kim, Hyung; Chung, Suk-Ho

2012-01-01

The effect of electric fields on the response of diffusion flames in a counterflow has been investigated experimentally by varying the AC voltage and frequency. The result showed that the flame was stationary with high AC frequency above the threshold frequency, and it increased with the applied voltage and then leveled off at 35 Hz. Below the threshold frequency, however, the flame oscillated with a frequency that was synchronized with the applied AC frequency. This oscillation can be attributed to the ionic wind effect due to the generation of bulk flow, which arises from the momentum transfer by molecular collisions between neutral molecules and ions, where the ions in the reaction zone were accelerated by the Lorentz force. © 2012 The Korean Society of Mechanical Engineers.

Incineration of oxygenated volatile organic compounds. Experimental study and kinetic modeling of the oxidation of methyl ethyl ketone, ethyl acetate and butan-2-ol in methane flames; Incineration de composes organiques volatils oxygenes. Etude experimentale et modelisation cinetique de l'oxydation de la methyl ethyl cetone, de l'acetate d'ethyle et du butan-2-ol dans des flammes de methane

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Decottignies, V

2000-12-01

This work deals with the low pressure (0.05 atm) degradation of three volatile organic compounds (VOCs): methyl-ethyl-ketone, ethyl acetate and butan-2-ol, in premixed stoichiometric laminar methane flames seeded with 1 to 3% of each VOC. Molar fraction profiles of species have been obtained using microprobe sampling coupled with a gas chromatography and a mass spectroscopy analysis. Temperature profiles have been obtained using the covered thermocouple technique in the presence of the microprobe. The addition of a VOC in the initial reagents mixture leads to an increase of the quantity of intermediate hydrocarbon compounds and in particular of some soot precursor species. The degradation of VOCs leads to the formation of oxygenated intermediates like methanol, dimethyl-ether, acetaldehyde, propanal, acetone and vinyl acetate, the type of VOC having an effect on the quantities produced. The degradation of a VOC can lead to the formation of more toxic or polluting compounds (methyl vinyl ketone, acetic acid and acrolein) than the VOC itself. In the conditions of the study, the intermediate compounds are totally destructed inside the reactional area of the flame front and are no more present in the burnt gases. Sub-mechanisms of VOC oxidation have been developed using experimental observations and the most recent recommendations of the literature. These sub-mechanisms comprise 49 species involved in 241 elementary reactions. Their validation has been performed by comparing the experiment with the kinetic modeling on the molar fraction profiles of the detected species. Experimental data are well reproduced by the model for most species. The addition of a VOC inside the initial reagents mixture creates an important reactivity increase, in particular in the case of butan-2-ol seeded flames. The analysis of reactional ways has permitted to draw out the main reactions responsible for the degradation of the 3 VOCs and the ways of formation and consumption of the

A simplified hydrodynamic model of hydrogen flame propagation in reactor vessels

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Baer, M.; Ratzel, A.

1983-01-01

A hydrodynamic model for hydrogen flame propagation in reactor geometries is presented. This model is consistent with the theory of slow combustion in which the gasdynamic field equations are treated in the limit of small Mach numbers. To the lowest order, pressure is spatially uniform. The flame is treated as a density and entropy discontinuity which propagates at prescribed burning velocities, corresponding to laminar or turbulent flames. Radiation cooling of the burned combustion gases and possible preheating of the unburned gases during propagation of the flame is included using a molecular gas-band thermal radiation model. Application of this model has been developed for 1-D variable area flame propagation. Multidimensional effects induced by hydrodynamics and buoyancy are introduced as a correction to the burn velocity (which reflects a modification of planar flame surface to a distorted surface) using experimentally measured pressure-rise time data for hydrogen/air deflagrations in cylindrical vessels. This semianalytical model of flame propagation reduces to a set of ordinary differential equations which describes the temporal variations of vessel pressure, burned volume and gas entropy. The thermodynamic state of the burned gas immediately following the flame is determined using an isobaric Hugoniot relationship. At other locations the burned gas thermodynamic states are determined using a Lagrangian particle tracking method. Results of a computer code using the method are presented

Development of a Raman spectroscopy technique to detect alternate transportation fuel hydrocarbon intermediates in complex combustion environments.

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Ekoto, Isaac W.; Barlow, Robert S.

2012-12-01

Spontaneous Raman spectra for important hydrocarbon fuels and combustion intermediates were recorded over a range of low-to-moderate flame temperatures using the multiscalar measurement facility located at Sandia/CA. Recorded spectra were extrapolated to higher flame temperatures and then converted into empirical spectral libraries that can readily be incorporated into existing post-processing analysis models that account for crosstalk from overlapping hydrocarbon channel signal. Performance testing of the developed libraries and reduction methods was conducted through an examination of results from well-characterized laminar reference flames, and was found to provide good agreement. The diagnostic development allows for temporally and spatially resolved flame measurements of speciated hydrocarbon concentrations whose parent is more chemically complex than methane. Such data are needed to validate increasingly complex flame simulations.

High-pressure oxidation of methane

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Hashemi, Hamid; Christensen, Jakob Munkholt; Gersen, Sander

2016-01-01

Methane oxidation at high pressures and intermediate temperatures was investigated in a laminar flow reactor and in a rapid compression machine (RCM). The flow-reactor experiments were conducted at 700–900 K and 100 bar for fuel-air equivalence ratios (Φ) ranging from 0.06 to 19.7, all highly...... diluted in nitrogen. It was found that under the investigated conditions, the onset temperature for methane oxidation ranged from 723 K under reducing conditions to 750 K under stoichiometric and oxidizing conditions. The RCM experiments were carried out at pressures of 15–80 bar and temperatures of 800......–1250 K under stoichiometric and fuel-lean (Φ=0.5) conditions. Ignition delays, in the range of 1–100 ms, decreased monotonically with increasing pressure and temperature. A chemical kinetic model for high-pressure methane oxidation was established, with particular emphasis on the peroxide chemistry...

Effect of Stoichiometry and Strain Rate on Transient Flame Response

National Research Council Canada - National Science Library

Knio, Omar M; Najm, Habib N

2000-01-01

The interaction of a premixed methane/air flame with a counter-rotating vortex pair is analyzed using a parallel low-Mach-number computational model that is based on a detailed C1C2 chemical mechanism...

Selective detection of isomers with photoionization mass spectrometry for studies of hydrocarbon flame chemistry

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Cool, Terrill A.; Nakajima, Koichi; Mostefaoui, Toufik A.; Qi, Fei; McIlroy, Andrew; Westmoreland, Phillip R.; Law, Matthew E.; Poisson, Lionel; Peterka, Darcy S.; Ahmed, Musahid

2003-01-01

We report the first use of synchrotron radiation, continuously tunable from 8 to 15 eV, for flame-sampling photoionization mass spectrometry (PIMS). Synchrotron radiation offers important advantages over the use of pulsed vacuum ultraviolet lasers for PIMS; these include superior signal-to-noise, soft ionization, and access to photon energies outside the limited tuning ranges of current VUV laser sources. Near-threshold photoionization efficiency measurements were used to determine the absolute concentrations of the allene and propyne isomers of C 3 H 4 in low-pressure laminar ethylene-oxygen and benzene-oxygen flames. Similar measurements of the isomeric composition of C 2 H 4 O species in a fuel-rich ethylene-oxygen flame revealed the presence of substantial concentrations of ethenol (vinyl alcohol) and acetaldehyde. Ethenol has not been previously detected in hydrocarbon flames. Absolute photoionization cross sections were measured for ethylene, allene, propyne, and acetaldehyde, using propene as a calibration standard. PIE curves are presented for several additional reaction intermediates prominent in hydrocarbon flames

Computational Flame Diagnostics for Direct Numerical Simulations with Detailed Chemistry of Transportation Fuels

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Lu, Tianfeng [Univ. of Connecticut, Storrs, CT (United States)

2017-02-16

The goal of the proposed research is to create computational flame diagnostics (CFLD) that are rigorous numerical algorithms for systematic detection of critical flame features, such as ignition, extinction, and premixed and non-premixed flamelets, and to understand the underlying physicochemical processes controlling limit flame phenomena, flame stabilization, turbulence-chemistry interactions and pollutant emissions etc. The goal has been accomplished through an integrated effort on mechanism reduction, direct numerical simulations (DNS) of flames at engine conditions and a variety of turbulent flames with transport fuels, computational diagnostics, turbulence modeling, and DNS data mining and data reduction. The computational diagnostics are primarily based on the chemical explosive mode analysis (CEMA) and a recently developed bifurcation analysis using datasets from first-principle simulations of 0-D reactors, 1-D laminar flames, and 2-D and 3-D DNS (collaboration with J.H. Chen and S. Som at Argonne, and C.S. Yoo at UNIST). Non-stiff reduced mechanisms for transportation fuels amenable for 3-D DNS are developed through graph-based methods and timescale analysis. The flame structures, stabilization mechanisms, local ignition and extinction etc., and the rate controlling chemical processes are unambiguously identified through CFLD. CEMA is further employed to segment complex turbulent flames based on the critical flame features, such as premixed reaction fronts, and to enable zone-adaptive turbulent combustion modeling.

Soot volume fraction in a piloted turbulent jet non-premixed flame of natural gas

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Qamar, N.H.; Alwahabi, Z.T.; King, K.D. [Fluid Mechanics, Energy and Combustion Group, University of Adelaide, Adelaide, SA 5005 (Australia); School of Chemical Engineering, University of Adelaide, Adelaide, SA 5005 (Australia); Chan, Q.N. [Fluid Mechanics, Energy and Combustion Group, University of Adelaide, Adelaide, SA 5005 (Australia); School of Chemical Engineering, University of Adelaide, Adelaide, SA 5005 (Australia); School of Mechanical Engineering, University of Adelaide, Adelaide, SA 5005 (Australia); Nathan, G.J. [Fluid Mechanics, Energy and Combustion Group, University of Adelaide, Adelaide, SA 5005 (Australia); School of Mechanical Engineering, University of Adelaide, Adelaide, SA 5005 (Australia); Roekaerts, D. [Department of Multi-Scale Physics, Faculty of Applied Sciences, Delft University of Technology, Lorentzweg, 1, NL-2628 CJ Delft (Netherlands)

2009-07-15

Planar laser-induced incandescence (LII) has been used to measure soot volume fraction in a well-characterised, piloted, turbulent non-premixed flame known as the ''Delft Flame III''. Simulated Dutch natural gas was used as the fuel to produce a flame closely matching those in which a wide range of previous investigations, both experimental and modelling, have been performed. The LII method was calibrated using a Santoro-style burner with ethylene as the fuel. Instantaneous and time-averaged data of the axial and radial soot volume fraction distributions of the flame are presented here along with the Probability Density Functions (PDFs) and intermittency. The PDFs were found to be well-characterised by a single exponential distribution function. The distribution of soot was found to be highly intermittent, with intermittency typically exceeding 97%, which increases measurement uncertainty. The instantaneous values of volume fraction are everywhere less than the values in strained laminar flames. This is consistent with the soot being found locally in strained flame sheets that are convected and distorted by the flow. (author)

Thermoacoustic instability of a laminar premixed flame in Rijke tube with a hydrodynamic region

Science.gov (United States)

Zhao, Dan; Chow, Z. H.

2013-07-01

In this work, a Rijke tube with a hydrodynamic region confined is considered to investigate its non-normality and the effect of the hydrodynamic region on the system stability behaviors. Experiments are first conducted on Rijke tubes with different lengths. It is found that the fundamental mode frequency is decreased and then increased, as the flame is placed at different axial positions at the bottom half of the tube. This trend agrees well with the prediction from the thermoacoustic model developed, of which the hydrodynamic region is modelled as an oscillating 'airplug' and the flame dynamics is captured by using classical G-equation. In addition, the flame as measured is found to respond differently to oncoming acoustic disturbances. Modal and non-modal stability analyses are then conducted to determine the eigenmode growth rate and the transient one of acoustic disturbances. The 'safest' and most 'dangerous' flame locations as defined as those corresponding to extreme eigenmode and transient growth rate are estimated, and compared with those from the model without the hydrodynamic region. In order to mitigate such detrimental oscillations, identification and mitigation algorithms are experimentally implemented on the Rijke tube. The sound pressure level is reduced by approximately 50 dB. To gain insights on the thermoacoustic system, transfer function of the actuated Rijke tube system is measured by injecting a broad-band white noise. Compared with the estimation from our model, good agreement is observed. Finally, the marginal stability regions are estimated.

An experimental and kinetic investigation of premixed furan/oxygen/argon flames.

Science.gov (United States)

Tian, Zhenyu; Yuan, Tao; Fournet, Rene; Glaude, Pierre-Alexandre; Sirjean, Baptiste; Battin-Leclerc, Frédérique; Zhang, Kuiwen; Qi, Fei

2011-04-01

The detailed chemical structures of three low-pressure (35 Torr) premixed laminar furan/oxygen/argon flames with equivalence ratios of 1.4, 1.8 and 2.2 have been investigated by using tunable synchrotron vacuum ultraviolet (VUV) photoionization and molecular-beam mass spectrometry. About 40 combustion species including hydrocarbons and oxygenated intermediates have been identified by measurements of photoionization efficiency spectra. Mole fraction profiles of the flame species including reactants, intermediates and products have been determined by scanning burner position with some selected photon energies near ionization thresholds. Flame temperatures have been measured by a Pt-6%Rh/Pt-30%Rh thermocouple. A new mechanism involving 206 species and 1368 reactions has been proposed whose predictions are in reasonable agreement with measured species profiles for the three investigated flames. Rate-of-production and sensitivity analyses have been performed to track the key reaction paths governing furan consumption for different equivalence ratios. Both experimental and modeling results indicate that few aromatics could be formed in these flames. Furthermore, the current model has been validated against previous pyrolysis results of the literature obtained behind shock waves and the agreement is reasonable as well.

Growth of fractal structures in flames with silicon admixture

NARCIS (Netherlands)

Smirnov, B. M.; Dutka, M.; van Essen, V. M.; Gersen, S.; Visser, P.; Vainchtein, D.; De Hosson, J. Th. M.; Levinsky, H. B.; Mokhov, A. V.

Transmission electron microscopy (TEM) measurements and theoretical analysis are combined to construct the physical picture of formation of SiO2 fractal aggregates in a methane/hexamethyldisiloxane/air atmospheric pressure flame. The formation of SiO2 fractal aggregates is described as a multistage

Recent contributions of flame-sampling molecular-beam mass spectrometry to a fundamental understanding of combustion chemistry

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Hansen, Nils [Combustion Research Facility, Sandia National Laboratories, Livermore, CA 94551 (United States); Cool, Terrill A. [School of Applied and Engineering Physics, Cornell University, Ithaca, NY 14853 (United States); Westmoreland, Phillip R. [Department of Chemical Engineering, University of Massachusetts, Amherst, MA 01003 (United States); Kohse-Hoeinghaus, Katharina [Department of Chemistry, Bielefeld University, D-33615 Bielefeld (Germany)

2009-04-15

Flame-sampling molecular-beam mass spectrometry of premixed, laminar, low-pressure flat flames has been demonstrated to be an efficient tool to study combustion chemistry. In this technique, flame gases are sampled through a small opening in a quartz probe, and after formation of a molecular beam, all flame species are separated using mass spectrometry. The present review focuses on critical aspects of the experimental approach including probe sampling effects, different ionization processes, and mass separation procedures. The capability for isomer-resolved flame species measurements, achievable by employing tunable vacuum-ultraviolet radiation for single-photon ionization, has greatly benefited flame-sampling molecular-beam mass spectrometry. This review also offers an overview of recent combustion chemistry studies of flames fueled by hydrocarbons and oxygenates. The identity of a variety of intermediates in hydrocarbon flames, including resonantly stabilized radicals and closed-shell intermediates, is described, thus establishing a more detailed understanding of the fundamentals of molecular-weight growth processes. Finally, molecular-beam mass-spectrometric studies of reaction paths in flames of alcohols, ethers, and esters, which have been performed to support the development and validation of kinetic models for bio-derived alternative fuels, are reviewed. (author)

Investigation of Scalar Filtered Density Function in Turbulent Partially Premixed Flames

National Research Council Canada - National Science Library

Tong, Chenning

2006-01-01

... using measurement data obtained in turbulent partially premixed methane/air (Sandia) flames. For SGS scalar variance small compared to its mean, the FMDF is not far from Gaussian and the SGS scalar is well mixed...

Experimental study on flame pattern formation and combustion completeness in a radial microchannel

Science.gov (United States)

Fan, Aiwu; Minaev, Sergey; Kumar, Sudarshan; Liu, Wei; Maruta, Kaoru

2007-12-01

Combustion behavior in a radial microchannel with a gap of 2.0 mm and a diameter of 50 mm was experimentally investigated. In order to simulate the heat recirculation, which is an essential strategy in microscale combustion devices, positive temperature gradients along the radial flow direction were given to the microchannel by an external heat source. A methane-air mixture was supplied from the center of the top plate through a 4.0 mm diameter delivery tube. A variety of flame patterns, including a stable circular flame and several unstable flame patterns termed unstable circular flame, single and double pelton-like flames, traveling flame and triple flame, were observed in the experiments. The regime diagram of all these flame patterns is presented in this paper. Some characteristics of the various flame patterns, such as the radii of stable and unstable circular flames, major combustion products and combustion efficiencies of all these flame patterns, were also investigated. Furthermore, the effect of the heat recirculation on combustion stability was studied by changing the wall temperature levels.

Numerical Modelling of Soot Formation in Laminar Axisymmetric Ethylene-Air Coflow Flames at Atmospheric and Elevated Pressures

KAUST Repository

Abdelgadir, Ahmed

2015-03-30

A set of coflow diffusion flames are simulated to study the formation, growth, and oxidation of soot in flames of diluted hydrocarbon fuels, with focus on the effects of pressure. Firstly, we assess the ability of a high performance CFD solver, coupled with detailed transport and kinetic models, to reproduce experimental measurements of a series of ethylene-air coflow flames. Detailed finite rate chemistry describing the formation of Polycyclic Aromatic Hydro-carbons is used. Soot is modeled with a moment method and the resulting moment transport equations are solved with a Lagrangian numerical scheme. Numerical and experimental results are compared for various pressures. Finally, a sensitivity study is performed assessing the effect of the boundary conditions and kinetic mechanisms on the flame structure and stabilization properties.

Flame-Vortex Interactions Imaged in Microgravity - To Assess the Theory Flame Stretch

Science.gov (United States)

Driscoll, James F.

2001-01-01

pocket, which burns inwardly. Shadowgraphs at 1000 frames/sec quantify the Markstein number and flame speed. A Low-Laser Power PIV System was developed and is being added to the drop package. Numerical computations were required to explain why the Markstein numbers measured for the inwardly-propagating flames differ from those of outward propagating flames; this is an important research issue in the assessment of the Theory of Flame Stretch. The RUN-1DL code (developed by Prof. B. Rogg) was run for IPF and OPFs with complex methane and propane chemistry. Results confirmed that Ma for the IPFs are larger than for OPFs as was observed experimentally. Physical reasons for these new findings about the Theory of Flame Stretch are being determined from the experiments and the computations. Several journal papers have been published; the drop package is described in the AIAA Journal, while the one-g results appear in three other journal papers.

Incineration of oxygenated volatile organic compounds. Experimental study and kinetic modeling of the oxidation of methyl ethyl ketone, ethyl acetate and butan-2-ol in methane flames; Incineration de composes organiques volatils oxygenes. Etude experimentale et modelisation cinetique de l'oxydation de la methyl ethyl cetone, de l'acetate d'ethyle et du butan-2-ol dans des flammes de methane

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Decottignies, V.

2000-12-01

This work deals with the low pressure (0.05 atm) degradation of three volatile organic compounds (VOCs): methyl-ethyl-ketone, ethyl acetate and butan-2-ol, in premixed stoichiometric laminar methane flames seeded with 1 to 3% of each VOC. Molar fraction profiles of species have been obtained using microprobe sampling coupled with a gas chromatography and a mass spectroscopy analysis. Temperature profiles have been obtained using the covered thermocouple technique in the presence of the microprobe. The addition of a VOC in the initial reagents mixture leads to an increase of the quantity of intermediate hydrocarbon compounds and in particular of some soot precursor species. The degradation of VOCs leads to the formation of oxygenated intermediates like methanol, dimethyl-ether, acetaldehyde, propanal, acetone and vinyl acetate, the type of VOC having an effect on the quantities produced. The degradation of a VOC can lead to the formation of more toxic or polluting compounds (methyl vinyl ketone, acetic acid and acrolein) than the VOC itself. In the conditions of the study, the intermediate compounds are totally destructed inside the reactional area of the flame front and are no more present in the burnt gases. Sub-mechanisms of VOC oxidation have been developed using experimental observations and the most recent recommendations of the literature. These sub-mechanisms comprise 49 species involved in 241 elementary reactions. Their validation has been performed by comparing the experiment with the kinetic modeling on the molar fraction profiles of the detected species. Experimental data are well reproduced by the model for most species. The addition of a VOC inside the initial reagents mixture creates an important reactivity increase, in particular in the case of butan-2-ol seeded flames. The analysis of reactional ways has permitted to draw out the main reactions responsible for the degradation of the 3 VOCs and the ways of formation and consumption of the

30 CFR 57.22104 - Open flames (I-C mines).

Science.gov (United States)

2010-07-01

....22104 Mineral Resources MINE SAFETY AND HEALTH ADMINISTRATION, DEPARTMENT OF LABOR METAL AND NONMETAL MINE SAFETY AND HEALTH SAFETY AND HEALTH STANDARDS-UNDERGROUND METAL AND NONMETAL MINES Safety Standards for Methane in Metal and Nonmetal Mines Fire Prevention and Control § 57.22104 Open flames (I-C...

THE EFFECTS OF EQUIVALENCE RATIO ON THE FORMATION OF POLYCYCLIC AROMATIC HYDROCARBONS AND SOOT IN PREMIXED ETHANE FLAMES. (R825412)

Science.gov (United States)

AbstractThe formation of polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (PAH) and soot has been investigated in atmospheric-pressure, laminar, ethane/oxygen/argon premixed flames as a function of mixture equivalence ratio. Mole fraction profiles of major products, trace aromatics, ...

A Experimental Study of the Growth of Laser Spark and Electric Spark Ignited Flame Kernels.

Science.gov (United States)

Ho, Chi Ming

1995-01-01

Better ignition sources are constantly in demand for enhancing the spark ignition in practical applications such as automotive and liquid rocket engines. In response to this practical challenge, the present experimental study was conducted with the major objective to obtain a better understanding on how spark formation and hence spark characteristics affect the flame kernel growth. Two laser sparks and one electric spark were studied in air, propane-air, propane -air-nitrogen, methane-air, and methane-oxygen mixtures that were initially at ambient pressure and temperature. The growth of the kernels was monitored by imaging the kernels with shadowgraph systems, and by imaging the planar laser -induced fluorescence of the hydroxyl radicals inside the kernels. Characteristic dimensions and kernel structures were obtained from these images. Since different energy transfer mechanisms are involved in the formation of a laser spark as compared to that of an electric spark; a laser spark is insensitive to changes in mixture ratio and mixture type, while an electric spark is sensitive to changes in both. The detailed structures of the kernels in air and propane-air mixtures primarily depend on the spark characteristics. But the combustion heat released rapidly in methane-oxygen mixtures significantly modifies the kernel structure. Uneven spark energy distribution causes remarkably asymmetric kernel structure. The breakdown energy of a spark creates a blast wave that shows good agreement with the numerical point blast solution, and a succeeding complex spark-induced flow that agrees reasonably well with a simple puff model. The transient growth rates of the propane-air, propane-air -nitrogen, and methane-air flame kernels can be interpreted in terms of spark effects, flame stretch, and preferential diffusion. For a given mixture, a spark with higher breakdown energy produces a greater and longer-lasting enhancing effect on the kernel growth rate. By comparing the growth

DNS of turbulent premixed slot flames with mixture inhomogeneity: a study of NOx formation

Science.gov (United States)

Luca, Stefano; Attili, Antonio; Bisetti, Fabrizio

2016-11-01

A set of Direct Numerical Simulations of three-dimensional methane/air lean flames in a spatially developing turbulent slot burner are performed. The flames are in the thin-reaction zone regimes and the jet Reynolds number is 5600. This configuration is of interest since it displays turbulent production by mean shear as in real devices. The gas phase hydrodynamics are modeled with the reactive, unsteady Navier-Stokes equations in the low Mach number limit. Combustion is treated with finite-rate chemistry. The jet is characterized by a non-uniform equivalence ratio at the inlet and varying levels of incomplete premixing for the methane/air mixture are considered. The global equivalence ratio is 0.7 and temperature is 800 K. All simulations are performed at 4 atm. The instantaneous profiles of the mass fractions of methane and air at the inlet are sampled from a set of turbulent channel simulations that provide realistic, fully turbulent fields. The data are analyzed to study the influence of partial premixing on the flame structure. Particular focus is devoted to the assessment of heat release rate fluctuations and NOx formation. In particular, the effects of partial premixing on the production rates for the various pathways to NOx formation are investigated.

Experimental analysis of an oblique turbulent flame front propagating in a stratified flow

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Galizzi, C.; Escudie, D. [Universite de Lyon, CNRS, CETHIL, INSA-Lyon, UMR5008, F-69621 Cedex (France)

2010-12-15

This paper details the experimental study of a turbulent V-shaped flame expanding in a nonhomogeneous premixed flow. Its aim is to characterize the effects of stratification on turbulent flame characteristics. The setup consists of a stationary V-shaped flame stabilized on a rod and expanding freely in a lean premixed methane-air flow. One of the two oblique fronts interacts with a stratified slice, which has an equivalence ratio close to one and a thickness greater than that of the flame front. Several techniques such as PIV and CH{sup *} chemiluminescence are used to investigate the instantaneous fields, while laser Doppler anemometry and thermocouples are combined with a concentration probe to provide information on the mean fields. First, in order to provide a reference, the homogeneous turbulent case is studied. Next, the stratified turbulent premixed flame is investigated. Results show significant modifications of the whole flame and of the velocity field upstream of the flame front. The analysis of the geometric properties of the stratified flame indicates an increase in flame brush thickness, closely related to the local equivalence ratio. (author)

Properties of flames propagating in rich propane-air mixtures at microgravity

Science.gov (United States)

Wang, S. F.; Pu, Y. K.; Jia, F.; Jarosinski, J.

Under normal gravity conditions it was found that the rich flammability limits for propane-air mixture are 9 2 C 3 H 8 equivalence ratio phi 2 42 for upward and 6 3 C 3 H 8 phi 1 60 for downward propagating flames An extremely large concentration gap exists between these two limits which is attributed to the influence of buoyancy and preferential diffusion in the mixture The present study enables a better understanding of flame behaviors in rich propane-air mixtures through microgravity experiments in which flame propagation can be examined in the absence of buoyancy The experiments were carried out in a cubic closed vessel of 80 mm inner length made of quartz glass A high-speed camera recorded flame propagation in the combustion vessel while the pressure history was measured by a transducer to indicate corresponding changes in heat release rate and the temperature development was measured by a thermocouple During the microgravity experiments the vessel was located inside a drop tower assembly The experimental data were compared with similar experiments conducted under normal gravity The flame characteristics were investigated for mixture concentrations between 6 5 C 3 H 8 and 9 2 C 3 H 8 Reliable data related to laminar burning velocity and flame thickness were obtained Some new details of the flame propagation near rich flammability limits were deduced Comparative experiments revealed the influence of gravity on combustion processes of rich propane-air

Approximate Deconvolution and Explicit Filtering For LES of a Premixed Turbulent Jet Flame

Science.gov (United States)

2014-09-19

from laminar flamelets computed with the GRI -mechanism for methane-air combustion (Smith et al. 1999) and the progress variable Yc is defined as in... gri - mech/. Subramanian, V., P. Domingo, and L. Vervisch (2010). Large-Eddy Simulation of forced igni- tion of an annular bluff-body burner. Combust

Thermal Radiation Properties of Turbulent Lean Premixed Methane Air Flames

National Research Council Canada - National Science Library

Ji, Jun; Sivathanu, Y. R; Gore, J. P

2000-01-01

... of turbulent premixed flames. Reduced cooling airflows in lean premixed combustors, miniaturization of combustors, and the possible use of radiation sensors in combustion control schemes are some of the practical reasons...

Investigation of Spark Ignition and Autoignition in Methane and Air Using Computational Fluid Dynamics and Chemical Reaction Kinetics. A numerical Study of Ignition Processes in Internal Combustion Engines

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Nordrik, R.

1993-12-01

The processes in the combustion chamber of internal combustion engines have received increased attention in recent years because their efficiencies are important both economically and environmentally. This doctoral thesis studies the ignition phenomena by means of numerical simulation methods. The fundamental physical relations include flow field conservation equations, thermodynamics, chemical reaction kinetics, transport properties and spark modelling. Special attention is given to the inclusion of chemical kinetics in the flow field equations. Using his No Transport of Radicals Concept method, the author reduces the computational efforts by neglecting the transport of selected intermediate species. The method is validated by comparison with flame propagation data. A computational method is described and used to simulate spark ignition in laminar premixed methane-air mixtures and the autoignition process of a methane bubble surrounded by hot air. The spark ignition simulation agrees well with experimental results from the literature. The autoignition simulation identifies the importance of diffusive and chemical processes acting together. The ignition delay times exceed the experimental values found in the literature for premixed ignition delay, presumably because of the mixing process and lack of information on low temperature reactions in the skeletal kinetic mechanism. Transient turbulent methane jet autoignition is simulated by means of the KIVA-II code. Turbulent combustion is modelled by the Eddy Dissipation Concept. 90 refs., 81 figs., 3 tabs.

Laminar burning velocity and Markstein length of nitrogen diluted natural gas/hydrogen/air mixtures at normal, reduced and elevated pressures

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Miao, Haiyan [State Key Laboratory of Multiphase Flow in Power Engineering, School of Energy and Power Eng., Xi' an Jiaotong University (China); Institute of High Performance Computing, A-star (Singapore); Ji, Min; Jiao, Qi; Huang, Qian; Huang, Zuohua [State Key Laboratory of Multiphase Flow in Power Engineering, School of Energy and Power Eng., Xi' an Jiaotong University (China)

2009-04-15

Flame propagation of premixed nitrogen diluted natural gas/hydrogen/air mixtures was studied in a constant volume combustion bomb under various initial pressures. Laminar burning velocities and Markstein lengths were obtained for the diluted stoichiometric fuel/air mixtures with different hydrogen fractions and diluent ratios under various initial pressures. The results showed that both unstretched flame speed and unstretched burning velocity are reduced with the increase in initial pressure (except when the hydrogen fraction is 80%) as well as diluent ratio. The velocity reduction rate due to diluent addition is determined mainly by hydrogen fraction and diluent ratio, and the effect of initial pressure is negligible. Flame stability was studied by analyzing Markstein length. It was found that the increase of initial pressure and hydrogen fraction decreases flame stability and the flame tends to be more stable with the addition of diluent gas. Generally speaking, Markstein length of a fuel with low hydrogen fraction is more sensitive to the change of initial pressure than that of a one with high hydrogen fraction. (author)

High rate flame synthesis of highly crystalline iron oxide nanorods

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Merchan-Merchan, W; Taylor, A M; Saveliev, A V

2008-01-01

Single-step flame synthesis of iron oxide nanorods is performed using iron probes inserted into an opposed-flow methane oxy-flame. The high temperature reacting environment of the flame tends to convert elemental iron into a high density layer of iron oxide nanorods. The diameters of the iron oxide nanorods vary from 10 to 100 nm with a typical length of a few microns. The structural characterization performed shows that nanorods possess a highly ordered crystalline structure with parameters corresponding to cubic magnetite (Fe 3 O 4 ) with the [100] direction oriented along the nanorod axis. Structural variations of straight nanorods such as bends, and T-branched and Y-branched shapes are frequently observed within the nanomaterials formed, opening pathways for synthesis of multidimensional, interconnected networks

Measurements and correlations of turbulent burning velocities over wide ranges of fuels and elevated pressures

KAUST Repository

Bradley, Derek; Lawes, Malcolm; Liu, Kexin; Mansour, Morkous S.

2013-01-01

The implosion technique has been used to extend measurements of turbulent burning velocities over greater ranges of fuels and pressures. Measurements have been made up to 3.5 MPa and at strain rate Markstein numbers as low as 23. The implosion technique, with spark ignition at two opposite wall positions within a fan-stirred spherical bomb is capable of measuring turbulent burning velocities, at higher pressures than is possible with central ignition. Pressure records and schlieren high speed photography define the rate of burning and the smoothed area of the flame front. The first aim of the study was to extend the previous measurements with ethanol and propane-air, with further measurements over wider ranges of fuels and equivalence ratios with mixtures of hydrogen, methane, 10% hydrogen-90% methane, toluene, and i-octane, with air. The second aim was to study further the low turbulence regime in which turbulent burning co-exists with laminar flame instabilities. Correlations are presented of turbulent burning velocity normalised by the effective rms turbulent velocity acting on the flame front, ut=u0k , with the Karlovitz stretch factor, K, for different strain rate Markstein numbers, a decrease in which increases ut=u0k . Experimental correlations are presented for the present measurements, combined with previous ones. Different burning regimes are also identified, extending from that of mixed turbulence/laminar instability at low values of K to that at high values of K, in which ut=u0k is gradually reduced due to increasing localised flame extinctions. © 2012 The Combustion Institute.

Effect of an external electric field on the propagation velocity of premixed flames

KAUST Repository

Sánchez-Sanz, Mario

2015-01-01

© 2014 The Combustion Institute. Published by Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved. There have been many experimental investigations into the ability of electric fields to enhance combustion by acting upon ion species present in flames [1]. In this work, we examine this phenomenon using a one-dimensional model of a lean premixed flame under the influence of a longitudinal electric field. We expand upon prior two-step chain-branching reaction laminar models with reactions to model the creation and consumption of both a positively-charged radical species and free electrons. Also included are the electromotive force in the conservation equation for ion species and the electrostatic form of the Maxwell equations in order to resolve ion transport by externally applied and internally induced electric fields. The numerical solution of these equations allows us to compute changes in flame speed due to electric fields. Further, the variation of key kinetic and transport parameters modifies the electrical sensitivity of the flame. From changes in flame speed and reactant profiles we are able to gain novel, valuable insight into how and why combustion can be controlled by electric fields.

Effect of the mixing fields on the stability and structure of turbulent partially premixed flames in a concentric flow conical nozzle burner

KAUST Repository

Mansour, Mohy S.; Elbaz, Ayman M.; Roberts, William L.; Senosy, Mohamed S.; Zayed, Mohamed F.; Juddoo, Mrinal; Masri, Assaad R.

2016-01-01

of partially premixed methane flames. The mixing field in a concentric flow conical nozzle (CFCN) burner with well-controlled mechanism of the mixing is investigated using Rayleigh scattering technique. The flame stability, structure and flow field of some

Numerical study of flame structure in the mild combustion regime

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Mardani Amir

2015-01-01

Full Text Available In this paper, turbulent non-premixed CH4+H2 jet flame issuing into a hot and diluted co-flow air is studied numerically. This flame is under condition of the moderate or intense low-oxygen dilution (MILD combustion regime and related to published experimental data. The modelling is carried out using the EDC model to describe turbulence-chemistry interaction. The DRM-22 reduced mechanism and the GRI2.11 full mechanism are used to represent the chemical reactions of H2/methane jet flame. The flame structure for various O2 levels and jet Reynolds numbers are investigated. The results show that the flame entrainment increases by a decrease in O2 concentration at air side or jet Reynolds number. Local extinction is seen in the upstream and close to the fuel injection nozzle at the shear layer. It leads to the higher flame entertainment in MILD regime. The turbulence kinetic energy decay at centre line of jet decreases by an increase in O2 concentration at hot Co-flow. Also, increase in jet Reynolds or O2 level increases the mixing rate and rate of reactions.

Numerical and Experimental Study on Negative Buoyance Induced Vortices in N-Butane Jet Flames

KAUST Repository

Xiong, Yuan

2015-07-26

Near nozzle flow field in flickering n-butane diffusion jet flames was investigated with a special focus on transient flow patterns of negative buoyance induced vortices. The flow structures were obtained through Mie scattering imaging with seed particles in a fuel stream using continuous-wave (CW) Argon-ion laser. Velocity fields were also quantified with particle mage velocimetry (PIV) system having kHz repetition rate. The results showed that the dynamic motion of negative buoyance induced vortices near the nozzle exit was coupled strongly with a flame flickering instability. Typically during the flame flickering, the negative buoyant vortices oscillated at the flickering frequency. The vortices were distorted by the flickering motion and exhibited complicated transient vortical patterns, such as tilting and stretching. Numerical simulations were also implemented based on an open source C++ package, LaminarSMOKE, for further validations.

Experimental and numerical investigation of fuel mixing effects on soot structures in counterflow diffusion flames

KAUST Repository

Choi, Byungchul

2011-03-26

Experimental and numerical analyses of laminar diffusion flames were performed to identify the effect of fuel mixing on soot formation in a counterflow burner. In this experiment, the volume fraction, number density, and particle size of soot were investigated using light extinction/scattering systems. The experimental results showed that the synergistic effect of an ethylene-propane flame is appreciable. Numerical simulations showed that the benzene (C6H6) concentration in mixture flames was higher than in ethylene-base flames because of the increase in the concentration of propargyl radicals. Methyl radicals were found to play an important role in the formation of propargyl, and the recombination of propargyl with benzene was found to lead to an increase in the number density for cases exhibiting synergistic effects. These results imply that methyl radicals play an important role in soot formation, particularly with regard to the number density. © 2011 The Korean Society of Automotive Engineers and Springer-Verlag Berlin Heidelberg.

Establishment of analysis method for methane detection by gas chromatography

Science.gov (United States)

Liu, Xinyuan; Yang, Jie; Ye, Tianyi; Han, Zeyu

2018-02-01

The study focused on the establishment of analysis method for methane determination by gas chromatography. Methane was detected by hydrogen flame ionization detector, and the quantitative relationship was determined by working curve of y=2041.2x+2187 with correlation coefficient of 0.9979. The relative standard deviation of 2.60-6.33% and the recovery rate of 96.36%∼105.89% were obtained during the parallel determination of standard gas. This method was not quite suitable for biogas content analysis because methane content in biogas would be over the measurement range in this method.

Analysis of the current–voltage curves and saturation currents in burner-stabilised premixed flames with detailed ion chemistry and transport models

KAUST Repository

Belhi, Memdouh; Han, Jie; Casey, Tiernan A.; Chen, Jyh-Yuan; Im, Hong G.; Sarathy, S.  Mani; Bisetti, Fabrizio

2018-01-01

Current-voltage, or i–V, curves are used in combustion to characterise the ionic structure of flames. The objective of this paper is to develop a detailed modelling framework for the quantitative prediction of the i–V curves in methane/air flames

Optical investigation of gas-phase KCl/KOH sulfation in post flame conditions

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Weng, Wubin; chen, Shuang; Wu, Hao

2018-01-01

A counter-flow reactor setup was designed to investigate the gas-phase sulfation and homogeneous nucleation of potassium salts. Gaseous KOH and KCl were introduced into the post-flame zone of a laminar flat flame. The hot flame products mixed in the counter-flow with cold N2, with or without....... Depending on the potassium speciation in the inlet and the presence of SO2, they consisted of K2SO4, KCl, or K2CO3, respectively. The experiments showed that KOH was sulphated more readily than KCl, resulting in larger quantities of aerosols. The sulfation process in the counter-flow setup was simulated...... using a chemical kinetic model including a detailed subset for the Cl/S/K chemistry. Similar to the experimental results, much more potassium sulfate was predicted when seeding KOH compared to seeding KCl. For both KOH and KCl, sulfation was predicted to occur primarily through the reactions among...

Soot emissions from turbulent diffusion flames burning simple alkane fuels

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Canteenwalla, P.M.; Johnson, M.R. [Carleton Univ., Ottawa, ON (Canada). Dept. of Mechanical and Aerospace Engineering; Thomson, K.A.; Smallwood, G.J. [National Research Council of Canada, Ottawa, ON (Canada). Inst. for Chemical Process and Environmental Technology

2007-07-01

A classic problem in combustion involves measurement and prediction of soot emissions from turbulent diffusion flames. Very high-sensitivity measurements of particulate matter (PM) from very low-sooting diffusion flames burning methane and other simple alkane fuels have been enabled from recent advances in laser-induced incandescence (LII). In order to quantify soot emissions from a lab-scale turbulent diffusion flame burner, this paper presented a study that used LII to develop a sampling protocol. The purpose of the study was to develop an experimentally based model to predict PM emissions from flares used in industry using soot emissions from lab-scale flares. Quantitative results of mass of soot emitted per mass of fuel burned were presented across a range of flow conditions and fuels. The experiment used digital imaging to measure flame lengths and estimate flame residence times. Comparisons were also made between current measurements and results of previous researchers for soot in the overfire region. The study also considered the validity applicability of buoyancy based models for predicting and scaling soot emissions. The paper described the experimental setup including sampling system and flame length imaging. Background information on soot yield and a comparison of flame residence time definitions were provided. The results and discussion of results were also presented. It was concluded that the results highlighted the subjective nature of flame length measurements. 10 refs., 4 figs.

Asymptotic analysis of methane-hydrogen-air mixtures

NARCIS (Netherlands)

Hermanns, R.T.E.; Bastiaans, R.J.M.; Goey, de L.P.H.

2005-01-01

In this paper an asymptotic analysis of de Goey et al.concerning premixed stoichiometric methane-hydrogen-air flames is analyzed in depth. The analysis is performed with up to 50 mole percent of hydrogen in the fuel, at gas inlet temperatures ranging from 300 K to 650 K and pressures from 1 to 15

Deformation Study of Lean Methane-Air Premixed Spherically Expanding Flames under a Negative Direct Current Electric Field

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Chao Li

2016-09-01

Full Text Available This paper compares numerical simulations with experiments to study the deformation of lean premixed spherically expanding flames under a negative direct current (DC electric field. The experiments, including the flame deformation and the ionic distribution on the flame surface were investigated in a mesh to mesh electric field. Besides, a numerical model of adding an electric body force to the positive ions on the flame surface was also established to perform a relevant simulation. Results show that the spherical flame will acquire an elliptical shape with a marked flame stretch in the horizontal direction and a slight inhibition in the vertical direction under a negative DC electric field. Meanwhile, a non-uniform ionic distribution on the flame surface was also detected by the Langmuir probe. The simulation results from the numerical model show good agreement with experimental data. According to the velocity field analysis in simulation, it was found the particular motion of positive ions and neutral molecules on the flame surface should be responsible for the special flame deformation. When a negative DC electric field was applied, the majority of positive ions and colliding neutral molecules will form an ionic flow along the flame surface by a superposition of the electric field force and the aerodynamic drag. The ionic flow was not uniform and mainly formed on the upper and lower sides, so it will lead to a non-uniform ionic distribution along the flame surface. What’s more, this ionic flow will also induce two vortexes both inside and outside of the flame surface due to viscosity effects. The external vortexes could produce an entraining effect on the premixed gas and take away the heat from the flame surface by forced convection, and then suppress the flame propagation in the vertical direction, while, the inner vortexes would scroll the burned zones and induce an inward flow at the horizontal center, which could be the reason for the

Sooting Characteristics and Modeling in Counterflow Diffusion Flames

KAUST Repository

Wang, Yu

2013-11-01

Soot formation is one of the most complex phenomena in combustion science and an understanding of the underlying physico-chemical mechanisms is important. This work adopted both experimental and numerical approaches to study soot formation in laminar counterfl ow diffusion flames. As polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (PAHs) are the precursors of soot particles, a detailed gas-phase chemical mechanism describing PAH growth upto coronene for fuels with 1 to 4 carbon atoms was validated against laminar premixed and counter- flow diffusion fl ames. Built upon this gas-phase mechanism, a soot model was then developed to describe soot inception and surface growth. This soot model was sub- sequently used to study fuel mixing effect on soot formation in counterfl ow diffusion flames. Simulation results showed that compared to the baseline case of the ethylene flame, the doping of 5% (by volume) propane or ethane in ethylene tends to increase the soot volume fraction and number density while keeping the average soot size almost unchanged. These results are in agreement with experimental observations. Laser light extinction/scattering as well as laser induced fluorescence techniques were used to study the effect of strain rate on soot and PAH formation in counterfl ow diffusion ames. The results showed that as strain rate increased both soot volume fraction and PAH concentrations decreased. The concentrations of larger PAH were more sensitive to strain rate compared to smaller ones. The effect of CO2 addition on soot formation was also studied using similar experimental techniques. Soot loading was reduced with CO2 dilution. Subsequent numerical modeling studies were able to reproduce the experimental trend. In addition, the chemical effect of CO2 addition was analyzed using numerical data. Critical conditions for the onset of soot were systematically studied in counterfl ow diffusion ames for various gaseous hydrocarbon fuels and at different strain rates. A sooting

Determination of halogens by flame emission of metal halogenides

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Henrion, G.; Marquardt, D.; Stoecker, B.

1979-01-01

The A-B systems InF, InCl, InBr, and InI have been excited by laminar H 2 -N 2 flames in order to dermine individual halogens or their mixtures qualitatively or quantitatively. In optimizing the fuel gas composition two different behavior patterns have been found for band intensities, which are correlated with binding energies of InX (X = halogen). The low temperature of the flame leads to complicated matrix effects which first of all result from effects on excitation and from competitive reactions. In general, cations cause a decreased intensity. Therefore, salts have to be converted into hydrohalide acids by ion exchange. Qualitative determinations of individual halogens are possible at a 500 to 50,000fold excess of the others, whereas quantitative determinations can be performed at a 100 to 5,000fold excess in 10 -4 molar solutions with errors of 2 to 10 per cent. (author)

Electrical Characteristics, Electrode Sheath and Contamination Layer Behavior of a Meso-Scale Premixed Methane-Air Flame Under AC/DC Electric Fields

Science.gov (United States)

Chen, Qi; Yan, Limin; Zhang, Hao; Li, Guoxiu

2016-05-01

Electrical characteristics of a nozzle-attached meso-scale premixed methane-air flame under low-frequency AC (0-4300 V, 0-500 Hz) and DC (0-3300 V) electric fields were studied. I-V curves were measured under different experimental conditions to estimate the magnitude of the total current 100-102 μA, the electron density 1015-1016 m-3 and further the power dissipation ≤ 0.7 W in the reaction zone. At the same time, the meso-scale premixed flame conductivity 10-4-10-3 Ω-1·m-1 as a function of voltage and frequency was experimentally obtained and was believed to represent a useful order-of magnitude estimate. Moreover, the influence of the collision sheath relating to Debye length (31-98 μm) and the contamination layer of an active electrode on measurements was discussed, based on the combination of simulation and theoretical analysis. As a result, the electrode sheath dimension was evaluated to less than 0.5 mm, which indicated a complex effect of the collision sheath on the current measurements. The surface contamination effect of an active electrode was further analyzed using the SEM imaging method, which showed elements immigration during the contamination layer formation process. supported by National Natural Science Foundation of China (No. 51376021), and the Fundamental Research Fund for Major Universities (No. 2013JBM079)

Combustion and emissions control in diesel-methane dual fuel engines: The effects of methane supply method combined with variable in-cylinder charge bulk motion

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Carlucci, Antonio P.; Laforgia, Domenico; Saracino, Roberto; Toto, Giuseppe

2011-01-01

Highlights: → We studied dual fuel combustion in diesel engines. → Bulk flow structure of in-cylinder charge and methane supply method were investigated. → Swirl charge motion is capable to enhance air-methane mixture oxidation at low loads. → Methane port injection is capable to reduce unburned hydrocarbons and nitric oxides. - Abstract: In this paper, the results of an extensive experimental campaign about dual fuel combustion development and the related pollutant emissions are reported, paying particular attention to the effect of both the in-cylinder charge bulk motion and methane supply method. A diesel common rail research engine was converted to operate in dual fuel mode and, by activating/deactivating the two different inlet valves of the engine (i.e. swirl and tumble), three different bulk flow structures of the charge were induced inside the cylinder. A methane port injection method was proposed, in which the gaseous fuel was injected into the inlet duct very close to the intake valves, in order to obtain a stratified-like air-fuel mixture up to the end of the compression stroke. For comparison purposes, a homogeneous-like air-fuel mixture was obtained injecting methane more upstream the intake line. Combining the different positions of the methane injector and the three possible bulk flow structures, seven different engine inlet setup were tested. In this way, it was possible to evaluate the effects on dual fuel combustion due to the interaction between methane injector position and charge bulk motion. In addition, methane injection pressure and diesel pilot injection parameters were varied setting the engine at two operating conditions. For some interesting low load tests, the combustion development was studied more in detail by means of direct observation of the process, using an in-cylinder endoscope and a digital CCD camera. Each combustion image was post-processed by a dedicated software, in order to extract only those portions with flame

Flame synthesis of zinc oxide nanocrystals

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Merchan-Merchan, Wilson, E-mail: wmerchan-merchan@ou.edu [School of Aerospace and Mechanical Engineering, University of Oklahoma, Norman, OK 73019 (United States); Farahani, Moien Farmahini [School of Aerospace and Mechanical Engineering, University of Oklahoma, Norman, OK 73019 (United States)

2013-02-01

Highlights: Black-Right-Pointing-Pointer We report a single-step flame method for the synthesis of Zn oxide nanocrystals. Black-Right-Pointing-Pointer Diverse flame positions lead to a variation of Zn oxide nanocrystal growth. Black-Right-Pointing-Pointer The synthesized crystals have polyhedral, pipet- and needle-like shape. Black-Right-Pointing-Pointer High length-to-diameter aspect-ratio crystals appear in a higher temperature flame. Black-Right-Pointing-Pointer The crystal growth mechanism corresponds to vapor-to-solid conversion. - Abstract: Distinctive zinc oxide (ZnO) nanocrystals were synthesized on the surface of Zn probes using a counter-flow flame medium formed by methane/acetylene and oxygen-enriched air streams. The source material, a zinc wire with a purity of {approx}99.99% and diameter of 1 mm, was introduced through a sleeve into the oxygen rich region of the flame. The position of the probe/sleeve was varied within the flame medium resulting in growth variation of ZnO nanocrystals on the surface of the probe. The shape and structural parameters of the grown crystals strongly depend on the flame position. Structural variations of the synthesized crystals include single-crystalline ZnO nanorods and microprisms (ZMPs) (the ZMPs have less than a few micrometers in length and several hundred nanometers in cross section) with a large number of facets and complex axial symmetry with a nanorod protruding from their tips. The protruding rods are less than 100 nm in diameter and lengths are less than 1 {mu}m. The protruding nanorods can be elongated several times by increasing the residence time of the probe/sleeve inside the oxygen-rich flame or by varying the flame position. At different flame heights, nanorods having higher length-to-diameter aspect-ratio can be synthesized. A lattice spacing of {approx}0.26 nm was measured for the synthesized nanorods, which can be closely correlated with the (0 0 2) interplanar spacing of hexagonal ZnO (Wurtzite) cells

Interaction of Plasma Discharges with a Flame: Experimental and Numerical Study

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Vincent-Randonnier, Axel; Teixeira, David

2010-01-01

This paper presents experimental results and numerical simulations of methane/air non-premixed flame under plasma assistance. Without plasma assistance, the flame blows off at a 28-30 m·s -1 bulk velocity (power around 3 kW). When the discharge is on, the flame can be maintained up to a bulk velocity of 53 m·s -1 (power around 6 kW), corresponding to +90% gain in power with only a few watt of plasma power. The plasma discharges present short duration current pulses (between 100 ns and 200 ns) and occur non-monotonically (delay between two pulses from 6x10 -5 s to 0.1 s). The probability density function of this occurrence is significantly influenced by the mass flow rate or the absence of flame, revealing the strong coupling of the plasma with hydrodynamic and combustion. For the numerical section of this work, we simulated the flame using a Computational Fluid Dynamics code based on Direct Numerical Simulation (direct solving of Navier-Stokes equations), and investigated the thermal and/or chemical effects of discharges on the flame stability.

Experimental study of laminar and turbulent flame speed of a spherical flame in a fan-stirred closed vessel for hydrogen safety application

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Goulier, J. [Institut de Combustion, Aérothermique, Réactivité et Environnement, CNRS-ICARE (France); Institut de Radioprotection et de Sûreté Nucléaire (IRSN) (France); Chaumeix, N., E-mail: chaumeix@cnrs-orleans.fr [Institut de Combustion, Aérothermique, Réactivité et Environnement, CNRS-ICARE (France); Halter, F. [Institut de Combustion, Aérothermique, Réactivité et Environnement, CNRS-ICARE (France); Meynet, N.; Bentaïb, A. [Institut de Radioprotection et de Sûreté Nucléaire (IRSN) (France)

2017-02-15

The aim of this paper is to report new experimental results on the effect of turbulence on the propagation speed of hydrogen/air flames. To do so, a new experimental setup, called the spherical bomb, has been designed and built at CNRS-ICARE laboratory. With this new setup, the effect of a given and well-characterized turbulence intensity on the increase of hydrogen/air flame speed can be investigated. This new facility consists of a spherical vessel equipped (563 mm internal diameter) equipped with 8 motors which are linked to fans inside the bomb. Fan actuation induces the generation of a turbulent flow inside the vessel prior to any ignition. The spherical bomb is equipped with 4 quartz windows (200 mm optical diameter) that allow the use of a Particle Image Velocimetry diagnostic in order to characterize the turbulence level inside the bomb. The flame propagation was recorded using a high speed camera at 19,002 frames per second. These experiments were performed for lean to stoichiometric hydrogen/air mixtures (16–20% of H{sub 2} in air), initially at ambient temperature and pressure, and for a rotation speed from 1000 to 5000 rpm. The PIV measurements showed that a homogeneous and isotropic turbulence is created with a fluctuation speed that can reach 4 m/s at 5000 rpm.

Phenomenology and numerical calculations of lean hydrogen-air premixed flame propagation in a turbulent flow

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Faix-Gantier, A.

2001-12-01

This thesis concerns the study of flame propagation in a turbulent flow of lean hydrogen-air mixtures. The aim is to precise the characteristics of propagation as well as combustion and turbulence models able to take into account the peculiarities of these mixtures. This research work is related to the prevention of fire hazards associated with accidental release of hydrogen within the reactor of a nuclear power plant. In a first part, the scales (the flame velocity and thickness) associated with the laminar flame propagation in hydrogen-air mixtures are studied. A specific attention is devoted to the intrinsic instability properties of such flames. Then, the turbulence scales potentially present within a reactor are estimated in order to allow for the determination of the regimes of combustion that might be present within the reactor and among which the flamelet regime appears to be conceivable. In a second part, starting with the analysis of the propagation properties of a mean reaction zone calculated with a flamelet model, we show that, with an adequate tuning of the parameter appearing in the mean reaction rate expression, it is possible to predict numerically the turbulent flame speeds available with the literature. (author)

3D velocity measurements in a premixed flame by tomographic PIV

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Tokarev, M P; Sharaborin, D K; Lobasov, A S; Chikishev, L M; Dulin, V M; Markovich, D M

2015-01-01

Tomographic particle image velocimetry (PIV) has become a standard tool for 3D velocity measurements in non-reacting flows. However, the majority of the measurements in flows with combustion are limited to small resolved depth compared to the size of the field of view (typically 1 : 10). The limitations are associated with inhomogeneity of the volume illumination and the non-uniform flow seeding, the optical distortions and errors in the 3D calibration, and the unwanted flame luminosity. In the present work, the above constraints were overcome for the tomographic PIV experiment in a laminar axisymmetric premixed flame. The measurements were conducted for a 1 : 1 depth-to-size ratio using a system of eight CCD cameras and a 200 mJ pulsed laser. The results show that camera calibration based on the triangulation of the tracer particles in the non-reacting conditions provided reliable accuracy for the 3D image reconstruction in the flame. The modification of the tomographic reconstruction allowed a posteriori removal of unwanted bright objects, which were located outside of the region of interest but affected the reconstruction quality. This study reports on a novel experience for the instantaneous 3D velocimetry in laboratory-scale flames by using tomographic PIV. (paper)

An Experimental Study of the Structure of Turbulent Non-Premixed Jet Flames in Microgravity

Science.gov (United States)

Boxx, Isaac; Idicheria, Cherian; Clemens, Noel

2000-11-01

The aim of this work is to investigate the structure of transitional and turbulent non-premixed jet flames under microgravity conditions. The microgravity experiments are being conducted using a newly developed drop rig and the University of Texas 1.5 second drop tower. The rig itself measures 16”x33”x38” and contains a co-flowing round jet flame facility, flow control system, CCD camera, and data/image acquisition computer. These experiments are the first phase of a larger study being conducted at the NASA Glenn Research Center 2.2 second drop tower facility. The flames being studied include methane and propane round jet flames at jet exit Reynolds numbers as high as 10,000. The primary diagnostic technique employed is emission imaging of flame luminosity using a relatively high-speed (350 fps) CCD camera. The high-speed images are used to study flame height, flame tip dynamics and burnout characteristics. Results are compared to normal gravity experimental results obtained in the same apparatus.

Application of the laminar flamelet concept in the numerical simulation of partially premixed flames

NARCIS (Netherlands)

Consul, R.; Claramunt, K.; Cadafalch, J.; Oliva, A.; De Goey, L.P.H.

2006-01-01

Flamelet models based on the mixture fraction variable using its dissipation rate for the mixing process are nowadays among the most extended models employed in the numerical simulation of turbulent flames [1]. During the last decade most of these approaches have been considered in the modelling of

Flame thermometry using laser-induced-grating spectroscopy of nitric oxide

Science.gov (United States)

Luers, Andrew; Salhlberg, Anna-Lena; Hochgreb, Simone; Ewart, Paul

2018-03-01

A systematic study of laser-induced thermal-grating scattering (LITGS) using nitric oxide as an absorbing species is presented as a means of thermometry in air-fed combustion. The relative contributions to the scattered signal from degenerate four-wave mixing, DFWM, and from laser-induced thermal-grating scattering, LITGS, are studied in the time domain for NO in N2 buffer gas up to 4 bar, using a pulsed laser system to excite the (0,0) γ-bands of NO at 226.21 nm. LITGS signals from combustion-generated NO in a laminar, pre-mixed CH4/O2/N2 flame on an in-house constructed slot burner were used to derive temperature values as a function of O2 concentration and position in the flame at 1 and 2.5 bar total pressure. Temperature values consistent with the calculated adiabatic flame temperature were derived from averaged LITGS signals over 50-100 single shots at 10 Hz repetition rate in the range 1600-2400 K with a pressure-dependent uncertainty of ± 1.8% at 1 bar to ± 1.4% at 2.5 bar. Based on observed signal-to-noise ratios, the minimum detectable concentration of NO in the flame is estimated to be 80 ppm for a 5 s measurement time at 10 Hz repetition rate.

Numerical Modelling of Soot Formation in Laminar Axisymmetric Ethylene-Air Coflow Flames at Atmospheric and Elevated Pressures

KAUST Repository

Rakha, Ihsan Allah

2015-05-01

The steady coflow diffusion flame is a widely used configuration for studying combustion kinetics, flame dynamics, and pollutant formation. In the current work, a set of diluted ethylene-air coflow flames are simulated to study the formation, growth, and oxidation of soot, with a focus on the effects of pressure on soot yield. Firstly, we assess the ability of a high performance CFD solver, coupled with detailed transport and kinetic models, to reproduce experimental measurements, like the temperature field, the species’ concentrations and the soot volume fraction. Fully coupled conservation equations for mass, momentum, energy, and species mass fractions are solved using a low Mach number formulation. Detailed finite rate chemistry describing the formation of Polycyclic Aromatic Hydrocarbons up to cyclopenta[cd]pyrene is used. Soot is modeled using a moment method and the resulting moment transport equations are solved with a Lagrangian numerical scheme. Numerical and experimental results are compared for various pressures. Reasonable agreement is observed for the flame height, temperature, and the concentrations of various species. In each case, the peak soot volume fraction is predicted along the centerline as observed in the experiments. The predicted integrated soot mass at pressures ranging from 4-8 atm, scales as P2.1, in satisfactory agreement with the measured integrated soot pressure scaling (P2.27). Significant differences in the mole fractions of benzene and PAHs, and the predicted soot volume fractions are found, using two well-validated chemical kinetic mechanisms. At 4 atm, one mechanism over-predicts the peak soot volume fraction by a factor of 5, while the other under-predicts it by a factor of 5. A detailed analysis shows that the fuel tube wall temperature has an effect on flame stabilization.

High fidelity chemistry and radiation modeling for oxy -- combustion scenarios

Science.gov (United States)

Abdul Sater, Hassan A.

To account for the thermal and chemical effects associated with the high CO2 concentrations in an oxy-combustion atmosphere, several refined gas-phase chemistry and radiative property models have been formulated for laminar to highly turbulent systems. This thesis examines the accuracies of several chemistry and radiative property models employed in computational fluid dynamic (CFD) simulations of laminar to transitional oxy-methane diffusion flames by comparing their predictions against experimental data. Literature review about chemistry and radiation modeling in oxy-combustion atmospheres considered turbulent systems where the predictions are impacted by the interplay and accuracies of the turbulence, radiation and chemistry models. Thus, by considering a laminar system we minimize the impact of turbulence and the uncertainties associated with turbulence models. In the first section of this thesis, an assessment and validation of gray and non-gray formulations of a recently proposed weighted-sum-of-gray gas model in oxy-combustion scenarios was undertaken. Predictions of gas, wall temperatures and flame lengths were in good agreement with experimental measurements. The temperature and flame length predictions were not sensitive to the radiative property model employed. However, there were significant variations between the gray and non-gray model radiant fraction predictions with the variations in general increasing with decrease in Reynolds numbers possibly attributed to shorter flames and steeper temperature gradients. The results of this section confirm that non-gray model predictions of radiative heat fluxes are more accurate than gray model predictions especially at steeper temperature gradients. In the second section, the accuracies of three gas-phase chemistry models were assessed by comparing their predictions against experimental measurements of temperature, species concentrations and flame lengths. The chemistry was modeled employing the Eddy

Simultaneous planar measurements of soot structure and velocity fields in a turbulent lifted jet flame at 3 kHz

Science.gov (United States)

Köhler, M.; Boxx, I.; Geigle, K. P.; Meier, W.

2011-05-01

We describe a newly developed combustion diagnostic for the simultaneous planar imaging of soot structure and velocity fields in a highly sooting, lifted turbulent jet flame at 3000 frames per second, or two orders of magnitude faster than "conventional" laser imaging systems. This diagnostic uses short pulse duration (8 ns), frequency-doubled, diode-pumped solid state (DPSS) lasers to excite laser-induced incandescence (LII) at 3 kHz, which is then imaged onto a high framerate CMOS camera. A second (dual-cavity) DPSS laser and CMOS camera form the basis of a particle image velocity (PIV) system used to acquire 2-component velocity field in the flame. The LII response curve (measured in a laminar propane diffusion flame) is presented and the combined diagnostics then applied in a heavily sooting lifted turbulent jet flame. The potential challenges and rewards of application of this combined imaging technique at high speeds are discussed.

Flame behavior and thermal structure of combusting plane jets with and without self-excited transverse oscillations