On adiabatic stabilization and geometry of bunsen flames

Abstract

Two aspects of stretched flame dynamics are investigated via the model problem of the stabilization andgeometry of Bunsen flames. Specifically, the possibility of stabilizing a Bunsen flame without heat loss to the burner rim is experimentally investigated by examining the temperature of the rim, the temperature gradient between the rim and the flame base, and the standoff distance of the flame base in relation to the flame thickness. Results show that, while heat loss is still the dominant stabilization mechanism for flames in uniform flows and for strong flames in parabolic flows, adiabatic stabilization and, subsequently, blowoff are indeed possible for weak flames in parabolic flows. The adiabatically stabilized flame is then modeled by using the scalar field formulation and by allowing for the effects of curvature and aerodynamic straining on the local flame speed. The calculated flame configuration agrees well with the experiment for the adiabatically stabilized flame but not for the nonadiabatic flame. Results further show that active modification of the flame curvature is the dominant cause for the flame to maintain adiabatic stabilization. Implications of the present results on turbulent flame modeling are discussed.