Determination of spatial temperature distributions in a laminar premixed ethylene/air flame by laser-induced atomic fluorescence

A quick and simple detection system for spatially resolved temperature measurements in flames based on laser-induced thermally assisted atomic line fluorescence of seeded rubidium atoms is described. The fluorescence light from two atomic states is dispersed and simultaneously recorded by a CCD camera. The fluorescence ratio distributions lead directly to absolute temperature distributions. The practical use, the spatial and temperature resolution and error limits of the method are discussed and compared with other procedures for temperature measurements.