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

Abstract

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.