Generation of Entropy Waves by Fully Premixed Flames in a Non-Adiabatic Combustor With Hydrogen Enrichment

Abstract

Abstract Thermoacoustic combustion instability is a major concern in gas turbine combustors with hydrogen-enriched fuels. Unsteady combustion not only generates acoustic waves but it may also result in fluctuations of burnt gas temperature, referred to as entropy waves. They are convected by the mean flow through the combustor and can cause indirect combustion noise when they are accelerated at the exit. In this work, we demonstrate that entropy waves occur in a fully premixed burner due to unsteady heat transfer at the combustion chamber wall. This mechanism of entropy generation is often neglected in the literature. This work shows an additional mechanism in CH4-H2-air flames, through which entropy may be created even in the fully premixed case. This is due to differential diffusion which generates local fluctuations in equivalence and carbon-to-hydrogen ratios. An adiabatic flame temperature is defined based on these two quantities to examine the influence of differential diffusion on the generation of entropy fluctuations. The generation of entropy waves is investigated by applying system identification (SI) to time series data obtained from a broadband forced large eddy simulation (LES) coupled with a heat conduction solver. The entropy transfer function (ETF) and flame transfer function (FTF) identified with LES/SI are then compared to experimental data obtained with tunable diode laser absorption spectroscopy with wavelength modulation spectroscopy (TDLAS-WMS) for measuring temperature fluctuations, and the multimicrophone method, respectively. After validating the computational setup, the entropy frequency response is identified at various positions within the combustion chamber, and the effects of generation and convective dispersion of entropy waves are qualitatively investigated. We show that a fully premixed turbulent system may exhibit significant entropy waves caused by wall heat losses and differential diffusion of hydrogen.