Spray characteristics of a self-aspirating ethanol ejector for high-efficiency combustion-based thermoelectric micropower generators

Abstract

Low energy conversion efficiencies of combustion-based micropower generators due to parasitic losses continue to be a persistent challenge that limits their practical applications. This work puts forward a new strategy of liquid fuel delivery to a microcombustor with improved atomization and minimum parasitic energy losses. In the present work, a self-aspirating spray ejector is developed, providing continuous ethanol fuel delivery in the form of micron-sized droplets to a microcombustor of ∼ 1.0 kW thermal input capacity. The ejector base- setup works on the principle of generating a low-pressure zone through gas expansion, leading to the self-aspiration of ethanol fuel. The emerging annular ethanol film manifests a shear instability at the liquid–gas interface and subsequently breaks up into ligaments and fine micron-sized droplets. It was observed that the hydrostatic pressure of gas and aerodynamic Weber number (We) significantly affect the ethanol ejection rate, Sauter mean diameter (SMD), droplet distribution, and entrainment ratio of the spray ejector. The spray characteristics, such as mean droplet velocity and spray angle, are mainly governed by a single parameter, i.e., aerodynamic Weber number (We). The maximum power consumption for the spray ejector during the steady-state operation is ∼ 0.1 % of thermal input. The present investigation suggests that the self-aspirating spray ejector generates a fine and fully developed spray with ultra-low energy input requirement and, thus, can be a potential candidate for the development of high-efficiency combustion-based thermoelectric micropower generators.