Combustible Mixture Research Articles

On fuel and deposits. Part 1

Introduction (problem statement and relevance). Generally, deposits or sediments are an inevitable consequence of processes of mixture formation and combustion in the engine cylinder, complex physical and chemical processes with the hydrocarbon “participants” of this process – fuel and oil. There is no consensus in the scientific community regarding the role of these participants. Some researchers consider the “fuel” factor to be the predominant one, the others have no less reason to think it is the “oil” factor. Meanwhile, understanding the nature of formation of deposits, both the “cold” ones (in the intake path) and the “hot” ones (in the combustion chamber) is the most important condition in order to determine the methods to combat this negative phenomenon, in particular, and due to development of scientifically grounded requirements for qualitative characteristics of both fuels and oils. The relevance of the issue increases due to the fact that the existing methods of fuel testing based on foreign procedures with application of foreign reference engines become almost inaccessible following refusal of a number of the manufacturers of reference engines for standardized testing to provide further technical support caused by phasing-out of models of these engines. Moreover, during the period of common confusion in the European engine-building and uncertainty over prospects of the automotive industry on the whole, no solution was taken either for the procedure or for the new reference engine for the direct fuel injection engines increasingly dominant in the market of gasoline engines. The vacuum created is occupied by unapproved procedures with application of engines having different designs. In such conditions, correct comparison of test results obtained in different laboratories becomes almost impossible, while the results themselves lose their practical value.The purpose of the study and its practical significance consist in study of the mechanism of deposits formation in spark ignition engines and development of methods to test fuels for tendency to form certain types of deposits. Development of domestic scientific research methodological and experimental basis for engine testing of fuels and oils for deposits formation tendencies.Scientific novelty and results. The experimental studies, and the thermal gravimetric ones in particular, convincingly prove the hypothesis of domination of the fuel factor in formation of “cold” deposits on the intake valves. It has been experimentally shown that the results of testing following the new procedures adequately reflect the efficiency of using detergent additives.

On the Definition of Reaction Progress Variable in Exhaust Gas Recirculation Type Turbulent MILD Combustion of Methane and n-Heptane

Three-dimensional Direct Numerical Simulations of Exhaust Gas Recirculation (EGR)-type Moderate or Intense Low Oxygen Dilution (MILD) combustion of homogeneous mixtures of methane- and n-heptane–air have been conducted with skeletal chemical mechanisms. The suitability of different choices of reaction progress variable (which is supposed to increase monotonically from zero in the unburned gas to one in fully burned products) based on the mass fractions of different major species and non-dimensional temperature have been analysed in detail. It has been found that reaction progress variable definitions based on oxygen mass fraction, and linear combination of CO, CO2, H2 and H2O mass fractions (i.e. cO2\\documentclass[12pt]{minimal} \\usepackage{amsmath} \\usepackage{wasysym} \\usepackage{amsfonts} \\usepackage{amssymb} \\usepackage{amsbsy} \\usepackage{mathrsfs} \\usepackage{upgreek} \\setlength{\\oddsidemargin}{-69pt} \\begin{document}$${c}_{O2}$$\\end{document} and cc\\documentclass[12pt]{minimal} \\usepackage{amsmath} \\usepackage{wasysym} \\usepackage{amsfonts} \\usepackage{amssymb} \\usepackage{amsbsy} \\usepackage{mathrsfs} \\usepackage{upgreek} \\setlength{\\oddsidemargin}{-69pt} \\begin{document}$${c}_{c}$$\\end{document}) capture all the extreme values of the major species in the range between zero and one under MILD conditions. A reaction progress variable based on fuel mass fraction is found to be unsuitable for heavy hydrocarbons, such as n-heptane, since the fuel breaks down to smaller molecules before the major reactants (products) are completely consumed (formed). Moreover, it has been found that the reaction rates of cO2\\documentclass[12pt]{minimal} \\usepackage{amsmath} \\usepackage{wasysym} \\usepackage{amsfonts} \\usepackage{amssymb} \\usepackage{amsbsy} \\usepackage{mathrsfs} \\usepackage{upgreek} \\setlength{\\oddsidemargin}{-69pt} \\begin{document}$${c}_{O2}$$\\end{document} and cc\\documentclass[12pt]{minimal} \\usepackage{amsmath} \\usepackage{wasysym} \\usepackage{amsfonts} \\usepackage{amssymb} \\usepackage{amsbsy} \\usepackage{mathrsfs} \\usepackage{upgreek} \\setlength{\\oddsidemargin}{-69pt} \\begin{document}$${c}_{c}$$\\end{document} exhibit approximate linear behaviours with the heat release rate in both methane and n-heptane MILD combustion. The interdependence of different mass fractions in the EGR-type homogeneous mixture combustion is considerably different from the corresponding 1D unstretched premixed flames. The current findings indicate that the tabulated chemistry approach based on premixed laminar flames may need to be modified to account for EGR-type MILD combustion. Furthermore, both the reaction rate and scalar dissipation rate of cO2\\documentclass[12pt]{minimal} \\usepackage{amsmath} \\usepackage{wasysym} \\usepackage{amsfonts} \\usepackage{amssymb} \\usepackage{amsbsy} \\usepackage{mathrsfs} \\usepackage{upgreek} \\setlength{\\oddsidemargin}{-69pt} \\begin{document}$${c}_{O2}$$\\end{document} and cc\\documentclass[12pt]{minimal} \\usepackage{amsmath} \\usepackage{wasysym} \\usepackage{amsfonts} \\usepackage{amssymb} \\usepackage{amsbsy} \\usepackage{mathrsfs} \\usepackage{upgreek} \\setlength{\\oddsidemargin}{-69pt} \\begin{document}$${c}_{c}$$\\end{document} are found to be non-linearly related in both methane and n-heptane MILD combustion cases but the qualitative nature of this correlation for n-heptane is different from that in methane. This suggests that the range of validity of SDR-based turbulent combustion models can be different for homogeneous MILD combustion of different fuels.

Effects of injection timing on mixture formation, combustion, and emission characteristics in a n-butanol direct injection spark ignition engine

The impact of injection timings on the in-cylinder flow field intensity, mixture formation process, combustion, and emission characteristics are analyzed. The range of injection timing is set between −320°CA and −260°CA. The research results indicate: Delaying the injection timing causes the spray plumes increasingly align with the tumble direction, consequently enhancing the in-cylinder tumble intensity and the turbulence near the spark timing. The mixture homogeneity is influenced by both the formation time and the in-cylinder flow field intensity. Moreover, combustion performance is linked to the homogeneity of the mixture and turbulence intensity near the spark timing. Despite the fact that postponed injection may augment both turbulence intensity and the equivalent ratio around the spark plug at the moment of spark, achieving higher explosion pressure, but the higher viscosity of n-butanol impedes droplet break-up, and its low volatility decelerates the evaporation rate, leading to poorer mixture homogeneity, reduced BMEP, and increased CO and soot emissions. However, at −300°CA start of injection, the extended mixing time optimizes the fuel-air mixture homogeneity, thus improving combustion quality and reducing CO, soot, and HC emissions, albeit leading to increased NOx emissions.

Influence of Thiol-Functionalized Polysilsesquioxane/Phosphorus Flame-Retardant Blends on the Flammability and Thermal, Mechanical, and Volatile Organic Compound (VOC) Emission Properties of Epoxy Resins.

In this study, thiol-functionalized ladder-like polysesquioxanes end-capped with methyl and phenyl groups were synthesized via a simple sol-gel method and characterized through gel permeation chromatography (GPC), Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy (FTIR), nuclear magnetic resonance (NMR), and thermogravimetric analysis (TGA). Additionally, epoxy blends of different formulations were prepared. Their structural, flame-retardant, thermal, and mechanical properties, as well as volatile organic compound (VOC) emissions, were determined using differential scanning calorimetry (DSC), dynamic mechanical analysis (DMA), TGA, scanning electron microscopy (SEM), limiting oxygen index (LOI), cone calorimetry, and a VOC analyzer. Compared to epoxy blends with flame retardants containing elemental phosphorus alone, those with flame retardants containing elemental phosphorus combined with silicon and sulfur exhibited superior thermal, flame-retardant, and mechanical properties with low VOC emissions. SEM of the residual char revealed a dense and continuous morphology without holes or cracks. In particular, LOI values for the combustion of methyl and phenyl end-capped polysilsesquioxane mixtures were 32.3 and 33.7, respectively, compared to 28.4% of the LOI value for the blends containing only phosphorus compounds. The silicon-sulfur-phosphorus-containing blends displayed reduced flammability concerning the blends using a flame retardant containing only phosphorus. This reflects the cooperative effects of various flame-retardant moieties.

A detailed kinetic submechanism for OH[formula omitted] chemiluminescence in hydrogen combustion revisited. Part 2

In this series of two papers, we present a novel physically sound kinetic submechanism aimed at modeling the formation and decay of chemiluminescent (electronically excited) OH∗ molecules in the ignition and combustion of hydrogen and hydrogen-based mixtures over a wide range of temperatures and pressures. The present Part describes the construction of this detailed reaction submechanism based on the groundwork and findings of the preceding paper. In so doing, we relied both on critical evaluation of known and at times conflicting experimental and theoretical data on the elementary reaction kinetics of OH∗ and on our quantum chemical calculations and rate constant estimates for the key processes. The kinetic model under development was validated against the representative dataset of the observed OH(A2Σ+→X2Π) chemiluminescent emission accompanying the high-temperature (post-shock) oxidation of various H2-containing mixtures. To improve its performance against the collected OH∗ emission data, the rate constants of some reactive and quenching processes, to which the OH∗ kinetics is the most sensitive and for which there is a particular uncertainty, were jointly varied within the limits imposed by theoretical considerations and/or the scatter in the available experimental evidence. Thus, by refining the rate constants of these elementary processes, we obtained a reasonable reaction submechanism for OH∗ that describes the known experimental data better than previous models.Novelty and significance statement Although ultraviolet OH∗ chemiluminescence as an optical signature of the combustion process and the underlying chemistry is known to provide unique capabilities for combustion diagnostics, the development of the detailed reaction mechanisms intended for quantitative interpretation of the OH∗ emission measurements has now almost stagnated. Indeed, existing kinetic models contain a discouragingly small number of elementary processes and, apparently, do not account for the full variety of possible reaction pathways of OH∗ formation and depletion. Therefore, in this serial work, we have intended to revise the current ideas about the kinetics of OH∗ production and consumption during ignition and combustion and focused first on the OH∗ kinetics in a reacting H2/O2/Ar/N2 mixture. The principal outcome of this Part of the series is a new physically based kinetic submechanism aimed at modeling the formation and decay of electronically excited OH∗ molecules in the ignition and combustion of hydrogen and hydrogen-containing mixtures. Its incorporation into any conventional kinetic model of hydrogen oxidation enables quantitative interpretation of the OH(A2Σ+−X2Π) chemiluminescent emission observed experimentally in flames and shock-heated reacting flows with an accuracy higher than that of previous analogous mechanisms. No less importantly, the rate constant approximations for a number of individual elementary processes with OH∗, recommended here based on the critical review of literature data and on our quantum chemical calculations, are also of independent interest for the kinetics of electronically excited OH∗ particles. Finally, the OH∗ reaction subset we suggested for hydrogen flames can form the basis of more complex OH∗ chemiluminescence modeling reaction mechanisms for other fuels and fuel compositions.

New Aspects of the Pulse Combustion Process

Pulse combustion is an attractive yet still little-known form of combustion that can be successfully used in many industrial applications. Experimental studies show that the course of the combustion process in the valveless pulse combustion chamber is conditioned by the process of creating a well-mixed fuel–air mixture inside the chamber. In the paper, numerical calculations were carried out for selected operating conditions of the pulse chamber and compared with experimental results. This allowed for a better understanding and interpretation of the course of the pulsating combustion process itself. The role and importance of the rate of changes in the volume of the combustible mixture zone in the process of improving the efficiency of the combustion process were determined, and the reasons for changes in the pulsation frequency of the combustion process were also explained.

Combustion enhancement of boron-containing fuel-rich mixture by steam reforming in a supersonic flow

In this paper, a novel experimental investigation was conducted to enhance the combustion of boron-containing fuel-rich mixture by steam reforming in a supersonic flow. The ground direct-connected experiments were designed to simulate a flight condition at Mach number 5.9 and an altitude of 25 km. The operating characteristics and performance evaluation of the scramjet combustor were analyzed and discussed. The experimental results demonstrate that steam reforming can enhance the combustion of boron-containing fuel-rich mixtures in the supersonic flow. The performance of the combustor is firstly enhanced and then weakened with the increase of the steam-fuel ratio. The optimal steam-fuel ratio is approximately 0.189, which maximizes performance. At this steam-fuel ratio, combustion efficiency reaches 0.451, which is 9.9 % and 7.4 % higher than steam-fuel ratios of 0 and 0.395, respectively. The possible mechanism of steam reforming promoting boron combustion in the supersonic mainstream is explained. Steam accelerates the removal of the liquid oxide layer surrounding the boron particle, then combines with oxygen to produce hydrogen with good ignition-combustion characteristics and a new oxide layer. The cycle continues until the boron burns out. These conclusions can promote an understanding of enhancing the combustion of boron-containing fuel-rich mixture by steam reforming in the supersonic flow.

Experimental study of CO2/H2/NH3 influence on CH4 flameless combustion process in semi-industrial furnace

A flameless combustion mode was employed in a semi-industrial furnace to investigate the effect of NH3 on CH4, which was diluted by CO2/H2 combustible mixtures, serving as the primary fuel. Emission characteristics, as well as toxic compounds and temperature distribution maps, were presented for selected fuels. The combustion system was tested at a constant firing rate of 150 kWth and a constant fuel bulk velocity of 85 m/s. We investigated the effects of equivalence ratio, fuel composition and volume share of NH3 in the fuel. It was found that the equivalence ratio and NH3 amount have the most significant impact on the emission of fuel nitric oxide in the flameless combustion process. The dilution of CH4 with CO2 affects the stretch rate, resulting in an increase in CO levels as well as promoting NO level growth. The calculated dimensionless Conversion Factor (CF) shows that the dilution gas, CO2, significantly impacts the reduction of NH3 to NO, but only for low-content fuel-bound nitrogen (up to 1%). The lowest values of CF were measured for a high equivalence ratio, corresponding to the typical oxygen content for flameless combustion process.

A detailed kinetic submechanism for OH[formula omitted] chemiluminescence in hydrogen combustion revisited. Part 1

In this series of two papers, we present a novel physically sound kinetic submechanism aimed at modeling the formation and decay of chemiluminescent (electronically excited) OH∗ molecules in the ignition and combustion of hydrogen and hydrogen-based mixtures over a wide range of thermodynamic parameters and mixture compositions. The present part of this series describes the preparatory stages of the work, such as the aggregation of the data set for the OH∗ chemiluminescent emission (including the OH∗ emission profiles obtained in our shock-tube experiments), the choice of the basic kinetic model of hydrogen oxidation, and, importantly, quantum chemical calculations and theoretical estimates for the rate constant of the nonadiabatic preassociation reaction H + O + M ⇆ OH∗ + M, recognized as a major source of excited OH∗ molecules in hydrogen-air flames. These rate constant estimates are carried out in a wide range of temperatures (200–4000 K) and pressures (10−3−100 bar). It is shown that the rate constant of this key reaction exhibits distinct non-Arrhenius temperature behavior and, moreover, has a complex fall-off pressure dependence, with the transition from a third to a second-order, high-pressure regime occurring at pressures about 10 atm. The obtained dependence on temperature and pressure is in excellent agreement with the known experimental data and can be recommended (as part of the appropriate reaction mechanisms) for further kinetic modeling of OH∗ chemiluminescence accompanying the high-temperature oxidation of hydrogen and other fuels.Novelty and Significance StatementAlthough ultraviolet OH∗ chemiluminescence as an optical signature of the combustion process and the underlying chemistry is known to provide unique capabilities for combustion diagnostics, the development of the detailed reaction mechanisms intended for quantitative interpretation of the OH∗ emission measurements has now almost stagnated. Indeed, existing kinetic models contain a discouragingly small number of elementary processes and, apparently, do not account for the full variety of possible reaction pathways of OH∗ formation and depletion. Therefore, in this serial work, we have revised the current ideas about the kinetics of OH∗ production and consumption during ignition and combustion and focused first on the OH∗ kinetics in a reacting H2/O2/Ar/N2 mixture. The fundamentally significant and novel results of this Part of the present series are (i) the rate constant of the nonadiabatic preassociation reaction H + O + M ⇆ OH∗ + M (the primary source of OH∗ in hydrogen combustion), theoretically obtained for the first time as a function of temperature and pressure, and (ii) the OH∗ emission profiles obtained in our shock-tube experiments. The other aspects described here, such as the aggregation of the literature-based data set for the post-shock OH∗ chemiluminescent emission and the choice of the basic kinetic model of hydrogen oxidation, are also of interest and relevance.

Stratified premixed combustion optimization of a natural gas/biodiesel dual direct injection engine

The natural gas (NG) stratified premixed combustion mode (NSPC) demonstrates significant potential for improving thermal efficiency and lowering emissions when compared to the NG mixing-limited combustion mode (NMLC). In this study, the NSPC for a NG/biodiesel dual direct injection engine was optimized through numerical simulation. The initial evaluation of biodiesel as the pilot fuel reveals its capacity to reduce soot and CO emissions while simultaneously increasing thermal efficiency in comparison with pure diesel. The subsequent examination delved into the effects of the injection timing of biodiesel and natural gas on mixture distribution, combustion, and emissions characteristics. The findings indicates that a well-balanced combination of moderate injection timing of natural gas and slightly delayed injection timing of biodiesel results in significantly lowered CO and soot emissions while maintaining high thermal efficiency, but with a trade-off of increased NOx emissions. The engine performance was further refined through the integrated application of exhaust gas recirculation (EGR) and pilot fuel pre-injection. Achieving a high thermal efficiency of 42.5%, minimal CO emissions at 1.5 g/kWh, soot emissions below 1 × 10−4 g/kWh, and NOx emissions less than 2 g/kWh, is achieved by configuring the start of injection for natural gas and biodiesel at −56°CA ATDC and −10°CA ATDC, respectively, with a biodiesel pre-injection ratio of 30%, and an EGR rate of 36%.

Flame self-interactions in MILD combustion of homogeneous and inhomogeneous mixtures

Flame self-interaction (FSI) events in Moderate or Intense Low-Oxygen Dilution (MILD) combustion of homogeneous and inhomogeneous mixtures of methane and oxidiser have been analysed using three-dimensional Direct Numerical Simulations (DNS). The simulations have been conducted at the same global equivalence ratio (⟨ϕ⟩=0.8\\documentclass[12pt]{minimal} \\usepackage{amsmath} \\usepackage{wasysym} \\usepackage{amsfonts} \\usepackage{amssymb} \\usepackage{amsbsy} \\usepackage{mathrsfs} \\usepackage{upgreek} \\setlength{\\oddsidemargin}{-69pt} \\begin{document}$$\\langle \\phi \\rangle = 0.8$$\\end{document}) for different levels of O2\\documentclass[12pt]{minimal} \\usepackage{amsmath} \\usepackage{wasysym} \\usepackage{amsfonts} \\usepackage{amssymb} \\usepackage{amsbsy} \\usepackage{mathrsfs} \\usepackage{upgreek} \\setlength{\\oddsidemargin}{-69pt} \\begin{document}$$\\mathrm {O_2}$$\\end{document} concentration (dilution) and initial turbulence intensities. It has been reported that both homogeneous and inhomogeneous mixture MILD combustion cases exhibit significant occurrences of FSI events, with the peak frequency of FSI events occurring towards the burned gas side in all cases. Moreover, the frequency of FSI events increases with increasing dilution level and turbulence intensity, but the presence of mixture inhomogeneity leads to a reduction in total FSI events. In all cases, the cylindrical FSI topologies (i.e. tunnel formation and tunnel closure) were found to have a higher likelihood of occurrence compared to spherical FSI topologies (i.e. unburned and burned gas pockets). The geometries of FSI topologies were also analysed using the mean and Gaussian curvatures. It has been shown that the inward propagating spherical FSI topologies (i.e. unburned gas pockets) are associated with negative mean curvature, while outward propagating spherical FSI topologies (i.e. burned gas pockets) are associated with positive mean curvature. Moreover, tunnel formation (tunnel closure) FSI topologies predominantly exhibit either elliptic geometries with positive (negative) mean curvature or hyperbolic saddle geometries with negative (positive) mean curvature. It has been shown for the first time in MILD combustion that the mean values of kinematic restoration and dissipation terms in the transport equation of the magnitude of the reaction progress variable conditional upon the reaction progress variable tend to cancel each other in the vicinity of the critical points associated with cylindrical topologies. Thus, the singular contributions in these terms, which are obtained from analytical descriptions in the vicinity of tunnel formation and tunnel closure topologies, do not affect the balance equation of the magnitude of the gradient of the reaction progress variable. Consequently, there is no need for a separate model treatment for singularities in modelling approaches based on the magnitude of the gradient of the reaction progress variable. The FSI events in the reaction dominated and propagating flame regions of MILD combustion have also been analysed for the first time. It has been found that more FSI events occur in the reaction dominated region, particularly towards the burned gas side. However, the majority of spherical FSI topologies are found in the propagating flame region. The findings from this study indicate that turbulence intensity, dilution level and mixture inhomogeneity effects need to be considered in any attempt to extend flame surface-based modelling approaches to MILD combustion.

Vibration analysis using wavelet transformation technique and performance characteristics of a diesel engine fueled with tamarind biodiesel-diesel blends and diverse additives

This study investigates the combustion, performance characteristics, and emission levels of diesel and tamarind biodiesel mixtures (B20, B30, B40, and B100) in a single-cylinder, four-stroke, direct injection (DI) diesel engine. Further, two fuel additives, namely Butylated Hydroxytoluene (BHT) (an antioxidant) and Diethyl ether (DEE) (a cetane improver), were separately added to B20 to enhance the engine characteristics. In addition, Wavelet Transform and Wavelet Packet algorithms were used to investigate the vibration behaviour of the tested fuels. The results demonstrate that the B20 blend improved the performance and generated less emission than the other blends. Moreover, the brake thermal efficiency (BTE) and brake-specific fuel consumption (BSFC) for B20+BHT were 3.8% higher and 4.1% less than B20, respectively. B20+DEE combustion showed lower CO and smoke pollutants by 51% and 19% compared to B20, respectively. The NOx emissions for the blends containing BHT and DEE were decreased by 16% and 9%, respectively. The engine vibration analysis showed almost the same frequency with fuel blends B20 and B30, which were similar to the diesel fuel values. The results concluded the tamarind biodiesel/diesel mixtures with BHT and DEE improved the performance and emissions behaviors of DI diesel engine and could be considered a potential alternative biofuel for such engines. Wavelet analysis of the engine was accurately employed to extract the prominent features of the vibrations.

History of high-amplitude underwater sound source research at the University of Texas Applied Research Laboratories

The Applied Research Laboratories has an extensive history of supporting underwater acoustic research through the development of novel high-amplitude underwater sound sources, such as the Plasma Sound Source (PSS), the Combustive Sound Source (CSS) and the Rupture Induced Underwater Sound Source (RIUSS). These sources generate broadband acoustic pulses capable of long-range propagation and seabed penetration, and can be viewed as alternatives to explosive sources. The PSS is based on the discharge of electrical energy stored in capacitors which results in a plasma bubble. The CSS consists of a submersible combustion chamber, open to the water, which is filled with a combustive mixture that is ignited via spark. Upon ignition, the combustive mixture is converted into high temperature combustion byproducts which expand and ultimately collapse, thereby radiating an acoustic pulse. In this talk, the motivation for alternative impulsive sources is discussed and the PSS is briefly discussed. Next, the early development of CSS, through the end of the 1990’s, is described, which led to the basic understanding of the CSS and the parameters required to modify its output. In the following talk further development of CSS, and the invention of RIUSS, are discussed. [Work supported by ONR and NAVO.]

A numerical investigation of the influence of ozone on combustion to improve the performance of spark ignition engines

The aim of this work is to exploit the influence of using ozonized air to achieve stable and efficient combustion of lean mixtures in a gasoline-fuelled Spark-Ignition (SI) engine. The influence of ozone on the combustion of near-stoichiometric mixtures, which are typical of SI engines, has also been assessed. A Computational Fluid Dynamics (CFD) model has been employed to simulate compression, combustion, and expansion of a spark ignition, axisymmetric engine fuelled with iso-octane/air/ozone mixtures. The aim is to assess how ozone improves the engine performance under different engine speeds, ignition timings and equivalence ratios. The model has been validated against experimental data available in the literature. Parametric analyses have been carried out by considering three values of engine speeds (800, 1000 and 1200 rpm), three different ozone concentrations at Intake Valve Closure (IVC) (0, 100 and 200 ppm) and two equivalence ratios (0.9 and 0.7). The results show that ozone enables reactions in the Low Temperature Combustion (LTC) regime, modifies the mixture chemical composition and the auto-ignition tendency. Specifically, for all the cases under examination, the addition of ozone to the air/fuel mixture reduces the combustion duration, leading to an increase in terms of work output and a reduction of the specific fuel consumption. Moreover, the advantage of using ozone is greater for lean mixtures than for near-stoichiometric mixtures. Finally, for the near-stoichiometric cases, when the residence time of the mixture is high enough, auto-ignition occurs in the end gases.

Impact of flash boiling spray on soot generation of a rich fuel–air mixture under various ambient pressures

Particulate emission is one of the critical challenges for the modern gasoine direct injection (GDI) engines. Especially under cold start conditions, the global equivalence ratio inside the cylinder is often set quite rich, leading to the generation of a large amount of soot. The fuel distribution state, such as homogeneous mixing and heterogeneous mixing with local rich pockets prior to the combustion is the key factor affecting soot generation under cold start conditions in GDI engines. Flash boiling injection, as a method to promote fuel air mixing, could be a potential solution to sooting problems of rich mixture combustion under cold start conditions. However, the unclear influences of flash boiling spray to fuel–air mixing state and subsequent soot generation pose a challenge to soot reduction in GDI engines. This work aims to study the effect of various flash boiling degrees on fuel–air mixture formation and subsequent soot generation utilizing a customized constant volume combustion chamber (CVCC) incorporated with the gasoline direct injection scheme under moderately cold start ambient temperature of 30 °C. A global high equivalence ratio of 1.7 representing extremely rich combustions under cold start conditions is selected for strong sooting propensity. By setting different fuel temperatures (Tf= 30 °C and 120 °C) and various ambient pressures (Pa= 40 kPa, 100 kPa and 160 kPa), various spray flash boiling states (subcooled, transitional flash boiling and flare flash boiling sprays) are achieved, and finally various fuel distribution states of rich mixtures prior to combustion are obtained. High speed color camera and soot sampling TEM grids were used to capture and evaluate the characteristics of spray atomization, combustion and soot aggregate structures. Based on this investigation, the effect of flash boiling degree on fuel–air mixing and subsequent soot generation is analyzed. The results show that flash boiling spray enhances fuel atomization and produces much more homogeneous rich mixture with smaller local rich pockets and richer global premixed gaseous portion. Over-rich global premixed mixture combustion is prone to nuclei inception and agglomeration, producing soot aggregates with small primary particles. While the local rich pocket combustion is prone to surface growth, producing larger primary particles. Flash boiling spray could reduce the size of soot particles under cold start conditions by generating smaller local rich pockets.

Lean Biogas-Air Mixture Combustion on Porous Burner with a Flamethrower Ignition System

ABSTRACT Combustion in a porous medium burner is an effective technology that deals with low heat capacity fuels, producing low emissions of pollutant gases. Experimental investigations of filtration combustion were carried out on a laboratory-scale prototype developed by our research group. This prototype is outfitted with a novel spark ignition system attached in the middle of the reactor, which does not change the porous medium properties because it works as a flamethrower. The ignition system produces a flame front into the porous matrix that quickly reaches the operational combustion temperature of 1200 K. By applying pure methane and biogas with different CO2 contents (15% − 40%) for combustion processes, the influence of equivalence ratio, gas flow velocity, energy extraction efficiency and NOx emissions was evaluated. Experimental results such as temperature profiles, reaction stability and flammability limits also have been evaluated. According to the operational parameters tested in this study, this prototype setup presented a low time-consuming process to reach the temperature of combustion, almost ten times faster than those with electrical resistance. Furthermore, the prototype was capable of operating at an equivalence ratio of 0.4 and gas flow velocity of 0.2 m/s, maintaining high CO2 content in the fuel, to reach NOx emission values lower than 1.0 ppm.

Experimental Investigation of Non-Premixed Combustion Process in a Swirl Burner with LPG and Hydrogen Mixture

In the modern world, issues related to the use of alternative fuels are becoming increasingly pressing. These fuels offer the potential to achieve significantly improved environmental and technological performance. Currently, among such fuels, biodiesel, ammonia, LPG, and hydrogen are considered the most promising options. LPG and hydrogen exhibit a high Lower Heating Value (LHV) and have a relatively low environmental impact. This article investigates the combustion of hydrogen-LPG mixtures in a diffusion burner. The main parameters under study include the proportion of hydrogen in the fuel, equivalence ratio, and vane angle. The analyzed parameters encompass NOx and CO concentrations. The studies have demonstrated that the addition of hydrogen can reduce greenhouse gas emissions, as the combustion product is clean water. The primary focus of this research is the examination of combustion processes involving flow swirl systems and alternative fuels and their mixtures. The studies indicate that flame stabilization is significantly influenced by several factors. The first factor is the amount of hydrogen added to the fuel mixture. The second factor is the degree of mixing between the fuel and oxidizer, along with hydrogen. Lastly, the equivalence ratio plays a crucial role. As the studies have shown, the maximum stabilization for a speed of 5 m/s is achieved at an angle of 60° and a hydrogen fraction of 40%, resulting in φLBO = 0.9. This represents an 8.0% improvement in stabilization compared to the baseline mode, primarily due to the substantial proportion of hydrogen. An analysis of flame photographs reveals that as the twist angle increases, a recirculation zone becomes more apparent. Increasing the blade angle and incorporating hydrogen leads to a reduction in CO concentrations in the exhaust gases. The analysis indicates that increasing the hydrogen proportion to 50%, compared to the absence of hydrogen, results in a 30% decrease in CO concentration. In our case, for the option φ = 0.3 and blade angles of 60°, the reduction in CO concentration was 28.5%. From the authors’ perspective, the most optimal vane angle is 45°, along with a hydrogen fraction of 30–40%. With these parameters, it was possible to achieve concentrations of NOx = 17–25 ppm, φLBO = 0.66, and CO = 130–122 ppm.

Experimental and Numerical Study of Combustion of Rich Mixtures of Methanol and Hydrogen with Air

Experimental and Numerical Study of Combustion of Rich Mixtures of Methanol and Hydrogen with Air

Exploring the chemical kinetic effects on the direct detonation initiation in H2-O2-Ar mixtures

Chemical kinetics plays an important role in the direct detonation initiation (DDI) of various combustible mixtures. However, its impact on detonation dynamics has rarely been studied with detailed mechanisms. This study introduces the active subspace method to systematically explore the chemical kinetics impact on the unsteady detonation dynamics in DDI of H2-O2-Ar mixture, with a 13-species detailed mechanism. The kinetic effects on the ZND structure with sub-CJ shock speed (sub-CJ ZND structure) is first investigated, where three important reactions to the sub-CJ minimum shock speed, H + O2 = O + OH, H + O + M = OH + M and H2O + H2O = H + OH + H2O are identified. Then the active subspace method is further employed to analyze the kinetics impact on the critical initiation energy ( E cr ) predicted with the critical decay rate (CDR) model and critical decay time (CDT) model. Results show that the CDT model, which utilises the sub-CJ ZND model to compute the critical parameters, can properly capture the one-dimensional detonation dynamics. All the important reactions identified with the CDT model agree well with those of one-dimensional simulations. In contrast, the CDR model shares a similar active subspace with the constant volume auto-ignition process and fails to identify the less important reactions. The consistency in the key reactions between one-dimensional simulations and the CDT model implies that it is viable to employ the CDT model as an efficient surrogate for quantifying the kinetic effects in unsteady detonation dynamics.

Advanced Numerical Analysis of In-Cylinder Combustion and NOx Formation Using Different Chamber Geometries

In diesel engines, emission formation inside the combustion chamber is a complex phenomenon. The combustion events inside the chamber occur in microseconds, affecting the overall engine performance and emissions characteristics. This study opted for using computational fluid dynamics (CFD) to investigate the combustion patterns and how these events affect nitrogen oxide (NOx) emissions. In this study, a diesel engine model with a flat combustion chamber (FCC) was developed for the simulation. The simulation result of the heat release rate (HRR) and cylinder pressure was validated with the experimental test data (the engine test was conducted at 1500 rpm at full load conditions). The validated model and its respective boundary conditions were used to investigate the effect of modified combustion chamber profiles on NOx emissions. Modified chambers, such as a bathtub combustion chamber (BTCC) and a shallow depth chamber (SCC), were developed, and their combustion events were analysed with respect to the FCC. This study revealed that combustion events such as fuel distribution, unburnt mass fractions, temperature and turbulent zones directly impact NOx emissions. The modified chambers controlled the spread of combustion and provided better fuel distribution, improving engine performance and combustion rates. The SCC (63.2 bar) showed peak pressure rates compared to the FCC (63.02 bar) and BTCC (62.72 bar). This study concluded that the SCC showed better results than other chambers. This study further recommends conducting lean fuel mixture combustion with chamber modifications and optimising fuel spray, such as by adjusting the fuel injection profile, spray angle and injection timing, which has a better tendency to create complete combustion.