PULSE-DETONATION STEAM SUPERHEATER

Abstract

Systematic experiments to determine the concentration limits of detonation of ternary propane/methane–oxygen–steam mixtures under normal atmospheric pressure have been conducted. The experiments are performed in an innovative pulse-detonation steam superheater (PDSSH) with cyclic detonations of ternary mixtures at variation of fuel-to-oxygen equivalence ratio (from 0.14 to 1.77 in propane mixtures and from 0.3 to 1.84 in methane mixtures) and steam volume fraction (from 0 to 0.7). Experiments are supplemented by thermodynamic calculations. Cyclic detonations of ternary propane/methane–oxygen–steam mixtures allow the generation of highly superheated steam (HSS) with a temperature exceeding 2250 K at atmospheric pressure. The detonation products of stoichiometric ternary mixtures under consideration can contain up to 80% HSS and up to 17% CO2 as well as CO, O2 and H2 in trace amounts. It is proposed to use such a high-temperature environment for deep processing (gasification) of organic municipal and industrial wastes to produce a gas mixture of CO and H2 which can be further used as a fuel gas for PDSSH operation, heat/electricity production, and as a raw material for methanol and synthetic motor fuel production. Due to periodic filling of the PDSSH with the cool ternary gas mixture, the temperature of PDSSH walls and inner elements increases insignificantly, so that conventional (not heat-resistant) construction materials can be used for its production.