Kinetic modelling of n-decane combustion and autoignition

Abstract

Abstract A chemical kinetic mechanism for the combustion of n -decane has been compiled and validated for a wide range of combustion regimes. Validation has been performed by using experimental measurements on a premixed flame of n -decane, O 2 and N 2 , stabilized at 1 atm on a flat-flame burner, as well as from shock-tube ignition experiments, from jet-stirred reactor experiments and from a freely propagating premixed flame. The reaction mechanism features ∼600 reactions and 67 species. The oxidation of C 1 -C 2 -species and the description of the hydrogen-oxygen system is similar to that of well-established mechanisms for lower hydrocarbons. Special attention is directed towards an accurate description of species relevant to pollutant formation. The low-temperature oxidation mechanism is lumped from similar mechanisms in the recent literature to account for every type of reaction appearing in this combustion regime, e.g., thermal decomposition of alkanes, H-atom abstraction, alkyl radical isomerization, and β-decomposition for the high temperature range, and a few additional reactions at low temperatures. The transition between low and high temperatures with a negative temperature dependence is excellently reproduced.