The composition of an atomized slurry fuel jet

Abstract

Slurry fuels have become increasingly popular over the last decades. The combustion of coal-water slurries does not only help with waste recovery but also produces heat and electricity. Studying the process of slurry atomization for further combustion is high on the research agenda. It is still disputable whether a homogeneous slurry jet can be produced by a twin-fuel atomizer. With split component feeding, fuel premixing will become unnecessary; component storage and transportation is simplified as well. In this research, the composition of an atomized slurry fuel jet is reliably determined using shadowgraphy and laser-induced fluorescence. The results show that an internal-mixing twin-fluid atomizer produces a homogeneous atomized flow. Conditions have been determined in which a fuel slurry jet is formed with an optimal composition of solid particles and droplets with and without particles. It is established that split component feeding leads to a 13–23 % increase in jet angle, a 1–4° reduction in the jet deviation angle from its original path, as well as a considerable reduction (up to twofold) in the droplet velocity in a jet. The results obtained here can be used to optimize the storage and transportation of fuel components.