Soot Formation and Flame Characterization in a Swirl Kerosene Spray Rich Burn-Quench-Lean Burner at Elevated Pressure

Abstract

Abstract Swirl-stabilized, turbulent, non-premixed kerosene-air flames were studied experimentally in an RQL (Rich burn/Quick-quench/Lean-burn) model combustor equipped with large optical accesses. The goal of these studies was to characterize the flame topology as well as soot and NO formation processes in the rich primary zone of the RQL combustor, and to establish a large database for future validation of numerical simulations. The experiments were performed under relevant operating conditions up to 4.5 bar. The aerodynamic flow field was measured by Particle Image Velocimetry, the flame structure, fuel and NO distributions by Planar Laser-induced Fluorescence and soot volume fractions by Planar Laser-induced Incandescence. Additional measurements were performed by a scanning mobility particle sizer technique to record the number of soot particles per unit volume as well as the particles size. Two equivalence ratio conditions were used to study the impact of relevant scalar parameters on NO and soot production. For each condition, instantaneous and average distributions of the measured parameters are presented and discussed. The coupling of the optical and intrusive measurement techniques has finally enabled to highlight the impact of the liquid and gas phases fuel distribution on the flame structure, but also on NO and soot formation.