微尺度预混合火焰结构和熄火特性研究

本文以空气中的无约束甲烷预混合火焰为对象,用实验和数值解析的方法研究了微尺度预混合火焰的火焰结构和熄火特性。实验测得不同尺寸下混合气当量比和喷出速度与熄火关系图,在不到理论当量比(φ>1)时,火焰已经熄灭,管径越小,极限混合气当量比φu越大。数值解析研究了d=0．3 mm无约束甲烷预混合火焰,在混合气当量比大于 1的富燃料燃烧条件下,空气中形成的预混合火焰结构是内层预混合火焰和外层扩散火焰,极限当量比约为1,解析结果再现了实验现象。     

水雾作用下富燃料甲烷预混火焰化学发光特性

利用阶梯光栅光谱仪与自行研制的水雾协流管式燃烧器,对富燃料甲烷/空气层流预混火焰化学发光特性进行实验研究.分析了锥形预混火焰燃烧过程中火焰面OH、CH以及C2自由基粒子光谱强度分布规律,以及水雾协流作用下的预混火焰发射光谱特性,探讨了水雾液滴对富燃料甲烷预混火焰发射光谱的影响.实验结果表明:当水雾量充足时,作用于内锥火焰阵面的水雾液滴使得火焰阵面OH、CH以及C2自由基粒子发射光谱强度减弱,抑制预混火焰燃烧;当作用于火焰面的水雾载荷比较小时,富燃料预混火焰的OH、CH的发射光谱强度得到一定程度的增强.     

弱旋湍流火焰合成纳米二氧化钛的机理研究

湍流效应在火焰合成纳米TiO2颗粒工业化规模放大中具有重要影响.本文基于一种内加环形旋流片的弱旋火焰开展了合成TiO2纳米颗粒的实验研究.对于内径12 mm管式燃烧器,加入旋片后火焰贫燃极限大幅度降低16%～33%,火焰高度也从9.0 cm减少到3.0 cm,焰区温度约减少20%～30%.研究表明,弱旋湍流火焰具有流速大、可燃当最比低和温度低的特点,使其相对无旋火焰可以合成粒径较小、烧结程度较低的TiO2纳米颗粒.     

一种低湍流扬尘方法的实验研究

对一种新型扬尘方法在垂直管道中形成的扬尘湍流特性进行了测量,在此基础上,观察和测量了玉米粉尘火焰向上传播的过程,讨论了湍流对火焰特性的影响。新方法产生的扬尘湍流强度相当低,随时间衰减缓慢,扬尘湍流的积分尺度随着时间增大,约为2 cm到3 cm。实验中观察到两种粉尘火焰:湍流火焰和层流火焰,火焰形态转变对应的点火延迟时间约等于1．1 s,即粉尘云湍流运动强度为10 cm／s,湍流火焰传播速度明显大于层流火焰。     

喷管直径对微尺度扩散火焰特性的影响

对均匀空气流中微尺度甲烷扩散燃烧进行了数值模拟,重点考察微喷管内的流动和传热传质对微尺度燃烧特性的影响.研究结果表明,在保持燃料喷出速度一定的条件下,随着喷管直径的减小,喷管内与甲烷喷出速度相反方向上发生热量和质量的传递,燃料与空气的混合在喷管内已经发生,火焰的一部分热量回流到喷管内顶热了未燃混合气,同时也增加了火焰的热损失.当管径为0.15 mm时,甲烷在微喷管内就开始发生化学反应,在进行微尺度解析计算时,必须包含一定的喷管区域.     

预混火焰在封闭狭缝内传播动力学研究

本文构建了一个封闭圆盘狭缝空间的一维平面火焰动力学模型,研究了存在壁面热损失条件下可燃混合物在封闭的圆盘狭缝定容装置内火焰的传播特性。模型预测结果与实验结果定性地吻合。模型表明显示,壁面散热降低火焰传播速度的机制在于其使高温已燃气体向低温未燃气体方向的膨胀能力减小,导致火焰前锋的当地流场速度降低,而且同时降低了火焰温度和燃烧反应速率。因此增大初始压力或掺氢气等低活化能的反应物能够有效降低壁面散热的不利影响。该计算模型能够丰富微小尺度封闭空间内火焰传播相关理论,并提供在微小封闭空间内提高火焰传播速度和燃烧效率的理论依据和调控手段。     

微小圆管中分裂火焰的实验与理论研究

对丙烷/空气在内径2 mm的圆管内的预混燃烧进行了实验研究,借助于高速数码摄像机发现了分裂火焰现象,其中一个为向上游传播的较亮的常规火焰,另一个为向下游传播的较暗的微弱火焰。这些火焰先后熄灭,经过一段时间后又重复发生自着火、分裂、反向传播、灭火过程。这种现象在富燃、化学恰当比以及贫燃火焰中都有存在。一维非稳态计算表明化...     

微喷管甲烷非预混射流火焰燃烧特性实验研究

为发展微尺度燃烧器并拓展微尺度燃烧理论,对具有外部伴流空气的甲烷非预混微喷管射流火焰燃烧特性进行了实验研究。微喷管采用内径为710μm、425μm及280μm的不锈钢管,通过实验得到了微喷管非预混射流火焰的火焰形态、高度、最小熄灭流速及吹熄极限,并与常规尺度(管内径2 mm)非预混射流火焰进行了对比。研究表明微喷管射流火焰只有层流火焰一种形态;微喷管射流火焰高度主要取决于燃料流速而不受外部伴流速度影响;微喷管射流火焰的吹熄极限随伴流速度先增加后减小,而微射流火焰的最小熄灭流速受伴流空气速度影响较小,随管径减小微喷管射流火焰的可燃范围急剧减小。     

窄通道内热薄燃料表面火焰传播特性研究

利用实验和数值模拟对微重力和常重力条件下高度为14mm和10mm的窄通道内热薄纸张表面火焰传播特性进行了研究。不同重力条件下窄通道内火焰传播速度随气流速度变化的规律符合得较好,说明地面窄通道实验能够模拟微重力条件下材料表面火焰传播的主要特征。地面窄通道中浮力流动速度的最大值约为5cm／s,与常规实验通道（高度较大）相比...     

管状火焰燃烧器中高氧气浓度丙烷燃烧特性

对两种不同入口尺寸的急速混合管状火焰燃烧器开展了丙烷富氧燃烧特性研究,着重从火焰结构、燃烧范围、燃烧模式等,分析了燃料与氧化剂切向入口尺寸分别为0.5/0.5 mm(燃烧器A)及0.25/0.5 mm(燃烧器B)的丙烷燃烧特性,并基于Chemkin计算分析了内在机制。结果表明:在氧气浓度β≤0.5时,两者均能获得均匀稳定的管状火焰,火焰特征和燃烧范围相近;对于燃烧器A,随着β增加至0.7,化学反应时间缩短,掺混效果不足以维持火焰稳定;燃烧器B入口尺寸较小,入口速度更大,掺混更充分,在β=0.7时火焰仍稳定,β=0.8时火焰不均匀但仍稳定。此外,β≥0.7时,随当量比增加,燃烧器A、B均在低当量比和化学计量当量比附近出现了声不稳定现象,管状火焰区随β增加不断缩小。     

A comparative study of H2-air premixed flame in micro combustors with different physical and boundary conditions

A numerical study of H₂-air premixed combustion in the micro channels with a detailed chemical reaction mechanism is performed by solving the two-dimensional fully elliptic governing equations of continuity, momentum, energy and species, coupled with the energy equation in the solid wall. A reference case is defined as the combustion in a cylindrical tube with 0.8 mm inner diameter and 8 mm length with a non-slip wall and a uniform velocity profile at the inlet plane. Different physical and boundary conditions have been applied in order to investigate their respective effects on the flame temperature. The conditions studied in the current paper include the combustor size and geometry, inlet velocity profile, axial heat conduction in the solid wall and slip-wall and temperature jump at the gas–solid interface. It is noted that effects of Knudsen number (slip-wall and temperature jump) on the thermal and fluid field are not very significant in a d = 0.4 mm micro combustor. Furthermore, the qualitative effects of Knudsen number on the flame temperature are analysed. The results of this paper indicate that these various boundary and physical conditions have effects on the flame temperature to different extent and should be carefully monitored when applied for different applications.     

Stabilization mechanisms of longitudinal pulsations in rotating detonation combustors

This work investigates the stabilization mechanisms of two types of longitudinal pulsations in rotating detonation combustors. The first type is linked to operating modes with two counter-rotating waves in combustors with open outlets and appears as a minor peak in the pressure spectrum. The second type is observed as pulsed operation of the combustor when the outlet is restricted. Different combustor lengths are studied and the susceptibility to these longitudinal pulsations is investigated. Pressure measurements along the length of the combustor and around the perimeter are used to identify the operating mode and to describe the propagation and stabilization mechanisms of the two longitudinal modes. The results show that both modes are linked to the longitudinal acoustic resonance of the combustor. The length-to-perimeter ratio and the mass flux are identified as the driving parameters for the existence of these longitudinal modes. The first mode is shown to be an acoustic resonance supported by the intersections of counter-rotating waves. The second mode is controlled by the reflection of an explosion induced shock wave propagating through a high velocity bulk flow.     

Control of oscillating combustion and noise based on local flame structure

To control combustion oscillations, the characteristics of an oscillating swirl injection premixed flame have been investigated, and control of oscillating combustion and noise based on local flame structure has been conducted. The r.m.s. value of pressure fluctuations and noise level show significantly large values between = 0.8 and 1.1. The beating of pressure fluctuations is observed for the large oscillating flame conditions in this combustor. Relationship between beating of pressure fluctuations and local flame structure was observed by the simultaneous measurement of CH/OH planar laser induced fluorescence and pressure fluctuations. The local flame structure and beating of pressure fluctuations are related and the most complicated flame is formed in the middle pressure fluctuating region of beating. The beating of pressure fluctuations, which plays important roles in noise generation and nitric oxide emission in this combustor, could be controlled by injecting secondary fuel into the recirculating region of oscillating flames. Injecting secondary fuel prevented lean blowout, and low NO_x combustion was also achieved even for the case of pure methane injection as a secondary fuel. By injecting secondary fuel into the recirculating region near the swirl injector, the flame lifted from the swirl injector and its reaction region became uniform and widespread, hence resulting in low nitric oxide emission. Secondary mixture injection, fuel diluted with air, is not effective for control of combustion oscillations suppression and lean blowout prevention.     

An analytical study of the flame dynamics of a transversely forced asymmetric two-dimensional Bunsen flame

Combustion instabilities in annular combustors are of great interest because of their industrial relevance. Azimuthal acoustic modes, which involve transverse acoustic forcing to flames, have become a key process related to annular combustor instabilities. Transverse mean flow may be a factor that affects azimuthal oscillations. This paper provides an analytical model for a transversely forced two-dimensional Bunsen flame under transverse mean flow. The model is established using a low-amplitude perturbation assumption applied to a G-equation formulation. Forced flame displacement and flame transfer functions (FTFs) are calculated. The results are verified based on numerical solutions of the G-equation. Effects of frequency, transverse mean flow velocity and vertical mean flow velocity on the FTFs are discussed. The symmetric flame without transverse mean flow has a vanishing response to transverse acoustic forcing, while asymmetric flames, which are formed with transverse mean flow, have a bandpass response to transverse forcing. The response at very low and high forcing frequencies is small, with higher transfer function gains only in a certain frequency range. This bandpass response, which is inherently linked to the asymmetry of the flame, is an important factor to account for when considering the flame dynamics related to transverse acoustic effects.     

Computational investigations of the coupling between transient flame dynamics and thermo-acoustic instability in a self-excited resonance combustor

Combustion instability due to thermo-acoustic interactions is a critical combustion problem that requires a thorough understanding because of its adverse impact on stable and reliable operation of combustors in high-speed propulsion devices like gas turbines and rockets. This work conducts computational investigations of the coupling between the transient flame dynamics such as the ignition delay and local extinction and the thermo-acoustic instability developed in a self-excited resonance combustor to gain deep insights into the mechanisms of thermo-acoustic instability. A 2D modelling framework that employs different flamelet models (the steady flamelet model and the flamelet/progress variable approach) is developed to enable the examination of the effect of the transient flame dynamics caused by the strong coupling of the turbulent mixing and finite-rate chemical kinetics on the occurrence of thermo-acoustic instability. The models are validated by using the available experimental data for the pressure signal. Parametric studies are performed to examine the effect of the occurrence of the transient flame dynamics, the effect of artificial amplification of the Damköhler number, and the effect of neglecting mixture fraction fluctuations on the predictions of the thermo-acoustic instability. The parametric studies reveal that the occurrence of transient flame dynamics has a strong influence on the onset of the thermo-acoustic instability. Further analysis is then conducted to localise the effect of a particular flame dynamic event, the ignition delay, on the thermo-acoustic instability. The reverse effect of the occurrence of the thermo-acoustic instability on the transient flame dynamics in the combustor is also investigated by examining the temporal evolution of the local flame events in conjunction with the pressure wave propagation. The above observed two-way coupling between the transient flame dynamics (the ignition delay) and the thermo-acoustic instability provides a plausible mechanism of the self-excited and sustained thermo-acoustic instability observed in the combustor despite the fact that the results are obtained from 2D simulations. The same analysis is expected to be extensible to fully 3D simulations.     

Flame acceleration and the transition to detonation of stoichiometric ethylene/oxygen in microscale tubes

Flame propagation in capillary tubes with smooth circular cross-sections and diameters of 0.5, 1.0, and 2.0 mm are investigated using high-speed photography. Flames were found to propagate and accelerate to detonation speed in stoichiometric ethylene and oxygen mixtures initially at room temperature in all three tube diameters. Ignition occurs at the midpoint along the length of the tube. We observe for the first time transition to detonation in micro-tubes. Detonation was observed with both spark and hot-wire ignition. Tubes with larger diameters take longer to transition to detonation. In fact, transition distance scales with the diameter in our 1.0 and 2.0 mm cases with spark ignition. Flame structures are observed for various stages of the process. Three types of flame propagation modes were observed in the 0.5 mm tube with spark ignition: (a) acceleration to Chapman–Jouguet (CJ) detonation speed followed by constant CJ wave propagation, (b) acceleration to CJ speed, followed by the detonation wave failure, and (c) flame acceleration to a constant speed below the CJ speed of approximately 1600 m/s. The current detonation mechanism observed in capillary tubes is applicable to predetonators for pulsed detonation, micro propulsion devices, safety issues, and addresses fundamental issues raised by recent theoretical and numerical analyses.     

Numerical investigation of flame–vortex interactions in laminar cross-flow non-premixed flames in the presence of bluff bodies

Flame stabilisation in a combustor having vortices generated by flame holding devices constitutes an interesting fundamental problem. The presence of vortices in many practical combustors ranging from industrial burners to high speed propulsion systems induces vortex–flame interactions and complex stabilisation conditions. The scenario becomes more complex if the flame sustains after separating itself from the flame holder. In a recent study [P.K. Shijin, S.S. Sundaram, V. Raghavan, and V. Babu, Numerical investigation of laminar cross-flow non-premixed flames in the presence of a bluff-body, Combust. Theory Model. 18, 2014, pp. 692–710], the authors reported details of the regimes of flame stabilisation of non-premixed laminar flames established in a cross-flow combustor in the presence of a square cylinder. In that, the separated flame has been shown to be three dimensional and highly unsteady. Such separated flames are investigated further in the present study. Flame–vortex interactions in separated methane–air cross flow flames established behind three bluff bodies, namely a square cylinder, an isosceles triangular cylinder and a half V-gutter, have been analysed in detail. The mixing process in the reactive flow has been explained using streamlines of species velocities of CH₄ and O₂. The time histories of z-vorticity, net heat release rate and temperature are analysed to reveal the close relationship between z-vorticity and net heat release rate spectra. Two distinct fluctuating layers are visible in the proper orthogonal decomposition and discrete Fourier transform of OH mass fraction data. The upper fluctuating layer observed in the OH field correlates well with that of temperature. A detailed investigation of the characteristics of OH transport has also been carried out to show the interactions between factors affecting fluid dynamics and chemical kinetics that cause multiple fluctuating layers in the OH.     

Effect of structural conduction and heat loss on combustion in micro-channels

This paper presents a simple analytical model for the effects of heat exchange within the structure of a micro-channel combustor, and heat loss from the structure to the environment. This is accomplished by extending reasoning similar to that employed by Mallard and Le Chatelier in their thermal theory for flame propagation. The model is used to identify some of the basic parameters that must be considered when designing an efficient micro-combustor and its predictions are compared with the results of a numerical simulation of stoichiometric premixed combustion of a hydrogen–air mixture stabilized between two parallel plates. The simulation incorporates a one-dimensional continuity/energy equation solver with full chemistry coupled with a model for thermal exchange in the structure. The results show that heat exchange through the structure of the micro-combustor can lead to a broadening of the reaction zone. Heat loss to the environment decreases the broadening effect and eventually results in flame quenching. This behaviour, which arises from the thermal coupling between the gas and the structure, influences the maximum achievable power density of microscale combustors.     

Towards the development of an efficient low-NOx ammonia combustor for a micro gas turbine

Recent studies have demonstrated stable generation of power from pure ammonia combustion in a micro gas turbine (MGT) with a high combustion efficiency, thus overcoming some of the challenges that discouraged such applications of ammonia in the past. However, achievement of low NOx emission from ammonia combustors remains an important challenge. In this study, combustion techniques and combustor design for efficient combustion and low NOx emission from an ammonia MGT swirl combustor are proposed. The effects of fuel injection angle, combustor inlet temperature, equivalence ratio, and ambient pressure on flame stabilization and emissions were investigated in a laboratory high pressure combustion chamber. An FTIR gas analyser was employed in analysing the exhaust gases. Numerical modeling using OpenFOAM was done to better understand the dependence of NO emissions on the equivalence ratio. The result show that inclined fuel injection as opposed to vertical injection along the combustor central axis resulted to improved flame stability, and lower NH₃ and NOx emissions. Numerical and experimental results showed that a control of the equivalence ratio upstream of the combustor is critical for low NOx emission in a rich-lean ammonia combustor. NO emission had a minimum value at an upstream equivalence ratio of 1.10 in the experiments. Furthermore, NO emission was found to decrease with ambient pressure, especially for premixed combustion. For the rich-lean combustion strategy employed in this study, lower NOx emission was recorded in premixed combustion than in non-premixed combustion indicating the importance of mixture uniformity for low NOx emission from ammonia combustion. A prototype liner developed to enhance the control and uniformity of the equivalence ratio upstream of the combustor further improved ammonia combustion. With the proposed liner design, NOx emission of 42?ppmv and ammonia combustion efficiency of 99.5% were achieved at 0.3?MPa for fuel input power of 31.44?kW.     

LES studies of the flow in a swirl gas combustor

Environmental and other practical concerns have led to the development of compact gas turbine combustors burning lean mixtures leading to potentially low CO and NO_x emissions. The compact design requires efficient atomization and mixing together with a compact premixed flame. Associated with these requirements are higher temperatures, increased heat transfer, and thermal load, thus increasing the danger of combustion instabilities (causing performance deterioration and excessive mechanical loads), and possible off-design operation. Numerical simulations of reacting flows are well suited to address these issues. To this end, large eddy simulation (LES) is particularly promising. The philosophy behind LES is to explicitly simulate the large scales of the flow and the thermochemistry, affected by boundary conditions whilst modeling only the small scales, including the interaction between the flow and the combustion processes. Here, we examine the flow and the flame in a model gas turbine combustor (General Electric’s lean premixed dry low NO_x LM6000) to evaluate the potential of LES for design studies of engineering applications and to study the effects of the combustor confinement geometry on the flow and on the flame dynamics. Two LES models, a Monotone Integrated LES model with 1 and 2 step Ahrrenius chemistry, and a fractal flame-wrinkling LES model coupled to a conventional one-equation eddy-viscosity subgrid model, are used. Reasonable agreement is found when comparing predictions with experimental data and with other LES computations of the same case. Furthermore, the combustor confinement geometry is found to strongly affect the vortical flow, and hence also the flame and its dynamics.